President of Kenya, Dr William Samoei Ruto, has entreated businesses to leverage on technology to accelerate the movement of goods and services on the continent.

According to him, the usage of technology in the buying and selling of goods and services creates several opportunities for the business community, as well as, improves accountability.

Speaking with the business community during his visit to Ghana at the Africa Trade House in Accra on Wednesday, April 3, 2024, Dr Ruto noted that the move, when adhered to, will accelerate the progress of intra-Africa trade.

"Technology democratizes opportunities, technology improves efficiency, technology improves accountability and therefore...technology change the pace at which we move our goods, our services, our products...," the President of Kenya stated.

AfCFTA, one of the flagship projects of Agenda 2063 is a high ambition trade agreement with a comprehensive scope that includes critical areas of Africa’s economy such as digital trade and investment protection, amongst other areas.

By eliminating barriers to trade in Africa, the objective of the free trade pact is to significantly boost intra-Africa trade, particularly trade in value-added production and trade across all sectors of Africa’s economy.

AfCFTA, which came into effect in January 2021, is the largest free trade area globally, covering 55 African countries with a combined population of 1.3 billion people and a combined Gross Domestic Product (GDP) exceeding $3.4 trillion.

The pact also seeks to help African economies build robust and more resilient economies to absorb any shock – internally or externally.

SA/MA