Africa must trade together or fall behind, says PACEID chair

As conflict in the Middle East continues to threaten global shipping routes, Uganda’s top export adviser is urging African countries to rethink how they do business, arguing that the continent’s future depends less on competing with one another and more on building stronger regional partnerships.

Speaking in an interview with The Observer, Odrek Rwabwogo, Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee on Exports and Industrial Development (PACEID), said Africa should use the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to create interconnected industries and supply chains that reduce dependence on volatile international trade routes.

His remarks come as tensions involving Iran, the United States and Israel continue to unsettle the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s busiest shipping corridors. Disruptions in the region have raised concerns about the movement of goods, particularly imports that Uganda relies on for agriculture and industry.

“My concern is the cost of fertilizers because much of our imports are from Russia and the Middle East, given the gas-based ammonium they use. Uganda must internalise its logistics strategy,” Rwabwogo said.

His proposed solution is to reduce reliance on sea routes by investing in regional trans- port networks and air cargo. He believes facilities such as the Entebbe Free Zones could become major hubs for exporting high-value, perishable products like fresh horticulture, chilli and processed foods across Africa.

“Air freight is our shield against sea-route delays,” he said, adding that PACEID is working with Uganda Airlines to expand cargo routes and lower freight costs while developing inland aggregation centres to move agricultural products more efficiently through regional road networks.

Rwabwogo also called for greater investment in cold-storage facilities and export consolidation centres at border points such as Elegu, infrastructure, he argued, would allow small producers to combine shipments into larger volumes, making Ugandan goods more competitive.

Beyond logistics, he believes technology can solve another long-standing problem: high transport costs. PACEID is promoting digital trans- port-matching platforms that connect trucking fleets with cargo, reducing empty return trips and lowering the cost of moving goods across the continent.

The strategy reflects a broader shift in Uganda’s approach to trade promotion. Rwabwogo said PACEID has moved away from what he described as “tourist-like diplomatic visits” and is instead focusing on commercial deals.

During the recent Uganda Connect International Buyers Week, vetted buyers from across Africa were matched directly with export-ready Ugandan businesses using market intelligence gathered in advance.

“We no longer do tourist-like diplomatic visits,” he said. “Our recent Uganda Connect International Buyers Week was purely transaction-focused.”

The organisation is also using trade representatives based in Lagos and Abuja to convert business leads into binding export contracts, particularly in fast-growing markets such as Nigeria and Ghana, which Rwabwogo describes as underused opportunities for Ugandan exporters.

At the same time, he warned that Africa must break its long-standing dependence on exporting raw materials while importing finished products.

“This is a sad story our generation must end,” he said, pointing to resource-rich regions such as Kolwezi in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where copper and cobalt have been exported in raw form for decades.

PACEID is attempting to support that transition through the Uganda Connect Marketplace, which promotes more than 50 Ugandan brands in sectors including food, textiles and chocolate in cities such as Lagos, Cairo and Johannesburg.

The agency has also developed digital tools, including an Export Intelligence Dashboard and the Uganda Trade Exchange platform, to track trade flows, monitor prices and simplify compliance for exporters. For ordinary Ugandans, the message is straightforward.

Stronger regional trade and better logistics could lower business costs, open new markets for local producers and reduce the country’s vulnerability to global disruptions. But achieving that vision, Rwabwogo argues, will require African countries to see each other not as rivals, but as partners in shared economic growth.

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