Africa free trade agreement could provide necessary momentum for improving SA's port infrastructure

June 22, 2021

As the world hopefully heads out of the COVID-19 lockdowns, trade and the shipping of more goods should continue to increase, as logistics bottlenecks start to ease and fiscal stimuli from major trading nations in the developed world continue to spur demand. South Africa, long one of the strongest markets on the continent and a gateway for other countries to trade with others throughout sub-Saharan Africa needs to urgently improve its port infrastructure. Countries with inefficient ports will not be able to fully benefit from the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) as trade starts to liberalise in Africa.