AfCFTA advisor highlights critical financial and policy challenges for SMEs at LIMA Partners event.
Funding Gaps and Visa Barriers Stall AfCFTA’s Intra-Africa Trade Vision
The promise of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to transform intra-African trade faces significant hurdles, with limited SME financing and restrictive visa policies emerging as key obstacles.
Speaking at a recent event organized by LIMA Partners, Cynthia E. Gnassingbé-Essonam, Senior Advisor at the AfCFTA Secretariat, called for urgent reforms to empower African businesses to fully engage in cross-border trade. The online event, titled “Unlocking Opportunities Across Africa: Harnessing AfCFTA for Business Growth,” was held on Friday, April 25.
According to Kwame Amporful, Managing Partner at LIMA, Africa, home to 1.5 billion people and a $3 trillion market, is no longer just an emerging market but a key global business frontier. As international investors move to seize opportunities across the continent, the LIMA event was intended to urge African businesses to take the lead—thinking beyond borders, leveraging the AfCFTA, and driving growth through regional expansion and cross-border partnerships.
SMEs Struggle Without Access to Finance
Despite SMEs being the backbone of Africa’s economies, many remain sidelined from cross-border trade due to inadequate funding. Gnassingbé-Essonam stressed, “We have also started pushing for the AfCFTA trading companies, and this is because, from the guiding trading experience, we realise that transport and logistics are very important challenges on the continent. Most of our businesses, sometimes, do not have the financial muscles to ship their products,” she said. Without sufficient capital, African SMEs are unable to scale operations or navigate the complexities of regional markets, undermining the core objectives of AfCFTA, she claimed. One of the most challenging area is that is of movement and logistics.
“So, we have now started pushing for the trading companies to aggregate support for SMEs that want to trade across borders. This will ensure that those companies are properly established to support SMEs in terms of marketing their products in a different market. This will include warehouse, financial, collateral management services, and others,” Gnassingbé-Essonam said.
Visa Restrictions Undermine Trade Integration
Beyond financial constraints, stringent visa regimes continue to hamper the free movement of people—a cornerstone of effective trade. Gnassingbé-Essonam highlighted this issue, stating, “The concern about visa restrictions among AfCFTA countries is one of our mandates as a secretariat but all we have to do is to lobby the heads of state and the AU, if we want to increase intra-Africa trade, then the governments will need to look at the issue of the movement of people seamlessly,” she said. Gnassingbé-Essonam emphasized that easing visa restrictions is not merely a political gesture but a necessary step to facilitate business mobility and unlock the full potential of intra-African commerce.
“The protocol on the movement of people has only been ratified by four countries. So, now that we are pushing, and we see a strong political will for intra-Africa trade and the AfCFTA. We believe that our heads of state need to seriously think about the movement of people. At a very political level, our leaders will need to specifically look at the issues of visas. Some countries are taking the lead and showing the way, but we hope that it will be clear at the level of the African Union,” she stated.
Policy Harmonization and Private Sector Engagement
Gnassingbé-Essonam also underscored the importance of harmonizing national policies to support AfCFTA’s implementation. She pointed out that while AfCFTA offers a framework, its success depends on aligning domestic regulations and fostering private sector involvement. The current fragmentation, both in policy and practice, creates barriers that disproportionately affect SMEs seeking cross-border opportunities.
A Call to Action for African Governments
The message from the LIMA Partners event was clear: African governments must prioritize financial instruments that support SMEs and adopt visa policies that reflect the continent’s trade ambitions. Addressing these issues is vital in order to make AfCFTA a reality. Without decisive action, Africa risks missing out on the economic growth and integration that AfCFTA was designed to deliver.
For more stories of intra-African trade, visit our dedicated archives.