China-Africa relations are most effective when they produce tangible results that everyday people can feel. These include creating more jobs, stabilizing incomes, strengthening businesses and expanding consumer choices.

For African economies aiming for sustainable growth, one of the most beneficial and practical factors is market access: clearer, more affordable routes for African products to reach the world's largest consumer market.

This is why China's decision to implement zero-tariff treatment — starting on May 1 for imports from 53 African countries with which it has diplomatic ties — deserves attention basically as an economic story.

In the simplest terms, it signals an intent to widen the door for African exports by reducing tariff levels and backing that change with mechanisms meant to ease entry, such as an upgraded "green channel" and support for economic partnership pacts.

For a continent that has long argued that trade must be more balanced and more development-oriented, the focus on access is a welcome direction.

From an African perspective, when a market as large as China's becomes more reachable, it strengthens the business case for investment at home. Exporters are more likely to invest in irrigation, aggregation, cold storage, packaging lines, food safety compliance and certification, when there is a realistic prospect of stable demand. Manufacturers are more likely to add shifts, upgrade machinery and train workers when tariff headwinds are reduced and orders become more predictable. Market access helps convert ambition into bankable plans.

Still, market access needs to be understood clearly. Duty-free entry can lower costs, but it does not automatically make African exports competitive.

Trade success depends on execution every day by meeting product standards, shipping on time, keeping quality consistent and handling the documentation that global supply chains demand. So improved access is an opportunity — one that African governments and businesses can turn into results by investing and scaling up production and export capability.

This is also where the broader China-Africa trade landscape matters. The strongest near-term export gains are likely to come from countries that already export significant volumes to China, especially in energy and minerals, because they have established supply capacity and buyer relationships. Data compiled by the China-Africa Research Initiative at Johns Hopkins University shows that in 2024, Africa's exports to China reached a record $99 billion, and identifies the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola, South Africa, Guinea and Zambia as the largest African exporters to China, primarily driven by mineral and oil sales.

These realities should not be seen as a limitation, but as a starting point. Africa's immediate export strengths — oil, metals and minerals — are important earners. Yet the most development-rich future is one in which market access also helps diversify exports into higher-value products and more labor-intensive sectors.

This is why the market-access push by countries such as Kenya is symbolically important even beyond Kenya, as it places export competitiveness, agriculture and tradeable goods at the center of the relationship, not just capital projects.

There is also a positive political economy to market access that is often missed. When the relationship is anchored in trade that African companies can participate in, it becomes more broad-based and more resilient. In addition to governments negotiating projects, it involves producers meeting buyers, logistics companies building routes, banks designing export finance products, and standards agencies upgrading labs. That kind of ecosystem cooperation builds capacity that remains valuable regardless of global cycles.

What should Africa prioritize to maximize this moment? Three practical actions stand out.

First, compliance infrastructure is needed. Exporting at scale requires credible standards, testing and certification. Investment in laboratories, inspection services, traceability systems and food safety regimes is the passport to premium markets. Improvements here benefit exports to all destinations.

Second, logistics and trade facilitation are critical. Faster customs clearance, stronger cold chain systems, and more dependable shipping transform nominal market access into actual market entry. Cutting the "time tax" on African exports is just as vital as lowering tariff barriers.

Third, value addition matters. Preferential access should be leveraged to expand processing and manufacturing capacity, rather than relying solely on raw exports. Africa generates greater revenue — and creates more jobs — when it exports higher-value goods.

China's zero-tariff move for 53 African countries is a positive signal of openness and partnership. Kenya's reported conclusion of trade deal negotiations, with broad duty-free coverage for exports, is a concrete illustration of what market access can look like in practice. And Africa's existing major exporters show that scale is possible.

The author is executive director of South-South Dialogues, a Nairobi-based communications development think tank.

The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.