Since the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) kicked off trading in January 2021—following its launch in 2019—the continent has pursued its bold vision of a unified market. Aligned with the African Union’s Agenda 2063, the goal is a seamless economic space spanning roughly 1.4 billion people (and growing) with a combined GDP potential exceeding $3.4 trillion by the early 2030s. Yet progress remains uneven: border delays, endless paperwork, and high transaction costs persist, keeping intra-African trade stubbornly low at around 15–16% of total trade, per recent UNCTAD and Afreximbank reports from 2024–2025.
Now imagine a transformed scenario: she verifies her identity via a secure digital system, executes an instant cross-border payment, and seals a smart digital contract—all verifiable and enforceable continent-wide, right from her phone. This leap becomes feasible through Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI)—the foundational digital layers of identity, payments, and data exchange that build trust and connectivity at scale.
Across Africa, momentum is building. Governments are deploying digital ID systems, real-time payment rails like those in Kenya’s M-Pesa ecosystem or Ethiopia’s expanding frameworks, and interoperability platforms faster than ever. These aren’t mere tech add-ons; they form the critical “rails” needed to make AfCFTA’s promise tangible.
Jaume Dubois, a seasoned digital development consultant specializing in Africa’s identity landscape, stresses that DPI demands more than technical tweaks—it requires a fundamental mindset shift. “Countries must move from siloed competition to collaborative standards and mutual trust,” he notes. Intra-country interoperability is already tough; cross-border versions amplify the complexity with political sensitivities, uneven infrastructure, and varying literacy levels.
Dubois highlights progress in regions like West Africa, where ECOWAS initiatives are advancing e-ID roadmaps and common interoperability frameworks. Many nations adopt open-source platforms like MOSIP, ICAO-compliant cards, and emerging W3C verifiable credentials—standards that enable sector- and country-agnostic trust. “Convergence on global standards is the game-changer,” he says. “Once you trust the issuer, credentials work across contexts.”
Rahul Parthe, Co-founder, Chairman, and CTO of Tech5, echoes this. “Africa has passed the ‘if’ stage for digital ID and wallets,” he argues. “Now it’s about scaling and economic integration.” Tech5’s work on Ethiopia’s FaydaPass wallet—developed with Visa—shows how government-backed digital wallets, embedded in broader DPI, drive inclusion. Starting with financial access, they expand to services via biometrics and agent networks, even reaching smartphone-less users.
Parthe emphasizes that wallets thrive when tied to strong governance, privacy safeguards, and real use cases like payments. “They’re not standalone apps—they’re gateways to digital ecosystems,” he explains. Dubois adds that digital credentials boost trust through verifiability, real-time updates, and forgery resistance compared to paper documents.
Picture a artisan in Ghana hoping to ship vibrant Kente cloth to a retailer in Cameroon. Under AfCFTA rules, this should be straightforward. In reality, she grapples with cumbersome customs forms, unreliable payments, and identity verification hurdles across unfamiliar borders.
Challenges remain: vendor lock-in risks, data sovereignty concerns, and the need for holistic interoperability across legal, organizational, semantic, and technical layers (per World Bank ID4D guidelines). Both experts advocate progressive, use-case-driven approaches—starting with high-value areas like customs, logistics, and cross-border payments—to build incremental trust.
Africa can draw lessons from ASEAN’s pragmatic bilateral models or decentralized trust frameworks in Europe. Immediate priorities include mutual recognition of digital IDs at agreed assurance levels, digitizing trade processes (not just paperwork), interoperable payments, and inclusion-by-design to avoid widening divides.
Dubois cites inclusive implementations like Madagascar’s offline-first, solar-powered enrollment kits and QR/paper credentials as models that prioritize real-world needs. Parthe urges shared principles: common trust frameworks, standards alignment, and capacity building without sacrificing sovereignty.
Ultimately, DPI isn’t just infrastructure—it’s the accelerator for a vibrant continental economy. By harmonizing standards, fostering collaboration, and focusing on inclusive execution, Africa can slash trade frictions, unlock billions in efficiency, empower SMEs, and position itself as a global economic force. The tools exist; the real test is collective will and speed. With DPI as the backbone, the single market vision moves from distant dream to achievable reality.
