Ghanaian businesses and fintech companies risk missing significant opportunities in neighbouring Francophone markets because of language, regulatory and information gaps, the African Media Agency (AMA) has warned.
Ms Angela Akua Asante, Ghana Country Lead of AMA, said stronger communication between Anglophone and Francophone African countries was necessary to deepen regional trade, investment and digital financial integration.
She made the call at the Digital Assets Summit Africa (DASA) 2026 in Accra, organised by ProMark Elite Limited.
Ms Asante said while Africa was recording progress in fintech, mobile money interoperability and cross-border payment systems, businesses and innovators continued to face difficulties accessing information on markets, regulations and investment opportunities in neighbouring countries.
She said the continent’s intra-African trade remained relatively low, accounting for only about 15 to 18 per cent of total African trade, compared with higher levels recorded in Europe, Asia and North America.
According to her, limited knowledge of market opportunities, complex regulatory requirements and inadequate access to finance were among the factors constraining the expansion of regional trade.
Ms Asante noted that Ghana’s geographical position, surrounded by Francophone countries, made stronger engagement with French-speaking markets particularly important.
However, she said many Ghanaian businesses continued to operate largely within an Anglophone ecosystem, potentially limiting their ability to identify partnerships and expand into other West African markets.
She said strategic communication could help bridge linguistic, cultural and regulatory differences and enable businesses, investors and policymakers to operate more effectively across borders.
The AMA Country Lead therefore urged regulators to communicate major policy and regulatory frameworks in both English and French to facilitate regional cooperation and strengthen investor confidence.
She also encouraged fintech companies and startups to consider Francophone markets in their expansion strategies from the early stages of their operations.
Ms Asante said AMA was using its media platforms and capacity-building programmes to promote greater understanding between Anglophone and Francophone Africa.
She said the agency was also training journalists to improve their understanding and reporting of emerging sectors, including fintech, digital assets and financial regulation.
She reaffirmed AMA’s commitment to supporting governments, businesses and institutions to communicate more effectively across linguistic markets and take advantage of opportunities emerging from deeper African economic integration.
