Manufacturers in the East African Community are calling for more sensitisation on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) initiative. It is the flagship programme of Agenda 2063 of the African Union (AU) aimed at boosting intra-African trade in goods and services.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 14th African Union high-level private sector forum in Nairobi, Kenya, Simon Kaheru, a board member for the Uganda Manufacturers Association (UMA) and the East African Business Council (EABC), said sensitization is key for regional integration to achieve information gaps about the available market in Africa.
“We need to tell people more about what opportunities are available for them out there. I work with Coca-Cola Beverages Africa, we have gone regional, we went continental long ago and the benefits from economies of scale are immense,” Kaheru said.
He cites access to credit and logistics challenges which he says can be mitigated if the masses are aware of the immense benefits of economies of scale on the continent.
