President Cyril Ramaphosa
has welcomed the historic adoption by the African Union
(AU) of an Agreement on the AfCFTA as a new beginning
for the continent that will catapult African countries
and companies to much higher levels of growth.
President Ramaphosa led a South African delegation to
the 10th Extraordinary Summit of Heads of State and
Government of the AU Summit in Kigali, Rwanda, on 21
March 2018.
The theme of the AU for the year 2018, under which its
summits was held, is: "Winning the Fight against
Corruption: A Sustainable Path to Africa's
Transformation".
President Ramaphosa has undertaken that South Africa
will become a signatory to the agreement once the legal
and other instruments associated with AfCFTA are
processed and ratified by South African stakeholders and
Parliament. The agreement was adopted on Wednesday 21
March 2018, by the 10th Extraordinary Summit of Heads of
State and Government of the AU.
As a demonstration of South Africa's unequivocal
commitment to this continental venture, President
Ramaphosa signed the Kigali Declaration for the Launch
of the African Continental Free Trade Area during
today's plenary session of the Summit.
"This is an opportunity that is going to yield great
benefits for all countries on the continent as well as
big business, small companies and micro-traders,"
President Ramaphosa said at the conclusion of his
Working Visit to the Republic of Rwanda.
In remarks prepared for delivery to the Summit, in his
capacity as the Chair of the South African Development
Community, President Ramaphosa said the trade-focused
Kigali Summit was a "forward step in the arduous journey
to translate the African Continental Free Trade Area
legal instrument into an effective conduit for increased
trade and investment across the African continent".
He urged that the AfCTFA should provide new and
meaningful trade and investment opportunities across the
African continent.
"Africa's vulnerabilities and limited participation in
global trade are indicative of its traditional reliance
on the export of raw commodities and the import of
value-added products," President Ramaphosa said.
President Ramaphosa was accompanied by the Minister of
International Relations and Cooperation, Lindiwe Sisulu,
Minister of Trade and Industry, Rob Davies, and Deputy
Minister of Trade and Industry, Gratitude Magwanishe.
On Tuesday, 20 March 2018, President Ramaphosa paid a
courtesy call and had a working lunch with host
President Paul Kagame. The presidents held discussions
on strengthening bilateral relations and strengthening
cooperation on continental and global questions.
President Ramaphosa also served as chair of an AfCFTA
Business Forum on the financing of intra-African trade,
before attending a welcome dinner hosted by President
Kagame in honour of visiting Heads of State and
Government. |