African leaders have been urged by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to promote intra-trade alliances in order to secure the continent's sustained economic progress.
To ensure food and economic security, he said it was crucial that the nations made use of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement.
The President made the request during his speech at the Seventh African Leadership Forum (ALF) inauguration on Thursday in Accra.
This year's ALF will be held in Ghana with the focus on "Promoting Intra-Africa Trade to Unlock Agricultural Potential in Africa."
It intends to emphasize the agricultural potentials and possibilities brought about by climate change on the continent, talk about the challenges, and outline practical and realistic needs for putting the AfCFTA into effect.
The agenda is to identify priorities and a roadmap for implementing the agricultural trade perspective under the Agreement to realise its transformative economic objective.
Some eight former African Heads of State, including Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Benin, Liberia, Tunisia, and Tanzania are participating in the Forum.
A cross-section of stakeholders in the continent’s development, comprising technocrats, policymakers, agricultural scientists and small-holder farmers, business entities, and development partners, are also attending.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo said the AfCFTA Agreement was a momentous change, stressing that it presented the African people with more opportunities in doing business for the continent’s progress.
It sets the stage for Africa’s industrialisation and growth.
The President said the time had come for the continent to define its own narratives in respect of producing enough to feed its people.
This was achievable given the continent’s vast arable land and natural resources, he noted.
President Nana Akufo-Addo was optimistic the Forum would help the participants to share experiences and lessons on the obstacles (internal and international) in maximising the continent’s agricultural potential.
He was of the view that no country could afford to do it alone, saying “our strength lies in our numbers”.
Establishing food security, the President noted, was important for millions of people facing hunger in Africa, and crucial for sustainable economic development and the long-term prosperity of the continent.
He stressed the need for the continent to work assiduously in adding value to its agro-based products to enhance exports, accelerate Gross Domestic Product growth and create new jobs, insisting that it was imperative that African leaders demonstrated bold leadership by adopting the right policies to ensure robust African trade.
Dr. Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, former President of Tanzania, and an ALF Patron, called for renewed commitment to the tenets of the AfCFTA Agreement.
It is an ambitious trade agreement, with a comprehensive scope that includes critical areas of Africa’s economy, such as digital trade and investment protection, amongst other areas.
By eliminating barriers to trade in Africa, the objective of the Agreement is to significantly boost intra-Africa trade, particularly trade in value-added production and trade across all sectors of Africa’s economy.