The African Continental Free Trade Area is an ambitious trade pact aimed at creating a single market for goods and services of almost 1.3bn people across Africa and deepening the economic integration of the continent. Trade integration across Africa has long been limited by outdated infrastructure and differing regulations across dozens of markets. Intra-African exports were 16.6% of total exports in 2017, compared with 68.1% in Europe, 59.4% in Asia, 55% in America and 7% in Oceania. When fully implemented, the AfCFTA will be the world’s biggest largest free trade area, with a combined gross domestic product of around $3.4 trillion. Fifty-four of the continent’s 55 countries are signatories to its founding agreement.
