Cameroon aims to facilitate its access to businesses and trade information related to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) with technical support from the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA).
The Cameroonian Ministry of Trade, in partnership with the ECA’s African Trade Policy Centre (ATPC) and its Sub-Regional Office for Central Africa, organised a workshop in Douala on August 26 and 27 to validate two new tools designed to support economic operators in their trade within the African market. The initiative is financially supported by the Open Society Foundations.
The work focuses on a step-by-step guide for trading goods under the AfCFTA and a trade information portal.
The former is intended to simplify the understanding of applicable trade procedures and requirements, while the latter aims to centralize regulatory information and make it more easily accessible to businesses.
“The effective implementation of the AfCFTA is a priority for Cameroon,” declared Parfait Eppoh, chief negotiator and focal point of the National AfCFTA Implementation Committee,’’ who represented the Minister of Trade.
According to him, these tools should simplify procedures and strengthen the capacity of economic operators to identify and exploit the opportunities offered by the continental market.
Removing barriers to exports
Access to information remains a significant challenge for Cameroonian businesses, particularly micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), women and young entrepreneurs. The complexity of formalities, the multitude of regulatory requirements, and the difficulty in identifying relevant information can indeed limit their ability to trade with other African countries.
For the ECA, the challenge is therefore to transform the commitments made under the AfCFTA into concrete business opportunities for companies.
“The AfCFTA offers Cameroon a major opportunity to expand its markets, diversify its exports, and strengthen its participation in African value chains,” emphasized Koffi A. Elitcha, Economic Affairs Officer at the ECA Sub-Regional Office for Central Africa.
He nevertheless believes that achieving these ambitions requires simpler procedures and more accessible trade information.
Towards Increased Participation in the African Market
Cameroon ratified the Agreement Establishing the AfCFTA in October 2019. The implementation of these two instruments is part of its ongoing efforts to strengthen its trade integration at the continental level.
The Douala workshop brought together representatives from public administrations and the private sector to assess the relevance of the proposed tools and formulate recommendations.
Discussions focused in particular on their content, clarity, accessibility and suitability to the actual needs of users.
Ultimately, the Guide and the Portal should help reduce barriers related to a lack of information, facilitate the use of the trade preferences provided for by the AfCFTA and encourage more Cameroonian businesses to position themselves in the African market.
This initiative is part of broader efforts to leverage the AfCFTA to diversify exports, develop regional value chains, and integrate MSMEs into intra-African trade.
TE/Sf/fss/gik/APA