How realistic would it be to move from a national “Made in” to a continental “Made in”?

One of the recommendations contained in the Seychelles AfCFTA Implementation strategy is to promote a “Made in Seychelles” brand to increase visibility of Seychelles products in other AfCFTA member States, by leveraging diplomatic missions, consulates and the diaspora. In line with this strategy, Seychelles has recently introduced a regulation called “Seychelles Made Act” to promote locally produced goods, strengthen the country's manufacturing sector and raise the domestic and international profile of goods that are produced in Seychelles. This new legislation aims to increase the reputation and improve the positioning of Seychelles’ products domestically and on other markets, in an attempt to make them more attractive to consumers.

Seychelles is not the first case of an African country that has developed a “made in” brand (in this post we described the cases of Ghana and Kenya), but the new Seychelles regulation is particularly interesting because it is inspired to an extracontinental experience: the “Australian Made, Australian Grown” (AMAG) Logo certification trade mark, which was created by the Australian Government in 1986 to promote Australian-made products in local and export markets. In this country, the AMAG Logo has gained a reputation of powerful sales and marketing tool that promotes Australian brands around the globe. The licensing process for granting to business the right to use the logo is administered by the Australian Made Campaign Limited (AMCL), a not-for-profit public company established in 1999 by the Australian Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ACCI) and the network of state and territory chambers of commerce, with the cooperation of the Federal Government. According to a research made by the Australian research firm Roy Morgan Research in 2012, the made in AMAG logo (represented by a stylized kangaroo), earned quickly after its introduction a widespread recognition, becoming one of the strongest nation brands in the world and the most trusted country of origin symbol in Australia, with a 98.8 per cent recognition level amongst Australian consumers. The AMAG logo is a guarantee of quality of the products that bear it. In order to be allowed to use it, businesses must comply with a series of requirements established by a “Code of Practice”  adopted in July 2014 which requires such products to undergo a “substantial transformation” in the country, as specified in the Code.

Similarly, the Seychelles Made Act, 2025, mandates a public agency, the Enterprise Seychelles Agency, to develop a Code of Practice providing information to business on the regulatory requirements for certifying a product or produce as a “Seychelles Made” product. Such Code of Practice has not been developed yet, but similar to the Australian one, will defines the rules and conditions governing the use of the Seychelles Made Logo.

This initiative is noteworthy and other African countries should take inspiration from Seychelles. But at this point, why not to try to be more ambitious and develop a voluntary certification scheme at continental level with an African Union “made in Africa” logo that would guarantee the African origin and the quality of African made goods? Regional Economic Communities  (RECs) could be responsible for supervising the licensing process for the use of the logo, in collaboration with Bureaus of Standards in each African nation. Indeed, RECs have a good understanding of the specific economic and industrial landscapes of their member states. This could lead to a more efficient and tailored implementation of the logo licensing process. Moreover, RECs play a crucial role in harmonizing standards and conformity assessment procedures at the regional level, which is a stepping stone towards continent-wide harmonization under the AfCFTA. They have existing frameworks for trade facilitation, standardization, and regional integration. Utilizing these structures could avoid duplication of effort and streamline the logo certification process.