The Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) has welcomed Tunisia's proposal to host the next Ministerial retreat of the Council of Ministers of the AfCFTA The proposal was presented by Minister of Trade and Export Development, Kalthoum Ben Rejab, during a meeting with Secretary-General of AfCFTA, Wamkele Mene, who said Tunisia is a leading country in supporting African economic integration, according to the Ministry of Trade. Tunisia is participating in second Ministerial retreat of the Council of Ministers of the AfCFTA, held from May 29 to 31 in Nairobi, Kenya. This second retreat made it possible to draw up an executive programme setting out the priorities needed to accelerate the entry into force of the AfCFTA in 2023 and to extend the list of member countries to 29 by October 2023. Tunisia is one of the first 8 African countries to prepare for the launch of AfCFTA. The ministerial meeting provided an opportunity to discuss trade facilitation and transit trade. Participants agreed to set up a committee to study trade facilitation issues in order to accelerate the implementation of the agreement and assess progress in its application, as well as to create a platform to link the national committees specialised in trade facilitation in the 54 member countries of the agreement. The meeting also focused on the role of the African private sector in the implementation and entry into force of the Agreement in order to benefit from its advantages and its mechanisms for strengthening bilateral trade. Participants also discussed the role that Member States' parliaments can play in promoting the implementation of the Agreement by monitoring and applying legislation related to national trade policies. In this context, they agreed to develop a vision for the organisation of a Parliamentary Forum in September 2023 that will allow sharing experiences and best practices in the field of ratification of the Agreement and its Protocols.
Source: EN - Agence Tunis Afrique Presse