As there have been various efforts geared towards the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), calls continue to grow for the private sector to step up and leverage the available opportunities.

But in a continental market of 1.2 billion people with a combined Gross Domestic Product of more than $3.4 trillion, businesses are yet to see the benefits of trade mechanisms and policies.

Business executives indicate some of the challenges hindering the implementation at Small Medium Enterprise level.

Access to information

According to Wincate Muthini, Senior Program Manager at Pan African Chamber of Commerce and Industry, one of the major reasons why there is low uptake of the regime from businesses, mostly the informal sector, is the lack of simple and accurate information.

"Explain that when you get to the border, you need to do this, you are required to have this kind of document, and here are contacts you can call in case you need help. As simple as that,” she recommended.

Muthini added that governments and policymakers need to consider what the private sector is saying but for it to happen, it needs to first be informed.

Language barrier

The hindrance of lack of information is also modified when it comes to language barrier.

"We tend to disseminate the documents in either English or the national language without considering local languages but most of them did not go to school, they have just learnt the skills of trade,” said Muthini.

There is a need for concerned agencies to go to communities and explain or break down the information in their language, and in a manner that they can understand, she pointed out.

Digital literacy

In an era marked by digital transformation, Muthini emphasized on the need for digital literacy at all levels.

"In as much as a person has a tool, if they don’t know how to use it, then they are not going to necessarily embark on the same journey as others,” she said.

Perspective shift to Africa as a market

When it comes to public sensitization, Muthini noted that there needs to be an attitude change in seeing Africa as a marketplace.

"As you increase awareness of make in Africa, it should go along with buy-in Africa too.”

The SMEs run by women account for close to 60 percent of Africa’s GDP, creating about 450 million jobs.

"When you say SMEs, we always put all of them in one box. You need to break it and teach them how you can actually grow from a small to a medium enterprise. That way, we can be able to project economies of scale,” Muthini said.

Cross-border policies

Elvis Felix Sedah, Executive Assistant to the Chairman of AfriChampions Initiative, noted that one of the key challenges is cross-border delays due to administrative burdens and custom clearance.

He also talked about new technologies that need to be adopted for smoother and more secure intra-African trade such as serialization technology to curb anti-smuggling, anti-counterfeiting, and supply chain fraud.

"So, if a product or a commodity is serialized, that means we have authenticated the source and we have documented it and we can track the entire supply chain from the point of manufacturing to the point of sale.”