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WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement: An African perspective

Trade facilitation discussions at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) began in December 1996, at the Singapore Ministerial Conference, when the member states instructed the WTO Council for ... read more

Is it time for a new Global Order?

The policies of President Trump have brought a new urgency to the debate about the future of the global economic and geopolitical order. American tariffs on Chinese goods[1], the withdrawa... read more

Modernisation of the multilateral trading system – WTO reforms

The multilateral trading system and the World Trade Organisation (WTO) are today under threat. The system is being shaken by increasing protectionism and the imposition of non-tariff barri... read more

African Responses to Global Crises

How do African governments and Africa collectively respond to the crisis in the global trading system? Are joint policies being developed? By whom? How will such a process be coordinated a... read more

A WTO multilateral investment facilitation agreement: An African perspective

Investment at the WTO Investment was introduced onto the World Trade Organisation (WTO) agenda in 1996 at the First WTO Ministerial Conference held in Singapore, when member states propos... read more

American mid-term Elections: What International Implications?

The American mid-term elections took place during the first week of November 2018 and were keenly watched. Many have hoped that control by the Democratic Party of the House of Representati... read more

The 2018 Global Food Security Index: What does the picture look like?

Food security is the state in which all people at all times have physical and economic access to adequate, safe and nutritious food that meet their dietary needs and food preferences for a... read more

The Settlement of Trade Disputes: Where do we stand and what can be done?

The crisis in the dispute settlement arrangement of the World Trade Organization (WTO) has a paralysing effect on the multilateral trade system. While the workload of the Dispute Settlemen... read more

The right kind of disruption... New banks in South Africa

There are a number of start-up banks set to challenge the dominance of the big four in South Africa (Absa, FirstRand Bank, Nedbank and Standard Bank) in the coming months, including Bank Z... read more

Brexit’s sober Lessons

Had it not been for the crisp analysis (and ridicule at times[1]) by many reporting on the oversimplifications offered by those who see Brexit as an opportunity to restore national “sove... read more

South Africa’s much-awaited Investment Conference: What will it tell us?

In September this year, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that an international investor conference will be convened as part of his drive to get $100 billion in new investment into South... read more

Zimbabwe ratifies the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement: What does this mean for Zimbabwe?

On 17 October 2018, Zimbabwe deposited with the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Secretariat its instrument of ratification of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA)[1], becoming the 139... read more

South African Poultry Association files an Application for setting aside AGOA

How do private parties involved in intra-African trade protect their rights and interests which may flow from the application of trade agreements? They do not, as a rule, enjoy standing be... read more

The Crisis in WTO Dispute Settlement

The effective functioning of the dispute settlement system of the WTO is essential for rules-based multilateral trade. It provides certainty and predictability and prevents power-based beh... read more

The Dispute Settlement Mechanism under the African Continental Free Trade Area

African Governments do not litigate against each other in trade matters. Will it be different under the African Continental Free Trade Area? We do not know. What we do know is that this po... read more

Dispute settlement in the East African Community (EAC)

The EAC is a regional intergovernmental organisation of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. The EAC, among other things, aims to widen and deepen cooperation among m... read more

Alternative Dispute Settlement Procedures for Trade-related Disputes in Africa

African State are not active users of the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU) of the World Trade Organization (WTO). The explanations point to Africa’s small share of global trade and... read more

Investment dispute resolution under the Amended Annex 1 of the SADC FIP

Effective dispute resolution is important for foreign investors. It guarantees legal certainty and predictability in markets and provides remedies when rights are violated. The resolution ... read more

MTN vs. Nigeria: on the perils of investment in Nigeria, or the arrogance of South African multinationals?

In late August this year, MTN was ordered by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to return around US$8.1 billion alleged to have been illegally repatriated (to its South African parent compa... read more

South Africa to ratify Tripartite FTA and Continental Free Trade Area Agreements

The South African Parliament is in the process of ratifying the Tripartite FTA Agreement. South Africa signed the TFTA in July 2017. The aim behind this Agreement is eventually to bring 26... read more