Africa50 GSM 2025 - Unleashing Trade & Connectivity: Infrastructure, Logistics, and Continental Corridors

The “Unleashing Trade & Connectivity: Infrastructure, Logistics, and Continental Corridors” panel at the Africa50 GSM 2025 explored strategies for building an integrated continent, spotlighting Mozambique’s position as a key gateway linking regional corridors and boosting intra-African trade.

Key take aways:
"We look at the development of economic corridors as an opportunity to leverage our capacity and increase the development of other countries of the region and ours also." -Hon. João Jorge Matlombe, Minister of Transport and Logistics, Mozambique

"If we want to compete as Africa, it is crucial that our countries involve digital transformation, because it is important for education, health, agriculture, and contributes to a vibrant economy. Therefore Africa has to invest in the development of infrastructure - the hard infrastructures such as data centres, telecommunications, but also the digital systems that would allow the economies to have a real effect." -Hon. Americo Muchanga, Minister of Communication and Digital Transformation, Mozambique

"In our decadal strategy we have elevated regional intervention and the creation of regional transport and transmission corridors. One of the keys to success for this is to have adequate risk capital to put into the preparation of these projects." -Ms. Boitumelo Mosako, CEO, Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA)

"Infrastructure project development takes about seven to nine years. What we're trying to do is change that paradigm. We want to do this within two to three years, and achieve it with green infrastructure. Not because we're being told to go green, but because we know it's important for our economies to go green." -Mr. Solomon Adegbie-Quaynor, Vice President, Private Sector, Infrastructure & Industrialization, African Development Bank Group

"I believe that if we are able to implement one stop border posts, we will accelerate the trade flows and implement free trade zone agreements quicker." -Mr. Wilfrid Flottes de Pouzols, Managing Director, Scanning Systems