Embedding a new generation of trade practitioners
EDUCATION
Explore Our Work
Policy support that transforms institutions, delivers results
POLICY ENGAGEMENT
Explore Our Work
Evidence-based decision-making for results
RESEARCH
Explore Our Work
No alt text

The Structural Challenge

  • 1. Commodity trap — $590B exports concentrated in commodities; 80% of minerals exported raw, 75% of goods unprocessed. Value and margins are captured elsewhere as Africa misses out on opportunities for high-value supply chain integration.
  • 2. Slow uptake of opportunities — The African Continental Free Trade Area represents a strong opportunity to advance trade, investment and industrialization within Africa, but implementation at country level remains slow.
  • 3. Institutional challenges — While the multilateral trading system is designed for equity, Africa’s participation has been limited. And now that global trade rules are being reshaped, Africa’s absence in this conversation is stifling its strategic influence.
  • 4. Policy built without business — The private sector often lacks both an enabling environment and a meaningful voice in trade policy design, implementation and in trade negotiations. Businesses don't adequately shape the rules before they're finalized.
  • 5. Unequal tables — African officials negotiate trade agreements against counterparts backed by decades of institutional depth, precedent databases, and coordinated research. The gap shows.
  • 6. Agreements that underperform — Eroding trade preferences, and weak implementation in a declining aid environment mean trade commitments struggle to stimulate trade flows and investment.

News

Aerial view container cargo ship freight shipping international,
OPINION
COMESA Trade in Services Op-Ed: From Regulation to Market Activation
Services are rapidly emerging as the primary economic engine for the Common Market for Eastern and Southern...
Read More
WhatsApp Image 2026-05-29 at 3.37
NEWS
EAC Multi-Sectoral High-Level Dialogue, Kigali
The global multilateral architecture is undergoing a profound shift, with the multilateral rules-based...
Read More

Upcoming Events

29

May 2026

Export Development for Foreign Service Officers - Nairobi

Short course for a selected cadre of Kenya’s foreign service officers on export development and using analytic tools for decision-making.

Accelerating Export Performance for Livestock Products for Horn of Africa Countries - Nairobi

Leveraging on a peer-to-peer approach to accelerate export performance for livestock products in Gulf Cooperation Council markets. This policy engagement process targets Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Djibouti and is implemented in partnership with the World Bank Group.

From

23

June 2026

TO

24

June 2026

September 2026

Anticipating and Adapting to Changing Global Supply Chains – Lagos, Johannesburg, Nairobi

Executive programme for CEOs and heads of government affairs to review recent developments in international trade and global supply chains and position the exporting private sector to adapt and thrive in a challenging global operating environment Leveraging on a peer-to-peer approach to accelerate export performance for livestock products in Gulf Cooperation Council markets. This policy engagement process targets Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Djibouti and is implemented in partnership with the World Bank Group.

View More
Leaders trained (Year 10)
0 +
Countries with active advisory
0 +
Women participation
0 %
African regions represented
0

PARTNERSHIP TYPES

Learn More

African Governments

RECs

Multilateral Development Institutions

Academic & Research Institutions

United Nations

Private Sectors

Become a Partner

Contact our team to explore how your institution can contribute.

partnerships@ctdafrica.org