African Forum for Agricultural Advisory Services

INTEGRATION OF AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION AND ADVISORY SERVICES INTO CROSS BORDER TRADE: STRATEGIC POLICY DIRECTION AND PERSPECTIVE FOR AFRICA

Regional integration has been promoted in Africa since the post-independence to ensure that states agree to cooperate and work closely together to achieve stability and wealth. In the 2000s, commitments, including Malabo Declaration on accelerated agricultural growth and transformation for shared prosperity and improved livelihoods by 2025, were made [1-2]. The AfCFTA agreement signed by 54 out of 55 African Union (AU) Member states in 2018 established the largest free-trade area in the world [3]. This agreement creates one African market to (i) facilitate intra-African trade, (ii) increase investment in cross-border trade, (iii) enhance the socioeconomic integration of Africa, and (iv) increase the competitiveness of the AU Member States within the continent and in the global market [3].