The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will host an urgent summit on April 14, 2025, as African trade ministers rally to counter the economic threat posed by sweeping new U.S. tariffs under former President Donald Trump’s revived “America First” policy.
The crisis talks, confirmed by AfCFTA Secretary-General Wamkele Mene, aim to forge a unified continental strategy to protect exports, stabilize supply chains, and accelerate economic self-reliance amid fears of severe disruptions to key trade partnerships.
The tariffs, set to take effect April 9, target African exports with levies as high as 50% for nations like Lesotho and 10% for Ghana. Mene warned the measures risk unraveling decades of progress under initiatives like the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which granted duty-free access to U.S. markets for eligible African countries. “This is a wake-up call for Africa to prioritize its economic independence,” he stated during a signing ceremony with the U.S. Bar Association on April 5.
The emergency meeting, slated for Accra, will focus on safeguarding intra-African trade momentum while mitigating external vulnerabilities. Analysts argue the tariffs could disproportionately harm economies reliant on raw material exports, urging leaders to leverage AfCFTA’s framework to boost industrialization and value-added production. The Announcer Ghana cautioned that without swift action, the tariffs might “erase years of gains” in regional integration.
Accra Street Journal reports indicate the talks will also explore retaliatory measures, though insiders emphasize a preference for diplomatic engagement. Meanwhile, experts from Accra Weekly News suggest the crisis could catalyze long-term structural reforms, shifting focus toward domestic manufacturing and reducing dependency on volatile global markets.
The summit marks a pivotal moment for AfCFTA, which has struggled to harmonize policies across its 54 member states since its 2021 launch. With U.S.-Africa trade ties at a crossroads, the bloc faces mounting pressure to assert Africa’s voice in reshaping an increasingly fragmented global trade order.
