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Vice President Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia has said that the Africa Continental Free Trade ( Accra) is a real game changer and once fully realized can increase intra – Africa Trade by $ 35 billion and reduce external imports by $ 10 billion annually.
The Vice President made this known during the median edition of Africa Prosperity Dialogue at Adukrom in the Eastern region.
He said this will create more opportunities for growth for our small businesses and the potential to lift more than three million people out of poverty.
He added that the time has come for Africa and Africans to define our narrative.
He said, “We cannot allow poverty and underdevelopment to be the destiny of Africa, a continent blessed with every natural resource imaginable.”
Dr. Bawumia also added that as a continent, we need to produce and trade our way out of poverty and underdevelopment and we cannot do that without investing in smart infrastructure across the continent.
He also urged African leaders to unleash the productive capacities across the continent and also create platforms for knowledge brokerage, and access information on critical products and services on the continent to allow 445 million small businesses across the continent to plug into value chains of these mega industries.
He indicated that African leaders need to develop Africa into a manufacturing zone that will facilitate the Trade of value-added products.
The Vice President also said that Africa needs between $130 billion and 170 billion annually to bridge its infrastructure gap and generate sustainable growth at 5% per annum or more.
The founder and the chairman of Africa Prosperity Network Mr. Gabby Otchere- Darko who is the organizer of the event said it is a unique forum for the private sector in Africa to join forces to assert a leading voice and play the leadership role on how best we can build and drive a vibrant single market for Africa.
Mr. Otchere-Darko said the AFCTA when successful will create work, boost trade investment, and increase prosperity across the continent like never before. But he said for it to work and work for us, the workings of AFCTA must be seen and felt from the onset by the people of Africa.
He urged African leaders to aggregate the value of enterprises and industries across Africa through networking, coordination, and impactful leverage.
The program saw the attendance of big business institutions across Africa, government officials across Africa, and international institutions.
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