Financial and Government Leaders Unite to Address Africa's Trade Challenges
Roosevelt Ogbonna, Managing Director of Access Bank Plc, has issued a powerful call for enhanced cooperation among policymakers, financial institutions, and business leaders to accelerate trade within Africa and unleash the continent's substantial economic potential. Speaking at the Access Bank Africa Trade Conference (ATC 2026), Ogbonna emphasized that despite Africa's vast market opportunities, structural barriers continue to severely limit the growth of intra-continental commerce.
Persistent Structural Barriers Hampering Progress
Ogbonna highlighted that Africa's share of global trade remains disproportionately small, with fragmented trade corridors and systemic bottlenecks continuing to obstruct commercial growth across the continent. He explained that stakeholders at last year's conference had identified three critical priorities for transforming Africa's trade landscape: breaking down silos between different sectors, building a trade ecosystem supported by reliable data and analytics, and developing systems that support both large corporations and smaller businesses seeking cross-border expansion.
The 2026 conference represents a continuation of efforts to drive meaningful progress in intra-African trade. Ogbonna acknowledged that since the previous edition, some advancement has occurred across key economic sectors, particularly through technology platforms that reduce friction in payments, logistics, and market access. However, he cautioned that these gains remain unevenly distributed across the continent, with progress concentrated in only a few markets and specific trade corridors.
Infrastructure Financing and Policy Alignment Critical
Kennedy Mbekeani, Director-General for Southern Africa at the African Development Bank (AfDB), addressed the crucial need for stronger infrastructure financing to support growing intra-African trade. He called for more effective mobilization of private capital to finance the critical infrastructure required to unlock Africa's full trade integration potential.
During the ministerial panel discussion, Zambia's Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry, Chipoka Mulenga, emphasized that policy alignment among African countries would be essential to unlocking the continent's trade potential. "Policy is very important in making anything come together," Mulenga stated. "It must be consistent, resilient, and coherent. If intra-African trade must be enhanced, we must deliberately craft policies that speak the same language across our countries. We should leverage our comparative advantages, rather than competing with one another."
Implementation Challenges and Practical Solutions
Ghana's Minister for Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, Elizabeth Ajare, noted that Africa does not lack policy frameworks but rather struggles with harmonized implementation. She stressed that countries must be willing to compromise and adopt mutual recognition frameworks to facilitate trade across borders. "If we insist on verifying every product independently, we will not make progress," Ajare explained. "Harmonizing standards and recognizing each other's certification processes will allow us to trade more efficiently."
Botswana's Minister of Trade and Entrepreneurship, Tiroeaone Ntsima, added that African governments must focus on creating enabling environments that allow businesses and investors to drive economic growth effectively.
Moving Beyond Dialogue to Concrete Action
In his concluding remarks, Ogbonna urged all stakeholders to move beyond dialogue and take concrete steps that will strengthen trade relationships among African countries. He emphasized that Africa's economic transformation would depend largely on the willingness of businesses and institutions to collaborate more effectively and implement practical solutions to longstanding trade barriers.
The conference highlighted the growing consensus among financial and government leaders that coordinated action, infrastructure investment, policy harmonization, and technological innovation are essential components for realizing Africa's trade potential and achieving sustainable economic growth across the continent.
