Expert:AfCFTA renders Africa new global trade player

Political and economic expert Dr. Raouf Gaafar said that the 10th ministerial meeting of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was held in Ghana

Political and economic expert Dr. Raouf Gaafar said that the 10th ministerial meeting of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was held in Ghana, noting that it is an important step towards the effective and equal implementation of the agreement. The first commercial deal under the free area pact, the export of food products from Egypt to Ghana, took place, he stated.

Over the phone to (Africa Today), he affirmed that Africa is very rich in its resources whether natural, human, mineral, etc. which, if rightly exploited, can represent a very big commercial block that can compete with all the superpowers economically and become the biggest economic block in the world.

He added that the idea of integration among African countries is a signature of such free trade agreements which facilitate the movement of goods and shipment among countries. This marks the beginning of what we aspire for Africa. It is a step forward for seeing Africa a very strong economic continent in the very near future, he reassured.

Dr. Gaafar hoped that if all African countries join the pact and be linked then we will experience a very strong economic contract. The AfCFTA will ease the cost of doing business in Africa, he declared, and will make it easy for goods to be shipped and moved from one place to another. He also admitted that the cost of customs will be lifted and the cost of transport will be lessened. Hence the free trade agreement will be beneficial for all the countries that are involved as it reduces a lot of expenses that are applied in the normal circumstances, he reiterated, stressing that the inter-African trade will be more beneficial.

He continued that most of the African countries have referred to the deal as a significant milestone and important step on the road to be able to lay a foundation for the market in Africa as a single market and a single currency union. These two objectives are close to be achieved since we have taken the first step and have the will to continue. It marks the beginning of a new era of complementing and integrating with each other to reach an integral Africa that depends on its own, he said.

Finally, he stated that Africa has 20% of the population in the world and as a large unified market of 1.2 billion people, the AfCFTA could still attract up to 4 trillion in consumer spending and business investment as it represents a very powerful economic force in the world.

The AfCFTA promises broader and deeper economic integration and would attract investment, boost trade, provide better jobs, reduce poverty, and increase shared prosperity in Africa. By eliminating barriers to trade in Africa, the objective of the AfCFTA is to significantly boost intra-Africa trade, particularly trade in value-added production and trade across all sectors of Africa's economy.

(Africa Today) is aired daily. This episode is presented by Dina Hussein.