Breathing Life Into the AfCFTA: Why the details matter

The AfCFTA is currently stuck between its negotiation and implementation phases, with substantive trade failing to take off as of February 2022. While 44 AU member states have ratified the agreement, progress is blocked by the delayed conclusion of vital technical components, most notably the rules of origin. Although the Council of Ministers decided in January 2022 to proceed with rules of origin for 87.7% of product lines, the remaining gaps have led to a low number of full tariff offers from member states. The authors argue that regional economic powers, such as Kenya and South Africa, must move past negotiating brinkmanship toward concessions and collaboration to generate the momentum necessary for African industrialization and economic transformation.

• As of February 2022, 44 African Union (AU) member states have ratified the AfCFTA agreement, indicating a broad leadership consensus on its role in development, despite the distractions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The AfCFTA has failed to transition from the negotiation phase to effective implementation, with commercially meaningful trade not yet taking off by February 2022 because negotiators have not met the timelines set by political leaders.
• The primary obstacle to the start of trading is the delayed resolution of technical components, specifically the rules of origin. While the AfCFTA Council of Ministers agreed in January 2022 to proceed with rules of origin for 87.7% of product lines, the lack of clarity on the remaining products has resulted in a relatively low number of full tariff offers.
• The authors suggest that regional economic powers, citing Kenya's historical leadership in the East African Community trade regime established in 2005, should now make concessions and collaborate on rules of origin to unlock the agreement.

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} }