[DIGITAL Business Africa] – Cameroonian communication strategist Alexandre Siewe is entering a new phase of his career at the heart of one of Africa’s most ambitious economic projects. The former Director of Communication of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) officially joined the Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in Accra, Ghana, on May 13, 2026, as Senior Advisor in Charge of the Communications Division.

The announcement was made by Siewe himself in a Facebook post published on May 15, where he blended spirituality, leadership, and a pan-African vision.

“Every trajectory has an author. I begin by giving thanks to GOD, the Coach of coaches, the one who builds teams no one anticipates and places every player where they can be decisive,” he wrote.

In the same message, Alexandre Siewe presented his appointment as a strategic calling rather than a simple professional promotion.

“These moments are not planned. They are received,” he stated.

The Cameroonian communication expert also revealed that he was personally selected by Wamkele Mene, Secretary-General of the AfCFTA.

“It is H.E. Wamkele Mene who aligned me into his first team,” he emphasised, using vocabulary inspired by sports and team management.

A mission at the heart of the world’s largest free trade market

In his message, Alexandre Siewe also highlighted the AfCFTA’s massive ambitions.

“55 States. 1.4 billion people. One clear ambition: that Africans trade more among themselves, produce more at home, and create wealth that remains on the continent,” he wrote.

For him, the project has already entered its operational phase.

“The match started in 2021. We are now playing it.”

The AfCFTA, officially launched in January 2021, aims to create an integrated continental market to boost intra-African trade, industrialisation, and regional value chains.

In this context, communication is increasingly being viewed as a major strategic lever to strengthen ownership of the project among African populations, businesses, and policymakers.

“Creating One African Market is not a slogan. It is a promise made to a continent,” Alexandre Siewe insisted.

Strategic communication, AI, and African influence

The profile of AfCFTA’s new communications executive also reflects the growing influence of African experts in strategic communication and artificial intelligence within major continental institutions.

Before this appointment, Alexandre Siewe headed strategy at Hémisphère Media Production Africa and chaired the IA For Africa Initiatives network. A consultant-expert in strategic communication, branding, political influence, and artificial intelligence, he says he built his career across multiple sectors and African countries.

“Twenty years of building narratives across Africa — from energy to football, from AI governance to continental institutions — have led me here. This is not an arrival. It is a game-time call,” he wrote.

According to his professional biography, Alexandre Siewe operates in about a dozen countries across Africa and internationally, advising leaders, governments, institutions, and foundations on influence, transformation, and leadership strategies.

He is also presented as the creator of the “Siewe System™,” a coaching and strategic framework designed to deliver rapid results in leadership and communication dynamics.

For the Cameroonian strategist, communication about the AfCFTA should not be seen merely as an institutional tool.

“My mission: to ensure that this project is understood, narrated, and embraced by the greatest number of people. Communication is not the periphery of such a project. It is one of its conditions,” he affirmed.

“Through this appointment, the AfCFTA appears to be betting on a more assertive, narrative-driven and influence-oriented communication strategy aimed at accelerating support for Africa’s economic integration agenda.

And Alexandre Siewe’s first major continental assignment is already tied to the communication efforts surrounding a strategic event: Biashara Afrika 2026, taking place from May 18 to 20, 2026, at the Palais des Congrès in Lomé, Togo, under the theme: ‘Boosting Africa’s Economic Transformation through the AfCFTA.’

Co-organised by the AfCFTA Secretariat and the Government of Togo, the forum brings together more than 1,500 policymakers, investors and business leaders to discuss ways to stimulate intra-African trade, facilitate access to the continental market, and accelerate the concrete implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area.

By Digital Business Africa