TRADE IN AFRICA
A book titled "Africa in the New Trade Environment: Market Access in Troubled Times", jointly authored by Messrs. Souleymanou Coulibaly, Woubet Kassa and Albert Zeufack, all senior executives at the World Bank was presented to the public on Tuesday, 1 March 2022.
The grandeur of the book signing ceremony was further enhanced by the presence of Cameroon's Minister of Economy, Alamine Ousmane Mey, his Congolese counterpart Ingrid Eboucka Babackas, the Ministers of Telecommunications and Vocational Training and the President of the CEMAC Commission, who all participated in the resourceful discussions held at the event.
Mr. Albert Zeufack, one of the authors and Chief Economist of the World Bank in Africa, presented this work as one of the tools for the structural transformation of African economies and for job creation. He urged "African states to adopt ambitious domestic structural reforms to increase the region's supply capacity". It is therefore up to African countries to take their destiny into their own hands if they are to control a significant share of world trade and reverse the current trend stuck at 3% for more than half a century. It is important for Africa to change its trade policies, re-evaluate its access to international markets (Europe/America) and capture emerging markets in Asia. Special emphasis was placed on the benefits of investing in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which will definitely help Africa to integrate global value chains.
The 2020-2030 National Development Strategy (NDS 2030), cited by government officials present at the ceremony, was identified as one of the reforms Cameroon is currently implementing that will contribute to the achievement of development objectives referenced in this publication.
As for CEMAC’s President, he invited the entire African continent to put hands on deck so as to make this shared dream a reality.
Source CT No. 12550/8449 OF 3 MARCH 2022