Yaounde/Addis Ababa, 8 December 2020, ECA – The UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) are organizing a webinar with the financial support of the European Union to discuss the role e-commerce can play in the era of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
The theme of the webinar scheduled for Friday 11 December 2020 is “Maximizing intra-African trade in the context of AfCFTA: the role of e-commerce and the private sector.”
Its goal is to give private sector operators in the sub region an avenue to examine what part e-commerce can play in enhancing trade between countries in the area.
Other objectives are to:
- Share current status of the AfCFTA as well as the implications for the continent’s digital trade agenda and implications for ECCAS member states
- Discuss how e-commerce is growing in ECCAS member countries in terms of market development, competition, growth potentials, and
- Explore the role of the private sector in the development of e-commerce and in advancing intra-African trade in the context of AfCFTA.
It is expected that at the end of the session, private sector operators in Central Africa will be better informed on how the AfCFTA through e-commerce can offer a unique opportunity for each country to produce and sell on a very large scale.
Mr. Antonio Pedro, Director of the ECA sub regional office in Central Africa, will give the opening remarks, while Ms. Aissatou Diallo, the AfCFTA of the International Trade Center (ITC) will moderate. The main speakers include Mr. Malick Mamadou Bal and Mr. Guiseppe D’Aronco, both of the ECA sub regional office.
Others are Ms. Angela Ndambuki, the Regional Director for sub-Sahara Africa of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), and Mr. David Mudilo, an information technology development expert.
Through its African Trade Policy Centre, the ECA together with its sub regional offices, has been working with the AUC and member states to deepen Africa's trade integration and effectively implement the agreement through policy advocacy and national strategy development.
The ECA also works closely with the International Trade Centre (ITC), the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), and a selection of independent trade experts with the financial support of the European Union (EU) to support the implementation of the AfCFTA across the continent.
Issued by:
Communication Section
Economic Commission for Africa
PO Box 3001
Addis Ababa
Ethiopia
Tel. +251 11551 5826
E-mail: eca-info@un.org