United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres spoke on Wednesday in New York at the Africa 2023 Dialogues under the theme “Marketplace and Scale: Unlocking Industrialization through Intra-African Trade”.
Mr. Guterres stressed that the creation of a free trade area in Africa could stimulate sustainable growth at a time when progress has been reversed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, calling for intensified efforts to create this single trade market on the continent.
The UN SG said the African continental free trade area “has the potential to become the largest free trade area in the world” and should bring new investment and trade opportunities and reduce vulnerabilities to external shocks.
Mr. Guterres highlighted Africa’s cultural, natural, human, and energy wealth and the unlimited potential of Africans.
In spite of this, Guterres noted that historical and economic obstacles prevent the continent from taking its rightful place among the nations of the world.
Moreover, the continent has been confronted with several challenges that have impacted the world. impacted the world. The pandemic, compounded by the conflict in Ukraine, has led to higher food and energy prices, exacerbating poverty, inequality, and food insecurity, Mr Guterres noted. For instance, climate change has led to deadly floods and droughts, contributing to the risk of famine.
In this context, Mr. Guterres estimated that the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (ACFTA) could generate income gains of up to 9% by 2035. “This would lift 50 million people out of extreme poverty and reduce income inequality,” he said.