The African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA) is set to contribute in lifting 30million people from extreme poverty and 68 million people from moderate poverty by 2030 and increase real income gains by as much as 8%, if properly implemented.

The objectives of the AfCFTA includes elimination of tariffs and non-tariff barriers to exchange in goods; progressive liberalisation of trade in services; cooperation on investment measures, harmonisation of intellectual property rights and competition policies; cooperation on customs matters and implementation of trade facilitation measures; establishment and promotion of cooperation in all trade-related areas; and maintaining an institutional framework for the implementation and administration of the Continental Free Trade Area.

These objectives are feasible with proper implementation of the Agreement but there are significant issues that may pose a challenge in the implementation of the Agreement.

Proper implementation of the Agreement will require; first, the political will and capacity of the governments in each State Partyto implement the AfCFTA, and second, the cooperation and capacity building of private actors to embrace the ideals of trading within Africa as envisaged under the Agreement.

In this article, we will analyse some of the most critical challenges experienced so far in the quest for proper implementation of the Agreement with a view to identifying workable solutions.