ESWATINI’S, AFRICAN MARKETS HEADACHE

CAPE TOWN - Not all that glitters is gold! This axiom best describes the situation facing businesses with dire interests in cross border trade, who may be over the moon that Eswatini was among the first six countries which have ratified the ‘celebrated’  African Continental Free Trade Area (ACFTA).

Eswatini ratified the agreement on July 1, 2018.
Before the country can get to maximise on the massive economic and social benefits that will come about as a result of trading with the 55 African Union (AU) Member States which have signed the agreement establishing the AfCFTA, there still needs to be a serious discussions as to whether the countries which have signed and ratified the agreement will allow for duty free access into their markets.

Apart from the fact that there will have to be 22 countries which have ratified the agreement before it comes into force, there still needs to be a series of annexes, which include but not limited to, tariffs and rules of origin which are yet to be discussed and agreed upon before the ‘glorified’ agreement sees light of day.

“Taking into consideration that fact that member states of the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) are already at loggerheads about the revenue sharing formula at present. Discussions on tariffs and rules of origin which will determine trade tariffs among the AfCFTA eligible will be no walk in the park,” an economist who preferred anonymity advised during the ongoing Trade Law Centre journalists training course in Cape Town at the Southern Sun Hotel.             
AfCFTA is an agreement launched in March 21, 2018 at the Extraordinary Summit of the AU in Kigali, Rwanda. 

Signed

According to the Trade Law Centre (TRALAC), as at end of July 2018, 49 out of the 55 AU Member States had signed the AfCFTA Agreement, and six Member States which include Eswatini had already deposited their instruments of ratification, despite outstanding Phase I negotiations on tariff schedules, rules of origin, and the regulation of services.

International Trade Law Professor Gerhard Erasmus explains that the AfCFTA Agreement promises to deepen the economic integration of the African continent and to work towards an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa.
However, he advised that one should also be realistic regarding the speed at which all parties will be able to comply.

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