African Continental Free Trade Area

The African Continental Free Trade Area is the result of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement among all 55 members of the African Union. If ratified, the agreement would result in the largest free-trade area in terms of participating countries since the formation of the World Trade Organization.

African heads of state gathered in Kigali, Rwanda in March 2018 to sign the proposed agreement. Forty-four of the 55 members of the African Union signed it on 21 March 2018.

The Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) is a continent-wide free-trade agreement brokered by the African Union (AU) and initially signed on by 44 of its 55 member states in Kigali, Rwanda on March 21, 2018.

The agreement initially requires members to remove tariffs from 90% of goods, allowing free access to commodities, goods, and services across the continent.

The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa estimates that the agreement will boost intra-African trade by 52 percent by 2022. The proposal will come into force after ratification by 22 of the signatory states.