By Issah Mohammed
Accra, June 23, GNA – Mr David Ofosu-Dorte, a Senior Partner, AB and David Africa, has asked public sector players on the continent to push for the success of the African Continent Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
He said though AfCFTA had chalked some achievements over the years, much needed to be done.
Mr Ofosu-Dorte said for instance though negotiations on the Rule of Origin under the agreement were about 90 per cent complete, AfCFTA was far behind the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) of nine Asian countries, which had started trading.
The nine countries started negotiations for the Rule of Origin after AfCFTA.
“Before we continue deceiving ourselves, it (RCEP) is now the largest trading bloc by volume and quantum and no longer AfCFTA.
“When you are speeding, it is okay, but what is not okay is when others are catching up. And worst of all, we in Africa are the ones doing the catching up. We are slowing down, and we are happy with our pace, ” he lamented.
Mr Ofosu-Dorte said though the public sector was doing well to get AfCFTA functional, it must double its efforts.
“About 20 years ago, intra-Africa trade was only about 3 per cent and at the signing of the AfCFTA in March 2018 in Rwanda, it was already at 16 per cent without the AfCFTA. The public sector is only taking advantage of what was happening to integrate us,” he stated.
Mr Ofosu-Dorte said this when he addressed Public Service workers at the 2023 United Nations/ African Union Public Service Day, which was held under the theme, “Building an African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Ready Public Sector”.
The Day is to celebrate the values and virtues of public service while highlighting its contributions to the developmental process of countries.
Speaking on the topic: “The importance of the public sector for successful implementation for AfCFTA”, Mr Eliphas Barine, the Kenyan High Commissioner to Ghana, said AfCFTA provided the continent with an opportunity to scale up “to deliver our people from poverty, bondage, and shame”.
He said Africa already had enough sceptics and did not need more, especially within the public sector.
Mr Barine called for improvement in infrastructure, capacity building of trade-enabling institutions, improvement in access to contemporary knowledge, and the designing of policies to unlock access to credit for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
“What Africa needs is a public sector with esteemed African identity, engaged and aware of the privilege to deliver on the mandate of the 1.4 billion people and not a self-serving public sector.
“The kind of scepticism as to whether it will succeed or not, that is water under the bridge. The train took off and it is half-way the journey getting to the end,” he said.
Dr Fareed Kwesi Arthur, National Coordinator of the National AfCFTA Coordination Office, called for effective collaboration among public institutions as well as a strong partnership with the private sector, saying: “If we work together, we can achieve more”.
He urged the public sector to work at aligning trade policies, strengthen capacity through training and redevelopment of human capital, take the lead in digital transformation, and improve trade facilitation towards the success of AfCFTA.
Professor Victor Kwame Agyeman, Chairman of the Public Service Commission, asked public service workers to reconsider their roles in the successful implementation of AfCFTA and commit to it.
“Without an effective, efficient, and competent public service, the achievement of AfCFTA goals remains at risk. The role of the public service in upholding the agenda of governments on the African continent is, therefore, crucial.”
GNA