Addis Ababa, Ethiopia - 22 February, 2016 - The two-day capacity building and information sharing workshop for Member States and other Stakeholders ahead of the 1st Meeting of the Continental Free Trade Area Negotiating Forum (CFTA-NF), kicked off today at the African Union Commission (AUC) Headquarters in Addis Ababa. Experts in Trade Negotiations from Various partners will strengthen the capacity of Chief Negotiators on how to support trade negotiations from both an operational and strategic perspective. The Training will use a combination of lectures, panel discussions and simulations to support skills development and interactive learning. A capacity needs assessment will enable the Commission to draw up further capacity building programmes for Member States to enable them to effectively engage in CFTA negotiations.
The main objectives of the CFTA are to create a single continental market for goods and services, with free movement of business persons and investments, and thus pave the way for accelerating the establishment of the Customs Union. But to be able to effectively engage in the CFTA negotiations, stakeholders need to be well equipped with the necessary information and knowledge. This two-day workshop will include highlights on key studies that have been conducted in the past on the establishment of the CFTA as well as presentations on capacity building and perspectives from key partners.
In her opening remarks, the Commissioner for Trade and Industry H.E. Fatima Haram Acyl, recalled that the African Union Commission recognizes the importance of technical and capacity building for Member States to be able to engage in the CFTA negotiations. She mentioned the positive feedback received from the two Training sessions organized last year by the AUC on Trade in services. “It is imperative to consider how we can boost our intra-African trade in goods. This requires accelerating Industrialization through promotion of regional value chains. For this to happen we need to build our domestic industries’ productive capacities by focusing on 5 key areas: infrastructure, trade facilitation, Rules of Origin, trade Finance and Quality Infrastructure”, she emphasized. Commissioner Acyl encouraged Trade Negotiators to position the continent to take advantage of the trade and investment opportunities that will result from the CFTA. “We need to prioritize the strategic Industrial sectors where we have comparative advantages and growth potential particularly in areas such as Agro-Industry, Mining, Pharmaceutical-Industry and SMEs”, she argued. The Commissioner thanked Member States for the 3 Million US dollars contribution towards the CFTA project.
She concluded by also thanking key partners such as UNCTAD, UNECA, TRALAC (Trade Law Centre), the World Trade Organization (WTO), the United Kingdom Department for International Development (DFID), the European Union (EU), The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Sweden for the assistance that the Commission has received and continues to receive from them.
The CFTA is a flagship project of Agenda 2063, which covers 54 countries in Africa, 1 billion people with the potential to create a single market for goods and services with a combined GDP of over 3 trillion US dollars.
The formal session of the CFTA Negotiating Forum will commence on Wednesday 24 February, 2016.

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Contact:
Batanai Chikwene, Trade Policy Officer – Email: Chikweneb@africa-union.org
Media Contacts:
Mr. Patient Atcho, Department of Trade and Industry of the AUC, Tel: +251 911335250, Email: atchop@africa-union.org
Mrs. Esther Azaa Tankou, Ag. Director of Information and Communication of the AUC, via E-mail: YambouE@africa-union.org / esthertankou@yahoo.com
For further information:
Directorate of Information and Communication | African Union Commission I E-mail: DIC@african-union.org I Website: www.au.int I Addis Ababa | Ethiopia

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