Trade collaboration within borders announced by Onafriq with PAPSS
In a groundbreaking development for the African continent, the Onafriq-PAPSS partnership is transforming the landscape of cross-border payments. This collaboration, providing faster, cheaper, and more accessible transactions in local currencies, is making a significant impact on West Africa and beyond.
Launched in mid-2025, the pilot program has received approval from the Bank of Ghana. It facilitates transfers not only between banks but also directly to mobile wallets and fintech platforms, enabling small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and individuals to perform cross-border transactions more conveniently. This enhancement is stimulating intra-African trade and economic integration.
The partnership, aimed at facilitating intra-trade across the African region, is more than just a commercial venture. It fosters social and economic development by allowing instant money transfers that help families and entrepreneurs across the continent strengthen their connections and grow economically. The platform's design around local currencies aligns with the African Union's vision for a unified financial market less dependent on foreign exchange volatility.
Key implications of the Onafriq-PAPSS partnership include a significant reduction in transaction costs, from up to 30% to about 1%, by using local currencies instead of foreign ones. This reduction in costs potentially saves Africa $5 billion annually in foreign currency outflows. The partnership also ensures faster and more secure payment processing, benefiting banks, fintechs, SMEs, and mobile money users.
Moreover, the partnership enhances financial inclusion by extending access to quick, affordable, and interoperable payment services across African countries. It promotes intra-African trade and economic integration, contributing to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) goals. Lastly, the partnership facilitates personal remittances and supports young entrepreneurs and families across borders, thereby creating a social impact.
The Onafriq-PAPSS partnership is currently in a pilot phase but aims to expand across mobile money platforms continent-wide. This expansion could help reduce Africa’s economic fragmentation through improved connectivity in its payment systems.
At a recent event, Dare Okoudjou (CEO of Onafriq), Mike Ogbalu (CEO of PAPSS), and Ike Aneson (Country Director of Onafriq for Gambia and Ghana) discussed the partnership. The event also marked Morocco's joining of the PAPSS network, increasing the total number of African countries on the platform to 17.
The PAPSS system, launched by Afreximbank in collaboration with the African Union in 2019, allows for real-time cross-border payments, reducing the time taken for transactions from days to minutes. The system was demonstrated at the event, showing how users on the MTN platform can initiate cross-border payments.
The process involves dialing *170#, selecting "Money Transfer", choosing "Cross Border transfer", and selecting Onafriq as the payment provider. The system was developed to address challenges faced by corporations and conglomerates operating across multiple African countries, such as currency incompatibilities and reliance on hard currencies.
Currently, Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, The Gambia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Djibouti are among the countries integrated into the PAPSS system. As the partnership continues to grow and evolve, it promises to revolutionize the way Africa conducts cross-border transactions, fostering economic growth, financial inclusion, and social development across the continent.
The Onafriq-PAPSS partnership expands beyond regular business ventures, focusing on fostering social and economic development by facilitating faster, cheaper, and more accessible cross-border transactions, which is particularly beneficial for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and individuals in West Africa and beyond. This expansion could potentially save Africa $5 billion annually in foreign currency outflows, as it reduces transaction costs significantly using local currencies instead of foreign ones.
By increasing financial inclusion, the partnership promotes the use of quick, affordable, and interoperable payment services across African countries, contributing to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) goals and ultimately revolutionizing the way Africa conducts cross-border transactions, fostering economic growth, financial inclusion, and social development across the continent.
