The three-day Senior Officials Meeting of the 9th Ordinary Session of the African Union Conference of Ministers of Trade (CAMOT-9) opened on Monday 1st December at the African Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Senior Officials session is taking place to prepare for the Ministerial session which will be held on 4th and 5th December, of which will discuss, among other things; global trade and Mega Regional Trade Agreements, Declarations on WTO EPAs, AGOA and investment trends, their implications within the context of Africa’s commitment to forge ahead its integration notably towards the launch of the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) negotiations in 2015.

The African Union Conference of Ministers of Trade is meeting this year at a point where the Economic Report for Africa 2014 mentions that the industrialization is a “precondition for Africa to achieve inclusive and sustainable economic growth.” The report also highlights that in the past decade the contribution of manufacturing and industry to aggregate output and GDP growth has either stagnated or declined for most countries, while, the agriculture sector, which employs up to 60 per cent of the African labour force, is characterized by limited value addition, as forward linkages to industry and service sectors are weak.

In her opening statement, the AUC Director for Trade and Industry, Mrs. Treasure Maphanga, reminded the experts that as Africa meets to discuss the advancement of its regional integration agenda, the world is moving, mentioning examples of the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), a trade and Investment agreement that is presently being negotiated between the European Union and the United States, the Trans-pacific Partnership negotiations between the US and Pacific Countries, as well as the FTA which in being negotiated between China, Japan, and South Korea.

Mrs. Maphanga hence stressed that CFTA is an important opportunity to develop and harmonize regulations in a number of trade-related services sectors that will backstop the industrialization process. “As you consider the draft texts for the CFTA negotiations, we wish to remind all of us that the continent is looking for greater ambition than the Tripartite Negotiations. We are seeking to develop an agreement that enables deep integration amongst all African economies, with a focus on Boosting Intra-African Trade and implementing the Action Plan that includes Trade-related Infrastructure, Productive capacity and Trade facilitation”, suggested Mrs. Maphanga.

In his remarks on behalf of Dr. Carlos Lopes, United Nations Under-Secretary General and Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), Dr. Stephen Karingi, Director, Regional Integration and Trade Division, noted the robust economic growth experienced by Africa over the last decade and driven by high commodity prices had little impact on poverty eradication and had not altered economic structures.

Hence, he said, it is clear that if business as usual persists, Africa is likely to continue seeing growth that will not impact on widespread poverty levels and economic structures will likely remain the same, and that Africa’s transformation will be still born, and the risk of being caught up in the middle income trap will become real. “Therefore, as we meet here, it is my hope that our discussions will be informed by the big picture of sustainability and structural transformation of our economies,” said Dr. Karingi.

The Establishment of the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) was decided in the 18th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union which was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in January 2012, which will bring together fifty-four African countries with a combined population of more than one billion people and a combined gross domestic product of more than US $ 1, 2 trillion dollars.

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Statements

» Statement by H.E. Mrs Fatima Haram Acyl - AU Commissioner for Trade and Industry

» Statement by Abdalla Hamdok Deputy Executive Secretary UN Economic Commission for Africa

» African Union Conference of Ministers of Trade – 4 December 2014 Speech by WTO Director-General Roberto Azevêdo

» Speech delivered by ITC Executive Director Arancha González