According to the report, Africa's abundant natural resources, youthful population and expanding consumer markets position it to benefit from multinational companies seeking to diversify production away from traditional manufacturing centres.
Africa must stop viewing geopolitical tensions and global trade disruptions as threats and instead exploit them to transform the continent into a global manufacturing and industrial powerhouse, according to the African Export-Import Bank's (Afreximbank) African Trade Report 2026.
The report argues that the restructuring of global supply chains, rising protectionism and geopolitical rivalry present Africa with its biggest opportunity in decades to shift away from exporting raw materials towards producing and trading higher-value manufactured goods.
In an exclusive interview with Business Report on Friday, Afreximbank chief economist and managing director of research and trade intelligence, Dr Yemi Kale, said the continent stands at a defining moment.
"The central message is that current geopolitical disruptions should not be seen merely as a risk for Africa to navigate but more as an opportunity to exploit," Kale said.
