AfCFTA postpones launch date as focus turns to curbing virus

Nigerian president Muhammadu Buhari signs the Africa free trade agreement last year. PHOTO | FILE

The commencement date for the implementation of the $3.4 trillion Africa continental trade pact has been postponed from July 1 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Phase I negotiation meetings to firm up rules and regulations had been scheduled to take place in South Africa this month. Phase II of the negotiations, covering investment, competition and intellectual property, were scheduled to be completed by January 2021.