South Africa’s ‘decimated’ electronics sector could benefit from the AfCFTA – Patel

In a wide-ranging interview on the sidelines of the Intra-African Trade Fair, Patel gives The Africa Report insights about his thinking on how South African development finance institutions (DFIs) can fit into the continental trade agreement. The minister also speaks about where opportunities lay in the agreement for his country and about his ministry’s partners in government with regards to making the AfCFTA effective.

“They [DFIs] absolutely have a role to play. The Development Bank of Southern Africa can play a big role in infrastructure funding in South Africa to ensure that we have the platforms [and] … between countries,” says Patel, who explains that “to facilitate trade, a lot of infrastructure needs to be cross border. You can’t have a brilliant road in one country and terrible road infrastructure in a neighbouring country.”

The Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), already