Story By: Akua Oteng Amponsah
The Chief Executive Officer of the African Centre for Economic Transformation (ACET), Mavis Owusu-Gyamfi, has identified the biggest obstacle to the success of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) as a lack of political commitment among member countries, rather than financial resources.
Ms Owusu-Gyamfi noted that African leaders often sign agreements like AfCFTA with enthusiasm, but fail to follow through with the necessary local policies and actions to implement them.
“I will say political commitment,” she said. “We sign the agreement, but then, when it comes to putting in place local policies and regulations to actually implement it, it becomes problematic.”
Ms Owusu-Gyamfi challenged the common perception that Africa’s main problem is a lack of funds, arguing instead that the continent’s resources are often deployed in the wrong way.
She cited the example of pension funds earning low interest rates in the US, and highlighted the need for more effective tax collection from large multinational corporations.
“The problem is we have money, but it is deployed in the wrong way,” she said. “We have pension funds that are garnering very low interest rates sitting in the US. Our tax system… we don’t fight for the money that large international corporations are taking out that we are not getting back as taxes. So for me, money is not the problem.
