Since 1990, such an anniversary has been celebrated worldwide to support the industrial development of this continent, which is characterized by the highest proportion of young people in the world.
For this reason, the United Nations (UN) promotes industrialization plans aimed at promoting employment, development and greater economic independence of this continent.
Each year a theme is proposed to commemorate the day, where in 2022 the theme was “Renewed commitment to inclusive and sustainable industrialization and economic diversification of Africa.”
The African Continental Free Trade Agreement (Afcfta) is a single market for goods and services closely linked to this date, as it is the largest free trade area in the world in terms of the number of countries.
The Afcfta was due to come into force on January 1, 2021, but the Covid-19 crisis posed a challenge to the gradual rollout of the single market.
Although the pandemic developed more slowly in Africa than in other parts of the world, it still had a major impact on economic growth and certainly caused the continent’s first recession in 25 years.
Since 2018, the central topic of this day has been the development of Africa’s own pharmaceutical industry. All within the framework of the UN Sustainable Development Plan and Africa Agenda 2063.
As part of the United Nations 2030 Agenda, it is necessary that every country in the world is able to become self-sufficient, using the potential existing within its territory.
As a continent, Africa is a long way from achieving this goal, because with 1.2 billion inhabitants it is the second largest continent, i.e. 16 percent of the world’s population, but it represents less than 2.0 percent of the international market.
This lack of production is due in large part to poor economic and industrial development, but paradoxically Africa has many important resources and unique pharmaceutical potential.
For this reason, since 1990, not only investments from other countries on the continent have been promoted, but also interregional trade between Africans. However, this is where the biggest obstacles arise, as the continent still has very little trade with itself.
That is why this date aims to promote the most important elements of economics, finance and trade for a continent so rich and at the same time so needy.
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