COVID-19: African Leaders Shift AfCTA Take-off Date to 2021
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African leaders have shifted the take-off date for the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA) agreement from July 2020 to 2021.
This was announced by the Secretary-General of AfCTA Secretariat, Mr. Wamkele Mene, who gave the current ravaging coronavirus as the excuse.
Speaking on the topic “Political Economy of COVID-19: Implications for AfCFTA”, held by the Africa International Trade and Commerce Research and Nigeria Private Sector Alliance, Mene said the new date was as a result of the assessment of the damage caused by COVID-19 pandemic in Africa and globally.
He said the plan for the take-off will be fast-tracked once the COVID-19 pandemic is over, and urged Nigeria to complete the domestic processes of ratification of AfCTA.
According to him, “I really hope that when Nigeria is ready and has gone through the domestic processes that they need to go through, that Nigeria indeed will proceed to ratify the agreement when you are ready.
“Looking at the (COVID-19) destruction in Africa, we know that our supply chain had been significantly undermined and negatively affected by COVID-19.”
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