Firms in Nigeria and Zimbabwe have launched a partnership aimed at expanding digital trade and cross-border commerce across Africa under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), in a move designed to boost market access for small businesses and cooperatives.
The initiative brings together CHI.africa, Zimo Clan and Maistrade Multipurpose Cooperative Federation Limited to develop an integrated digital ecosystem connecting farmers, traders, SMEs and commodity aggregators across multiple African markets.
The partners said the platform will combine trade intelligence, cooperative development tools and community networks to improve access to markets, strengthen supply chain transparency and support more structured participation in regional trade.
The system is expected to provide services including digital onboarding for cooperatives and SMEs, identity verification, product traceability, supplier validation and cross-border trade facilitation using data-driven coordination tools.
It will also offer market intelligence services aimed at linking producers with verified buyers while reducing inefficiencies in informal trade networks that dominate much of intra-African commerce.
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Under the arrangement, farmers are expected to benefit from improved market visibility and aggregation networks, while traders will gain access to more structured value chains with enhanced traceability.
Cooperatives will be able to manage membership data, savings coordination and commercial activities through digital tools, while SMEs will be able to access wider regional markets through interoperable systems.
The initiative aligns with the objectives of the AfCFTA, which seeks to create a single African market for goods and services by reducing trade barriers and improving economic integration across the continent.
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It also anticipates future interoperability with the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), which aims to simplify cross-border payments by enabling transactions in local currencies.
Speaking on the initiative, Maistrade Cooperative Federation president Benjamin Okei Aduli said Africa’s trade future would depend on building trusted and inclusive systems that empower grassroots economic actors.
“Africa’s future will be shaped by trusted trade networks, interoperable digital infrastructure, and empowered communities,” he said.
He added that the collaboration would create practical pathways for African producers and traders to participate more effectively in regional markets.
Zimo Clan and CHI.africa said the platform is designed to be “intelligent, traceable and interoperable”, arguing that digital systems are key to improving efficiency and trust in African trade.
They said initial onboarding has already begun, with plans to expand into additional African markets through partnerships with cooperatives and trade networks.
The partners also invited SMEs, cooperatives and traders to join the platform as it scales across the continent.
Analysts say Africa’s push to digitise trade could help formalise large segments of informal cross-border commerce, which remains a major feature of regional economies but is often excluded from formal financial systems.
However, they caution that challenges such as uneven digital infrastructure, regulatory fragmentation and limited payment interoperability could slow implementation.
Despite these hurdles, digital trade platforms are increasingly seen as central to efforts to deepen intra-African trade under the AfCFTA framework and expand opportunities for small-scale economic actors across the continent.
