African Continental Free Trade Area
Country Signed Date of Signing Ratified Deposited
Algeria Yes March 21 , 2018 No No
Angola Yes March 21 , 2018 No No
Benin Yes July 7 , 2019 No No
Botswana Yes February 10 , 2019 No No
Burkina Faso Yes March 21 , 2018 Yes Yes
Burundi Yes July 2 , 2018 No No
Cameroon Yes March 21 , 2018 No No
Central African Republic Yes March 21 , 2018 No No
Cape Verde Yes March 21 , 2018 No No
Chad Yes March 21 , 2018 Yes Yes
Ivory Coast Yes March 21 , 2018 Yes Yes
Comoros Yes March 21 , 2018 No No
Republic of the Congo Yes March 21 , 2018 Yes Yes
Democratic Republic of the Congo Yes March 21 , 2018 No No
Djibouti Yes March 21 , 2018 Yes Yes
Egypt Yes March 21 , 2018 Yes Yes
Equatorial Guinea Yes March 21 , 2018 Yes Yes
Eritrea No No No
Eswatini Yes March 21 , 2018 Yes Yes
Ethiopia Yes March 21 , 2018 Yes Yes
Membership -- List of signatories and parties to the agreement
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is a free trade area, outlined in the African Continental Free Trade Agreement among 54 of the 55 African Union nations. The free-trade area is the largest in the world in terms of participating countries since the formation of the World Trade Organization. The agreement was brokered by the African Union (AU) and was signed on by 44 of its 55 member states in Kigali, Rwanda on March 21, 2018. The agreement initially requires members to remove tariffs from 90% of goods, allowing free access to commodities, goods, and services across the continent. The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa estimates that the agreement will boost intra-African trade by 52 percent by 2022. The proposal was set to come into force 30 days after ratification by 22 of the signatory states. On April 2, 2019, The Gambia became the 22nd state to ratify the agreement, and on April 29 the Saharawi Republic made the 22nd deposit of instruments of ratification; the agreement went into force on May 30 and entered its operational phase following a summit on July 7, 2019.