BLOG: The AfCFTA protocol on women and youth in trade – Africa’s blueprint for inclusive trade

Laura Naliaka*

Experts agree that a truly transformative vision for Africa’s continental integration cannot be achieved without the involvement of women and young people. Gender equality and youth inclusion are more than just fundamental rights[i] - they are economic imperatives. When women and young people succeed, entire economies thrive. [ii]

Recognizing this, the African Union (AU) Heads of State and Government made a historic move by adopting the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Protocol on Women and Youth in Trade at the 37^th Ordinary Session of the AU Assembly held in February 2024.  This landmark protocol is Africa’s blueprint for inclusive trade under the AfCFTA, aiming to enhance the effective participation of women and youth in intra-African trade and regional and continental value chains. By placing women and young people at the center—rather than the margins—of Africa’s trade ecosystem, the protocol has the potential to be a game-changer, unlocking opportunities for job creation and shared prosperity.

Critically, the impact of trade agreements is not gender neutral; they can amplify gender gaps when designed without deliberate and targeted measures. The AfCFTA Protocol on Women and Youth in Trade introduces deliberate interventions to ensure that the AfCFTA Agreement actively tackles gender inequalities, enabling women and youth to harness the gains from the Agreement rather than reinforcing already entrenched gender biases. Inclusive trade outcomes are not incidental— they must be intentionally engineered.[iii]

Addressing stakeholders’ priorities

The protocol addresses concerns raised by various stakeholders during the consultations organized by the African Trade Policy Centre of ECA and other partners prior to its drafting. Take access to finance, for example, which emerged as the most critical challenge facing women and young people in trade. Traditional lending frameworks often exclude women due to high collateral requirements, a problem compounded by restrictive customary land tenure systems which limit women’s inheritance or ownership rights.[iv] Even when alternatives like microfinance or mobile banking exist, prohibitive interest rates and low loan ceilings render them impractical. Moreover, many women and young entrepreneurs avoid applying for loans altogether, deterred by fear of rejection or lack of financial literacy.[v] In response, the protocol requires AfCFTA state parties to implement a raft of measures to improve financial access and boost financial literacy.

Another key challenge is limited productive and export capacity of many women and young entrepreneurs. They often struggle with complex and burdensome regulatory requirements, such as product standards and certification, which hinder their participation in external markets. This issue is exacerbated by their lower participation in business support organizations like chambers of commerce and sector associations— depriving them of vital training, market linkages, and business development services.[vi] To address these gaps, the protocol outlines interventions ranging from capacity building to supporting their participation in platforms and fora that will increase the visibility of their products and services.

Limited access to trade-related information further disadvantages women and young entrepreneurs. In fact, a recent ECA and KAS report revealed that misconceptions about the AfCFTA’s tariff liberalization regime discouraged some traders, who mistakenly believed that the AfCFTA Agreement would result in immediate zero tariffs at the border and exemption from domestic taxes internally.[vii] Moreover, the digital gender divide, where women are disproportionately underrepresented in internet use across Africa[viii], further limits their ability to access crucial information available on online platforms. The protocol addresses these challenges through measures such as decentralizing information on trade related processes and procedures through collaboration with public and private institutions to enhance accessibility of information, among others. 

The protocol also explicitly addresses issues raised in the consultations that intersect with the phase II protocols on intellectual property rights, investment, competition and digital trade. For instance, many women and young people operate in sectors that rely on traditional knowledge such as agro-food processing and creative industries, where they produce innovative products but often lack the knowledge and resources to protect their intellectual property.[ix] Accordingly, the protocol requires state parties to establish mechanisms to assist women and youth in trade in the registration and use of intellectual property rights.

As the saying goes, “only the wearer of the shoe knows where it pinches”. Consequently, the protocol emphasizes representation and participation of women in policy making and AfCFTA implementation. It also includes provisions on capacity building and technical assistance to facilitate the implementation of the protocol, and protection against harassment and related practices.

Furthermore, in line with Article 4.4 of the protocol, work is underway to develop a ministerial regulation on preferential market access for women and youth in trade, supported by the necessary legal frameworks. This regulation is expected to introduce various initiatives and actions designed to effectively assist women and youth navigate cross-border trade by streamlining and harmonizing procedures. For example, it may include provisions similar to the Simplified Trade Regime (STR) implemented by some regional economic communities, aimed at creating preferential market opportunities for women and youth under the AfCFTA.

Flexibility in the protocol’s approach

The protocol takes a less prescriptive approach than many gender-related chapters in trade agreements, particularly those involving Europe and the Americas, which often include a comprehensive list of actions for parties to implement. By broadly stating in some instances that parties should implement appropriate measures to address particular issues, the protocol allows for tailored solutions based on each country's context. This flexibility helps avoid a one-size-fits-all approach, recognizing the diversity of challenges and needs across the continent.

The protocol is also covered by the AfCFTA’s dispute settlement mechanism, giving it real teeth. This contrasts starkly with agreements like the Australia-United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement (FTA) (Art. 24.4), the New-Zealand- United Kingdom FTA (Art. 25.8) and the Agreement between the United Kingdom and Japan for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership (Art 21.4), where the gender chapters are excluded from the dispute settlement mechanism.[x]

Making the protocol a reality

Ratification and domestication of the protocol

Once opened for ratification, it is expected that AfCFTA state parties will ratify the protocol and subsequently align their national policies, laws, and institutions with the protocol’s commitments. This alignment is crucial to ensure that national frameworks facilitate, rather than obstruct, full realization of the objectives of the protocol.

As highlighted in ECA’s 2025 Economic Report on Africa (ERA)[xi], the AfCFTA Secretariat, in collaboration with partners like ECA, can support state parties by providing technical assistance and facilitating experience-sharing to help align domestic policies with the AfCFTA agreement and its protocols.

Funding implementation

The protocol notes that the committee on women and youth in trade – established in accordance with Article 11 of the AfCFTA Agreement – is to carry out functions assigned to it by the Council of Ministers to facilitate implementation of the protocol. This includes monitoring and evaluation, working closely with the AfCFTA Secretariat.

Similar to the Chile-Uruguay FTA, which explicitly addresses funding to facilitate implementation, the protocol also highlights the need for countries, in collaboration with relevant stakeholders, to mobilize resources where needed to support the implementation of various measures identified in the protocol. The 2025 ERA advocates for innovative and sustainable financing strategies, such as tapping into homegrown assets like remittances, diaspora bonds, and pension funds. It also suggests leveraging Special Drawing Rights, reforms in multilateral development banks (MDBs), and public-private partnerships to fund the successful implementation of the AfCFTA.

Sex-disaggregated data for evidence-based policy design

The protocol highlights the need for state parties to collect and reciprocally share statistical data disaggregated by sex and age on small scale cross border trade to facilitate evidence-based policy design to increase the participation of women and youth in trade activities.

Indeed, informal cross-border trade (ICBT), largely driven by women trading small quantities of commodities across borders (hence the name small scale cross-border traders), is widespread across the continent.[xii] To streamline ICBT data collection efforts across the continent, the AU Commission, ECA, and Afreximbank spearheaded the development of Continental Methodology for ICBT Data Collection, which was adopted by the 38^th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of States and Government of the AU in February 2025. Institutionalizing this methodology at the national level could enhance consistent and accurate ICBT data collection.

Moreover, the lack of sex-disaggregated data in formal trade remains a challenge. To address this, ECA will support national statistics offices in using the UNCTAD gender-in-trade framework (adapted to the African context), to generate gender-in-trade statistics for evidence-based policy design.

Stakeholder engagement

At its core, the protocol is about people. Its success hinges on continuous stakeholder engagement. Listening to the experiences of the stakeholders and tailoring implementation efforts to their realities will be essential in translating the protocol into real opportunities for Africa’s women and youth.

Conclusion

The adoption of the AfCFTA Protocol on Women and Youth in Trade marks a watershed moment for Africa’s inclusive economic transformation. As soon as the protocol is ratified, the critical work of implementation begins – where aspirations must translate into tangible opportunities for Africa’s women and youth. The stakes are high: without action, existing inequalities could deepen. With effective implementation of the protocol, Africa can unlock a more equitable, dynamic, and prosperous future for all Africans.

*Laura Naliaka is a Trade Policy Expert at the Economic Commission for Africa’s Africa Trade Policy Centre