Authorities have underscored the need for Malawi to be proactive in it’s export drives to benefit from the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement.
Charity Musonzo Director of Trade in Goods in the Ministry of Trade and Industry was speaking at the private sector engagement with a delegation from the AfCFTA Guided Trade Initiative (GTI).
The engagement is aimed at among others, discussing the nation’s participation in GTI, identify potential trades and introduce the concept of trade aggregators.
Musonzo said Malawi is ready to start benefitting from the AfCFTA as it expects to export it’s first consignments under the agreement by October this year.
‘’We need to prepare the companies to be able to meet the standards, the packaging and all other aspects that go into the product for it to withstand pressure from 54 other countries. What we need to do is to be proactive have a proactive approach and take advantage of the opportunity. There are all other products that we are producing that are needed out there, so if we just keep our products to ourselves and just produce for ourselves then indeed we’ll be consuming from other countries,” said Musonzo.
She however indicated that the nation is finalizing some processes and urged the private sector to be competitive and take advantage of the widening trade area to boast exports.
Meanwhile Dr. Diana Akullo Ogwal, Team Leader for the AfCFTA Missions has commended Malawi for the significant progress being made so far since signing and ratifyng the agreement in 2018 and 2021 respectively.
‘’I want to take this opportunity to commend your government and specifically the Ministry of Trade, which has been really our entry point and they’ve been able to do a lot of groundwork. For us to start engaging under Guided Trade Initiatives there is a checklist that you must tick off; first you must have signed the AfCFTA agreement, you must have ratified it, and you must be willing to mobilize your private sector which the Ministry of Trade has been able to do,” said Ogwal.
According to Ankullo, the AfCFTA agreement will enhance the country’s market area, increase export trade, and facilitate shared prosperity.
The Africa Continental Free Trade Area brings together 55 countries, creating a single continental market for both goods and services with advantageous free movement of business persons and investments.