What are the key priorities for implementing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and accelerating Africa’s productive transformation? How can African governments strengthen their borrowing capacity and improve their debt management? How can bilateral and multilateral co-operation facilitate the process?
The 2021 International Economic Forum on Africa of the Forum on 22 February 10.00 – 14.00 (GMT) / 11.00 – 15.00 (CET) will gather all key actors to share their views and solutions for action.
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), now open for business, provides a platform to do just that. More specifically, to accelerate productive transformation, create regional value chains, and spur continental integration. Its effective implementation, however, depends on African economies’ capacity to create fiscal space and boost private investment in quality infrastructure and sustainable projects.
The global economic recession triggered by COVID-19 is hitting African countries hard. In 2020, 41 African economies experienced a decline in their gross domestic product (GDP). Now is the time for bold, ambitious, and coordinated action.
Although situations vary across the continent, this crisis has made undeniably clear that post-COVID strategies need to tackle two major obstacles to Africa’s long-term sustainable growth: dependence on external markets, and the incapacity of the formal economic sectors to create enough quality jobs.
