President John Dramani Mahama says he will champion the inclusion of Caribbean countries in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) when he assumes the chairmanship of the African Union (AU).
According to President Mahama, expanding the AfCFTA framework to accommodate Caribbean nations will strengthen economic relations between Africa and the Caribbean while creating new opportunities for trade, investment and economic cooperation.
He made the remarks during a joint press conference with Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness as part of his official visit to Jamaica.
President Mahama said while increasing trade volumes between Africa and the Caribbean would require deliberate efforts, investment in infrastructure and logistics, as well as the expansion of the trade area, would be critical to achieving that goal.
“With regards to trade, we don’t kid ourselves that you snap your fingers and suddenly our trade volumes will go up. We need to work at it. And that is why I said one way of working at it is to put in the infrastructure and the logistics. But the second is to expand the trade area.
“And that is why I said as chair of the AU, I am going to push for the inclusion of the Caribbean into the African Continental Free Trade Area.”
The President explained that the AfCFTA is designed to facilitate trade among participating countries through the harmonisation of product standards and certification processes.
He noted that once a product meets the required standards and is approved by the relevant national standards authority, it can be registered for export to other markets within the trade area.
“The way the African Continental Free Trade Area works is that we harmonise our standards. And once you get approval from your standards authority that your product is of the standard that you can export, then they put you on a register.
“And if you go on, you can see which commodities qualify. They can be electrical cables. They can be transformers. They can be iron and steel products. They can be processed food products.
“I mean, there are so many pharmaceutical products. And so once you go in there and you decide to trade, you go on the platform. It will get you in touch with the producer in whichever country.”
President Mahama said the proposed closer economic integration between Africa and the Caribbean could provide a platform for businesses on both sides of the Atlantic to explore new markets, partnerships and investment opportunities.
He stressed that strengthening trade links would build on the longstanding historical and cultural connections between Africa and the Caribbean while creating practical economic benefits for businesses and citizens in both regions.
