The African Union has transferred all functions related to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to Ghana, Secretary-General of AfCFTA Mr Wamkele Mene has said
According to him, the decision of the 13th Extraordinary Session of the Heads of State and Governments positions Ghana as a gateway to trade and investment in Africa.
Mr Wamkele Mene, Secretary-General of AfCFTA, speaking at a Business Forum at the commencement of AfCFTA Trading in Ghana said:
Implementation Arrangements said the AfCFTA Secretariat in Ghana was not only a symbol of confidence in the country but also signalled that Ghana was the commercial and trade Centre of Africa.
The transfer was recommended by the Secretary-General of AfCFTA.
“We now have 54 countries out of 55, who have signed the Agreement with 34 depositing their instruments of ratification, Nigeria being the 34th country on the morning of December 5, 2020.
Ghana was one of the first countries to sign and ratified the Agreement,” he added.
AfCFTA is a free trade area founded in 2018, with trade commencing as of 1 January 2021.
It was created by the African Continental Free Trade Agreement among 54 of the 55 African Union member nations.
The free-trade area is the largest in the world in terms of the number of participating countries since the formation of the World Trade Organization.
Accra, Ghana serves as the Secretariat of AfCFTA and was commissioned and handed over to the AU by President Nana Akufo-Addo on August 17, 2020 in Accra.
GNA