Focus on shared prosperity, report urges new UK leaders

Dar es Salaam. An Inquiry Committee of distinguished British and African experts has finally published a report examining the achievements of the UK’s Africa Free Trade Initiative (AFTi) five years after it was formally launched by David Cameron.

The former British Prime Minister launched the initiative during his visits to South Africa and Nigeria in July 2011.

The Inquiry Committee – made up of Ali A. Mufuruki, Lord Stephen Green, Lord Paul Boateng, Ambassador Darlington Mwape and Prof Myles Wickstead – was established by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Trade Out of Poverty earlier this year.

According to a statement availed to The Citizen yesterday, the Inquiry Committee gathered written evidence and held public hearings and other consultative events in the UK and Africa over a six-month period, engaging over 60 experts, diplomats, business people and representatives from key multilateral organisations from the UK and across the African continent.

The report, Inquiry into the UK’s Africa Free Trade Initiative, states that the AFTi has been a success in supporting key African priorities, slashing trade costs and delivering real gains for the continent and its trading partners.

In recognising AFTi’s success and the need for faster, more inclusive economic growth, group recommends that the new UK government should re-boot its relationship with Africa to create a “prosperity partnership” based on development, trade and investment.

Besides, a successor initiative to AFTi should be launched as the centre-piece of the UK’s economic policy agenda in Africa focused on increased support around cutting trade costs and connecting markets, enhancing productive capacity and using trade to drive inclusive growth for poor women and men.

“The Prime Minister should appoint a Special Envoy to lead the rebooting of the UK-Africa prosperity partnership, delivering in five key areas of better direction and co-ordination across UK Government Departments, closer dialogue between UK Ministers, African Governments, business and civil society on freeing up trade for all and more synergy between the investment programmes delivered by the UK Government, the private sector and by international development partners,” the statement reads.

Other areas mentioned include driving and scaling new, high-impact approaches that can transform opportunities from trade for ordinary Africans and stronger accountability for results and value for taxpayers’ money.