Dilapidated and in some cases, non-existent infrastructure has been identified as one of the most binding constraints to intra-African trade and regional integration in Africa, with logistics costs significantly way above global benchmarks.

This is according to the African Export Import Bank (AfreximBank’s) Regional Integration and Market Access Insights report for April 2026.

Estimates from the World Bank suggest that logistics costs account for approximately 25 to 30 per cent of trade value in Africa, compared to eight to 10 per cent in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) economies and 12 to 14 percent in Asia.

Despite recovery efforts, intra-African trade remains poor relative to other regions, with external trade still accounting for over 80 per cent of Africa’s total trade activity.

This cost differential, among other factors, continue to undermine export competitiveness and reinforces the central role of infrastructure in shaping integration outcomes.

A defining feature of the current period is the shift toward corridor-based integration, the report notes, where investments are coordinated along strategic trade routes rather than implemented as isolated national projects, underscoring that infrastructure effectiveness depends on the seamless movement of goods across interconnected transport, energy and digital systems.

This corridor-led approach it said, is evident in West Africa, where integration efforts are anchored on the Abidjan–Lagos Highway Corridor, a 1,028-kilometre project linking Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria, which reached a key milestone in 2026 with the operationalisation of the Abidjan–Lagos Corridor Management Authority.

“Progress in multimodal connectivity is reinforcing this role, with freight services along Nigeria’s Lagos–Kano Standard Gauge Railway extending connectivity toward the Niger border, while digital integration at the Sèmè–Kraké One-Stop Border Post has reduced average truck dwell time from several days to under 12 hours.

“These improvements are complemented by energy and logistics interventions, including solar- powered cold-chain systems under the Regional Off-Grid Electricity Access Project, supporting cross-border trade in perishable goods and strengthening regional value chains,” the report said.

Beyond West Africa it added, similar gains are being realised in East Africa, where integration is increasingly driven by the transition from fragmented border procedures to fully digitised trade facilitation systems.

While East Africa’s progress has been largely driven by digitalisation and trade facilitation, Central Africa is undergoing a more structural transition, with regional integration. Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) and the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC) shifting from a raw-resource export model toward a transformation-at-source industrial strategy, supported by targeted market access programmes and improvements in infrastructure and institutional capacity.

Central to this shift the report revealed, is the Africa Trade Competitiveness and Market Access Programme (ATCMA), launched in March 2026, which is supporting the development of regional value chains in sectors such as wood, cocoa and cassava.

Following the region-wide ban on raw timber exports, investment is increasingly directed toward downstream processing in Gabon and Cameroon, while certification laboratories in Cameroon are enabling producers obtain European Union-recognised phytosanitary certification locally.

“Improvements in transport and energy connectivity are reinforcing this transition, with construction along the Kribi–Bangui–Kisangani corridor reducing transit times by approximately 25 per cent and regional transmission agreements under the Grand Inga initiative expected to lower industrial electricity costs by up to 15 per cent.