African heads of state summit kicks off with expectation to launch continental free trade area

KIGALI, March 21 (Xinhua) -- An extraordinary session of the African Union (AU) heads of state and government on Wednesday kicked off in Rwanda's capital city Kigali, where the leaders are expected to sign an agreement establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

"Today's agenda is to adopt the Agreement establishing the AfCFTA," said Paul Kagame, Chairperson of the AU and President of Rwanda, at the opening session of the 10 th Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of the AU.

Protocol on the Free Movement of Persons, and the Kigali Declaration that expresses African unity in moving forward, are also scheduled to be adopted at the one day summit, held on the last day of the five-day AU extraordinary summint on the AfCFTA.

These are "surely to be counted among the most consequential actions" that the AU Assembly that brings together heads of state and governement of AU has ever taken.

The AfCFTA is the culmination of a vision set forth nearly 40 years ago in the Lagos Plan of Action, adopted by African heads of state and government in 1980, according to him.

The decision to form the AfCFTA was adopted in January 2012 during the 18th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Head of States and Government of the AU. In 2015, the AU launched the AfCFTA negotiations.

The AfCFTA is aimed at creating a single continental market for goods and services with free movement of businesses and investments. This, according to the AU, will pave the way for accelerating the establishment of the Continental Customs Union and the African Customs Union.

The AfCFTA will make Africa the largest free trade area created in terms of numbers of participating countries since the formation of the World Trade Organization, according to the AU. The AfCFTA could create an African market of over 1.2 billion people with a GDP of 2.5 trillion U.S. dollars, the pan-African bloc said.

The AfCFTA will progressively eliminate tariffs on intra-African trade, making it easier for African businesses to trade within the continent and cater to and benefit from the growing African market, said the AU.

The UN Economic Commission for Africa estimates that the AfCFTA has the potential both to boost intra-African trade by 53.2 percent by eliminating import duties, and to double this trade if non-tariff barriers are also reduced. Enditem