Experts say African innovators and entrepreneurs are well-positioned to drive and benefit from the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Digital Trade Protocol, a framework designed to enhance digital trade across the continent. They made the observation during the second edition of Inclusive Fintech Forum (IFF), a global gathering that seeks to drive economic inclusivity through the sustainable development of financial technologies, on February 24. The forum, organised by the Kigali International Financial Centre (KIFC), Singapore’s Elevandi, and the National Bank of Rwanda (NBR), brings together high-level participation including heads of state and government, global regulators, policymakers, decision-makers, founders, and investors, among others. ALSO READ: AfCFTA’s Mene roots for SME support to drive Africa’s digital trade The protocol on digital trade covers broad areas such as market access, facilitating digital trade, data governance, business and consumer trust, digital trade inclusion, emerging technologies, transparency on government regulation, and capacity building. Talkmore Chidede, Senior Digital Trade Expert at AfCFTA Secretariat, said the protocol guaranteessafety and security in the digital ecosystem, seeks to provide the simplest, affordable, and inclusive digital payments, and allows safe movement of data, among other critical building blocks for effective digital trade on the continent. “The digital ecosystem environment that we are creating in this digital market is safe and secure. And it puts responsibilities and guardrails to make sure that there is safety and secure transactions,” he said. Chidede indicated that the successful implementation of the protocol will address some of the existing challenges that the financial technology (fintech) industry currently faces, including scrapping off the need to register a fintech business in every country. Fintech challenges The fintech industry in Africa currently experiences a host of challenges that limit the uptake of fintech innovations, and make it hard for entrepreneurs to scale their business ventures. Bobson Rugambwa, Chief Executive Officer of MVend Limited, pointed to the rigorous licensing process and limited availability of digital infrastructure. “We can’t make digital payments possible and seamless if we have to go through the regulatory challenges of acquiring licenses in all African markets,” he said, noting that the protocol should be able to establish standardised licenses applicable in all countries to enable the growth of digital trade. ALSO READ: How new Pan-African payment system will boost AfCFTA implementation According to Rugambwa, establishing data infrastructure remains costly across the country, highlighting that only the will of policymakers to make rules harmonized can bring this cost down. “Having data centres in every country is not practical and it is costly,” he noted. Experts view the harmonisation of rules through frameworks such as the AfCFTA Trade Protocol as an incentive to entice more fintech innovations across the continent. For Michelle Nsanzumuco, CEO of Global Policy House, conducive rules not only support the growth of technology innovators, they also attract the private sector – key to driving intra-African trade. Besides regulation, technology innovators struggle to raise funding. However, Nsanzumuco observed that there are alternative sources of finance that innovators can tap into such as digital assets. Nsanzumuco maintained that small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), which account for 80 per cent of the continent’s economy, stand to benefit enormously from the implementation of the Digital Trade Protocol. Experts observed that improving regulatory frameworks, increasing investments and working together to avoid fragmentation, could help the continent leverage digital trade and drive economic growth. The AfCFTA Digital Trade Protocol was adopted in February 2024, and eight annexes were adopted in February 2025 during the African Union Heads of State meeting in Ethiopia.
