Reducing waiting times at borders, simplifying customs formalities and streamlining the movement of goods: digital one-stop shops are gradually establishing themselves as key drivers of intra-African trade. At a time when the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) aims to create an integrated market, these platforms could bring about lasting change to trade between countries. However, interconnecting them remains a major challenge.
Trucks held up at borders, goods stranded in ports and endless administrative formalities. For years, these obstacles have hampered trade between African countries. With high logistics costs and complex procedures, intra-African trade is still struggling to take off. To reverse this trend, several countries are now investing in the digitalisation of logistics and customs supply chains.
“The digitalisation of multimodal logistics chains is therefore far more than a technical project. It is a national strategic priority, a driver of growth and a vehicle for regional and global integration.”
IBRAHIMA KALIL KONATE, Minister of Trade and Industry – Côte d’Ivoire
At the heart of this transformation are electronic single windows. The principle is to centralise, on a single platform, the documents and authorisations required for import and export operations. This revolution reduces travel, processing times and the risk of corruption. Along the Kenya–Uganda corridor, certain trade facilitation reforms have helped cut processing times by 62%. In Nigeria, the interoperability of systems is also becoming a tool for strengthening trade links between neighbouring countries.
“Technology plays a crucial role in everything we do, which is why we are placing it at the heart of this process. By leading the way, technology will enable us to simplify procedures and make implementation much easier. We have developed a computer system, which we will examine today, that is interoperable. It enables seamless connections between different parties: whether a Beninese trader speaks French and a Nigerian trader speaks English, or one uses the naira while the other uses the CFA franc, our system connects them, making trade much smoother and more seamless.”
BASHIR ADENIYI, Comptroller-General of Customs – Nigeria
Beyond national modernisation, however, the real challenge lies in connecting African platforms. Linking the customs systems of Abidjan, Lagos and Douala would facilitate the movement of goods from one market to another. This ambition is being championed in particular by the African Alliance for Electronic Commerce. In Morocco, the experience of PortNet illustrates the determination to develop smart trade corridors, particularly towards Sahelian countries.
“Encote Digitas is an event organised by PortNet, Morocco’s National Single Window for Foreign Trade, in partnership with several stakeholders in the country’s foreign trade sector. The theme of this edition, ‘The Single Window: An Accelerator of Trade in Africa’, addresses the need to integrate trade at the international level through various initiatives across the continent, particularly the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), as well as initiatives launched by the Kingdom of Morocco to provide Sahelian countries with access to the Atlantic. Single windows can play an important role in establishing smart corridors to facilitate trade, simplify and harmonise procedures, make foreign trade easier and more digital, and open up markets to various economic operators, whether Moroccan or from other African countries.”
YOUSSEF AHOUZY, Chief Executive Officer of PORTNET – Morocco
With intra-African trade still accounting for around 15% of the continent’s total trade, single windows are emerging as a strategic tool for turning the ambitions of the AfCFTA into reality. The challenge remains to overcome technological disparities, harmonise regulations and strengthen cooperation between states. For a truly integrated African market to become a reality, goods must now cross borders as easily as data.
