The Sea Empowerment & Research Centre (SEREC)<\/strong> has sounded a strong warning on the growing impact of shipping delays and poor infrastructure on the success of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In its latest maritime insight report, SEREC noted that Africa\u2019s logistics and transport systems remain far from adequate to sustain the expected rise in regional trade, describing the situation as a \u201cmajor setback to continental economic integration.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Centre revealed that despite AfCFTA\u2019s vision to connect a market of over 1.3 billion people, African exports and imports still rely heavily on non-African ports<\/strong> for trans-shipment \u2014 a pattern that prolongs delivery times by as much as 50 days<\/strong> and increases trade costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n SEREC emphasised that this reality undermines Africa\u2019s goal of self-reliance and weakens the competitiveness of regional goods and services in global markets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAfrica cannot talk about a free trade area without free, efficient, and reliable maritime connections,\u201d<\/strong> said Mr. Eugene Nweke<\/strong>, Head of Research at SEREC. SEREC\u2019s assessment aligns with projections indicating that the continent needs over $120 billion<\/strong> by 2030 to close the maritime and logistics gap. The Centre added that several African countries still struggle with congested ports, weak road and rail links, and manual customs systems<\/strong>, which continue to discourage efficiency and increase operational costs for traders and ship owners alike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n SEREC has urged African governments and maritime authorities to take immediate, strategic actions that will restore efficiency and build a resilient logistics ecosystem. These include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n SEREC reaffirmed its commitment to supporting Africa\u2019s maritime transformation through continuous research, advocacy, and collaboration with both public and private sector players.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAfCFTA will only succeed when we strengthen the maritime link that binds African economies together,\u201d Mr. Nweke added. The Sea Empowerment & Research Centre (SEREC)<\/strong> is a division of Sea Empowerment<\/strong>, dedicated to advancing maritime research, blue economy development, and trade facilitation across Africa. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Sea Empowerment & Research Centre (SEREC) has sounded a strong warning on the growing impact of shipping delays and poor infrastructure on the success of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). In its latest maritime insight report, SEREC noted that Africa\u2019s logistics and transport systems remain far from adequate to sustain the expected…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1304,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/seaempowerment.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1303"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/seaempowerment.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/seaempowerment.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seaempowerment.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seaempowerment.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1303"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/seaempowerment.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1303\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1305,"href":"https:\/\/seaempowerment.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1303\/revisions\/1305"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seaempowerment.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1304"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/seaempowerment.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1303"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seaempowerment.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1303"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seaempowerment.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1303"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seaempowerment.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fpost_folder&post=1303"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\n\n\nA Maritime Reality Check<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n
\u201cEvery delay at our ports, every outdated logistics process, and every missing infrastructure link is a direct obstacle to AfCFTA\u2019s promise. The maritime sector must be treated as the heart of Africa\u2019s trade system, not its afterthought.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nThe Cost of Inaction<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Without urgent investment, the centre warned, Africa risks losing the developmental benefits of AfCFTA \u2014 including job creation, industrialisation, and regional value chains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nSEREC\u2019s Key Findings<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n\n\n\nRecommendations for a Maritime Turnaround<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n\n\n\nMaritime Empowerment: The Foundation of AfCFTA<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n
\u201cSea Empowerment will continue to advocate for a continent that trades with itself and empowers its people through maritime development.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nAbout SEREC<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Through evidence-based studies, capacity building, and stakeholder engagement, SEREC works to make Africa\u2019s seas a driver of growth, sustainability, and empowerment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n