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South Africa's export-oriented agricultural sector is heavily reliant on the African continent, accounting for over 40% of annual exports. The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is expected to propel South Africa's market presence beyond the South African Development Community (SADC) region. However, we argue this optimism might be misplaced, given specific structural challenges that will likely limit the potential for South Africa to increase agricultural exports in untapped African markets. Introduction

While there is optimism that the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is set to provide further expansion opportunities for South Africa’s agricultural exports into the African continent, the benefits of this agreement for the local sector are not as much as previously thought, according to the Agricultural Business Chamber (Agbiz).

South Africa's agricultural exports have grown significantly over the past two decades. Yet agricultural private-sector role players typically argue that the government has not done enough to open up new markets for ever-increasing produce. This failure has limited the country's scope to grow exports beyond existing traditional markets in the European Union (EU) and the African continent. In markets outside these regions, private-sector players argue that the growth in South Africa's agricultural exports has primarily been driven by productivity gains whose competitive advantage...

Malawi and Zimbabwe on Monday signed bilateral trade agreement in order boost trade between the two countries. Speaking during the event held at Umodzi Park in the Capital City Lilongwe, Minister of Trade Sosten Gwengwe said the agreement follows up to another agreement which the two countries signed in 1995. At the ceremony, spiced by exhibitions fro 20 Zimbabwe companies, the country’s High Commissioner to Malawi, Dr Nancy Saungwenya commended Malawi Government for accepting to re-sign the trade agreement. Minister of Trade Sosten Gwengwe She said with the agreements in place, Zimbabwean ...

The mechanisation of the sugar cane sector, and in particular sugar cane harvesting, remains low across Southeast Asia relative to other major producing markets, namely Brazil and others in South America, India and China.