Michael Okyere Baafi
The Ghana Free Zones Authority (GFZA) has initiated steps towards positioning enterprises in its enclave to identify and take advantage of opportunities that exist within the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AFCFTA).
In line with its objectives, representatives of companies have met in Accra, at a quarterly meeting of Free Zones Enterprises, to discuss issues relating to implementation, challenges and benefits of the agreement.
The AFCFTA secretariat is billed to begin operating by March 31, 2020, to be followed by trading in July 2020.
A Technical Advisor at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, Anthony Nyame-Baafi, explained to participants that the agreement is projected to increase intra-Africa trade which is currently at a lowest rate of 12 per cent, compared to other intra continental trade rate.
“EU Trade, Intra-Asian Trade and Intra-North American trade stands at 68 per cent, 53 per cent and 46 per cent respectively,” he said.
According to a 2014 report by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), a successful implementation of the agreement could generate revenue as much as US$35 billion per year, while imports from outside the continent could decrease by US$10 billion per year.
At firm level, Nyame-Baafi indicated that businesses who export to other African countries have an average protection on goods’ rate to be 12.4 per cent compared to 8.4 per cent when exporting overseas.
The agreement, he said, prevented overseas companies in the absence of bilateral agreement, from enjoying better terms of trade than African companies on the continent.
He further explained that goods produced in free zones or Special Economic Zones (SEZ) that met stipulated requirements would be considered as African goods and enjoy same benefits as goods produced outside the special zones.
He also commended the agreement for having a protocol on dispute settlement; a mechanism which he said was lacking in existing trade agreements.
He also mentioned that African Heads of State have in July, adopted some instruments including online non tariff measures, which provided evidence when violations occurred.
“If you are exporting under AFCFTA and you get stopped somewhere because an official is trying to play some tricks, you can trigger it indicating that someone has blocked your consignment,” he said.
Chief Executive Officer of GFZA, Michael Okyere Baafi, said that plans were far advanced for the amendment of existing legislations such as the free zones act to reflect changes in the sector as well as be in tandem with the AFCFTA agreement.
By Issah Mohammed