At West African Economic Summit, Eneanya Chukwuemeka Calls for Fair Trade, Economic Reforms

At the ongoing West African Economic Summit, economist and Africapitalist, Eneanya Chukwuemeka, made a strong case for urgent reforms across Africa’s trade, production, and economic systems, emphasizing the need for a Fair African Trade Policy.

In an exclusive interview during the summit, Chukwuemeka highlighted the need to engage manufacturers and policymakers to restructure Africa’s position in global value chains.

He said, “We must speak to manufacturers if we want fair African trade. We are still producing at the natural output level rather than transforming into secondary, value-added production. We need to start asking: What percentage of the products we consume are actually made in Africa?” he stated.

Chukwuemeka stressed that every small business is the foundation of a large enterprise, and supporting them is critical to Africa’s development.

According to him,

“We must differentiate between the free trade of foreign goods flooding the continent and the free trade of African-made goods. Our policies must first solve the African problem through domestic savings, good governance, and strong institutional coordination,” Chukwuemeka urged.

The economist called for a drastic reduction in the export of raw materials in favor of value-added production within the continent.

“This is how we fix inflation, stabilize prices, and restructure our economies for real impact,” he emphasized.

He also advocated for AI adoption, digitalization, and blockchain technology to drive transparency, innovation, and leapfrog development challenges.

“We must build digital systems and infrastructures that empower small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to compete globally,” Chukwuemeka said.

Chukwuemeka did not shy away from calling out the insurance sector, stating that insurance companies are not doing enough to support business risk-taking.

“Insurance and guarantees can make all the difference. And at the national level, we must ensure proper coordination so policies are effectively implemented.”

Now is the time to deepen our reforms and prioritize African-made solutions.”