Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | XINHUA | The industrialization and trade potential of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement cannot be realized without adequate quality infrastructure systems, a new report by the United Nations and the African Union (AU) report said. The newly published report, entitled “Identifying Priority Products …
Read More »African countries urged to remove non-tariff barriers to realize AfCFTA
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | XINHUA | The African Union (AU) Commission on Sunday called for addressing non-tariff barriers in order to realize the major aspirations of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement. “The African continent is about to become the world’s largest free trade area. If not addressed, non-tariff …
Read More »EAC rolls out regional electronic cargo and driver tracking system
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The East Africa Community (EAC) secretariat and its partner states have unveiled a new mobile application to enable the issuance of the EAC COVID-19 digital certificates that are mutually recognised by the partner states. The app dubbed the Regional Electronic Cargo and Driver Tracking System …
Read More »IMF forecasts modest narrowing in current account imbalances in 2020
Washington, US | XINHUA | Global current account surpluses and deficits narrowed in 2019, and the COVID-19 pandemic could narrow the imbalances further in 2020, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in its annual External Sector Report released on Tuesday. In 2019, the global current account balance, the absolute sum …
Read More »Free trade area could boost Africa’s income by 450 bln USD: World Bank
Nairobi, Kenya | XINHUA | The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) could boost the continent’s income by 450 billion U.S. dollars if fully implemented, says a World Bank report released on Monday evening. According to the report, the pan African trade pact would significantly boost continental trade, particularly intraregional …
Read More »China’s participation key to success of Africa’s free trade pact: experts
Accra, Ghana | XINHUA | China’s participation will be one of the key ingredients to the success of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement, some experts have said. Speaking with Xinhua, international trade expert Francis Kofi Korankye-Sakyi said the critical role China has played in Africa’s economic and …
Read More »Africa free trade area to create new opportunities for China-Africa cooperation: expert
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | XINHUA | The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will create new opportunities for China-Africa cooperation, an Ethiopian expert said on Tuesday. Speaking to Xinhua, Gedion Jalata, a senior advisor to the UNDP South- South Cooperation and a former consultant to UNECA-Capacity Development Division, said the …
Read More »China urges U.S. to discard Cold-War mentality, ideological bias
Beijing, China | XINHUA | China on Thursday urged the United States to discard its Cold-War mentality and ideological bias, and work with China to move forward bilateral relations along the track of coordination, cooperation and stability. Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian made the comment at a press briefing …
Read More »East Africa urged to reopen regional air transport services to boost trade
Kampala, Uganda | XINHUA | The East African Business Council (EABC) on Wednesday urged the East African Community (EAC) partner states to fast track re-opening of the air transport services in order to boost regional trade, tourism and hospitality sectors. Peter Mathuki, executive director and CEO of EABC, a …
Read More »How to boost cross-border financing solutions in Africa
Kampala, Uganda | Isaac Khisa | How can African countries boost cross-border financing solutions on the continent? This was the main issue discussed during the Pan-African e-conference hosted by the United Capital PLC, a Nigerian-based financial and investment Services Company, on Friday. Peter Ashade, the Group CEO at United Capital Plc. …
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