Kenyan President William Ruto has called for the secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to promote technology as a key driver of free trade in Africa.
Ruto made this call on Wednesday when he paid a courtesy visit to the AfCFTA secretariat in Accra, the capital of Ghana, saying technology would accelerate the realization of the goals of AfCFTA and create prosperity that leaves nobody behind and shared prosperity that brings on board the majority of the people.
“Technology is going to dictate the pace at which we move our goods, our services, our products, and our progress,” the Kenyan president stressed.
“I want to encourage the AfCFTA to work with each of the agencies of the African Union in leveraging technology to accelerate the movement of goods and services across our countries and accelerate progress in all other fields,” Ruto said.
Ruto pledged to work hand-in-hand with Ghanaian President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to build the necessary financial ecosystem to support trade, investment, and business in Africa.
Welcoming President Ruto, AfCFTA Secretary General Wamkele Mene said the continental free trade agreement presents Africa with an unprecedented opportunity to break the legacy of colonialism.
Mene said that despite the achievements over the past four years, there is a lot more to do to accelerate the implementation of free trade on the continent.
He lauded Kenya for being one of the countries playing the leading advocacy roles for the successful implementation of the AfCFTA and being one of the first countries to trade under the AfCFTA-guided trade initiative, exporting value-added products to Ghana, Nigeria, and other African countries.