Seven countries selected as pilot trading countries in the African Free Trade Area

International Business News  –  Recently, at the ninth meeting of the African Continental Free Trade Area Council of Ministers held in Accra, the capital of Ghana, it was announced that under the framework of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA), Rwanda, Cameroon, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius and and Tanzania 7 countries have been selected to carry out trade pilots.

The seven countries were selected from 36 countries that expressed interest in trading in the pilot phase. Each applicant country has submitted its customs tariff. The African Continental Free Trade Area secretariat said the move was aimed at testing the environmental, legal and trade policy foundations of intra-African trade.

AfCFTA officials said the countries conducting the trade pilot will identify the companies, products, customs formalities and logistical processes required to trade under the African Continental Free Trade Agreement.

Antoine Kajangwe, Director of the Trade and Investment Department at the Rwanda Ministry of Trade and Industry, said Rwanda will now begin to enter the West and Central African markets with preferential tax rates. “Over time, this will increase Rwandan exports to intra-African countries, stimulate industrial production through economies of scale, increase employment in productive jobs, and lead to a structural transformation of the Rwandan economy.”

Kajangwe revealed that Rwanda will trade in confirmed products in the fields of agro-processing, manufacturing and construction materials. These products include pesticides, pesticides, telephones, textiles, and processed foods such as flour, milk, cheese, vegetables and other horticultural products.