Accelerating Africa’s economic transformation in the post-pandemic era through productive investments and services trade liberalization within the African Continental Free Trade Area framework

Abstract

The present thematic report focuses on key findings and recommendations set out in the following three ECA knowledge products, research for which was initiated in response to recommendations made by the Committee during its first session. (a)The 10th edition of the report Assessing Regional Integration in Africa, on the theme “Services trade liberalization and integration within the framework of the African Continental Free Trade Area”; (b) A report on the theme “Towards a common investment area in the African Continental Free Trade Area: levelling the playing field for intra-African investment”; (c) A report on governing the interface between AfCFTA and regional economic communities. The theme for the present thematic report, “Accelerating Africa’s economic transformation in the post-coronavirus-disease era through productive investments and services trade liberalization within the African Continental Free Trade Area framework”, has been informed by the new dynamics in the work of the Commission brought about by the advent of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. It is the expectation of ECA that the Committee will endorse the essential findings and recommendations of these analytical reports with a view to facilitating their dissemination and subsequent uptake by relevant stakeholders at the national, regional and continental levels.