Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama announced plans in Kingston, Jamaica, to advocate for the expansion of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to include Caribbean nations when Ghana assumes the African Union chairmanship in 2027. President Mahama made the proposal during a joint press briefing with Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness at the Office of the Prime Minister.
Granting Caribbean exporters duty-free and tariff-free access to the AfCFTA connects CARICOM economies directly to a 1.4 billion-person market with a combined gross domestic product of nearly $3 trillion. The move addresses persistent transatlantic trade barriers by allowing goods certified under harmonised product standards to bypass separate national clearance protocols. Integrating the Caribbean into this framework reduces tariff overheads on manufactured products and simplifies cross-border commercial transactions.
The primary locations for this proposal are Kingston, Jamaica, and Accra, Ghana, within the international trade and export sector. The core institutions involved include the Government of Ghana, the Office of the Prime Minister of Jamaica, the African Union Commission, and the AfCFTA Secretariat. Although financial investments were not specified during the briefing, official state reports confirm that the expansion relies on two existing technical systems: the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System, which allows cross-border trade settlements in local currencies, and the AfCFTA digital trading platform. Ghanaian state reports project that the agreement will establish immediate duty-free channels for certified goods, including electrical cables, transformers, iron, steel, pharmaceuticals, and processed foods.
The expansion creates specific operational opportunities for businesses across both regions. Pharmaceutical manufacturers in Ghana and Jamaica can register under single-certification frameworks to export prescription medication without duplicate testing requirements. Maritime logistics providers can establish direct shipping routes between West African ports like Tema and Caribbean hubs like Kingston to meet new cargo volume demands. Food processing companies can source raw agricultural inputs duty-free and distribute packaged foods directly across participating national markets. Financial technology developers can integrate cross-border payment protocols to facilitate instant currency settlements between African and Caribbean commercial banks.
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