Cape Verde becomes 41st AfCFTA state party to ratify agreement

Cape Verde

Cape Verde

The Republic of Cabo Verde on Saturday deposited its instrument of ratification for the Agreement establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), becoming the forty-first state party to ratify the landmark Agreement.

By Adam Alqali

The central Atlantic Ocean island country’s ratification means only 13 of out of the 54 AfCFTA state parties (signatories) are yet to deposit their instruments of ratification. It would be recalled that Eritrea is the only member state of the 55-member African Union bloc that has not yet signed the historic AfCFTA Agreement.

The deposition of the ratification instrument, which took on the sidelines of the 35th Ordinary Session of the Assembly Heads of State and Government of the AU in Addis Ababa, was made by the duo of Cabo Verde’s secretary of state of foreign affairs and cooperation, Miryan Djamila Sena Vieira, and the country’s ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Belarmino Silva.

A press statement by the AU Commission says forty-four countries have thus far submitted their tariff offers just as the AfCFTA Secretariat has received 46 initial offers for trade in services from state and non-state parties, covering the five priority services sectors: business, communication, financial, tourism and transport.