African business leaders and policymakers have been urged to provide digital infrastructure, cross-border payments, and regulatory harmonisation as critical actions to unlock the continent’s vast market potential for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
Experts at the 4th Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2025) in Algiers emphasised that Africa’s digital trade future hinges on three foundational pillars: trust, payment, and policy.
During a panel discussion on “Accelerating the AfCFTA: Unleashing the Power of Digital Trade in Africa,” speakers highlighted the persistent barriers and transformative innovations that are shaping the future of intra-African commerce.
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Entrepreneurs, bankers, and policy experts engaged in a candid and solutions-driven conversation that revolved around the critical role of digital infrastructure, seamless payment systems, and coherent regulation in driving the continent’s economic integration.
Michelle Chivunga, chief executive Officer of Global Policy House (GPH); Mike Ogbalu, chief executive officer of the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS); Emeka Onyia, acting director of Digital Banking at Afreximbank; and Farrah Bouras, Chief Executive Officer of Think Touch Solution, were among the key panellists who unpacked the necessary reforms and innovations required to elevate Africa’s MSMEs.
There was a strong consensus at the session: to unlock Africa’s digital trade potential, governments and stakeholders must urgently act to overcome systemic challenges. These include inefficient cross-border payments, fragmented digital laws, a lack of harmonised data protection frameworks, and underdeveloped infrastructure, all of which directly hamper MSMEs from scaling across borders under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Farrah Bouras, an Algerian entrepreneur in the healthtech space, gave a raw account of the challenges MSMEs continue to face. From unreliable cross-border transactions to regulatory uncertainty, she stressed that such barriers are directly limiting the growth and competitiveness of small businesses under the AfCFTA framework.
Banks and financial institutions are stepping up with new platforms aimed at bridging these gaps. Afreximbank introduced its African Trade Gateway, a tool focused on trust-building, efficient payments, and improved data access. Similarly, Ecobank presented its Single Market Trade Hub, which digitally connects buyers and sellers across 33 African countries, integrating payment rails that significantly reduce delays and eliminate the friction of currency conversion.
At the heart of the payment conversation was PAPSS, which Mike Ogbalu described as the “gunpowder” for the AfCFTA “silver bullet.” With coverage now spanning 18 countries, PAPSS is redefining how African businesses transact, offering instant, low-cost, and local currency payments. This is seen as a major game-changer for MSMEs who previously struggled with high transaction costs and slow settlement timelines.
Policy remains the other critical lever. Michel, an advisor to the African Union, called for the urgent domestication of the AfCFTA Digital Trade Protocol across member states. She urged African governments to implement harmonised data protection laws and push forward youth-centric reforms that ensure inclusive participation in the digital economy. “We must put Africa first. Africa must lead the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” she declared.
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The discussion also emphasised that rules alone won’t deliver results. According to Emeka Onyia of Afreximbank, Africa needs the digital “rails and infrastructure” to support the flow of goods and services. The bank is developing systems to verify MSMEs, provide market data, and scale up public-private partnerships that complement payment platforms like PAPSS.
As digital trade protocols are increasingly adopted and payment systems continue to evolve, Africa is on the cusp of a significant trade revolution. A future where a young entrepreneur in Algiers can seamlessly sell to customers in Accra, Lagos, or Nairobi is within reach. But for that vision to be realised, stakeholders must now shift focus toward adoption, policy implementation, and sustained infrastructure investment. With the core tools in place and political will gathering momentum, Africa is preparing to leap into a unified digital marketplace, driven by its MSMEs and powered by trust, payment, and policy.
