Africa is making measured progress in diversifying its market through intra-continental trade, with South Africa needing to urgently create the correct investment environment to see opportunities for factory build programmes to thrive. The Trade Law Center (Tralac) says South Africa’s exports under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) preferences hit R820m in 2025, fuelling growth in trade across the continent and unlocking new opportunities for local businesses. This compared to South Africa recording $42.1bn (R692.2bn) in total trade with other African nations in 2024.
This suggests an estimated 8% to 10% year to year increase in local exports. The rise that saw a wide range of goods from mining equipment to food products comes as the country leverages the landmark agreement to boost intra-African exchanges and reduce reliance on traditional markets such as the US. Tralac is a nonprofit, capacity think tank that develops trade law and policy expertise in East and Southern Africa, helping countries improve their trade performance, competitiveness and integration into the global economy through research, training and dialogue.
“The exports under AfCFTA cover a diverse mix of goods, showing South Africa’s strength in making things Africa needs. Top items include mining equipment such as drills and machinery for digging resources, household appliances such as fridges and stoves, food products from canned fruits to processed meats, apparel such as clothes and textiles, plastics for packaging,and electrical machinery including wires and generators. These products meet demands in growing African economies, where building and manufacturing are booming.
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Main buyers so far are Ghana, Kenya, Egypt, Rwanda, Cameroon, and Algeria, countries outside South Africa’s usual Southern African Customs Union partners,” Tralac said. It said the correct investment opportunities need to be created to encourage companies to build factories in South Africa and use the country as a gateway for intra-continental trade. “This R820m is only the start.
Experts say full rollout could see intra-African trade jump by more than 50% by 2035, lifting incomes and pulling millions out of poverty. In South Africa, where trade makes up a big chunk of the economy, this could add billions to GDP and create thousands of jobs in factories, farms and transport,” Tralacsaid. Intra-Africa trade with South Africa being used a gateway for the rest of the continant is how the country can benefit from geopolitical uncertainty through a diversion of capital, but would require political and economic stability in South Africa.
However, these gains are fragile, relying on domestic reforms (such as energy and logistics) to attract sustained investment as global tensions also pose risks such as trade disruptions and capital flight, making policy execution crucial for lasting growth. Political risk is expected to dominate the boardrooms in 2026 as US PresidentDonald Trumpcontinues with an America first economic agenda that has thus far seen him impose tariffs on that country’s traditional allies and adversaries and an apparent attempt to wage global warfare to try and control the globe’s shipping routes. Tralac saidChinais rolling out hundreds of activities across Africa as a “soft power” charm offensive designed to deepen its influence across the continent in response to the US.
“Traditional supply chains are fundamentally obsolete. Historically, companies have optimised their operations around the principle of efficiency through predictability. Materials flowed across borders, manufacturing was concentrated where labour costs were lowest and just-in-time inventory systems minimised waste.
That era no longer exists. Everything we once knew has evolved. Decades of tradition built on stable institutions, safe and reliable networks and free, open trade have been replaced by uncertainty.
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