To facilitate the much-anticipated progressive continental trade, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will need to scale several hurdles.
The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa estimates that the agreement will boost intra-African trade by 52 per cent by 2022, yet the implementation is yet to take off fully.
With a successful implementation of this new trade initiative, there is potential for Africa’s manufacturing sector to double in size, from $500b in 2015, to $1t in 2025, creating about 14 million stable jobs.
Meanwhile, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in a new report titled: “Implications of the African Continental Free Trade Area for Trade and Biodiversity: Policy and Regulatory Recommendations,” stated that the new regime is facing some critical challenges, which need to be eliminated urgently. Read More.
