The United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) has called on African countries to fast-track industrialisation and value addition to fully harness the opportunities presented by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
UNIDO cautioned that the continent risks falling short of AfCFTA’s ambitions if trade liberalisation is not supported by strong productive and manufacturing capacity.
Madam Fatou Haidara, Deputy Director-General of UNIDO, made the call at the opening of the 2026 Africa Trade Summit currently underway in Accra.
She stressed that Africa must move beyond exporting raw materials and focus on producing, processing and trading value-added goods within the continent.
The two-day summit has brought together policymakers, business leaders, investors and development partners to explore practical pathways for boosting intra-African trade and advancing industrialisation.
“AfCFTA should not be seen only as a trade agreement; it is also an industrial agreement,” Madam Haidara said, noting that Africa’s competitiveness would depend largely on its ability to produce at scale, process locally and trade regionally.
She observed that while the continent had a clear development vision and abundant natural and human resources, progress had been slowed by weak implementation, fragmented national strategies and limited value retention from trade.
Madam Haidara pointed out that much of Africa’s trade remains dominated by primary commodities, while many industrialisation strategies struggle to move beyond policy declarations to actual production on the ground.
She therefore called for a deliberate shift from extraction to beneficiation, from primary production to manufacturing, and from isolated national efforts to integrated regional value chains supported by shared infrastructure and harmonised policies.
“Comparative advantage is not destiny,” she said, urging African countries to transform minerals into refined products, agricultural output into processed and branded goods, and energy resources into reliable power for industrial growth.
Madam Haidara also highlighted the need for improved project preparation, effective risk-sharing mechanisms, demand guarantees and strategic partnerships to attract long-term financing from development finance institutions and private investors.
Speaking later at a ministerial panel discussion, she emphasised the role of regional industrial corridors and policy harmonisation in enabling cross-border investment and achieving economies of scale.
She noted that successful industrialisation required deliberate, predictable policy choices, adding that a stable and enabling environment for private sector investment was often more impactful than tariff reductions alone.
Madam Haidara called on African governments to agree on shared priority value chains and align their policies, incentives and trade measures around those sectors to maximise impact.
She said UNIDO was supporting African countries through its Programme for Country Partnership, which brings together governments, the private sector, research institutions and development partners to implement nationally defined industrial priorities and develop pipelines of bankable projects.
According to her, UNIDO would continue to support value-chain development, corridor-based industrialisation, industrial policy advisory services and investment-ready programmes as Africa enters the Fourth Industrial Development Decade.
The Africa Trade Summit, organised by the Africa Trade Chamber and its partners, is a private sector-led continental platform aimed at translating AfCFTA aspirations into tangible industrial and trade outcomes.
UNIDO is a specialised agency of the United Nations mandated to promote inclusive and sustainable industrial development.
It works with governments and partners to strengthen industrial policy, build productive capacity, develop value chains, mobilise investment and support industrial projects that create jobs, enhance trade competitiveness and drive sustainable economic growth.
