The “Africa Rising” narrative of strong economic growth over the past 20 years fueled by rising demand for primary commodities has failed to generate enough good jobs, in spite of the demographic dividend of a large working-age population. As recently put at the African Innovation summit, the development agenda has shifted from socioeconomic transformation to the lowest common denominator, managing poverty. This trend is exemplified in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement which, so far, still largely concentrates on a “negative” agenda; in other words, the focus is on removing policy-imposed barriers to trade.
