National allegiance may feel safe, but unity in branding is what elevates us on the world stage.
“Made in South Africa. Made in Nigeria. Made in Kenya. Made in Ghana. But why does the label stop at national loyalty when our heritage is continental? There are no labels like ‘Made in Chicago’, ‘Made in Shanghai’, or ‘Made in Mumbai’; only ‘Made in America’, ‘Made in China’, and ‘Made in India’.
Why, then, do we fragment our identity? Why not adopt ‘Made in Africa’ with a subsidiary stamp indicating the specific country: Ghana, South Africa, Nigeria, etc.? A unified African label would do more than identify goods; it would dismantle internal borders and realize the vision of the AfCFTA.”
This question opens a portal into a broader, sobering reality. Beneath national pride lies a fractured continental identity that continues to undermine our shared destiny. Africa, shaped by shared ancestry and aspiration, remains ensnared in colonial-era barriers and protectionist mindsets. Instead of a unified continental chorus, we present discordant solos—dreaming together, yet trading apart.
Invisible Borders: Geography, Not Barrier
Africa’s most formidable barrier is not infrastructure; it is mindset. We champion unity on global stages, but our officials treat continental neighbors with suspicion. Remarkably, a container from Hamburg clears customs faster than one from Lagos. Europe prospers by harmonizing standards; African customs posts all too often resemble toll booths for bureaucratic egos.
All 54 nations share the same continental landmass, yet they function as 54 distinct economic entities. From Ghana, Nigeria, and Côte d’Ivoire to Kenya, Tanzania, and Ethiopia; from Egypt, Morocco, and Algeria to South Africa, Botswana, and Namibia; with Cameroon, DRC, and Chad situated centrally, policy creates geographical fragmentation.
Tariffs, bureaucratic procedures, and conflicting standards hinder the free circulation of goods, which remain trapped despite the apparent freedom of movement.
Spiritually interconnected yet practically divided, these nations face significant challenges in industrialization. Is it feasible to pursue industrial development when each country approaches collaboration with the caution of heirs at a will reading, visible yet mistrusted?
Every border permit, inspection, and delay becomes a ritual of suspicion that stifles our collective economic growth.
“Made in Africa”: More Than Just a Label, It’s a Mindset
“Made in Africa” must evolve from a label to a belief, symbolizing shared resources, supply chains, and standards. India does not brand products “Made in Mumbai”; China does not use “Made in Guangdong.” Their unity is systemic. Africa must replicate this approach.
The irony is profound: we export cocoa while importing chocolate, cultivate tomatoes solely to import paste, and harvest pineapples while consuming imported juice. Despite their abundance across the continent, we remain dependent on imported processed goods; this is not globalization, but neglect.
Over sixty-eight years after its first independence, Africa still imports more than 80% of its pharmaceuticals and over 70% of packaged medicines. During COVID-19, many nations queued for vaccines manufactured abroad; our potential choked by regulatory fragmentation.
We hold 60% of the world’s uncultivated arable land, yet in 2019, Africa imported $43 billion in food. A Kenyan tractor barred from Nigeria or Ghanaian pharmaceuticals requiring re-registration in Zambia are not trade measures; they are industrial shackles.
Ministries in silos, agencies in competition, and trade bodies working in parallel; when each runs solo, the continent loses the relay.
A T-shirt made in Morocco should celebrate pan-African craftsmanship; a smartphone assembled in Rwanda ought to rival global brands. Yet we doubt each other’s integrity and import confidence painted on plastic. Until we wear our own label, Africa will remain cloaked in foreign barcodes.
The Choir of Europe Sings from One Sheet; Africa Must Compose Its Own
In the EU, a car made in Germany flows freely to Portugal. A vaccine approved in France is sold in Greece. This is not luck; it is trust, systems, and collective discipline. Africa must craft its own version, rooted in regional supply chains, local beneficiation, and shared prosperity. Let us not simply copy Europe but adapt their lessons to our context.
There are sparks: intra-African trade is on the rise. PAPSS is simplifying payments. Ghana’s MIIF is investing in value addition. Rwanda is quietly assembling smart devices. But these sparks need fuel, not applause. Africa needs not just summits but summits that translate into outcomes.
AfCFTA: A Flag Without Wind and Without “Made in Africa”
AfCFTA stands as Africa’s boldest economic pact since the EU. Still, ambition without harmonization is music without melody. Where customs operate as cash desks, smuggling inhibits legal trade, not due to criminality but because legitimacy is obstructed. Prosperity cannot stem from tariffs; it blossoms through regulation that encourages flow.
In 2023, intra-African trade grew by 7.2% to reach $192 billion, now accounting for 15% of Africa’s total trade, up from 13.6% the previous year. Southern Africa led the charge, contributing 41.4% of that growth. While notable, this remains modest compared to Europe’s 70% and Asia’s 55%.
AfCFTA-enabling technologies are emerging. PAPSS, the Pan-African Payments and Settlement System, now connects 150 banks across 15 countries, reducing cross-border transaction costs from 10–30% to just 1%, unlocking $5 billion in liquidity annually.
You Cannot Tax Your Way into Prosperity. You Scale. You Trade. You Transform.
Tariffs should be tools of strategy, not desperation. Regulation should be enablers, not roadblocks. Development requires frictionless movement, not endless paperwork. These are glimmers of hope, but they require systems, not applause. The continent needs harmonized regulations, shared infrastructure, aligned standards, and, above all, collective resolve.
When a Permit Becomes a Wall, Progress Becomes a Myth
A battery plant in the DRC should source lithium from Zimbabwe, not Australia. A Ghanaian fruit processor should find its first customer in Togo, not Italy. African integration must stop being a panel discussion and start being a purchase order.
From textiles to tech, from cassava to kingklip, our comparative advantage lies in unity—not just unity in speeches but unity in systems. Procurement frameworks, logistics corridors, and industrial parks must be synchronized across borders. These aren’t pipe dreams; they are realistic scenarios when “Made in Africa” transcends rhetoric to become policy, principle, and pride.
Leadership Beyond Borders: Continental Thinking, Local Action. A Clarion Call
This will take more than diplomacy. It requires leaders who see the whole continent as their constituency. Leaders who understand that protectionism breeds poverty and that shared growth builds security. It also requires visionary boardroom-governed directors and executives who think beyond quarterly results and measure success in generational progress.
Public service must move from managing today to shaping tomorrow. The private sector must shift from chasing margins to building legacies. Investors must partner not just for profits but for posterity. Leadership must become the bridge between what is and what must be.
The Time to Awaken is Now
It’s time to turn talk into action. Africa’s economic transformation requires a shift in mindset: from nationalism to continental unity, prosperity is a shared marathon, not a solo sprint. From foreign admiration to local pride: we import what we produce—that’s not sophistication; it’s doubt.
From rhetoric to real systems: we need results, port by port, corridor by corridor. From excuses to execution: blaming history builds nothing. We must act today.
An African word of wisdom (“Nyansakasa”) to inspire: “When spider webs unite, they can tie up.”
This is a clarion call for every African leader, entrepreneur, consumer, and investor to reflect: will we wear our continental cloak, woven by unity and ambition? Or remain half-dressed beneath foreign labels? “Made in Africa” is not an emotional ideal; it is an economic imperative.
It should be the headline on our exports and the heartbeat of our policies. Let us move:
From “brand tribalism and nationalism” to brand Pan-Africanism and unapologetically promote ‘Made in Africa’ with a subsidiary stamp indicating the specific country: Ghana, South Africa, Nigeria, etc. From admiration of imports to cultivation of confidence. From quoting Nkrumah and similar-minded visionaries to implementing their aspirations.
From regional and national excuses to continental execution. And above all, let us stop the tragic comedy of importing toothpicks, as well as orange, cranberry, pineapple, watermelon, and coconut juices, while our groves rot in the sun.
Let us end the absurdity of exporting raw shea only to import shea butter at ten times the price. Let us choose identity over imitation. Let us be the architects of our own brand.
Let our ports echo with African names and our shelves reflect our agricultural bounty.
Because the inconvenient truth is this: until “Made in Africa” becomes our collective seal, AfCFTA will remain our most brilliant idea, never fully unpacked. Africa’s opportunity is now. Let us not squander it.
