Akufo-Addo calls for fintech and digital innovation for success of AfCFTA

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has stressed the pivotal role of fintech and digital innovation in maximizing the benefits of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) for African governments.

Addressing attendees at the 3i Africa Summit in Accra, President Akufo-Addo highlighted AfCFTA's potential to reshape the continent's economic landscape and foster transformative change.

He emphasized the

Read full articleimperative for African governments to embrace technologies driving global economic trends and adapt them to suit Africa's unique circumstances.

President Akufo-Addo further underscored the importance of significant investments in digital infrastructure, policy formulation, innovation stimulation, and investment attraction.

"The African Continental Free Trade Area has laid the groundwork for a monumental shift in our economic landscape, the transformation that will reverberate across the length and breadth of our great continent. The numbers speak for themselves, he said.

"By 2035, the AFCFTA aims to lift some 30 million Africans out of the clutches of extreme poverty while boosting simultaneously the incomes of some 68 million people. The agreement is projected to increase intra-African trade by some 52%, unleashing a wave of economic activity that generates some $450 billion to our collective GDP

"These are not mere statistics. These are testament to the potential that lies within our grasp a promising of a brighter future for all Africans. But to realise fully these benefits we must harness the transformative power of fintech and digital innovation. We must embrace the technologies that reshape the global economy and make them work for us, tailoring them to the unique needs and challenges of our diverse and dynamic continent," he added.

President Akufo-Addo further urged governments to prioritize investments in digital infrastructure, formulate supportive policies, foster innovation, promote entrepreneurship, and attract investments domestically and internationally.

"We must promote interoperability to reduce transaction cost and delays tearing down the silos that have hindered our progress for too long and we must leverage the power of digital identity programmes such as Ghana card to improve access to financial services."