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New survey reveals African companies struggle to find information on how to trade under the AfCFTA

Friday, 07 January 2022 10:09

Although the majority of business leaders across Africa are optimistic about the economic benefits of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), detailed information on how to concretely benefit from the new agreement is still lacking. This is one of the main findings of a survey conducted by the Pan-African Private Sector Trade and Investment Committee (PAFTRAC) from August to October 2021 in 44 African countries plus the Americas and the Middle East, which has been recently published. The survey reveals that although 71% of respondents are persuaded that AfCFTA will encourage them to invest to grow their business (with only 2% of participants believing that the free trade area will have a negative impact on their business), almost two-thirds of respondents (62%) do not know where to access information about the AfCFTA.

Sudan and Ethiopia form joint border patrols but no agreement on the reopening of the Metema border crossing

Friday, 07 January 2022 07:50

During a meeting held in the border town of Metema on 5 January 2022, military delegations from Sudan and Ethiopia discussed plans for the re-opening of the Gallabat-Metema border crossing. This border post, vital for trade between the two countries, was closed in July 2021 after the murder of a Sudanese army officer in the Galabat area by an Ethiopian gunmen inside the Sudanese side of the border. Since then, all commercial activities between the two countries through this border post are paralised.

Reduction of non-tariff barriers as a condition for the success of the AfCFTA

Thursday, 06 January 2022 06:50

A study titled “Potential effects of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) on African agri-food sectors and food security” conducted by the European Union’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) on request of the African Union Commission (AUC) shows that to make the AfCFTA a success, African Regional Economic Communities and national governments have to focus more on reduction of non-tariff barriers, as this can have an impact on the growth of intra-African trade larger than reduction in tariffs.

New WTO report provides recommendations on how to ease trade bottlenecks in landlocked countries

Tuesday, 04 January 2022 13:01

Landlocked developing countries (LLDC) face very high trade costs, which on average, are almost double than those faced by coastal countries, as a result of the lack of territorial access to the sea and isolation from the world’s largest markets, which restrict the free flow of trade and impose constraints on their socio-economic development. The incidence of transport costs and non-tariff measures is also higher in these countries. In 2020, LLDCs suffered a 36 per cent decline in services exports, sharper than in the rest of the world.

Gulu logistics hub promises to shift to railway part of trade traffic between Uganda, Kenya, South Sudan and DRC

Tuesday, 04 January 2022 07:01

A logistics hub under construction in Gulu will transform the Ugandan city in a strategic logistics point for trade between Uganda, Kenya, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) by shifting part of road traffic to railway, as planned under Vision 2040, the strategic master plan for Uganda’s development which aims at developing by 2040 a multi-lane standard gauge railway system with high speed trains for both passenger transport and cargo freights linking Uganda to the Mombasa (Kenya), Dar-es-salaam and Tanga (Tanzania) and Djibouti ports.

News

New survey reveals African companies struggle to find information on how to trade under the AfCFTA

Sudan and Ethiopia form joint border patrols but no agreement on the reopening of the Metema border crossing

Reduction of non-tariff barriers as a condition for the success of the AfCFTA

New WTO report provides recommendations on how to ease trade bottlenecks in landlocked countries

Gulu logistics hub promises to shift to railway part of trade traffic between Uganda, Kenya, South Sudan and DRC

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