EU, African leaders convene for talks on digital common market regulation
EU and African leaders will convene in Vienna today for the start of the High-Level Africa-Europe Forum.
The conference is expected to focus on joint AU-EU investment and legal efforts to facilitate digital development in Africa, building on the completion of the African Continental Free Trade Area (ACFTA), which was signed earlier this year. However, Africa’s history of failing to properly implement trade and economic agreements means that the AU and its member states will require external assistance to help realise ACFTA’s economic potential.
The AU has been seeking such assistance through developing its own digital market programme, similar to European attempts to design a single set of regulations, taxation policy and capital markets for the digital economy. Co-chair and Rwandan President Paul Kagame has sought to spearhead this effort on the continent by promoting his country as a destination for financial investment, stock listing and nascent start-ups.
Efforts at promoting greater development in Africa’s digital economy also seek to ensure that there are ample avenues for investment inflows when the ACFTA enters into force in the coming months. While major announcements are not expected in the short-term, leaders are expected to sign a series of memorandums to commit themselves to expanding the digital economy and promoting greater investment between the two regions in areas of finance and technology start-up incubation.
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