As leaders of the European Union and African Union gather for their 6th summit in Brussels, we argue together with Business Unity South Africa (BUSA), that our two continents need to build a more robust long term foundation for trade.
We need both a long term vision and more concrete actions in the immediate future. The long term vision should be an EU-AU free trade area. Whilst we await the opportunity to start negotiations for such an agreement, the EU should support the African integration process in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Parallel to this, the EU and individual African countries can negotiate separate agreements, that can inspire and facilitate the overarching process. There are also numerous opportunities to stimulate trade, even without any new formal agreements.