The Secretary-General of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, H.E. Wamkele Mene, has underscored the importance of accelerating regional integration in the Horn of Africa as a critical contribution to the implementation of the AfCFTA and the continent’s wider economic transformation.
H.E. Mene made the call during his participation in the first dedicated Horn of Africa Initiative (HoAI) Trade Ministers’ Meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The meeting brought together Trade Ministers, regional institutions and development partners to advance the implementation of the Horn of Africa’s regional trade agenda.
Held under the theme “One Region, One Shared Economic Space: From Political Commitment to Regional Action,” the meeting focused on translating regional commitments into concrete measures that can facilitate trade, strengthen economic linkages and create greater opportunities across the Horn of Africa.
Key issues under consideration included the Regional Trade Facilitation Roadmap 2026–2031 and the proposed Regional Trade Facilitation Committee, both intended to provide greater coordination and momentum for the region’s trade facilitation efforts.
Addressing the meeting, the Secretary-General emphasised that Africa’s economic integration agenda has moved beyond negotiations and must increasingly focus on implementation that delivers tangible benefits to businesses and citizens.
He highlighted the potential of deeper integration within the Horn of Africa to reduce the cost of crossing borders, connect national and regional markets and strengthen productive linkages among participating countries. These efforts, he indicated, would contribute to translating the opportunities created by the AfCFTA into practical economic benefits.
H.E. Mene further stressed the importance of strengthening alignment among regional trade frameworks, customs and border systems, transport and digital networks, production centres and markets. Greater connectivity across these areas, he noted, is essential to improving the movement of goods and services and building a more competitive regional trading environment.
The success of the Regional Trade Facilitation Roadmap and the proposed Committee, he emphasised, should ultimately be measured by their ability to deliver results on the ground, including more efficient movement of goods and services, lower trade costs, stronger regional value chains and expanded economic opportunities, particularly for young people.
The Horn of Africa occupies an important place in Africa’s broader economic integration agenda. Strengthening connectivity and facilitating trade within the region can help link businesses and production centres to larger markets while reinforcing the continental objective of creating a single integrated African market under the AfCFTA.
Highlighting the relationship between regional and continental integration, H.E. Mene stated: “Accelerating regional integration in the Horn of Africa is not only important for the countries of the region. It is an essential contribution to the implementation of the AfCFTA and to Africa’s wider economic transformation.”
The Secretary-General reaffirmed the readiness of the AfCFTA Secretariat to work closely with the Horn of Africa Initiative and its participating countries to support the implementation of the regional trade agenda.
Through stronger coordination, improved trade facilitation and better integration of physical and digital trade infrastructure, the initiative has the potential to contribute to a more connected, resilient and productive regional economy while advancing the broader AfCFTA vision of one African market.
The meeting therefore represents another step in efforts to move Africa’s integration agenda from political commitment to regional action, ensuring that continental and regional frameworks increasingly translate into lower trade costs, stronger value chains and meaningful opportunities for African businesses and citizens.
