Southern African Development Community (SADC) in conjunction with the European Union (EU) will convene the Africa Trade Competitiveness and Market Access (ATCMA) Project Stakeholder Engagement Workshop in Gaborone, Botswana, from 12 to 13 November 2025.
The €25 million EU-funded regional initiative is designed to enhance trade competitiveness, strengthen regional Quality Infrastructure, and boost intra-African and Africa–EU trade. The implementing partners are the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and International Trade Centre (ITC).
The objectives of the workshop are to present the programme framework and strengthen stakeholders’ engagement, discuss, and gather inputs that help inform the value chain selection process and to identify relevant stakeholders, beneficiaries, and potential synergies with existing initiatives. The ATCMA Project Stakeholder Engagement Workshop brings together SADC Secretariat team, EU Delegation to Botswana, SADC Business Council, UNIDO Technical team, ITC Technical team and ATCMA SADC focal points from both the public and private sectors.
The Africa Trade Competitiveness and Market Access (ATCMA) Programme is a flagship initiative of the European Union to promote sustainable and inclusive value chain development in Africa to strengthen intra African and Africa– European Union trade, in alignment with the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), the EU Global Gateway, and the European Green Deal. Jointly implemented by the International Trade Centre and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, ATCMA covers six components: namely, the Continental, East Africa, West Africa, Central Africa (ECCAS), Southern Africa (SADC) and East and Southern Africa (COMESA) to ensure coherence across regions while adapting interventions to specific regional contexts.
The SADC component aims to identify and promote several priority value chains that can foster sustainable industrialisation, enhance regional trade, and stimulate mutually beneficial Africa and EU partnerships. The value chain selection exercise is a key analytical foundation for the design of ATCMA interventions in the region.
Due to its abundance in natural resources, the SADC Region has a huge potential in value chains and strong potential for comparative advantages in agro-processing and natural-resource-based industries with emerging opportunities in specific manufacturing sectors, such as pharmaceuticals and vehicles.
The ATCMAP–SADC Programme reflects a strong, joint commitment by SADC, the European Union and its Member States, and the United Nations to advance regional integration, inclusive industrialization, and sustainable economic development in Southern Africa. Furthermore, it supports the operationalization of the SADC Industrialization Strategy and Roadmap (SISR 2015–2063) and contributes to the achievement of the SADC Vision 2050 and the aspirations of the African Continental Free Trade Area, the AU Agenda 2063 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
