Egypt’s foreign minister expresses hope to ratify CFTA in 2019

CAIRO – 9 December 2018: Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry expressed hope for the ratification of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement during the Egyptian presidency of the African Union and its entry into force by next year.

This came during the 2018 Africa Forum in Sharm El-Sheikh attended by President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi and a number of African leaders.

The minister revealed that Egypt hosted a meeting of African trade ministers to amend some of the shortcomings in the agreement and broaden different horizons for development and intra-African investments.

This came during his speech at a panel discussion on marketing and supporting African investments entitled "Strong Leadership and Collective Commitment" and attended by Minister of Investment Sahar Nasr; Minister of Electricity Mohamed Shaker; President of the Asian Bank for Infrastructure Investment Jin Liqun; President of the African Development Bank Akinwumi Adesina; CEO of the International Finance Corporation, the World Bank Group Philip Huero and representatives of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

The minister stressed that there is an urgent need to continue efforts to activate the agreement, through consolidating all the mechanisms available in the African Union together with individual efforts of African countries.

He pointed out that the Free Trade Agreement and the African countries' commitment to developing trade among them, of course, will enhance investment opportunities.

The African Continental Free Trade Agreement is an agreement aiming to ease trade exchange between the countries that signed it according to a scheduled timeline and not through an immediate activation of the agreement.

CFTA is considered to be the biggest deal ever signed since the World Trade Organization (WTO) was established as it was signed by 43 countries.

Q&A about African Continental Free Trade Area agreement

CAIRO - 22 March 2018: The announcement of signing a trade agreement among African Countries, including Egypt, to ease the trade exchange between them, raises questions concerning the agreement and how Egypt and other African countries can benefit from it.