The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) National Committee conducted an awareness-raising and training workshop in Tabou on Tuesday, 13 September 2022. This event targeted the defence and security forces, including gendarmes, police officers, water and forestry officers, and maritime and port officials, to enhance their understanding of the AfCFTA as a sub-regional integration instrument.
Mantiéni Bamba, Project Manager for the AfCFTA National Committee, explained that the workshop's primary objective was to disseminate information about the AfCFTA agreement, as outlined in Côte d’Ivoire’s national implementation strategy. The initiative also sought to establish a framework for collaboration and exchanges with stakeholders operating at border posts.
During the session, she provided participants with an overview of the powers and objectives of the AfCFTA National Committee. She also detailed the protocols and annexes to the AfCFTA agreement, emphasizing the crucial role of defence and security personnel in its implementation and success.
The AfCFTA is a project in progress across the entire African continent, with the aim of eventually integrating all 55 States of the African Union into a free trade area. The decision to establish this ambitious project was made in January 2012 at the 18th Ordinary Session of the African Union Conference, with 2017 set as the target date for the launch of the free trade area.
The scope of the AfCFTA is vast. It will reduce customs duties between member countries and considerably increase traffic flows across all modes of transport, particularly road, rail, sea and air. Its implementation will reorganise markets and economies, and stimulate production in the services, manufacturing and natural resources sectors.
Credit: (AIP :bb/nbf/fmo)