Agribusiness entrepreneurs would have easier access to the African market due to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), according to Dr. John Kofi Mensah, Managing Director of Agricultural Development Bank Plc.
With a population of 1.3 billion people, the entire African Continent is covered by the AfCFTA, a single market (duty-free, quota-free) trading bloc with the aim of establishing a single continental market for goods and services.
Dr. Kofi Mensah stated that Ghanaian agricultural entrepreneurs may access a market with a combined Gross Domestic Product of roughly US$3.4 trillion during the introduction of the National AfCFTA Policy Framework Action Plan at the Kempinski Hotel, Gold Coast City in Accra.
According to Dr. Kofi Mensah, government initiatives like the One District One Factory(1D1F) which ADB has been a key partner has the potential to help agribusiness entrepreneurs to expand their business for the African Market.
“AfCFTA is a major global game-changer for entrepreneurs especially those in Agribusiness because as a continent we share similar agricultural products which can be cross traded,” he said.
The ADB Managing Director indicated with the critical role the sector plays in the Ghanaian economy the Agricultural sector remains a low hanging fruit the country can pluck to benefit from AfCFTA.
Dr. Kofi Mensah therefore urged players within the Agricultural Value Chain to take advantage of the AfCFTA to expand their business and export their products and services into other countries within the sub-region.
The AfCFTA is the most significant development in Africa since the establishment of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in 1963. It is the world’s largest Free Trade Area with a membership of 54 states.