26 African countries create TFTA: Cape Town to Cairo free-trade zone

June 11, 2015

African countries have signed a historic The Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) that facilitates creation of Africa’s largest free-trade zone.
This free-trade zone will cover 26 countries in an area from southernmost tip of African continent i.e. Cape Town (South Africa) to Cairo (Egypt) in the north.
The pact was signed in Egypt will intent to ease the movement of goods across 26 member countries which represent more than half the continent’s GDP.
TFTA pact combines existing three trade blocs among the African nations viz

Southern African Development Community (SADC).
East African Community (EAC).
Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA).

It will remove trade barriers on most goods, making them cheaper and stimulating $ 1 trillion worth of economic activity across the region of more than 600 million people. Thus bolster intra-regional trade by creating a wider market that will increase investment flow and enhance regional infrastructure development.
The pact will then be officially unveiled at the upcoming 25th summit of the African Union in South Africa. After adopting it will need parliamentary ratification from all member-nations.