Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) - The emergence of a powerhouse economy

Interest in Sub Saharan Africa Has continued to build during last year.

In this post, I hope to outline the obstacles, and share PAXT’s solutions for a way forward along this exciting path. Unlike the wobbly AI bubble, this one has infinite time and opportunity to grow for the foreseeable future. The stumbling blocks that have been such a deterrent to conventional trade in Africa are not for the feint hearted. As a result, Africa is anything but a saturated market. It is a golden opportunity, and the time is now.

The mosaic that is Sub Saharan Africa?

Africa is one continent covering 15% of the earth's surface. Unlike India or China, it is fragmented into 54 countries, speaking 2000 languages. It is very youthful, with 60% of the population under 20. It has 41 currencies!

Each of these 54 countries has different regulatory frameworks and very onerous importation regulations. Add to that, the different cultures, temperaments, and attitudes to trade that have emerged from years under very different colonial and political regimes.

Swahili is spoken by 40% of the population of East Africa with French and English along with regional languages by the rest.

The 3825 miles distance between New York to Dakar is the same as Dakar to Nairobi. It is a gigantic continent. European logistics are not workable across SSA. The continent crosses conflict zones and multi country tariffs and duties (Remember it is 54 countries not one). Shipments from Jebel Ali Free zone in UAE to West Africa takes 7 weeks, whilst sea freight to West Africa from Europe take only 3 weeks! Air freight is very expensive and increases the landed cost in what are already often expensive western brands and overland is impossible. Shipping by container is best, however it needs specialist management.

Understand the differences

As the normal rules don't apply to Sub Saharan Africa, the starting point must be to think regionally. At PAXT we have a well-established regional presence. Our highly qualified, full time, African business development managers are based in Nairobi Kenya, Abuja, Nigeria and Dubai UAE. We have a Francophone Africa business development manager in the Ivory Coast from Spring 2026. All PAXT’s marketing has now pivoted to regional, as we realise that Africa is the place to be. Our headquarters remain in Cambridge, and our bespoke technology enables us to operate seamlessly between the UK, Middle East, eastern Europe and Africa. We are fully committed to being in the best position to embrace the growth burst we anticipate.

We design ‘regional’ operating systems from these office locations which we define as East, West and Francophone. We do this to be flexible and adapt to local regulations, languages, procurement culture and payment methods. This allows us to adapt to different languages, cultures, importation and payment. Most importantly, we optimise the shipping location. From our Cambridge hub we make sure that we ship to ensure the lowest landed cost. Our streamlined expertise and economy of scale is your route to Africa.

Let's talk

If your brand or distribution sees itself as part of the Africa boom, let’s talk.

We have a supremely knowledgeable team here in Cambridge. We are happy to chat with no obligation to help you find out more, answer your questions and give you an insight about this unique trading environment.

PAXT. Africa, it’s what we do.