Experts and stakeholders in the digital payment ecosystem will converge at the 7th edition of the PoS Innovation Summit in Lagos on December 11, 2019, to discuss the African continental free trade agreement and highlight how AfCFTA can change the future of digital payments across Africa to drive borderless trade across the continent.
The summit which is being organized by Global Accelerex, a leading e-payment company, is aimed at providing stakeholders in the Nigerian payment system with information on how to maximize the boundless opportunities it presents.
Emphasizing the reason for the theme: The African Continental Free Trade Agreement: Driving Borderless Trade Through Fintech, Tunde Ogungbade, managing director, Global Accelerex said that this summit couldn’t have come at a more opportune time as AfCFTA is expected to boost intra-African trade significantly, making Africa a single market of 1.2 billion people and a cumulative GDP of over $3 trillion.
According to Ogungbade, “AfCFTA provides a framework for trade liberalization in goods and services. With this liberalization comes an overarching need for trade settlements across different African countries, making payment an integral part of the process.”
“It therefore behooves digital payment companies to design innovative payment platforms and solutions that will facilitate these trade activities. Global Accelerex is already taking the lead in this regard and some of our innovative products will be hitting the market soon,” he said.
Industry watchers consider the move to accentuate this topic, which is on the front burner of continental discourse, a bold step in the right direction.
Niyi Adebayo, Nigeria’s minister of industry, trade and investment has been confirmed as the special guest of honour for the summit. According to the organizers, other acclaimed speakers and guest panelists including Segun Awolowo; CEO of Nigerian Export Promotion Council, Kunle Elebute; senior partner, KPMG Nigeria and chairman, KPMG Africa, Sam Egube; Lagos State commissioner for budget and economic planning, Chijioke Ugochukwu; executive director, shared services and products, Fidelity Bank and Saratu Iya Aliyu; national president of NACCIMA, will be at the event.
The forum is expected to attract notable delegates from the Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigerian Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS), Payment Service Providers (PSPs), representatives of Banks and Microfinance Banks, members of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), members of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), members of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), representatives of Fintech companies, importers, exporters and traders, payment processors, and other stakeholders in the economic value chain.
