Mr. Benjamin Asiam, Acting Coordinator of the National AfCFTA Coordination Office, has announced that a review of Ghana‘s National African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Policy Framework and Action Plan is expected to begin early next year.
The policy, developed in August 2022, aims to increase Ghana’s share of intra-African trade by providing a stable environment that stimulates private sector development.
Mr. Asiam explained that the review has become necessary following the introduction of eight additional protocols since the launch of the Protocol on Trade in Goods.
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“It is imperative we review the document to take on board the other protocols,” he said during the national dialogue on the AfCFTA Protocol on Women and Youth in Trade.
This protocol, adopted by the Committee on Trade in February 2023, was approved by the African Union Assembly in February 2024. The event was facilitated by the Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Mr. Asiam emphasised the critical role of women and youth in Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), noting that addressing the constraints they face would strengthen the Ghanaian economy.
He also called for improved collection and use of sex- and age-disaggregated trade data to ensure policy interventions are effectively targeted.
“We must build robust national trade data systems, enabling evidence-based monitoring of how women and youth engage with AfCFTA markets,” he said.
In a speech read on her behalf, Madam Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, Minister of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, reaffirmed Ghana’s commitment to the protocol, stating the country remains dedicated to advancing a structured and inclusive roadmap for its implementation
