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Intra-African trade set to grow 10% in 2026 as AfCFTA gathers pace.
Trade between African countries is projected to grow 10% in 2026, reaching about $230 billion, up from an estimated $210 billion in 2025, according to Afreximbank's African Trade and Economic Outlook. The report credits accelerating implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), the ambitious project to knit 54 economies into a single market.
Intra-African trade is expected to rise to about 16% of the continent's total trade, and the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) – which lets businesses transact in local currencies – is projected to cut foreign-exchange costs by 20 – 30%. Manufacturing and agri-food are forecast to make up around half of intra-African trade flows, a shift toward higher-value goods rather than raw commodities.
For Kenya, a regional trade and logistics hub, deeper African integration is both an opportunity and a challenge – opening new markets for its manufacturers and services while exposing them to sharper competition. For ordinary traders and entrepreneurs, the promise of AfCFTA is simpler: cheaper, easier commerce across borders that colonial-era boundaries and red tape have long made needlessly hard.
This story was put together by K N N from material first published by Ecofin Agency.
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Trade between African countries is projected to grow 10% in 2026, reaching about $230 billion, up from an estimated $210 billion in 2025, according to Afreximbank’s African Trade and Economic Outlook. The report credits accelerating implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), the ambitious project to knit 54 economies into a single market.
Intra-African trade is expected to rise to about 16% of the continent’s total trade, and the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) — which lets businesses transact in local currencies — is projected to cut foreign-exchange costs by 20–30%. Manufacturing and agri-food are forecast to make up around half of intra-African trade flows, a shift toward higher-value goods rather than raw commodities.
For Kenya, a regional trade and logistics hub, deeper African integration is both an opportunity and a challenge — opening new markets for its manufacturers and services while exposing them to sharper competition. For ordinary traders and entrepreneurs, the promise of AfCFTA is simpler: cheaper, easier commerce across borders that colonial-era boundaries and red tape have long made needlessly hard.
