African Continental Free Trade Area to suffer setback - Mashakada

Bulawayo24 | 31 March 2020

African Continental Free Trade Area to suffer setback - Mashakada

by Stephen Jakes

MDC top official and economist Tapiwa Mashakada has said the African Continental Free Trade Area is going to suffer a serious setback as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

"When it’s operational phase was launched in Niger in July 2019 Member States were bouyant about boosting intra-African Trade which stands at 13% compared to intra-European Trade which stands at 59% and the intra-Asean Trade which stands at 65%," he said.

"The work of the AfCFTA is cut out. The first trading under the auspecies of the AfCFTA will take place on the 1st of July 2020. In September 2020, the 2nd Intra-Africa Trade Fair will take place in Kigali,Rwanda. Egypt held the inaugural Intra-African Trade Fair in Cairo in December 2018. The AfCFTA now has a new Secretary General to head the Ghana based Secretariat. He is South African. Congratulations to SADC."

He said the Corona virus is set to slow the smooth consummation of the AfCFTA since countries have closed their borders and declared lockdowns.

"It will take a little more time to crank the AfCFTA once the Covid-19 virus is contained and officially declared as over. Its twin protocol, the Protocol on Free Movement, right of entry, right of establishment and right of residence has also been affected as free movement of people has been curtailed," Mashakada said.

"The other Protocol affected is the Single African Air Transport protocol because airlines have been grounded. In fact Africa will need some sort of a Continental Marshal Plan in order to recover from the covid-19 pandemic. That’s when Africa should prove it can use it’s abundant rich resources to stimulate it’s economies and spur sustainable Growth using trade as an engine for inclusive growth. This will require Leadership but it can be done."

source : Bulawayo24

Printed from: https://www.bilaterals.org/./?african-continental-free-trade-41471