Buhari Finally Agrees To Sign African Free Trade Zone Deal

By David Odekanle

Africa ’s biggest economy, Nigeria announced on Wednesday that it would sign the Africa free trade agreement at the coming African union summit.

Nigeria was one of the last countries that had not committed to signing the deal and its decision to join the bloc will significantly bolster its clout.

The African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) aims to eliminate tariffs between member states, creating a market of 1.2 billion people with a combined GDP of more than $2.2 trillion.

Apart from Nigeria, only Eritrea and Benin have chosen not to join the zone. President Muhammadu Buhari had expressed concern it could allow neighboring countries to inundate Nigeria with low-priced goods, and confound efforts to encourage moribund local manufacturing and expand farming.

But a panel set up to assess the impact of joining the bloc recommended last week the president “should consider joining.”

“Our position is very simple, we support free trade as long as it is fair and conducted on an equitable basis,” the Twitter feed quoted Buhari as saying.

It added Nigeria would sign onto the deal at an upcoming African Union summit in Niamey, Niger. The agreement with the other signatories came into force on May 30.

Countries and Signatories that have signed

1.Niger – President Mahamadou Issoufou
2.Rwanda – President Paul Kagame
3.Tchad – President Idriss Déby
4.Angola – President João Lourenço
5.Central African Republic – President Faustin-Archange Touadéra

1. Comoros – President Azali Assoumani
2. The Republic of Congo – President Denis Sassou Nguesso
3. Djibouti – President Ismaïl Omar Guelleh
4. Ghana – President Nana Akufo-Addo
5. Gambia – President Adama Barrow
6. Gabon – President Ali Bongo Ondimba
7. Kenya – President Uhuru Kenyatta
8. Mozambique – Filipe Nyusi
9. Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic – President Mohamed Abdelaziz
10. Senegal – Prresident Macky Sall
11. South Africa – President Cyril Ramaphosa
12. Sudan – President Omar al-Bashir
13. Mauritania – President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz
    19.Zimbabwe – President Emmerson Mnangagwa
14. Cote D’ivoire – Vice President Daniel Kablan Duncan

21.Seychelles –Vincent Meriton – Vice President

1. Algeria –Ahmed Ouyahia – Prime Minister
   23.Equatorial Guinea – Francisco Pascual Obama Asue – Prime Minister
   24.Lesotho – Tom Thabane – Prime Minister
2. Morocco – Saadeddine Othmani – Prime Minister
3. Swaziland – Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini, Prime Minister
4. Tanzania – Kassim Majaliwa, Prime Minister
   28.Tunisia – Youssef Chahed, Prime Minister
   29.Benin – Aurélien Agbénonci, Minister for Foreign Affairs
5. Burkina Faso – Alpha Barry, Minister for Foreign Affairs
6. Democratic Republic of Congo – Léonard Okitundu, Minister for Foreign Affairs
7. Guinea – Mamadi Touré, Foreign Affairs Minister
8. Liberia – Gbehzohngar Findley, Foreign Affairs Minister
   34.Mali – Minister for Foreign Affairs
9. Somalia – Minister for Foreign Affairs
10. South Sudan – Minister for Foreign Affairs
11. Uganda – Sam Kutesa, Minister for Foreign Affairs
12. São Tomé and Príncipe – Cabinet Minister
13. Togo – Minister for Cooperation and Integration
14. Malawi – Emmanuel Fabiano, Foreign Affairs Minister
15. Cameroon – Finance Minister
    42.Cape Verde –Tourism, Industry and Energy Minister
16. Libya – Mohamed Taha Siala, Minister of Foreign Affairs
17. Madagascar – Henry Rabary Njaka, Minister of Foreign Affairs
18. Zambia* – Joe Malanji,