News

Transport Observatories in Africa: Overview and Current Status vs. their Limitations

Saturday, 25 October 2025 08:27

Transport Observatories (TOs) are data-driven monitoring tools that track key performance indicators (KPIs) along major trade and transport corridors. The primary function of a TO is to provide a comprehensive, evidence-based view of corridor performance by measuring critical variables. Despite their potential to improve trade efficiency and infrastructure management, the development and deployment of TOs in Africa remain limited. This article explores the main challenges hindering their adoption and suggests ways to overcome them. Read more on our blog.

Africa’s Role in Geopolitics-Driven Next Global Trade Flows: Simple Transit Zone or Active Orchestrator of Global Connectivity?

Friday, 24 October 2025 14:34

Recent analysis, such as the DHL–NYU Stern Global Supply Chain Report (2025), shows a remarkable stability of global supply chains despite tariffs, geopolitical frictions, and rising protectionism. Although expectations of large-scale restructuring have been widespread, the process is evolving gradually. Supply chains remain widely dispersed, with only a few countries—such as Mexico—showing significant reorientation toward the U.S. and Canada, while diversifying import sources globally. On our blog.

WCO Unveils Digital Framework for Sharing Certificates of Origin

Wednesday, 22 October 2025 13:04

The World Customs Organization (WCO) has taken a major step to cut red tape and fight origin fraud by introducing a new digital interconnectivity framework for secure, real-time electronic exchange of Certificates of (preferential) Origin between customs administrations. This system is designed to modernize how countries verify the origin of goods.

DESSU Corridor Authority Officially Launched in Djibouti

Wednesday, 22 October 2025 06:59

A high-level Ethiopian delegation led by the Minister of Transport and Logistics arrived yesterday in Djibouti for the official launch of the Djibouti-Ethiopia-South Sudan-Uganda (DESSU) Corridor Management Authority, a regional initiative aimed at boosting trade, infrastructure, and economic integration in the Great Horn of Africa.

Does Africa really produce what it doesn’t need, or rather, what it can?

Tuesday, 21 October 2025 11:55

An article recently published on Joy News in Ghana highlights an undeniable truth: Africa’s overreliance on raw-material exports limits the transformative potential of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The article argues that without value addition, intra-African trade will remain shallow, and that competition (especially from China) undermines Africa’s industrial growth because African producers struggle to match the low prices, large-scale production, and efficiency of Chinese firms, leaving local industries unable to compete both regionally and globally. These points are valid and align with long-standing critiques of Africa’s commodity-dependent trade structure (the so-called “commodity trap”) and the urgent need for industrial diversification. However, the analysis in the article also presents several conceptual weaknesses that make its overall diagnosis too narrow and somewhat misleading.