Zenpay Limited, a subsidiary of Zenith Bank Plc, has forged a groundbreaking partnership with the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat to develop and deploy the SMARTAfCFTA portal. This initiative aims to dismantle trade barriers, and facilitate, and enhance trade within Africa.
The agreement was signed by Ebenezer Onyeagwu, Chairman of Zenpay Limited, and Wamkele Mene, Secretary-General of the AfCFTA Secretariat, symbolizing a significant step towards fostering pan-African cooperation in trade development. The signing ceremony took place at Zenith Bank’s headquarters in Lagos, Nigeria.
The collaboration follows a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by both parties during Zenith Bank’s international trade seminar on non-oil export held on August 8, 2023.
Onyeagwu expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership, emphasizing its importance in boosting intra-African trade and fostering economic integration. He highlighted the low levels of intra-African trade compared to global trade and underscored the potential for prosperity through increased trade within the continent.
The chairman clarified that the initiative is driven not by profit motives but by a commitment to supporting the goals of the AfCFTA, aiming to create a unified African market and standardize trade practices.
Wamkele Mene, the Secretary-General of the AfCFTA Secretariat, commended Zenith Bank’s commitment to the project and expressed delight over the partnership in developing SMARTAfCFTA. He emphasized the platform’s role in empowering SMEs and young entrepreneurs, facilitating trade inclusion, and providing crucial trade data and insights.
Mene also discussed the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) alongside the SMARTAfCFTA portal, highlighting PAPSS as Africa’s payment highway. He clarified that while SMARTAfCFTA is not a payment platform itself, it will be interoperable with PAPSS, complementing each other to support a seamless continental payment system without creating competition among platforms.
The partnership between Zenpay Limited and the AfCFTA Secretariat represents a significant milestone in advancing trade facilitation and economic integration across Africa, ultimately contributing to the continent’s development and prosperity.
