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ADDIS ABABA, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) – The industrialization and trade potential of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement cannot be realized without adequate quality infrastructure systems, a new report from the United Nations and the African Union (UA) said the report.
The recently published report, entitled “Identifying Priority Products and Value Chains for Standards Harmonization in Africa”, was jointly published by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and the AU Commission, in partnership with other partners.
“The free trade agreement has the potential to change the rules of the game for the industrialization of Africa, through the progressive elimination of tariffs and the elimination of non-tariff barriers to intra-African trade and the solution of barriers related to services, the free trade zone can address the fragmentation of African economies, “the report reads.
According to the report, the standardization of African economies “will support the creation of a business environment conducive to adding value and promoting intra-African trade, particularly of industrial goods.”
In light of these benefits, early in the negotiations, African politicians designated industrialization as the central pillar of the AfCFTA.
According to the report, “the industrialization and trade potential of the continental free trade agreement, however, cannot be realized without adequate quality infrastructure systems, including metrology, standardization, accreditation, quality management and conformity assessment.”
“The volume and complexity of technical regulations and the variation in certification, testing, inspection practices and standards used by different African countries continue to represent an impediment to intra-African trade,” the report reads.
He also pointed out that compliance with standards and technical regulations is important to signal and guarantee the quality of the goods produced and sold.
Noting that some progress has been made at the level of the regional economic communities in harmonizing quality standards, the report, however, emphasized that “there are still important gaps and the efforts of the communities have not been sufficiently coordinated at the level. continental”.
David Luke, Coordinator of the African Trade Policy Center (ATPC) at UNECA, also emphasized that the AfCFTA agreement has the potential to change the rules of the game for Africa’s industrialization, but it is now widely understood that the potential for industrialization and trade The AfCFTA will not be carried out without adequate quality infrastructure systems, including metrology, standardization, accreditation, quality management, and conformity assessment.
In addition, he praised the “significant progress in the harmonization of standards at the regional economic community level,” while noting that gaps persist and that the efforts of the CERs have not been sufficiently coordinated at the continental level.
The report was presented during a webinar to launch a series of Pan-African Quality Infrastructure (PAQI) publications in support of AfCFTA implementation.
The agreement establishing the AfCFTA entered into force in May 2019, while the operational phase of the free trade pact was launched in July 2019. To date, 54 AU member states have signed the Agreement, while that 30 of the signatory countries have also deposited instruments of ratification with the Pan-African bloc. Final product
