A series of six regional discussions exploring the reasons for, and solutions to, the main barriers to trade across Africa.

Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) are among the main obstacles to trade between African countries. These regulatory and procedural barriers include customs operations and border documentation requirements, rules of origin documentation, pre-shipment inspections, transport regulations, sanitary and phytosanitary measures (SPS) and Technical Barriers to Trade (TBTs). A report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) shows that African countries could gain US$20 billion each year by tackling such barriers at the continental level – much more than the $3.6 billion they could gain by eliminating tariffs.

Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSME’s), informal traders, youth and female-led business operators play a crucial role in African trade but are disproportionately impacted by NTBs due to limited resources and access to information. Therefore, the Trade Easier webinar series will focus on the private sector and seek to:

• Discuss and identify the main Non-tariff barriers to trade experienced by African businesses in the region and across the continent
• Highlight existing solutions for resolving Non-tariff barriers to trade, including the Trade Barriers platform (www.tradebarriers.africa) and explore new solutions
• Better understand the role of the AfCFTA in resolving Non-tariff barriers to trade across the continent

This webinar series is part of the #TradeEasier campaign which seeks to raise awareness and inform African businesses, specifically MSME’s, about the trade barriers platform. A platform for reporting Non-tariff barriers to trade and accessing support from national and African Union authorities to resolve these barriers which are making it difficult for businesses to trade.

This webinar series is organised by AfCFTA Secretariat, the African Union (Department of Trade and Industry), with the support of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)

• 29 September 2020 | Focus on East Africa
• 27 October 2020 | Focus on Southern Africa
• 10 November 2020 | Focus on Central Africa (FR)
• 17 November 2020 | Focus on North Africa (FR)
• 24 November 2020 | Focus on West Africa (FR)
• 8 December 2020 | Focus on West Africa
• 16 December 2020 | Focus on West Africa (FR)