ICOYACA at the AfCFTA Digital Trade Forum 2025 in Lusaka, Zambia

ICOYACA at the AfCFTA Digital Trade Forum 2025 in Lusaka, Zambia

• AfCFTA CONTINENTAL ENGAGEMENTS
• May 12, 2025

ICOYACA participated in the inaugural AfCFTA Digital Trade Forum held from 8–10 May 2025 at the Mulungushi International Conference Centre in Lusaka, Zambia. The Forum brought together Member States, the AfCFTA Secretariat, policymakers, regulators, private-sector leaders, and experts to discuss how digital trade can accelerate AfCFTA implementation, with a focus on building the systems, rules, and partnerships needed to enable cross-border digital commerce across Africa. 

Across the three days, discussions centred on key enablers of digital trade, including digital payments and cross-border settlement, digital identity and trust frameworks, data protection and consumer protection, digitally enabled trade facilitation and the role of innovation in supporting MSMEs and intra-African trade growth. The Forum also reinforced the growing importance of the AfCFTA Digital Trade Protocol as a policy anchor for building a digitally enabled single African market. 

Digital trade has continued to rise on the continental agenda. In February 2025, Nigeria was designated Africa’s Digital Trade Champion and called for accelerated implementation of the AfCFTA Digital Trade Protocol, signalling strong political momentum behind digitally enabled trade, digital payments and digital identity systems as drivers of jobs and inclusion. Nigeria is also expected to host the 2026 AfCFTA Digital Trade Forum in Lagos, an important opportunity to deepen implementation discussions and strengthen structured participation for youth-led innovators and businesses. 

For ICOYACA, one of the most important takeaways was not only the urgency of the digital trade agenda but the continued absence of structured youth participation in the rooms where these frameworks are being shaped. ICOYACA and the African Youth Business Council (AfYBC) were the only youth-led organisations present at the Forum. This remains a serious gap because youth constitute the majority of Africa’s population and are driving the adoption of digital innovation and e-commerce across the continent.

If the AfCFTA digital trade agenda is to succeed, the next phase must move beyond general recognition of youth potential and translate into practical youth inclusion. This includes bringing more young innovators into official programming, showcasing youth-led digital solutions and creating deliberate opportunities for youth organisations to engage in the policy and implementation discussions that shape the future rules and regulations of digital trade.

As we look ahead, ICOYACA will continue advocating for stronger youth participation in AfCFTA implementation spaces, particularly in emerging areas where digital trade intersects with jobs, innovation and MSME growth. We encourage partners, Member States and the AfCFTA Secretariat to ensure that the next AfCFTA Digital Trade Forum includes a clear youth track or youth innovation component and that young people are not only present, but heard, consulted and actively involved in shaping Africa’s digital trade future.