Swakopmund positioned as key trade hub under AfCFTA
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) presents significant opportunities for economic growth, trade expansion, and investment across the continent, with cities such as Swakopmund expected to play a critical role in enabling regional integration and market access.
CHAMWE KAIRA The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) presents significant opportunities for economic growth, trade expansion, and investment across the continent, with cities such as Swakopmund expected to play a critical role in enabling regional integration and market access. This emerged during a presentation titled “Unpacking the AfCFTA & Access to Markets: The Role of Cities in Enabling Intra-Africa Trade” at the Invest in Africa Conference in Swakopmund. The presentation highlighted how urban centres can drive trade through infrastructure development, logistics, industrialisation, and digital connectivity.
According to the presentation, the AfCFTA, which became operational on 1 January 2021, is the world’s largest single market for goods and services, covering 1.3 billion people across 55 African countries. The agreement aims to promote intra-African trade and deepen economic integration on the continent. World Bank projections cited during the presentation estimate that intra-African trade could generate US$450 billion in output by 2035, increase wages across the continent by 10%, and lift 30 million people out of poverty.