The Trade Policy Training Centre in Africa (trapca) recently concluded a series of awareness workshops across Malawi. These workshops, held in Mzuzu, Lilongwe, and Blantyre, targeted key stakeholders from academia, the business community, and the media. They focused on the importance of digital trade and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Digital Trade Protocol to enhance its implementation. This initiative is part of TRAPCA’s ongoing project, “Improving Trade Facilitation Measures and Increasing Regional Market Access,” conducted in partnership with the Digitalization for Inclusive Finance and Competitiveness (DIFC) project within the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Trade and funded by the AFDB.
The workshops aimed to stimulate discussion on how each sector can contribute to Malawi’s increased participation in the digital trade arena. Participants explored the opportunities and challenges of digital trade, the role of the AfCFTA protocol, and the necessary steps for Malawi to harness its potential. Sector representatives engaged in productive dialogue, using the platform to lobby the government for support in several key areas, including:
- Developing and implementing regulations that foster a conducive environment for digital trade.
- Aligning national digital trade frameworks with regional and continental initiatives, ensuring interoperability of systems.
- Collaborating with local, regional and international partners to improve digital infrastructure, including connectivity and access to technology.
These awareness workshops build upon previous capacity-building activities conducted by trapca, including trade negotiation training focused on the AfCFTA Digital Trade Protocol annexes. trapca has also played a crucial role in supporting the drafting of position papers for these negotiations, further demonstrating their commitment to Malawi’s successful engagement in digital trade.
Notably, trapca has previously conducted similar awareness-raising workshops for parliamentarians, ensuring that key decision-makers are well-informed about the implications and benefits of digital trade. By empowering diverse stakeholders with knowledge and facilitating dialogue, trapca is playing a vital role in driving Malawi’s digital trade agenda forward, paving the way for increased economic growth and regional integration and enhancing implementation of the AfCFTA through preparedness to implement its various protocols, including the Digital trade protocol.
