Nigeria Positioned To Lead Africa’s Digital Trade Future — Afreximbank

Nigeria is strategically positioned to lead Africa’s emerging digital trade revolution, the Chief Economist of Afreximbank, Dr. Yemi Kale, has said. Speaking at the inauguration of the Africa Trade Center (ATC) in Abuja, he described Nigeria as a natural frontrunner in the continent’s transition toward technology-driven commerce under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

Kale said Nigeria’s demographic strength, expanding innovation ecosystem, and its role as host of the first ATC place the country at the centre of Africa’s next major economic transformation. He explained that as global trade shifts toward digitally enabled systems, Africa must accelerate investments in digital infrastructure, smart trade logistics, and data-driven platforms that reduce transaction costs and open markets for millions of small businesses.

Dr. Kale said digital innovation is the engine that will enable [AfCFTA] to deliver measurable, continent-wide impact, adding that the question was no longer whether Africa should embrace digital trade but “how strategically and collaboratively we can lead it”.

According to him, the newly unveiled ATC is designed as a one-stop hub that integrates trade information, financing, logistics support, business promotion, and digital platforms under a single ecosystem. The centre, he noted, will not only serve Nigeria but will form a model for a continent-wide network of trade centres in Harare, Cairo, Kampala, Tunis, Abidjan, Yaoundé, and Barbados.

“Despite its transformative potential, intra-African trade remains between 15 and 18 per cent compared to 60 per cent in Europe and about 40 per cent in Asia,” he said, describing the figure as a sign of the fragmented markets, high logistics costs and “persistent cross-border payment frictions” that slow down the movement of goods and services,” Kale said.

Kale said the goal is to eliminate long-standing barriers that have kept African traders fragmented and dependent on external markets. With the AfCFTA creating the world’s largest free trade area by population, he stressed that digital innovation must drive the next phase of growth. “No country on the continent is better placed than Nigeria to champion this effort, given its entrepreneurial dynamism and scale,” he noted.

He highlighted Afreximbank’s digital platforms such as the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), the MANSA due-diligence database, and the Africa Trade Gateway, which are expected to significantly boost intra-African trade by making payments, verification, and market access easier for businesses.

Kale also described the Abuja ATC as a symbol of Afreximbank’s long-term partnership with Nigeria, noting that the facility is one of the most technically advanced commercial buildings in the country. It will host trade fairs, exhibitions, conferences, business development services, training programs, and financial advisory sessions aimed at boosting Nigeria’s participation in regional and global value chains.

He further emphasised that digital trade will be crucial to Africa’s economic diversification, job creation, and resilience in a global economy increasingly shaped by technology and data. For Nigeria, he said the opportunity is significant, as enhanced digital trade can unlock new export channels, empower startups, strengthen supply chains, and accelerate the country’s shift away from oil dependence.

Like Kale, the manager of real estate and administration at Afreximbank, Oluwaseun Alabi, said ATC is a key tool for transforming trade across the continent.

“We are looking at how to transform this ecosystem without having some enabling physical infrastructure to deal with this. This initiative is now beyond just building physical spaces. It’s not just an accommodation to host the African bank regional office across the continent, but a catalyst to promote trade within the ecosystem,” he said.

Alabi described the ATC as a comprehensive hub, “where businesses cohabit and thrive together. When you come into a trade center, you don’t need to go out, you don’t need to look for where to stay.

Kale expressed confidence that with the ATC and Nigeria’s strong private-sector base, the country is well placed to lead the continent into a new era of integrated, technology-enabled trade.