New York, United States – 25 September 2024

The Secretary General of the AfCFTA Secretariat, Wamkele Mene, participated in a high-level panel at the “Unstoppable Africa” event in New York, organised by the Global Africa Business Initiative (GABI).

In his remarks, he emphasised that much of the work has focused on creating a legal framework to promote intra-African trade. This phase is nearing completion with the approval of the final two protocols: digital trade and women and youth in trade. The focus is now on the full implementation of the AfCFTA.

The Secretary General also noted that trade within this framework has already begun, with expectations that volumes will increase in the coming years.

Benin’s Foreign Minister, Olushegun Adjadi Bakari, also spoke on the importance of free movement for businesspeople across the continent. He pointed out that African countries have largely upheld the borders imposed by colonial powers, and in some cases, even made them stricter. He highlighted that Benin does not require visas for any African passport holders.

Other panel participants included British A. Robinson, Coordinator of Prosper Africa representing the US government, and Igor Van den Essen from APM Terminals.

GABI is a global platform led by the African private sector, aimed at galvanising leaders from across the private, public, and social sectors to invest in Africa. It seeks to drive transformative change and reposition the continent on the global stage by expanding business, trade, and investment opportunities, and by connecting the African private sector with potential global partners, companies, and investors.