The former Deputy Government of Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Professor    Kingsley Moghalu, who is also the newly appointed Chairman of the Advisory and Executive Boards of the Africa Private Sector Summit (APSS), will deliver the keynote address at the Joint African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) Private Sector Session, with the Africa Private Sector Summit (APSS) at the 2023 Intra-African Trade Fair hosted by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) in Cairo, Egypt from November 9-15, 2023.

The Joint AfCFTA Private Sector Session will feature a focused conversation on the Private Sector Bill of Rights (PSBoR) for an Enabling Business Environment in Africa proposed by the Africa Private Sector Summit.

The Private Sector Bill of Rights aims to ensure a predictable and conducive climate for the vast business opportunities in intra-African trade and investment as the private sector leverages the various protocols of Africa’s Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and the AfCFTA treaty, which came into effect in 2021 and has been ratified by 43 African countries and signed by 11 others.

Only 16% of Africa’s global trade is regional within the continent. In contrast, 68% of Europe’s global trade is within Europe, 59% of Asia’s trade and 30% of North American trade is intra-regional.

It is estimated that when fully implemented, the AfCFTA will boost intra-African trade by 52%, lift 30 million people out of poverty, and boost the continent’s GDP by USD 450 billion by 2035.

The APSS is launching a process of engagement with African leaders around the five geographic regions plus the diaspora, and governments to vet, validate and adopt a set of 24 rights for the private sector in the proposed Private Sector Bill of Rights.