It’s done. The African Union (AU) sets for January 1, 2021 the start of trade as provided for in the Agreement on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The decision was taken at the end of the 13th extraordinary summit of heads of state and government held by videoconference on December 5 at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital.
“African leaders have called on African institutions to provide technical and financial support for its implementation. We call on women, youth, businesses, unions, civil society, cross-border traders, academia, the African diaspora and other stakeholders to join us as governments in this historic effort to create the ‘Africa we want in accordance with the AU’s Agenda 2063’, they declared at the end of the summit.
They reaffirm their determination to strengthen continental integration through the AfCFTA and welcome the contribution of African trade ministers in the preparations for the launch of trade on January 1, 2021. “The start of trade will be one of the most important stages. of the continental integration project and the clearest assertion to date that Africa is determined to take control of its own destiny, ”said Cyril Ramaphosa, current AU President and South African President.
On December 1, Cameroon joined the list of 33 countries that have officially ratified the Agreement on the AfCFTA. 21 countries remain to ratify the agreement which entered into force on May 30, 2019 after the ratification of the treaty by 22 countries – the minimum number required under the treaty, out of the 54 that have agreed to be members of the bloc. Eritrea is the only country that has yet to make a commitment to the continental body.
The exchanges were due to start on July 1, 2020, but were postponed for six months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The AfCFTA offers the opportunity to create the world’s largest free trade area with the potential to unite over 1.2 billion people in an economic bloc of over 2.5 trillion dollars and usher in a new era of development. It has the potential to generate many benefits through trade expansion, structural transformation, productive employment and poverty reduction.
