The African Continental Free Trade Area (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 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.
The general objectives of the agreement are to:
1. create a single market, deepening the economic integration of the continent
2. establish a liberalised market through multiple rounds of negotiations
3. aid the movement of capital and people, facilitating investment
4. move towards the establishment of a future continental customs union
5. achieve sustainable and inclusive socioeconomic development, gender equality and structural transformations within member states
7. enhance competitiveness of member states within Africa and in the global market
8. encourage industrial development through diversification and regional value chain development, agricultural development and food security
resolve challenges of multiple and overlapping memberships
