The African Union (AU) has launched two main flagship initiatives at the Boma of Africa 2022 event: a digital platform for accelerating the implementation of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the African Vaccine Passport and eHealth backbone.
The digital platform, called the AfCFTA Hub, is a web-based app that interconnects national, regional and private digital applications together to boost the ability of SMEs to expand their business and/or export their products across Africa through improved logistics, networking of retail outlets, integration of fintechs and brand development support.
Financing is provided through the affiliated AfCFTA Caravan Initiative. Every SME or startup in the African Union is now entitled to a free AfCFTA Number following the launch.
There is also a supply chain component called, ProPer, for managing the potential negative side effects of the AfCFTA trade liberalisation scheme such as dumping, smuggling, and counterfeiting.
AfCFTA is a free-trade area agreement signed by most African countries. It is a flagship project of the AU’s agenda 2063.
