Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria Drive ADAPT Digital Trade Rollout
Kenya, Morocco, and Nigeria have been announced as the first pilot countries for the Africa Digital Access and Public Infrastructure for Trade (ADAPT) initiative. Spearheaded by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, in collaboration with the Tony Blair Institute, the World Economic Forum, and the IOTA Foundation, ADAPT aims to establish a shared digital infrastructure for intra-African trade. The announcement came on May 19, 2026, marking the start of implementation work in these three nations.
ADAPT’s core elements include digital identity systems, cross-border data exchange, and interoperable payment rails. These solutions are designed to tackle critical barriers to trade in Africa, such as fragmented regulations, paper-based processes, and high cross-border transaction costs. According to AfCFTA estimates, such inefficiencies contribute to a $100 billion annual trade finance gap, particularly affecting small and medium enterprises, which make up 90% of African businesses.
The pilot countries were chosen based on criteria including regulatory alignment, digital infrastructure maturity, and private sector engagement. Kenya, Morocco, and Nigeria will now establish ADAPT Country Implementation Forums, integrate national digital systems with the open-source TWIN infrastructure, and begin testing digital currencies such as stablecoins for cross-border payments. The goal is to digitize trade documentation at source, replacing traditional paper-based processes with tamper-proof, verified digital records.
Boosting Intra-African Trade
ADAPT is seen as a key enabler of AfCFTA’s broader mission to integrate Africa’s 54 economies into a single market. Intra-African trade remains low, accounting for only 15–16% of the continent’s total trade volume according to recent African Union reports. By addressing structural barriers, ADAPT aims to unlock Africa’s trade potential and help achieve the AfCFTA’s goal of increasing intra-African exports by 80% and generating up to $450 billion in economic gains by 2035.
AfCFTA Secretary-General Wamkele Mene recently projected that intra-African trade could reach $230 billion by 2027, up from $220 billion in 2024. This growth reflects momentum behind initiatives like ADAPT, which lower transaction costs, improve transparency, and create trusted digital frameworks for cross-border commerce.
Strategic Implications
The success of the pilot programs in Kenya, Morocco, and Nigeria will shape how ADAPT scales across additional AfCFTA member states. Lessons learned during implementation will inform governance frameworks, technical standards, and use cases for continental adoption. Dominik Schiener, Co-Founder of the IOTA Foundation, highlighted the initiative’s transformative potential, saying, “Africa has a unique opportunity to leapfrog fragmented, paper-based systems and establish digital trust infrastructure designed for the future.”
Looking ahead, ADAPT’s rollout will test how effectively digital identity systems, stablecoins, and interoperable payment infrastructure can reduce trade friction and foster deeper economic integration. With Africa’s trade ambitions tied closely to the AfCFTA’s success, the progress of these pilots will be closely watched by policymakers, businesses, and investors alike.