SPECIAL REPORT
T
he global economy has seen some signifi cant neo-
protectionist sentiments emerge in many parts of the
world recently. The European Union (EU) experienced
the now infamous Brexit last year (2017) and is still struggling
to fi gure out how to settle the dust while preventing severe
potential fallout in trade and investment relations between
the UK and EU member country.
In another part of the world, after 2016, the USA ushered
in Donald Trump’s America First foreign policy, which
intended to seriously clamp down on the “very bad deals”
that reportedly disadvantaged US businesses. The foreign
policy included a recent escalation of tariffs on imported
commodities like iron and steel from China. In retaliation,
China slapped a hefty 25 percent tariff on US pork imports
and also escalated tariffs on US fruits, nuts and wine. After
the fi rst strike and the counterstrike, a fully fl edged trade
war between the two global economic powerhouses seems
quite imminent.
Despite the odds, regional integration in
Africa is deepening, and COMESA, as always,
is a trailblazer at setting the pace towards
fulfi lling the African Union’s Agenda 2063.
With 19 members, a combined import trade
value of over $169 billion in 2016, and an
estimated population of 505 million inhabitants
(2017), COMESA represents a sizable market
with rising incomes. The bloc spans a land
area of 11.2 million km 2 endowed with a large
portion of the world’s natural resources.
COMESA has been championing regional
integration and free trade since 1984 when it was first
formed as the Preferential Trade Area. Over the years, the
Regional Economic Community (REC) has developed and
implemented a strong legal framework and dynamic regional
regulations. It has garnered political will through the Heads of
State and Government providing direct oversight of its affairs.
It has also established robust regional institutions (including
a Secretariat in Lusaka, Zambia) along with a range of
policies, programmes and interventions for trade, investment
and the free movement of persons and commodities. The
REC remains as resolute as ever about fostering African
regional integration. It has set itself up as a haven for trade
and investment opportunities in the continent.
In 2015, COMESA took a landmark step towards
continental free trade. It joined forces with the 15-member
State SADC and the fi ve-member State EAC to establish
a Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA). The TFTA brought
together 26 countries who committed to trading on duty-free
and quota-free terms amongst themselves, subject to Rules
of Origin compliance requirements. As of March 2018, 22
member countries – Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Comoros,
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Djibouti, Egypt,
Kenya, State of Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius,
Namibia, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda,
South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe – had signed
the TFTA Agreement.
Naturally, the TFTA has not been without teething
problems. At the political level, these have included the
fact that only two countries – Egypt and Uganda – both
signed and ratifi ed the TFTA whereas the Agreemen