![African Trade Going Digital: Accessing Nigeria’s role and readiness. [Part 0]](https://static.ucraft.net/fs/ucraft/userFiles/borg/images/a-165-22-17713672593441.webp?v=1771367314)
Since the adoption of the AfCFTA Digital Trade Protocol and the approval of its ratification by Nigeria’s Federal Executive Council, significant work remains to align domestic realities with the obligations and opportunities created by the agreement. Nigeria must either develop new frameworks or strengthen existing ones to effectively implement the Protocol and fully harness its benefits. This series is designed to unpack the key features of the Protocol and critically assess Nigeria’s institutional, regulatory, and economic readiness to translate its commitments into practical and measurable outcomes.
Africa has been rethinking trade for years, and the shift is now hard to ignore. Trade is no longer only about what crosses a border in a container. It is also about services delivered online, payments made instantly, and data that moves to complete a transaction. That is why digital trade has moved from being a side conversation to a major part of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) ambition.
On 18 February 2024, the AfCFTA Protocol on Digital Trade was adopted, signalling a continental move towards uniform standards for digital trade. The Protocol is intended to reduce friction across African markets by establishing a common baseline for electronic documents and transactions, digital identity, payments, cybersecurity, consumer protection, and cross-border data transfers.
Nigeria has a strategic position in this conversation. In February 2025, Nigeria was endorsed at the AU level as a digital trade champion, reflecting the role the country played in pushing the digital trade agenda forward on the continent. But leadership at continental level still has to translate into domestic action. In November 2025, Nigeria’s Federal Executive Council approved the ratification of the Protocol, which is an important step towards being formally bound by its obligations.
Still, ratification is only the start. The Protocol’s entry into force is tied to the AfCFTA’s broader rules on when Protocols become legally effective. The Digital Trade Protocol states that it will enter into force in line with Article 23 of the AfCFTA Agreement, which means that it will take effect 30 days after the 22nd instrument of ratification is deposited. After which, each country then has five years from that point to align national laws, rules, and regulations with it. As at the time of writing, the Protocol has not yet entered into force, because that ratification threshold has not been met.
This is why this series matters. Nigeria has time to get it right, but time only helps if it is used well.
Understanding digital trade
The Protocol defines digital trade as digitally enabled transactions in goods and services that can be digitally or physically delivered, involving natural persons and legal persons. In simpler terms, digital trade is not one single activity. It is a chain. It starts when someone can get online and reach a seller, and it ends when the buyer gets what they paid for, either instantly on a screen or physically at their doorstep.
A typical digital trade journey looks like this: First, the buyer needs reliable internet access. Without basic digital infrastructure and telecommunications services, there is no market to participate in. Next, the buyer needs to find and place an order. That means online platforms, websites, or applications that allow a seller in one country to offer goods or services to a buyer in another country. Then comes payment. The buyer must be able to pay across borders in a way that is safe, quick, and affordable, and the seller must be able to receive and convert funds without excessive friction. Finally, delivery. Some digital trade is completed fully online, like software, digital subscriptions, or online professional services. Other transactions start online but end with physical delivery, which brings in logistics, postal systems, courier services, freight, and last-mile delivery.
Because trade is ultimately a transaction between parties, contracts also matter. When the seller is outside the buyer’s country, questions quickly arise. How do we sign an agreement electronically? Are electronic documents recognised? If something goes wrong, what evidence counts? This is the value chain the Protocol is trying to support. It is not just about selling online. It is about making sure the full journey works across borders, from access to ordering, payment, contracting, delivery, and redress when things go wrong.
Why digital trade matters
There are several net positives for trade, digital trade included. Digital trade has the potential to encourage inclusion and scale. On inclusion, it is a good trade pathway for women-led businesses, youth-led businesses and small firms. It allows these businesses to enter regional markets with lower upfront costs, provided trust, payments, connectivity and redress are in place. On scale, when a market works well, a Nigerian business does not need a physical presence in every country it serves. A seller can reach new customers through online channels, take payment, deliver a service instantly or ship a product, and resolve any problems.
The economic case is also compelling. A study on developing a digital trade strategy in Nigeria argues that Nigeria is well placed to benefit from the Protocol on Digital Trade, given its large pool of young and skilled people. The same study reports early estimates that adoption of the Protocol, alongside improvements in digital connectivity, could raise Nigeria’s gross domestic product by 11.72 to 12.79 per cent, increase employment by 15.4 to 40.9 per cent, and lift exports by 16.92 to 59.79 per cent over current levels.
There is also the spillover effect of a better standard of living, reduced risk of monopoly and better continental standing as a whole. This is why Nigeria ought to get the policy and operational foundations right.
Why this series exists
Nigeria is not starting from zero. In some areas that matter for digital trade, we already have working laws and regulators. For example, we have a data protection law and an oversight authority, and we also have a consumer protection law with an enforcement agency. These are important foundations because digital trade only scales when people trust how their data is handled and how disputes are resolved.
But readiness is uneven. Some parts of the digital trade value chain are still developing in Nigeria. Laws recognising electronic records are good examples. In practice, this means that a transaction can be possible from a business point of view, but still face uncertainty when you ask basic legal questions, such as, is this electronic agreement enforceable, and what evidence will a court accept if there is a dispute.
That is why this series takes a pillar-by-pillar approach. We look at the practical systems that must work for cross-border digital trade to function, including digital infrastructure, electronic records, digital payments, digital identity, cross-border data transfers, cybersecurity, internet access and transparency, consumer protection, online safety and platform accountability, and the wider enabling environment for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and digital innovation.
For each pillar, we will do the same thing.
We will explain what the Protocol expects, describe where Nigeria is today and where it needs to be to truly support digital trade. A big part of the conversation is also mutual recognition. Digital trade only becomes truly continental when countries can accept each other’s systems, whether that is identity checks, payment rails, electronic documents, data protection safeguards, or cross-border complaint handling. That is the standard Nigeria will need to meet if it wants to be seen, in practice, as a credible champion of digital trade in Africa.
Diana Uzor / Research Analyst, Technology and Digital Economy | d.u@borg.re