Africa’s trade challenges

The report identifies high tariffs, non-tariff barriers, and a lack of regional value chains as primary obstacles to Africa's economic growth. It highlights a disconnect between Africa's focus on individual national economies and the global shift toward regional value chains, while noting that current global trends—including a move away from long transport routes to reduce carbon emissions and geopolitical shifts—could potentially benefit Africa's growing consumer base.

• Trade within Africa is hindered by high tariff rates and significant non-tariff barriers, including poor infrastructure, logistics systems, and customs procedures. These inefficiencies facilitate smuggling and the expansion of the shadow economy, particularly for high-value items like cigarettes and petroleum in North Africa.
• Regional integration in the Maghreb could increase growth rates by an average of one percentage point and attract foreign direct investment, yet trade openness has declined in every country in that region except Morocco.
• Africa has failed to develop regional value chains, leaving it excluded from the global value chains in services and goods that emerged between Europe, North America, and Asia since the 1990s. This lack of integration is a major barrier to economic diversification.
• Global trade is shifting toward regionally concentrated value chains as companies prioritize proximity to markets over cheap labor to reduce carbon emissions and transport costs. This trend, combined with Western efforts to reduce dependence on China and Russia, may create opportunities for Africa's expanding population and consumer market.

APA

Chipanda, B., & Cilliers, J. (2026). Africa’s trade challenges. Institute for Security Studies. https://futures.issafrica.org/thematic/guide.pdf?thematic=08-afcfta&topic=03-africa-trade-challenges

Chicago

Chipanda, Blessing, and Jakkie Cilliers. Africa’s trade challenges. Institute for Security Studies, 2026. https://futures.issafrica.org/thematic/guide.pdf?thematic=08-afcfta&topic=03-africa-trade-challenges.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Chipanda |first1=Blessing |last2=Cilliers |first2=Jakkie |title=Africa’s trade challenges |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=29 March 2026 |url=https://futures.issafrica.org/thematic/guide.pdf?thematic=08-afcfta&topic=03-africa-trade-challenges |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{chipanda2026africas, author = {Chipanda, Blessing and Cilliers, Jakkie}, title = {{Africa’s trade challenges}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2026}, month = mar, url = {https://futures.issafrica.org/thematic/guide.pdf?thematic=08-afcfta&topic=03-africa-trade-challenges}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }