UN Global Compact Africa coalition unveils roadmap to accelerate intra-African trade

KIGALI, Rwanda, May 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Africa Business Leaders Coalition (ABLC), a CEO-led platform convened by the UN Global Compact to bring together leading African CEOs and companies to advance sustainable growth, climate action, gender equality and economic transformation across the continent, has launched a major new position paper, Five Mindset Shifts to Unlock Intra-African Trade: A Perspective from African CEOs, at the Africa CEO Forum. The paper presents a CEO-driven, private sector-led roadmap for accelerating regional integration, strengthening African value chains and unlocking sustainable economic growth through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

The launch of the trade paper at the Africa CEO Forum aligns closely with this year's Forum theme of shared ownership. It reflects growing recognition that Africa's long-term competitiveness will depend on stronger regional integration, coordinated industrial development and greater private sector leadership on intra-African trade.

The paper argues that Africa's transformation will depend not only on policy reform and investment, but on a fundamental shift in how governments, businesses and institutions approach regional integration and collaboration. The paper focuses on the practical actions and mindset shifts African CEOs believe are required to unlock the full potential of regional trade and economic integration.

Speaking at the Africa CEO Forum, Sanda Ojiambo, CEO and Executive Director of the UN Global Compact, said: "Unlocking intra-African trade is one of the greatest economic opportunities of our generation. Africa has the resources, talent and entrepreneurial dynamism to become a major engine of global growth. What is needed now is deeper collaboration between Governments, business and regional institutions to remove barriers to trade, investment and mobility and build the conducive infrastructure to support this. The Africa Business Leaders Coalition is demonstrating how the private sector can help drive a more integrated, resilient and competitive African economy."

The paper outlines five key mindset shifts required to unlock intra-African trade and strengthen Africa's long-term competitiveness:

• Viewing continental collaboration as a strategic advantage rather than competition;
• Recognizing that Africa can produce goods, not just export raw materials;
• Treating the mobility of people and talent as an economic opportunity;
• Building interconnected infrastructure networks instead of isolated national projects; and
• Acting with urgency to seize Africa's current economic moment.

The report also emphasizes the need for stronger regional value chains in sectors including agriculture, automotive manufacturing and pharmaceuticals, while investing in emerging technologies and workforce readiness, including artificial intelligence.

Alongside the trade paper, the ABLC also released its 2025 Voluntary Climate Action and Gender Equality Report, which demonstrates growing momentum among African businesses on climate action, resilience and inclusion. The report highlights that ABLC members have collectively mobilized US$9.4 billion in climate finance since 2023. Other key findings from the report include:

• Approximately 90 per cent of climate finance mobilized by ABLC members has been directed toward climate mitigation and renewable energy projects;
• Half of reporting members now have climate adaptation and resilience plans in place;
• Eighty-four per cent of reporting members have integrated gender equality strategies into overall company strategy;
• Women represent an average of 32 per cent of management positions across participating companies;
• ABLC members provided approximately US$1.02 billion in investment and financing to women-owned SMEs in 2025.

Sharing these statistics, Phumzilie Langeni, ABLC member and Deputy Chairman of DP World Africa reflected on the Coalition's progress from commitments to concrete action: "When we started, it seemed like such a long journey. But I'm reminded of some of the conversations that we've had as members of ABLC — the theme has been that we as African business leaders can solve our own problems. We don't need to wait. We're not waiting to be saved."

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