The 2025 edition of the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2025) has opened in Algiers, Algeria, with African leaders and business executives calling for stronger economic ties and accelerated intra-African trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), a statement from the organisers said on Friday.
Speaking at the opening ceremony on Friday, Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune urged African countries to deepen economic integration by boosting trade flows to drive growth, create jobs, and reduce vulnerability to global shocks.
He stressed the need for improved connectivity across the continent by closing infrastructure gaps, citing Algeria’s ongoing regional projects such as the Trans-Sahara Road, Algeria Gas Pipeline, and optic fibre installations to enhance transport, energy security, and digital sovereignty.
The week-long fair, hosted by Algeria in partnership with Afreximbank, the African Union Commission, and the AfCFTA Secretariat, brings together over 2,000 exhibitors and thousands of buyers from around the world. Organisers project the event will facilitate trade and investment deals worth more than US$44 billion.
Former Nigerian President and IATF2025 Advisory Council Chair, Olusegun Obasanjo, disclosed that 48 African countries are participating in this year’s exhibitions, the highest since the fair’s inception in 2018.
“In the past editions, IATF has proven its power to connect buyers, sellers, investors, and innovators. It is now the engine accelerating trade expansion and investment flows,” Obasanjo said, citing the US$2.9 billion Julius Nyerere Hydropower Project as one of the fair’s landmark deals.
AfCFTA Secretary General, Wamkele Mene, challenged leaders to speed up the agreement’s implementation, noting that intra-African trade grew by 12.4% in 2024 to $220.3 billion, according to Afreximbank’s latest trade report. He highlighted a shift towards industrial diversification, with growing trade in machinery, motor vehicles, chemicals, and electronics.
African Union Deputy Chairperson, Amb. Selma Malika Haddadi, said intra-African trade accounts for only 15% of Africa’s total trade, despite its potential to drive industrialisation. “Unlike our trade with the outside world, which is dominated by raw commodities, intra-African trade is driven largely by manufactured goods,” she noted.
Afreximbank President, Prof. Benedict Oramah, described IATF as a key platform for Africa’s “new struggle for economic independence,” enabling innovation, partnerships, and investment opportunities across the continent.
The event’s highlights include Global Africa Diaspora Day, Algeria Investment Forum, Arise Industrialisation Day, Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX), and the Africa Automotive Show, alongside pavilions showcasing Africa’s industrial champions such as Dangote Group, the statement said.
Since its inception in 2018, the IATF has attracted over 70,000 participants from 130 countries, hosted 4,500 exhibitors, and facilitated trade and investment deals worth more than US$118 billion.
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