Africa is expected to move toward regional integration through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in order to create new opportunities for the companies and diversify African exports, said Planning and Economic Development Minister Hala el Saeed.
Egypt fully supports regional integration through working with the African countries to integrate the priorities of Africa’s Agenda 2063 in the planning systems, especially in the regional and economic integration sectors, added the minister during her participation via video conference in a session held by the International Trade Center.
The minister, meanwhile, said that Egypt plans to increase its exports to Africa from $5 billion annually to $15 billion within the upcoming four years.
He further said that signing the AfCFTA agreement, which is the largest in the world, was signed during the spread of Covid-19 in 2020.
UNCTAD estimates that the AfCFTA could boost intra-African trade by about 33 percent and cut the continent’s trade deficit by 51 percent, noted the minister.
