CoDA actively supports Africa’s regional integration as outlined in the continental development agenda – Agenda 2063. CoDA facilitates cooperation among stakeholders towards the successful implementation of the  African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

In partnership with the African Union Department of Trade & Industry and other partners – Afreximbank, African Development Bank, AfroChampions – CoDA fostered dialogues and consultations among key stakeholders to increase understanding of the benefits and implications of AfCFTA and facilitate its advancement. CoDA continues to galvanize support by relevant stakeholders for the successful implementation of AfCFTA.

AfCFTA is a flagship programme of Agenda 2063 and a landmark initiative with the potential to bring sustainable transformation to Africa by promoting continental free trade and assisting African countries to achieve robust economic growth and sustainable development. Trading under AfCFTA started on 1 January 2021 following negotiations by African Union Member States, signing of the Agreement on 21 March 2018, and entry into force on 30 May 2019.  It holds the promise to transform Africa by generating the world’s biggest single market for goods and services and provides opportunity for African businesses to expand their operations knowing that AfCFTA is their new domestic market.

Given that the operations and success of AfCFTA depend on the private sector, CoDA facilitated the establishment of the African Business Council as an essential continental platform for aggregating and articulating the views of the private sector in policy formulation processes at the national, regional, and continental levels, as envisaged by the African Union Boosting Intra-Africa Trade (BIAT) action plan.