Moonshot 2026: Call to remove barriers to intra-African trade

Intra-African trade accounts for less than 17% of the continent’s trade, compared with more than 60% in Europe, despite the AfCFTA’s potential $3.4 trillion market. At Moonshot 2026 in Lagos, experts called for urgent reforms to tackle regulatory obstacles, fragmented financial systems and the high cost of cross-border payments. Adetola Onayemi, president of Norebase, pointed to the gap between trade agreements and their implementation at borders, ports and banks. He advocated harmonising trade documents, connecting digital payment systems and encouraging businesses to use the AfCFTA to identify barriers.