The 2025 WTO Public Forum in Geneva arrived at a defining moment for global trade. Across the world, unilateral tariff measures, populist calls for economic self-sufficiency, and new protectionist strategies are challenging decades of hard-won progress in globalisation. For Africa, which is still building its trade capacity, this fragmentation presents both risk and urgency; an urgency that requires not just an assessment of the current systems we operate under, but also an exploration of new opportunities that can secure the progress we have long dreamed of. Perhaps it is called sustainable development, and it is time we clean the spoon to take a meaningful gulp from the bowl of prosperity.

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The evolving landscape of innovation, culture, and identity forms the very bedrock of today’s economy, and we cannot sit idly by and watch the digital revolution in trade pass us by, as others before it have done. Developing countries must rise to thrive in this globalised world they inhabit. Cold and emotional rhetoric cannot guarantee our collective freedoms — only innovation can.

History teaches us that the pursuit of economic self-sufficiency has never lifted nations out of poverty. Instead, it tends to deepen inequality, inflame tensions among neighbours, and erode regional and, in some cases, global stability. The international trading system, commonly known as the Global Economy, was built precisely to avoid these pitfalls. The WTO’s latest World Trade Report highlights the stakes, projecting that artificial intelligence alone could boost global trade by as much as 40% and raise global GDP by up to 13% by 2040. Such growth cannot be achieved through isolation; it depends on open, predictable, and rules-based cooperation.

Africa’s trade moment: From AfCFTA to digital futures

Africa now has an unprecedented opportunity through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which brings together 1.4 billion people across 54 countries.

The World Bank estimates AfCFTA could lift 30 million Africans out of extreme poverty and raise incomes for another 68 million. But these promises will only be realised if the continent’s entrepreneurs, especially its youth, can truly access markets.

Here lies the paradox: while young Africans are among the world’s most dynamic entrepreneurs, with MSMEs accounting for over 70% of jobs and business activity, more than half of these enterprises collapse in their early years. Weak access to finance, complex regulations, and costly barriers to trade remain key obstacles.

At the WTO Public Forum, I argued that digital solutions can help bridge these divides. My proposal, TradeAI, is an example of how technology could serve as a lifeline for small businesses. By navigating complex trade frameworks, monitoring changing tariff rules, and lowering compliance costs, such tools can give entrepreneurs the confidence to scale their ventures beyond borders. The WTO’s 2025 report strengthens this case, noting that AI-enabled trade could be a powerful equaliser if low- and middle-income economies can close even half of their digital infrastructure gap with wealthier nations; a change that could raise incomes by up to 15%.

Building an inclusive global economy together

The future of African trade depends not only on continental frameworks like AfCFTA but also on the multilateral institutions that safeguard global cooperation. WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has rightly emphasised that AI’s potential to lower costs and increase productivity will mean little unless access is broadened. Today, tariffs on AI-enabling goods, from semiconductors to intermediate inputs, reach as high as 45% in some low-income economies, even as global trade in these goods reached USD 2.3 trillion in 2023. Such imbalances reinforce the need for a fairer, more inclusive trading system.

Rwanda has already positioned itself as a hub for digital trade, serving as a pilot country for the WTO and World Bank’s Digital Trade for Africa programme. But the continent needs more champions. As youth account for the majority of Africa’s entrepreneurs, their voices must shape the rules of engagement. Trade is not merely about the exchange of goods; it is about opportunity, dignity, and security for future generations.

Africa cannot afford to retreat into isolation at a time when integration offers the clearest path to prosperity. Isolationist policies may promise self-reliance, but in reality, they narrow opportunities and fuel division. The real path forward lies in embracing digital trade, investing in skills, and ensuring that global institutions work for all economies, not just a few. In that way, we can collectively eat from the bowl of prosperity we all contribute to.

As one of the WTO Young Trade Leaders, I see my role as helping to ensure that African entrepreneurs are not left behind in this transformation. Our task is to design solutions that empower MSMEs, amplify youth voices, and defend an integrated global economy under the WTO. Africa’s future lies not in isolation, but in cooperation, in leveraging the tools of globalisation to move millions out of poverty and into prosperity.

The writer is a WTO Young Trade Leader 2025 with an interest in advancing inclusive trade for youth and women-led MSMEs especially under the AfCFTA, and exploring how digital trade and sustainability can open new paths for entrepreneurs in Africa and beyond.