{"id":117413,"date":"2026-04-19T09:52:24","date_gmt":"2026-04-19T09:52:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/uncategorized\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth"},"modified":"2026-04-19T10:22:02","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T10:22:02","slug":"imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth","title":{"rendered":"IMF Sees Afcfta, AI as Key Drivers of Africa\u2019S Growth"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #ff6600\"><strong>Africa-Press &#8211; Ghana. <\/strong><\/span><b>The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says Africa\u2019s growth prospects can be strengthened through effective implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and responsible use of artificial intelligence (AI).<\/b><\/p>\n<p>The Fund said the combination of deeper regional integration and emerging technologies could significantly improve productivity, resilience, and long-term economic transformation across the continent.<\/p>\n<p>Abebe Aemro Selassie, Director of the IMF\u2019s African Department, made the remarks during the Regional Economic Outlook briefing for Sub-Saharan Africa in Washington.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn a shifting geopolitical landscape, regional integration, particularly through the African Continental Free Trade Area, can boost resilience and open new opportunities,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Mr Selassie said AfCFTA should not be seen only as a trade agreement but as a tool to help African economies withstand external shocks and build long-term stability.<\/p>\n<p>He called on governments, the private sector and civil society to work together to speed up regional integration through stronger trade links and structural reforms.<\/p>\n<p>Mr Selassie also urged improvements in governance, better business conditions and deeper financial markets to ensure trade reforms translate into real and sustained growth.<\/p>\n<p>On artificial intelligence, he said the technology had the potential to reduce inequality in access to knowledge and opportunity, despite readiness gaps across countries.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAI holds the potential to make human capital knowledge as accessible to African countries. We\u2019re seeing incredible strides in using AI for design of gardens, houses, et cetera \u2013 making tremendous headways in the region,\u201d he noted.<\/p>\n<p>Mr Selassie said some African governments were already using AI to improve tax collection and public service delivery, adding that proper adoption could help accelerate the continent\u2019s convergence with the rest of the world.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cProductivity growth is the long-term prize. The responsible adoption of AI in agriculture, health, and public services can be transformative. But realizing that potential also requires upfront investment in reliable electricity, digital infrastructure, and skills,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Selassie reaffirmed the IMF\u2019s readiness to support African countries through financing, policy advice and technical assistance.<\/p>\n<p>Amadou Sy, Assistant Director in the IMF\u2019s African Department, said progress had been made under AfCFTA since trading began in 2021, but implementation remained uneven across countries.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOn the African Continental Free Trade Area, we\u2019ve seen real, real progress, but uneven progress,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Sy said unresolved issues such as rules of origin and tariff concessions could limit the agreement\u2019s impact on trade diversification and economic resilience.<\/p>\n<p>He called for reduced non-tariff barriers and modernised customs systems to make regional trade more efficient.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Sy also identified trade finance as a major constraint, especially for small businesses and smaller economies involved in cross-border trade.<\/p>\n<p>On fiscal policy, he urged African countries to strengthen tax systems and expand fiscal space to support infrastructure and services needed for both trade integration and digital transformation.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Sy stressed that successful reforms would depend on strong institutions and effective communication with stakeholders.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll of this will require difficult discussions, and that communication and stakeholder engagement are not peripheral activities but central to whether reforms actually take hold,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p><strong>For More News And Analysis About <span style=\"color: #ff6600\">Ghana<\/span> Follow <span style=\"color: #ff6600\">Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Africa-Press &#8211; Ghana. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says Africa\u2019s growth prospects can be strengthened through effective implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and responsible use of artificial intelligence (AI). The Fund said the combination of deeper regional integration and emerging technologies could significantly improve productivity, resilience, and long-term economic transformation across [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":117412,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,5],"tags":[429],"class_list":["post-117413","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-economy","tag-ghana"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.1 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>IMF Sees Afcfta, AI as Key Drivers of Africa\u2019S Growth - Ghana<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says Africa\u2019s growth prospects can be strengthened through effective implementa ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"IMF Sees Afcfta, AI as Key Drivers of Africa\u2019S Growth\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says Africa\u2019s growth prospects can be strengthened through effective implementa ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Ghana\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-19T09:52:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-19T10:22:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2026\/04\/sm_1776581451.598962.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1669\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"841\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"IMF Sees Afcfta, AI as Key Drivers of Africa\u2019S Growth\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-19T09:52:24+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-19T10:22:02+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth\"},\"wordCount\":532,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2026\/04\/sm_1776581451.598962.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"ghana\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"Economy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth\",\"name\":\"IMF Sees Afcfta, AI as Key Drivers of Africa\u2019S Growth - Ghana\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2026\/04\/sm_1776581451.598962.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-19T09:52:24+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-19T10:22:02+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"description\":\"The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says Africa\u2019s growth prospects can be strengthened through effective implementa ...\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2026\/04\/sm_1776581451.598962.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2026\/04\/sm_1776581451.598962.jpg\",\"width\":1669,\"height\":841,\"caption\":\"IMF Sees Afcfta, AI as Key Drivers of Africa\u2019S Growth\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"IMF Sees Afcfta, AI as Key Drivers of Africa\u2019S Growth\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/\",\"name\":\"Ghana\",\"description\":\"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\",\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"cfeditoren\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"IMF Sees Afcfta, AI as Key Drivers of Africa\u2019S Growth - Ghana","description":"The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says Africa\u2019s growth prospects can be strengthened through effective implementa ...","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"IMF Sees Afcfta, AI as Key Drivers of Africa\u2019S Growth","og_description":"The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says Africa\u2019s growth prospects can be strengthened through effective implementa ...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth","og_site_name":"Ghana","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa","article_published_time":"2026-04-19T09:52:24+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-19T10:22:02+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1669,"height":841,"url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2026\/04\/sm_1776581451.598962.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"cfeditoren","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cfeditoren","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth"},"author":{"name":"cfeditoren","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"headline":"IMF Sees Afcfta, AI as Key Drivers of Africa\u2019S Growth","datePublished":"2026-04-19T09:52:24+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-19T10:22:02+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth"},"wordCount":532,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2026\/04\/sm_1776581451.598962.jpg","keywords":["ghana"],"articleSection":["all news","Economy"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth","name":"IMF Sees Afcfta, AI as Key Drivers of Africa\u2019S Growth - Ghana","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2026\/04\/sm_1776581451.598962.jpg","datePublished":"2026-04-19T09:52:24+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-19T10:22:02+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"description":"The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says Africa\u2019s growth prospects can be strengthened through effective implementa ...","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2026\/04\/sm_1776581451.598962.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2026\/04\/sm_1776581451.598962.jpg","width":1669,"height":841,"caption":"IMF Sees Afcfta, AI as Key Drivers of Africa\u2019S Growth"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/imf-sees-afcfta-ai-as-key-drivers-of-africas-growth#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"IMF Sees Afcfta, AI as Key Drivers of Africa\u2019S Growth"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/","name":"Ghana","description":"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb","name":"cfeditoren","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"cfeditoren"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117413","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=117413"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117413\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":117418,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117413\/revisions\/117418"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/117412"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=117413"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=117413"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=117413"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}