Being a cross-border trader in Africa is tough enough, and all the more challenging when you're a woman. Burdened with administrative and gender-related abuses at the borders, not only are these women's basic rights and personal safety endangered, but their entrepreneurial potential and contribution to Africa's economic development are also hindered. Join trade facilitation experts Lily Sommer and Edwin Gaarder with trade and gender expert Faith Tigere Pittet as they take a closer look at the role of women in African cross-border trade -- with all the risks, challenges, and opportunities that come with it. Also hear this episode's Border Voice from Elizabeth, a trader crossing the Chirundu border between Zimbabwe and Zambia. Informal Exchanges brings you stories of movement, resilience, and innovation at the African borders, all wrapped in an informal exchange.   

African small-scale cross-border traders have taken a substantial economic blow from the COVID-19 pandemic, exposing the precarity of their livelihood and the deep-rooted inequalities in the region underpinning the changing landscape of African cross-border trade. Join trade facilitation experts Lily Sommer and Pierre Bonthonneau with trade specialist Nyembezi Mvunga on our Border Insights segment. They explore the pandemic's aftermath, looking at traders' response, recovery, and innovations. Stick around to hear this episode's Border Voice from Nathalie and her COVID-19 experience being a cross-border trader. Informal Exchanges brings you stories of movement, resilience, and innovation at the African borders, all wrapped in an informal exchange. 

Without people, products cannot cross borders. This is a testament that the mobility of cross-border traders is critical in moving goods within Africa, where a massive portion of economic output comes from informal trade. But why do migration and trade have such disparate bearings on African regional integration policies, where there's much focus on facilitating the trade of goods and less on streamlining migration processes for the people carrying the goods? Join trade facilitation experts Lily Sommer and Pierre Bonthonneau with migration expert Chando Mapoma of the International Organization for Migration (IOM - UN Migration) on the Border Insights segment. They exchange views on ways to integrate human mobility into trade. Stick around to hear this episode's Border Voice from Michael and his experience as a trader crossing the Nakonde-Tunduma border between Zambia and Tanzania. Informal Exchanges brings you stories of movement, resilience, and innovation at the African borders, all wrapped in an informal exchange. 

Informal cross-border trade (or ICBT) makes up a huge chunk of intra-African economic output, although it is hardly captured in official accounts statistics, and even much less in formal trade policy and agreements. Join trade facilitation experts Lily Sommer and Pierre Bonthonneau as they explore the ICBT phenomenon with African trade policy experts Professor David Luke from the London School of Economics and Mr. Tasara Muzorori from the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) Secretariat, and top it off with real-life accounts from traders on the ground.  Informal Exchanges brings you stories of movement, resilience, and innovation at the African borders, all wrapped in an informal exchange.