Description

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Open global trade has had positive effects for African industrialization and development. Keeping markets open and predictable, as well as fostering a more generally favourable business environment, will be critical to spur renewed investment in Africa and support the continent's economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. This report looks at efforts to help African countries build capacity and to take fuller advantage of the benefits that trade brings. It examines various activities and projects the WTO is implementing in the continent, including in the areas of trade facilitation, compliance with sanitary and phytosanitary regulations, and capacity building for trade and production. The report also looks into projects aimed at mainstreaming trade into the national development strategies of African countries. International cooperation, a multilaterally coordinated response to the COVID-19 crisis and a reinvigorated multilateral trading system have the potential to lessen the effects of the pandemic and bolster Africa's economic growth.

About the Author

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The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) was created in 1947 and operated almost five decades on a provisional basis until 1995 when the WTO was established. Its goal is to improve the welfare of peoples of its member countries, specifically by lowering trade barriers and providing a platform for the negotiation of trade. The organization deals with the rules of trade between nations at a global or near global level; it is responsible for negotiating and implementing new trade agreements and charged with policing Member Countries' adherence to all WTO agreements. In 2007 there were 150 Member States.