African Union / International treaty
AfCFTA
Agreement Establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area (Kigali, 21 March 2018)
In force2019-05-30Modified
Topic : Supply chain due diligence · Level : Regional
Today
In force; 50 of 54 signatories had ratified by Sep 2026. Trade agreement: rules of origin, no binding company ESG duties.
Summary
AfCFTA is a continental trade agreement in force since 2019, with trading since 2021. It sets rules of origin, not company ESG duties. 50 States had ratified by September 2026.
Who is concerned
- Turnover
- non précisé
- Employees
- non précisé
- Listed company
- non précisé
- Sectors
- All traded goods, services
- Triggering activities
- Claiming AfCFTA tariff preference
- Exporting between State Parties
- Extraterritorial reach
- No
Rules of origin limit preferences for goods with high non-African (e.g. Chinese) content.
- Examples
- Kenyan assembler exporting to Ghana
- Chinese-owned plant in Egypt exporting to Africa
What the law requires
- Prove origin of goods under AfCFTA rules of origin
- Hold certificate of origin for preferential tariff
- Comply with State Party customs procedures
Penalties
Set by State Parties (customs law); loss of tariff preference.
SUPPLIER INTELLIGENCE
What this changes for a supplier in China
Chinese inputs count as non-originating. Chinese-owned factories in Africa need origin and bill-of-materials records to access AfCFTA tariffs.
Expected evidence
- Bill of materials with origin per input
- Supplier declarations of origin
- Production cost breakdown
Tiers : Tier 1-2