Rwanda on 26 May 2018 became the third nation on the continent to deposit the instruments of ratification of the African Continental Free Trade Area.

Rwanda also became the first to deposit the Protocol to the Abuja Treaty on the Free Movement of People and Right of Establishment and Right of Residence.

Depositing the instruments of ratification means that the country has undertaken all required internal legislative and legal measures in readiness to implement the transformational agreement.

Rwanda follows Kenya and Ghana, both who deposited the instruments early this month.

This follows the passing of the agreements by parliament and signing by the Head of State to complete the process. For the agreement to take effect, a minimum of 22 ratifications are required to commence implementation of the agreement.

During the signing of the agreement in March this year, African Union Member countries set a deadline of 180 days to ratify the agreement through their respective legislative bodies.

The UN Economic Commission for Africa’s (ECA) Conference last week called for African nations to speed up the ratification and adoption process of the agreement saying it is a powerful tool for driving industrialisation, economic diversification and development.

ECA estimates indicate that the agreement’s implementation could boost intra-African trade from its current level of 16 per cent to 52 per cent by 2022.

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Statement from the African Union Commission

The Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, on 26 May 2018 received from the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Rwanda, Louise Mushikiwabo, the instruments of ratification of the Agreement on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the Protocol on Free Movement of Persons and the African Passport.

Rwanda is the third member state to ratify the AfCFTA, after Ghana and Kenya, and the first to do so as far as the Protocol on Free Movement of Persons and the African Passport is concerned.

The Chairperson of the Commission commends Rwanda for this important step, which is a further illustration of its leaders’ commitment to the goals and ideals of the African Union. He urges the member states that have not yet done so to take the required steps to become parties to both the AfCFTA and the Protocol on Free Movement of Persons and the African Passport.