Douala, 24 September 2025 (ECA) – Central Africa has taken a decisive step toward its digital and economic integration. At the conclusion of the regional workshop on the review of the regional policy for the development of digital trade and the regional framework law on digital trade, organized by the African Trade Policy Centre (ATPC) of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) in partnership with the Commission of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), the subregion has equipped itself with strategic instruments to build a common digital market, a catalyst for the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the ECCAS common market.
A Structured Response to the Challenges of Digital Integration
Bringing together representatives from the ten ECCAS member states, including trade experts, AfCFTA negotiators and focal points, the private sector, and the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC), the Douala workshop presented a community framework designed to anchor the digital economy at the heart of regional integration strategies.
The regional policy on digital trade, supported by a 2025–2030 action plan structured around seven strategic pillars, along with the regional framework law, now provides a clear vision for harmonizing national legislations, strengthening digital trust, and facilitating the free movement of goods, services, and data across central africa’s economic space.
Together, these two instruments offer a concrete response to the key challenges identified in the subregion: regulatory fragmentation, unequal access to infrastructure, weak cross-border payment systems, and inconsistent frameworks for data protection and cybersecurity.
Highlighting the importance of this step, Mr. Jacob Kotcho, Director of the common market at the ECCAS Commission, stated: “the establishment of a regional policy accompanied by a regulatory framework lays the foundation for harmonizing the community’s digital trade system. Some member states have already adopted national laws and strategies on digital trade, but these often diverge and may even contain conflicting provisions.”
Toward a Common Digital Market Aligned with the AfCFTA
This initiative is fully aligned with the continental momentum driven by the AfCFTA and its protocol on digital trade, which aim to create an integrated and competitive African environment for online commerce. By equipping the region with a harmonized framework, ECCAS and ECA are directly contributing to accelerating the operationalization of the ECCAS common market, placing digitalization at the center of productivity, innovation, and regional competitiveness.
“Central Africa now has a solid foundation to turn its digital potential into a driver of regional growth. This regional policy and framework law are instruments of convergence with the AfCFTA and powerful levers of digital sovereignty for the subregion,” said Mr. Laurent Giuseppe D’Aronco, representing ECA’s Director for Central Africa.
An Irreversible Regional Momentum
With mobile penetration rising from 18% in 2010 to 46% in 2025, and more than 86 million mobile Internet users, central africa is entering a phase of acceleration. ECCAS and ECA have reaffirmed their commitment to support Member States in institutionalizing digital trade and strengthening their preparedness for the AfCFTA, notably through interconnected payment systems, support to SMEs, and regulatory harmonization.
“Our ambition is to build a regional digital market that goes beyond digital trade alone. What we envision for Central Africa is a space where, beyond buying and selling online, there is full circulation of digital goods, services, and products: applications, films, and all commodities produced or traded digitally,” added Mr. Jacob Kotcho.
Next Steps
The validated texts will be submitted to the Specialized Technical Committees for political endorsement before presentation to the Conference of Heads of State and Government of ECCAS. Their adoption will pave the way for a fully integrated regional digital market, a key driver of diversification, job creation, and economic resilience across Central Africa.
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