ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the salient provisions in the Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) and African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreements. It argues that a road map for an effective transition of all the free trade area on the continent into the AfCFTA is urgently required. The phase will cover competition policy, intellectual property rights, investment and possibly e-commerce. Both cover tariff liberalization, provisions on non-tariff barriers, rules of origin, trade remedies and provision for dispute settlement lie at the core of what was agreed. As regards tariff liberalization, the ultimate aim of the TFTA is to liberalize 100 percent of tariff lines taking into account the usual general, specific and security exceptions. Negotiations of product-specific rules is ongoing as part of the built-in agenda. Interim arrangements on rules of origin were agreed to, pending negotiations of the product-specific rules.
