Trade
Helping governments and companies put the AfCFTA to work.
The AfCFTA only creates value when a company can actually move its goods under it.
Constelor took part in establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area, and we have worked since with national governments, regional economic communities and African Union bodies on making it work in practice. We help ministries turn commitments into tariff schedules, origin rules and procedures that traders can use, and we help companies use those rules to reach markets they could not price into before.
- Focus areasRules of origin, customs, trade corridors and export strategy
- ClientsTrade ministries, customs authorities, manufacturers and logistics groups
- MarketsECOWAS, the East African Community and trade under the AfCFTA
Putting the AfCFTA to work
Governments
How do the agreement’s rules become everyday practice?
We help ministries and agencies translate their AfCFTA commitments into tariff schedules, origin rules and customs procedures, and we train the officials who will apply them. The test we set is simple: can a trader at the border use what has been written?
Companies
Where does the agreement open new markets?
We show companies which products qualify for preferential tariffs, which markets become competitive and what it takes to ship there. They leave with an export plan, their certificates and paperwork in order, and introductions to buyers and distributors in the target markets.
We had read about the AfCFTA for years. Constelor showed us how to ship under it within a quarter.
Managing director, food processor, Rwanda
What we help with
- Rules of originProduct-by-product checks on which goods qualify, and what would need to change for those that do not.
- Export market strategyWhich markets to target first, the route to reach them and the price at which goods will land.
- Customs and complianceTariff classification, certificates of origin and procedures set up to clear borders without surprises.
- Trade corridor studiesCost, time and risk on the routes that move goods between markets, measured on the road rather than on paper.
- Government implementationTariff schedules, regulations and training for national AfCFTA programmes.
- Distributor and buyer searchVetted partners in target markets, introduced and negotiated with on the client’s behalf.
Illustrative example. A real mandate will replace it before launch.
A Kigali food processor, ready to export under the AfCFTA
A growing Kigali processor wanted to sell beyond Rwanda but could not tell which products qualified for preferential tariffs. We checked its range against the rules of origin, chose two markets and found the distributors.
First regional distribution agreements signed
Read the case study: A Kigali food processor, ready to export under the AfCFTAWho leads this practice
Our other practices
Have a mandate in mind?
Tell us what you’re weighing. A partner will take it from there.