About US
The preeminent voice for manufacturers across Africa
Midwifed and endorsed by the African Union Commission to represent the collective interests of the continent’s manufacturing sector.
PAMA Leadership
Welcome Remark from the President
Welcome to the Pan-African Manufacturers Association (PAMA).
African manufacturing must become more competitive, better integrated across national borders and more capable of supplying regional and international markets. Achieving this requires productive enterprises, reliable infrastructure, access to finance and technology, and policies that support industrial investment and trade.
PAMA provides a continental platform through which manufacturers and their representative associations can advance shared priorities, engage policymakers and build partnerships with investors, development finance institutions and other industrial stakeholders.
Our priorities include strengthening manufacturing competitiveness, promoting value addition, developing regional supply chains, improving access to markets and finance, and advancing the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). We also aim to ensure that the perspectives and requirements of manufacturers inform decisions on industrial policy, trade and economic integration.
The AfCFTA creates opportunities to expand intra-African trade and develop cross-border production networks. Realising these opportunities requires manufacturers to meet market standards, increase productive capacity and compete on cost, quality and delivery. It also requires effective customs procedures, compatible standards and the removal of barriers that impede trade in manufactured goods.
PAMA will continue to work with its members and institutional partners to advance these priorities through policy engagement, industry cooperation and initiatives that connect manufacturers with markets, expertise and investment opportunities.
I welcome manufacturers, businesses, policymakers, investors and development partners to engage with PAMA in advancing a more competitive and integrated African manufacturing sector.
Welcome Remark from the Co-Secretary Generals
Welcome to PAMA.
African manufacturers operate in diverse markets, but many face common challenges relating to production costs, infrastructure, access to finance, regulatory requirements and cross-border trade. Addressing these issues requires effective industry representation and constructive engagement with the institutions that shape the manufacturing environment.
PAMA provides a continental platform for that engagement. We represent the shared interests of African manufacturers, advocate policies that strengthen industrial competitiveness, facilitate engagement with relevant institutions and promote cooperation across the manufacturing value chain. Our membership brings together manufacturers and their representative associations, alongside other participants in Africa’s industrial ecosystem.
Our work covers policy advocacy, manufacturing competitiveness, value addition, regional value chains, market access and industrial partnerships. Through member engagement and collaboration with public and private sector partners, PAMA promotes the exchange of industry knowledge, stronger business relationships and opportunities for cooperation across African markets.
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) offers manufacturers an expanded framework for intra-African trade and regional production. PAMA supports efforts to turn this opportunity into practical commercial outcomes by promoting connections among manufacturers, encouraging cross-border business partnerships and engaging stakeholders on the conditions necessary for African-made products to compete across the continent.
We also recognise the importance of a well-connected manufacturing community in which members can share experience, identify common interests and engage with institutions on issues affecting their businesses. PAMA provides a forum for these exchanges and a platform for advancing shared industry priorities at the continental level.
We invite manufacturers, industry associations, investors, policymakers, development finance institutions and other partners to engage with PAMA, contribute to its work and explore opportunities for collaboration that advance African manufacturing.
WHO WE ARE
Africa's lead industrial platform
The Pan African Manufacturers Association (PAMA) is the lead industrial platform and the preeminent voice for manufacturers across Africa, midwifed and endorsed by the African Union Commission (AUC) to represent the collective interests of the continent's manufacturing sector.
PAMA's primary objective is to advocate for, safeguard, and advance the interests of African manufacturers through strategic policy engagement, industry collaboration, and partnerships with governments, regional and continental institutions, development partners, and other key stakeholders. PAMA champions policies and initiatives that strengthen industrial competitiveness, expand production capacity, accelerate value addition, deepen regional value chains, and promote intra-African trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
As the continental platform for manufacturing collaboration, PAMA serves as a catalyst for dialogue, knowledge exchange, business networking, and strategic partnerships among national manufacturers' associations, individual manufacturers, industry leaders, and other key stakeholders across Africa's manufacturing ecosystem. Through these efforts, PAMA promotes equitable, inclusive, and sustainable industrial development, strengthening manufacturing as a key driver of Africa's economic transformation, industrial competitiveness, and shared prosperity.
Our History
From an idea in Cairo to a continental institution
The idea to form the Pan-African Manufacturers Association (PAMA) was rooted in the suggestions, recommendations, and decisions made by African leaders and industry experts at the 2018 IATF held in Cairo, Egypt. The recommendation highlighted the need for African manufacturers and industrialists to establish a unified body with a strong and cohesive voice to promote industrialisation in Africa. Consequently, PAMA was formed and had its Inaugural meeting in 2019, held at the African Union Commission Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Association was officially flagged off in Cairo, Egypt, in 2021, following its formal incorporation.
OBJECTIVES
Our continental mandate
Twenty commitments guiding PAMA’s work on behalf of African manufacturers.
- To provide a Pan-African platform for advancing Africa's industrialization agenda.
- To serve as the Pan-African organisation for promoting competitive, resilient, and globally competitive manufacturing industries across Africa.
- To serve as the central continental body representing African manufacturing industries in engagements with the African Union Commission, Regional Economic Communities, governments, development partners, and other regional and international institutions on matters affecting the growth, competitiveness, and development of the manufacturing sector.
- To advocate for, safeguard, and advance the interests of manufacturers across Africa through strategic policy engagement, collaboration, and partnerships.
- To promote the implementation and effective utilisation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to expand intra-African trade in manufactured goods, strengthen regional value chains, and enhance market access for African manufacturers.
- To advocate for policies and reforms that improve the competitiveness, productivity, resilience, and sustainability of Africa's manufacturing sector.
- To promote the consideration, discussion, and resolution of issues affecting manufacturing industries through dialogue, research, and stakeholder engagement.
- To encourage high standards, quality, and competitiveness of “Made-in-Africa” products through the promotion of standards, certification, conformity assessment, information sharing, and technical support to manufacturers.
- To promote industrial innovation, research and development, technology adoption, digital transformation, and skills development within the manufacturing sector.
- To facilitate investment, industrial partnerships, technology transfer, business linkages, and commercial collaboration among manufacturers across Africa.
- To support the development, integration, and strengthening of regional and continental manufacturing value chains that increase local value addition and industrial diversification.
- To promote sustainable, inclusive, and environmentally responsible industrialization through resource-efficient, climate-resilient, and circular manufacturing practices.
- To undertake, commission, and disseminate research, industrial statistics, market intelligence, and policy analysis to support evidence-based decision-making and industrial policy development.
- To strengthen the institutional capacity of national manufacturers associations through knowledge sharing, technical cooperation, best practice exchange, and capacity-building programmes.
- To advocate for an enabling business environment through improved infrastructure, reliable energy, access to finance, efficient logistics, trade facilitation, and regulatory reforms that support manufacturing growth.
- To increase the contribution of manufacturing to Africa's Gross Domestic Product (GDP), employment, exports, industrialisation, and sustainable economic development.
- To deepen and enhance the contribution of manufacturing industries to Africa's economic transformation by representing manufacturers on reputable national, regional, continental, and international bodies.
- To foster strategic partnerships with governments, Regional Economic Communities, development finance institutions, multilateral organizations, academia, the private sector, and other stakeholders in support of Africa's industrial development.
- To promote the participation and growth of women, youth, and micro, small, and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises as drivers of inclusive industrial development.
- To position Africa as a globally competitive manufacturing hub by promoting industrial excellence, innovation, value addition, and sustainable economic transformation.
PAMA CORE VALUES
The Foundation of Our Mission
The principles that guide PAMA’s mission, leadership, and impact across Africa’s manufacturing sector.
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Pan-African Unity
We believe in the power of an integrated Africa and work to strengthen connections among manufacturers, industries, markets, and institutions across the continent.
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Industrial Transformation
We are committed to advancing Africa's industrialisation agenda by strengthening manufacturing capacity, promoting local value addition, deepening regional value chains, and supporting sustainable economic transformation.
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Competitiveness
We champion productivity, quality, innovation, efficiency, and international standards that enable African manufacturers to compete effectively in regional and global markets.
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Collaboration
We build strategic partnerships among manufacturers, governments, regional and continental institutions, development partners, investors, and other stakeholders to advance shared industrial priorities.
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Innovation
We promote technology adoption, research and development, digital transformation, knowledge exchange, and new approaches that strengthen the resilience and future-readiness of African manufacturing.
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Integrity
We uphold the highest standards of ethical conduct, transparency, accountability, professionalism, and responsible leadership in all our engagements.
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Impact
We are committed to measurable outcomes that strengthen manufacturing, expand productive capacity, deepen intra-African trade, create productive employment, and contribute to sustainable development.
FAQS
Frequently asked
The Pan African Manufacturers Association (PAMA) is the key continental voice of manufacturers in Africa, representing the interests of manufacturing associations and industries while promoting industrialisation, regional value chains, and intra-African trade.
Membership is open to:
- National manufacturers associations in African countries (Primary Members);
- Manufacturing companies with operations in more than one African country (Corporate Members); and
- Approved associate members, including organisations that support manufacturing and industrial development; and
- legally registered micro, small, or medium-sized manufacturing enterprises (MSMEs), startups, and emerging manufacturers engaged in local value addition that are not represented by a recognised national manufacturers' association or operate in a country where no such association exists (Affiliate Members)
Please refer to the Membership Policy for detailed eligibility criteria.
You can apply by either:
- completing the online Membership Application Form on the PAMA website; or
- downloading the Membership Application Form, completing it, and submitting the signed form and any required supporting documents to the PAMA Secretariat.
Applications are reviewed in accordance with the PAMA Membership Policy.
Membership is currently free of charge. If membership fees are introduced in the future, members will be notified in advance.
Applications are reviewed by the PAMA Secretariat. Applicants will be notified of the outcome once the review process has been completed.
Members may request updates to their organisational or contact information by contacting the PAMA Secretariat.
As membership is currently free, no annual renewal fee is required. Members may, however, be requested to periodically confirm or update their information to maintain an active membership status.
Visit the Events section of the PAMA website to view upcoming conferences, webinars, training programmes, and other activities, and complete the registration process for your preferred event. To stay informed about PAMA's latest events, publications, policy updates, and other initiatives, regularly visit the website, subscribe to PAMA's newsletter, and follow PAMA on its official communication channels and social media platforms.
PAMA offers advertising opportunities through its publications, newsletters, events, and other communication platforms. Please contact the Secretariat for the Media Kit and current advertising rates.
As membership is currently free, no annual renewal fee is required. Members may, however, be requested to periodically confirm or update their information to maintain an active membership status.
Yes. Official invoices and receipts are issued for all fee-based services, including event registrations, sponsorships, advertising, and other approved payments.
Refunds for paid services are governed by the PAMA Payment and Refund Policy, available on the website.
PAMA publications, including the PAMA Manufacturing Review, policy papers, reports, and other resources, are available through the website's Publications section. You can also contact the PAMA Secretariat directly.
You can contact the Secretariat through the Contact Us page on the website or by emailing pama@panafricamanufacturers.org.
JOIN PAMA
Become a member today and shape Africa's industrial future.
Membership is open to national manufacturers’ associations, corporates and industrial partners across Africa.
OUR INSTITUTIONAL
In collaboration with
