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Speed up integration to stem illegal migration
The African leadership will need to speed up the implementation of the integration agenda as the continent urgently needs to create jobs for the over 60 percent of its population who are the youth, the Chairman of the COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite Task Force Sindiso Ngwenya has said.
Speaking at Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt after the opening of the meeting of Technical officials preparing for the launch of the Tripartite Free Trade Area on Wednesday June 10, Mr Ngwenya said the current upsurge of illegal migration out of Africa with its attendant risks is testimony of the youth frustration in getting employment. Africa has the world's youngest population at over 60% of its population.
Mr Ngwenya who is also the Secretary General of COMESA said the Tripartite FTA launch was historical as it will have great outcomes in the region and beyond.
"The FTA will ensure that jobs are created as companies involved in the production of goods and service across borders will be established in the region to take advantage of the wider market base of 26 member States with a population of 625 million people and a Gross Domestic Product of USD$ 1.3 trillion," he said.
Further, he said free movement of people across borders was key on the agenda for the tripartite as will stimulate business development and investment opportunities for the three regions.
“Despite having not tackled the issue thoroughly as the tripartite, we have included the free movement of people in the market integration as this affects the other two pillars which are Infrastructure development and Industrial.
The COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite FTA will allow for businessmen and women to trade freely and cheaply adding that multiple trade regimes usually result in expensive business deals while a one and harmonized trade regime will allow for cheap business deals.
The decision to establish the COMESA-EAC-SADC tripartite was informed by overlapping membership of the States to the three regional economic communities (RECs). During their Summit in 2008, the Heads of State of the three RECs decided, that to overcome this challenge, there was need to establish a single FTA for the 26 countries that constitute the membership.
The Heads of State, launched negotiations for the establishment of the COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite Free Trade Area in 2011 and agreed that these negotiations should be completed by 2014.
