ECA: AfCFTA an opportunity for Africa’s youth to accelerate trade, industrialization

Addis Ababa January 16, 2023 9FBC) – African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is an opportunity for young people to accelerate Africa’s industrialization and economic transformation through entrepreneurship, youths say, calling for an enabling policy framework.

According to ECA, AfCFTA recognizes young people who can play a critical role in the achievement of the free trade zone by initiating youth-led initiatives in agriculture, financial technology, IT and in the creative industry.

At an online presentation meeting organized by the Regional Integration and Trade Division (RITD) of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), nine young mentees who have completed RITD’s “Youth for AfCFTA Mentorship Programme” presented their final assignment to senior staff in ECA.

ECA stated that the competition held under the theme, “The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA): What is in it for young Africans?”

The competition aimed to break information asymmetry among youth on the AfCFTA and promote a bottom-up approach to the policy formulation and implementation by harnessing innovative youth-driven solutions that will contribute to active youth engagement in the popularization of the AfCFTA, ECA indicated.

ECA called on member states to operationalize the Pan African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), a centralized payment and settlement system for intra-African trade in goods and services developed in 2022.

Implementation of the AfCFTA would increase employment opportunities and wages for unskilled workers and help close the gender wage gap, said experts from ECA.

By: Yonathan Yoseph