Global experts to sum review of critical issues hobbling takeoff of AfCFTA today
…Issues include competition policy, protection, intellectual property rights, e-Commerce
In view of the cold feet so far demonstrated by larger economies in signing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), global multinational financial and governance institutions are about now, concluding discussions that will hamonise series of consultative meetings in Nairobi, Kenya.
The meeting, which had started since the 16th of this month, will be rounded off today, July 27, 2018 in Nairobi, Kenya.
Nigeria is currently one of the key economies that have distanced itself from the treaty based on discordant voices coming from the organized private sector (OPS).
Part of the review will look at why key economies expected to drive the trade treaty remained fearful and also to initiate research on the ninth edition of the Assessing Regional Integration in Africa (ARIA9).
Business Hilights recalls that Nigeria and South Africa are yet to sign the document which has received about 45 signatories from the 54 African nations.
Key discussants include the African Trade Policy Centre of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the African Development Bank (AfDB), the United Nations Conference for Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the African Union Commission (AUC).
Our correspondent gathered that this particular edition will prepare analytical work to inform the Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Phase II negotiations, a release copied to Business Hilights Nigeria.
Otherwise, the ARIA 9 report will address the three topics of the AfCFTA Phase II negotiations: including competition policy, investment; intellectual property rights; and additionally look at the case for digital trade and e-commerce.
There will be presentations of case studies including the experiences of the Regional Economic Communities across each of these themes which will build a discussion on possible policies and their characteristics in each of the four subjects, as well as their developmental potential.
The statement noted that each theme will be a comparative analysis of the case studies from which recommendations will be drawn for the African continental context.
Accordingly, the output from the consultative meetings aspires to form the intellectual groundwork underpinning the phase II negotiations, but also inform future African negotiations with other trading partners and negotiations elsewhere in the world.
