Prez. Mahama Pushes Africa-Caribbean Trade Link Under AfCFTA
By Esther Korantemaa Offei
President John Dramani Mahama has announced plans to champion the expansion of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to include Caribbean nations when Ghana assumes the chairmanship of the African Union next year.
President Mahama said the move would strengthen economic cooperation between Africa and the Caribbean by creating opportunities for duty-free and tariff-free trade between the two regions.
Speaking during a joint engagement with Jamaica’s Prime Minister, Andrew Holness, President Mahama said the recent recognition of the Caribbean as the seventh region of Africa by the African Union marked a significant step in deepening relations between the two regions.
“The last AU conference, the Caribbean was accepted and duly acknowledged as the seventh region of Africa, and so it allows the Caribbean to CARICOM to sit in AU meetings and to discuss whole discussions affecting Africa and the Caribbean in AU meetings,” President Mahama said.
He explained that extending the AfCFTA framework to the Caribbean would create access to a wider market and promote economic growth.
“We’ve set up the African Continental Free Trade Area that allows us to export goods duty-free and tariff-free into each other’s markets,” he said.
President Mahama noted that the African market represents a population of about 1.4 billion people and a significant economic bloc, adding that integrating Caribbean countries into the arrangement would provide new opportunities for businesses, manufacturers and investors across both regions.
Meanwhile, Jamaica’s Prime Minister, Andrew Holness, expressed appreciation for Ghana’s support following the devastation caused by Hurricane Melissa last October.
Mr. Holness said Ghana’s humanitarian assistance, including the contribution of the Ghana Army Corps of Engineers, played an important role in Jamaica’s recovery efforts by supporting the reconstruction of roofs in some of the worst-affected communities in Saint Elizabeth Parish.
“Ghana’s humanitarian assistance, together with the invaluable contribution of the Ghana Army Corps of Engineers, has played a meaningful role in our recovery,” Mr. Holness said.
He added that both countries had agreed to formalise a disaster response arrangement that would allow them to provide rapid assistance to each other during future emergencies.
The discussions between the two leaders highlighted efforts to deepen Africa-Caribbean relations through economic cooperation, humanitarian support and stronger institutional partnerships.
