Egypt has concluded its first trade deal under the mammoth African free trade agreement, the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AFCFTA), said its industry and trade minister on Friday. Minister Ahmed Samir said the North African country reached a commercial deal with Ghana whereby Egyptian food products shall be exported to Ghana within the AFCFTA. The minister made these remarks during his virtual participation in the 10th ministerial meeting of the AfCFTA, currently in session in the Ghanaian capital, Accra. AfCFTA launched a Guided Trade Initiative at its 10th African Trade Ministerial Meeting. The initiative symbolises the beginning of commercially meaningful trade on a pilot basis between Ghana, Cameroon, Egypt, Kenya, Mauritius, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Tunisia. The deal involves a limited number of parties, as it involves – in addition to Egypt and Ghana – Tanzania, Rwanda, Cameroon, and Mauritius. The AFCFTA is the second largest economic grouping — encompassing 55 African countries — in the world after the World Trade Organisation (WTO) of 164 countries. It is a comprehensive agreement that is not limited to opening new markets for Egyptian exports only, but extends to all aspects of cooperation between countries. Minister Samir said that the ministerial meeting is an important step towards the effective and equal implementation of the agreement, which was ratified by 23 countries and came into force in May of 2019.
