Online Reporter
Nqobile Bhebhe, [email protected]
MOVING Africa’s integration agenda from aspiration to execution through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will come under the spotlight at the Enterprise, Leaders and Innovators Society for Africa (ELISA) Business Summit.
ELISA is a Pan-African multi-sector platform.
In a statement, the organisers said the summit, scheduled for March in Hwange, brings together Pan-African entrepreneurs, operators and ecosystem leaders focused on building and scaling businesses across African markets, connecting founders with investors and institutional partners to unlock execution, market access and enterprise capability.
The gathering is expected to place strong emphasis on translating the AfCFTA framework into practical commercial outcomes, as African businesses increasingly seek to expand beyond domestic borders amid shifting global trade dynamics.
“While the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) provides a shared framework, ELISA serves as a practical convening platform where commercial relationships are formed and cross-border operating pathways clarified.
“The 2026 summit moves beyond policy rhetoric to address the realities of scaling across African markets – from complex regulatory environments and volatile global supply chains to locally responsive pricing and operating models across more than 54 diverse economies.”
Organisers said the summit comes at a time when Africa’s private sector is under pressure to innovate and collaborate more deeply to unlock intra-African trade, which remains below potential despite the continent’s vast resource base, youthful population and growing consumer markets.
“Africa should be further ahead. We all know it. We talk about it. Yet the question remains: why hasn’t the continent advanced at the pace of its potential demands?” said Elisabeth Valerio, co-founder of the ELISA Business Network.
She added, “Africa does not lack brilliance or ambition. What we often lack are the forums that bring our ideas together – across industries, borders and generations.”
The ELISA Business Summit is positioned as one such forum, aimed at bridging gaps between policy ambition and enterprise-level execution, while fostering partnerships that can accelerate industrialisation, innovation and cross-border value chains under the AfCFTA framework.
