Renowned economist and professor at the University of Ghana Business School, Prof. Godfred Bokpin, has called for urgent investment in intra-regional trade and financial regulations to protect African economies, particularly in response to external shocks such as President Donald Trump’s tariff policies.
Speaking on Business News Update on ABC News GH, Prof. Bokpin emphasized that improving trade infrastructure and enforcing regulations would not only reduce costs but also curb the growing menace of illicit trade and financial outflows on the continent.
“Intra-regional trade in Africa has been hindered because of colonization. Africa was designed as a partition to open up to the rest of the world and not Africa to Africa,” he said, stressing the historical factors that continue to hamper regional economic integration.
Prof. Bokpin criticized African trade ministers for what he described as their slow response to these systemic challenges, remarking that “they woke up too late.”
He urged the Ghanaian government and others to redirect focus toward strengthening trade ties within Africa and with non-US partners, especially amid global economic uncertainties.
Calling attention to Africa’s untapped potential, Prof. Bokpin asserted that the continent possesses abundant raw materials and labor, offering a strong foundation for economic growth if properly managed.
“Africa must tackle illicit financial flows. We may think Africa is poor, but Africa is the net creditor to the rest of the world in terms of what comes in and what leaves the continent,” he added.
He stressed that with strategic fiscal connectivity and regulation, Africa could reclaim significant value currently lost through unregulated and informal trade channels.
