Africa has become its own third-largest trading partner, according to Afreximbank’s African Trade Heatmaps 2026. The report shows that in 2025, Africa traded more with itself than with any partner bloc except Asia and the European Union, placing intra-African commerce ahead of trade with the Americas, the Middle East and the Gulf.
The finding challenges the common belief that African economies barely trade with one another. However, the official figures likely understate the real level of intra-African trade because a significant portion of cross-border commerce is informal and not captured in national statistics.
The African Union estimates that unrecorded cross-border flows may account for up to 60 percent of intra-African trade. This means the real volume of goods moving between African countries is likely much higher than official data suggests, strengthening Africa’s position as one of its own most important trading partners.
South Africa remains the continent’s largest intra-African trader by volume, reflecting its industrial base and role as a regional economic anchor. However, smaller economies such as Lesotho, Eswatini, Botswana, Mali, Namibia and Djibouti are among the most integrated when measured by the share of their trade conducted within Africa.
Southern Africa and West Africa are the most regionally integrated areas, with much of their commerce taking place within their own regions. Central Africa remains the least integrated, with only about 11.7 percent of its trade occurring within the region, showing that significant work remains to improve connectivity and market integration.
Despite progress, Africa’s intra-continental trade still represents only a small share of total trade. The continent’s total trade was estimated at around USD 1.47 trillion in 2025, while intra-African trade accounted for about USD 214 billion, or roughly 15 percent of the total.
This level remains far below Asia, where intra-continental trade represents about 60 percent, and Europe, where it is close to 70 percent. To close this gap, Africa must increase its capacity to produce and supply goods currently imported from outside the continent, especially from Asia and Europe.
One major structural challenge is that Africa’s export base remains heavily dependent on natural resources such as oil, gas and minerals. Many countries rely on a narrow group of buyers, with China standing as the continent’s largest trading partner. This concentration exposes exporters to commodity price shocks and demand changes in a few external markets.
The dependence on imported finished goods also has employment consequences. Every manufactured product imported from outside Africa represents industrial jobs created elsewhere. For a continent with the world’s youngest population, expanding local manufacturing is essential for job creation and long-term economic resilience.
Africa already has demand for manufactured goods, but production capacity remains limited. More than 230 special economic zones exist across 43 countries, yet many operate below capacity. A UNCTAD survey found that only about 15 percent of sampled zones were operating at full capacity.
The African Continental Free Trade Area is expected to help change this by reducing trade barriers, encouraging regional value chains and supporting local production. If fully implemented, the UN Economic Commission for Africa projects that intra-African trade could rise by more than 400 percent by 2045.
However, implementation remains slow. Negotiations continue in sensitive sectors such as automobiles and textiles, while countries vary in their readiness to apply the agreement effectively. Beyond tariffs, Africa still faces major infrastructure gaps in roads, ports, customs systems and trade corridors.
The report shows that Africa’s internal trade is already stronger than many assume, but its future growth will depend on deeper industrialization, better infrastructure and faster implementation of AfCFTA. If the continent can expand production capacity and improve regional connectivity, intra-African trade could become a much larger driver of economic growth, jobs and resilience.
