AND THE AFRICAN DREAM IS BORN IN ALGIERS
BY: Dr. Mohamed Meziane – Minister of communication
This dream is equally that of President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who has long championed African solutions to African problems—the very obstacles that have kept intra-African trade from attaining higher levels.
Just one week ago, an “African dream” was born in Algiers. At the outset, some doubted its feasibility—not out of a lack of ambition or disinterest in African affairs, but because they did not wish to acknowledge the efforts directed at meeting the challenge of the continent’s development.
Indeed, in his landmark inaugural address—hailed as historic—at the 4th Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF-2025) on Thursday, 4 September 2025, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune emphasized that “the future of Africa rests upon the collective capacity of its nations to establish an integrated infrastructure,” stressing that “the IATF is not merely an economic exhibition, but rather a manifestation of a shared consciousness aimed at building a unified continent, strong in will, and influential on both regional and international stages.”
Later, Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Cheikh El-Ghazouani observed that “African integration requires a decisive shift from an economy centered on the extraction of raw materials to one based on the valorization and local transformation of those resources.” Speaking subsequently, Tunisian President Kaïs Saïed underlined that “the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) embodies a dream for all Africans, across generations, a dream that must be realized through a renewed approach to bring this civilizational project to fruition.”
This dynamic momentum was further reinforced by the President of the Libyan Presidential Council, Mohamed Younes El-Menfi, who declared: “We are committed to advancing intra-African integration, notably through linking the north and south of the continent and strengthening its engines of development from within.”
It was therefore not the mere official announcement on Wednesday, 10 September 2025—that the fourth edition of the Intra-African Trade Fair concluded with the signing of contracts worth over 48.3 billion USD, including 11.4 billion USD benefiting Algeria—that left the most indelible mark. Rather, it was the extraordinary stature and exceptional dimension of this edition, deriving from the added value brought by Algeria to IATF 2025, thanks to “its geostrategic position as Africa’s gateway.”
The press itself bore witness to the success of this African dream embraced by an entire people. This is also the dream of President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who has consistently advocated African solutions to African challenges, solutions that would remove the barriers hindering intra-African trade from reaching greater heights. An expert confided to me that this dream, born in Algiers, may well create new paradigms for mastering the very fabric of an integrated and prosperous continent, nurtured by shared ambition and collective development. Certain attitudes, he noted, could only be legitimized if Africans themselves were placed in a position to cultivate such a stance. In this regard, Algeria’s experience in economic diversification and in adopting an integrated industrial policy stands as a successful model, attesting to the capacity of African nations to devise effective growth strategies that sustain continental integration.
Ultimately, the IATF achieved far more than what was initially expected on every front—judging by the exceptional media coverage, the accords and contracts concluded, the partnerships forged, the encounters facilitated, and the spirit of fraternity and solidarity that prevailed throughout the event. This gathering remains, by far, a continental rendezvous of the highest order. In September 2025, an African dream was indeed born in Algiers.
M.M
