How can African countries boost economic growth and reduce extreme poverty? One approach is through the expansion of free trade on the continent.  

In this episode of the 'Solutions With David Ansara' podcast, David is joined by Alexander C.R. Hammond, Director of the Initiative for African Trade and Prosperity (IATP), a joint project of the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) and the University of Buckingham in the United Kingdom.    

David and Alex discuss the link between free trade and prosperity, the barriers to trade that exist on the continent, and the potential of the newly-created African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to transform the economies of Africa.   

TIMESTAMPS  

(0:00) Intro

(0:30) The benefits of free trade

(7:42) How free is trade in Africa?

(11:13) The AfCFTA: goals & progress

(14:25) Pan-African Socialism

(16:57) The role of Nigeria

(18:41) Non-tariff barriers  

(24:22) The challenge of nationalism

(28:05) Regional Economic Communities  

(29:18) Dispute resolution mechanisms

(30:27) Parallels with the EU

(36:34) Property rights and free trade

(39:04) About the IATP

(41:57) Conclusion  

RESOURCES  

IATP: https://theiatp.org/about-us/

IEA: https://iea.org.uk/