Breathing Life Into the AfCFTA: Why the details matter

This research paper by Jamie MacLeod and David Luke discusses the implementation challenges of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). While African leaders maintain a strong political commitment to the agreement as a tool for post-COVID-19 recovery and industrialization, the transition from negotiation to actual trading has been stalled by unresolved technical details, most notably the rules of origin.

• Despite political momentum and the ratification of the AfCFTA by 44 African Union member states as of February 2022, the agreement remains stalled between the negotiation and implementation phases. Substantive trade has not yet occurred because negotiators have failed to meet timelines set by leadership.
• The primary obstacle preventing the effective start of trading is the delayed conclusion of critical technical components, specifically the rules of origin. While the AfCFTA Council of Ministers decided in January 2022 to proceed with rules of origin for 87.7% of agreed product lines, the lack of clarity on the remaining products has led to a low number of full tariff offers.
• The COVID-19 pandemic diverted policy attention toward immediate health and economic shocks, such as supply chain disruptions and unemployment, which hindered the implementation of the AfCFTA. However, the agreement survived this period and is now viewed by leaders as a central part of Africa's recovery package to drive economic development.
• The authors argue that regional economic powers, such as Kenya and South Africa, should provide leadership by making concessions and collaborating on the rules of origin to generate the momentum necessary for the agreement to function.

APA

MacLeod, J., & Luke, D. (2022). Breathing Life Into the AfCFTA: Why the details matter. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/articles/afcfta-agreement-lifeless-until-technical-issues-tackled

Chicago

MacLeod, Jamie, and David Luke. Breathing Life Into the AfCFTA: Why the details matter. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2022. https://www.iisd.org/articles/afcfta-agreement-lifeless-until-technical-issues-tackled.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=MacLeod |first1=Jamie |last2=Luke |first2=David |title=Breathing Life Into the AfCFTA: Why the details matter |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=2 March 2022 |url=https://www.iisd.org/articles/afcfta-agreement-lifeless-until-technical-issues-tackled |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{macleod2022breathing, author = {MacLeod, Jamie and Luke, David}, title = {{Breathing Life Into the AfCFTA: Why the details matter}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2022}, month = mar, url = {https://www.iisd.org/articles/afcfta-agreement-lifeless-until-technical-issues-tackled}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }