Piyush Goyal seeks stronger India-Africa trade integration through aligned standards

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday called for aligning standards, customs procedures and business practices between India and African nations to accelerate bilateral trade and deepen economic partnerships, PTI reported.Addressing a curtain raiser event for the upcoming India-Africa Business Dialogue (IABD) and Exhibition, Goyal said the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), valued at nearly $3.4 trillion, along with India’s rapidly expanding $4 trillion economy, offers significant opportunities for resilient supply chains and higher-value manufacturing partnerships.According to the commerce ministry, the minister “emphasised the need to build upon existing trade ties and preferential trade frameworks by aligning standards, customs procedures and business practices to facilitate faster and smarter growth for businesses on both sides”.Goyal said India and Africa should move beyond traditional raw material trade and focus on integrated value chains and manufacturing collaboration.He identified renewable energy, green hydrogen, green ammonia, electric mobility, digitalisation and telecommunications as key sectors for expanding bilateral cooperation.India-Africa bilateral trade rose 14.39 per cent year-on-year to $93.69 billion in 2025-26.India’s exports to Africa stood at $45.42 billion during the fiscal, while imports from African countries reached $48.27 billion.