On January 1, 2021 the single intra-trade market for goods and services connecting nearly 1.3 billion people across the 54 countries in Africa, with a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of approximately $3.4 trillion, came into effect with the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

Since establishing the World Trade Organization (WTO), this free trade area has had the world’s most significant number of participating countries. Designed to strengthen the economic integration among the African people by reducing tariffs and technical trade barriers for intra-continental trade and export, it’s estimated that by 2035 the AfCFTA will expand Africa’s income by US$450 billion and its exports by US$560 billion.

Furthermore, with the standardised policies and uniformed regulations, African businesses will find integrating into global supply chains more accessible, thereby creating new opportunities for manufacturers and workers. According to the World Bank, this continent-wide market for business and investment will reshape African economies. It could lift 30 million Africans out of extreme poverty and 68 million people from moderate poverty.

With a total GDP of $432.3 billion and a population of 200 million Nigeria has become the biggest economy on the African continent over the last 30 years. It has developed the production capacity to compete with anyone globally with construction, agricultural products, oil, gas, and food. Its expanding financial sector grew from 1 per cent of the total GDP in 2001 to 10 per cent in 2018, along with its role as one of the global leaders in petroleum exports.

MRS Holdings, for example, owned and operated by a Nigerian, is a conglomerate of companies “focused on capturing the entire value chain in oil trading, shipping, storage, distribution, construction, aviation, logistics, and retailing of petroleum products” (mrsholdings.com). I had the opportunity to tour one of MRS’s modern production plants during my last visit to Lagos. With less than 60 employees, this facility produced four million bottles of engine oil per day to fill 70 terminal containers for export. The firm recently constructed the largest Jetty, a terminal, which can berth vessels of 80,000 to 120,000 metric tons capacity, at the Tin Can Island Port in Lagos. The facility is unique in Africa as it can monitor the loading of petroleum down to the last drop with computer technologies. This jetty/port is forecasted to save Nigeria US$200 million in annual expenses incurred in ship-to-ship (STS) transfer, as well as demurrage.

Similarly, Ghana has structurally transformed its economy, focusing on production, where it has identified sustained competitive advantages globally. Instead of exporting raw materials like cocoa for chocolate in Europe, Ghana is producing the value-added goods towards a new era of industrialisation for the country, growing at a rate of 7 per cent per annum since 2017.

Additionally, South Africa is a middle-income emerging market with developed financial, legal, communications, energy, and transport sectors leading in the global production of gold, platinum, and chromium. Its stock exchange is Africa’s most prominent and ranked in the top 20 stock exchanges globally.

Twenty years ago many people used North America and Europe as the standards for global leadership. Today, people no longer hold this isolated view, as Asia has asserted their dominance in trade, and Africa is coming.

Looking to the future

Last September, the first Africa-Caricom Summit was held with countries from the African Union and Caricom, resulting in commitments for “increased trade and investment through specific agreements and the enhancement of transportation links between the two regions”. The leaders at the summit indicated their support for establishing a Caricom/Africa public-private partnership towards raising resources for renewable energy, the creative industries, and digital technology (caricom.org).

Jamaica has traditionally looked to North America as our major trading partner. However, we only represent niche markets in these countries, whereas our culture and taste profile are more aligned with Africa, where we would benefit from much larger markets. The top exports of Jamaica are aluminium oxide US$496 million, refined petroleum US$210 million, aluminium ore US$87.8 million, hard liquor US$80.6 million, and processed foods and nuts US$58.3 million, mainly exported to the United States, US$547 million; Canada, US$110 million; Netherlands, US$91.7 million; Iceland, US$86.7 million; and Russia, US$68.8 million (oec.com).

It’s time Jamaica deepens our reciprocal trade partnership with Africa, and here are the reasons:

(1) Africa has developed a modern production capacity with economies of scale in manufacturing.

(2) Africa’s taste profile is similar to ours.

(3) Africa has a deep respect for Jamaica because of our leadership in music, sports, and the principled political stance we adopted for the non-aligned movement and pan-Africanist in the 1970s.

(4) The per capita of several African nations is more aligned with ours.

(5) Africa has the population base to offer our manufacturers a mass market.

(6) We have a common identity through a shared history.

Nigeria continues to be a strategic trading partner for Jamaica in petroleum gas. In 2020 we imported over US$99.1 million.

Jamaica has been regarded as one of the world’s best trans-shipment ports, directly across from the Panama Canal, connecting Asia and a straight path between Europe and South America. Our focus must now turn to developing Jamaica as the trans-shipment link between Africa and our region.

Nigeria’s population is 30 times the size of Caricom (excluding Haiti); however, we have not commercially positioned our trade economy to leverage the benefits effectively. Jamaica should be proactive in encouraging direct shipping from Lagos to Kingston, which would be transformative. Opening this route would give us a mass market for Jamaican products that we are already producing that would be more readily acceptable in Africa versus North America.

Similarly, Nigerian manufacturers produce for a market with a per capita income more aligned with Jamaica. Therefore, their price points would be more competitive and aligned with our people’s purchasing power.

From Egypt’s historical majestic wisdom in the North, to the spirituality of Ethiopia in the East, the industriousness of Nigeria in the West, and the tenacity of Zimbabwe in the South, this continent is creating an entirely new development path harnessing the potential of its resources and people. Let us build new bridges of collaboration, partnership, and solidarity between ourselves and Africa as we look to improving the lives of all our people.