THE International Trade Centre (ITC) on September 1 launched a new report that identifies US$1 billion in export potential between Africa and the Caribbean. ITC and the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) also extended their five-year partnership, which will help tackle trade barriers and build business capacity to realise that potential.

The Afreximbank is a pan-African multilateral financial institution mandated to finance and promote intra- and extra-African trade, deploying structures to deliver financing solutions that support the transformation of Africa’s trade, accelerating industrialisation and intra-regional trade.

The ITC is the joint agency of the World Trade Organization and the United Nations. ITC assists micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in developing countries to become more competitive in global markets.

The renewed memorandum of understanding, signed at the AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum 2022 in Barbados, aims to drive trade and economic development for Africa through new Caribbean markets. The agreement focuses on trade and market intelligence and the creative economy as well as green solutions for better trade and investment exchanges in the two regions, geared at small businesses.

The report shows how the two regions have an export potential exceeding US$1 billion in sectors ranging from agrifood and health care to tourism, fertilisers and automobiles.

Unlocking this potential, the study said, requires stronger relationships between African and Caribbean traders, the removal of trade obstacles such as high tariffs and non-tariff barriers, and greater investment in growth areas. The goods trade between the two regions is negligible and concentrated in just a few sectors including primary minerals and chemicals.

It was stated that with the right support in place, Africa could boost its annual exports of merchandise to the Caribbean by US$171 million by 2026, a 54 per cent increase over 2020 levels. The Caribbean could expand goods exports to Africa by US$80 million or 29 per cent — and its exports of services such as travel and transport even more.

The ITC-Afreximbank partnership builds on the joint attempt to spur the competitiveness of small businesses in Africa and help them benefit from the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The agreement is expected to promote increased investment in African businesses and cross-regional business opportunities, develop the creative and cultural industries, and ensure access to accurate information about export markets.

The partnership also seeks to expand its joint training programme How to Export with the AfCFTA and establish a Business Council between Africa and the Caribbean.

Pamela Coke-Hamilton, executive director, ITC, stated yesterday, “A trade boost between Africa and the Caribbean is possible. It needs an ecosystem to give credible data on market opportunities, support to exporting firms and guidance for governments. The new Africa-Caribbean Business Council is a critical initiative that will help transform transatlantic trade.”

Professor Benedict Oramah, president and chairman of the board of the directors, Afreximbank, commented: “Under its vision of African unity, the African Union declared the African Diaspora as the sixth region of the continent. In this regard, the AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum provides business communities from the African and Caricom regions with a platform to engage, trade, invest, innovate and transfer technology. We believe breaking the trade barrier between Africa and the Caribbean will yield greater prosperity and market opportunities for our peoples and support the implementation of the AfCFTA through increased trade and investment.”