mo4ch:>‘New chapter’ in Africa’s history: World’s largest free trade zone to become reality this week | Mo4ch News

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will come into force on Thursday. It will be the largest free trade agreement by population that the world has seen since the 1995 creation of the World Trade Organization.The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said over the weekend that the required 22 ratifications have been received. The latest two ratifications, Sierra Leone and the Sahrawi Republic, were received by the African Union (AU) on April 29. All but three (Benin, Eritrea and Nigeria) of Africa’s 55 countries have signed up to the deal. The UN said if Nigeria joins the AfCFTA then intra-African trade could grow by more than 50 percent in the next five years.Also on rt.comChina’s new Silk Road to link Africa's huge market to the rest of the world – officialAccording to statistics, cited by the ministry, when the agreement enters into force it will affect more than 1.2 billion people, with a total domestic product of about $3.4 trillion. It will cut duties on 90 percent of goods …