The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has revealed that Africa’s current untapped export potential amounts to $21.9 billion, equivalent to 43 per cent of intra-African exports. UNCTAD, in its latest report on ‘Economic Development in Africa’ said an additional $9.2 billion of export potential could be realised through partial tariff liberalisation under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) over the next five years. “To unlock the untapped potential, various intra-African non-tariff barriers including costly non-tariff measures, infrastructure and market information gaps, need to be addressed. This requires joint efforts under the AfCFTA,” it stated. UNCTAD Secretary-General, Rebeca Grynspan, said: “AfCFTA has immense potential to spur economic growth and transform the continent’s development prospects if additional measures are taken to realise and fairly distribute its many potential benefits, as these gains will not come automatically.

Source: The Guardian December 19, 2021 04:37 UTC