The Federal Government of Nigeria has unveiled a report titled “Cross-Border Digital Payments and Identity in Nigeria under the AfCFTA”, designed to help Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises tap into the $3.5 trillion African Continental Free Trade Area market.
According to a statement by Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Communications, the report, hosted by the Office of the Vice President in partnership with ODI Global under the Supporting Investment and Trade in Africa programme, was officially launched in Abuja on Monday by the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President, Ibrahim Hassan Hadejia.
The cross-border payments report comes after the launch of Nigeria’s Digital Trade Strategy and a capacity-building programme aimed at subnational leaders.
Senator Hadejia underscored the strategic significance of the research, noting Nigeria’s leadership in steering Africa’s digital trade agenda.
He added that strengthening the AfCFTA framework is vital for boosting intra-African trade, promoting economic growth, and generating employment opportunities.
“Efficient cross-border payments, supported by trusted digital identity systems, will be key to realizing President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope vision for Nigerian MSMEs,” Hadejia said.
He also highlighted the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System as a key platform for enabling seamless digital payments.
He noted that Nigerian fintech companies, such as PalmPay and Moniepoint, with their large and active user bases, will be central to promoting digital payment adoption across Africa.
A recent report by Oui Capital projects that Africa’s cross-border payments market will grow substantially, tripling in size from $329 billion in 2025 to $1 trillion by 2035.
This growth is being driven by fintech innovations, expanding intra-African trade, and the rising use of mobile money, with Africa leading the world in mobile money adoption.
In 2022, the continent had 781 million registered mobile money accounts, processing $837 billion in transactions. Yet, despite this potential, market inefficiencies continue to cost businesses and consumers billions of dollars annually.
