Source: Xinhua| 2019-04-11 22:18:32|Editor: Shi YinglunVideo Player CloseADDIS ABABA, April 11 (Xinhua) -- The Ethiopian government on Thursday deposited the instrument of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) ratification to the African Union (AU) Commission. The AfCFTA, which was so far ratified by 22 African countries, has witnessed 19 AU member countries depositing the instruments of ratification to the 55-member pan African bloc, while three additional deposits of ratifications are presently expected to officially commence the free trade pact. Deposits of ratification are currently expected from Sierra Leone, Zimbabwe and Gambia following ratification of the AfCFTA by the three countries' parliaments recently, the AU said in a statement on Thursday. Mamo Mihretu, Senior Advisor and Chief Trade Negotiator in the Prime Minister's Office, said while depositing the ratification that the East African country's ratification was "a historic occasion, marking the first ever free trade agreement Ethiopia has ever signed." Once operational, the African free trade accord is also projected to boost the level of intra-Africa trade by in excess of 52 percent by the year 2020, according to figures from the ECA.

Source: Ethiopian News April 11, 2019 14:15 UTC