Law and Policy of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)
“The Africa We Want” has developed as a critical long-term development strategy for the African continent – and has never been more relevant than in this book, which provides a thorough examination of the African Continental Free Trade Area’s role in expanding intra-African commerce and strengthening Africa’s trade position in the world market. Gathering chapters written by experts on commercial law, economic law, international trade law and related fields, it seeks to answer the following question: what are the issues that influence the African Continental Free Trade Area’s potential and challenges?
The book provides an in-depth analysis of various contemporary aspects within the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), as well as country-specific case studies and comparative analyses of selected developments that inform the AfCFTA. As the authors show, the AfCFTA faces substantial and numerous challenges that include the existence of different regulatory environments in different countries, political instability, technical and technological shortcomings, businesses’ inability to obtain credit from banks, among other issues. This book will appeal to trade lawyers, economists, financial and prudential regulation analysts, researchers, policy and development analysts, government officials, among others. The book highlights the undeniable need for adequate continental legislative and policy frameworks to facilitate intra-Africa trade, foreign direct investment, and ease of doing business on the continent.
Tapiwa Victor Warikandwa holds a Doctor of Laws (LLD) in International Trade Law from the University of Fort Hare (UFH) in South Africa. He also holds Bachelor of Laws (LLB) and Master of Laws (LLM) degrees from UFH. He is currently an Adjunct Professor in the Mercantile Law and Private Law Departments in the University of Venda’s School of Law and a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Law at the University of Botswana. He specialises in International Trade Law, Labour Law, Indigenisation Laws, Mining Law and Constitutional Law amongst other disciplines. Dr. Warikandwa has also previously worked as a Senior Lecturer and Head of Department in Private Law at the University of Namibia and served as the Deputy Country Director in the Global One Ocean Hub Project in Namibia. Further, he had also served as a legal officer and later legal advisor in the Ministry of Public Service Labour and Social Welfare in Zimbabwe. Key amongst his duties was legal drafting. Dr Warikandwa worked with the law reviser of the Ministry of Justice in Zimbabwe in reviewing laws administered by the Ministry of Public Service Labour and Social Welfare. Dr Warikandwa also completed an ordinary and advanced training in Labour Law Making at the International Labour Organization’s International Training Centre in Turin Italy.
Howard Chitimira is a full Professor of Law, Research Director and Research Professor at the Faculty of Law, North-West University. He is also an advocate of the High Court of South Africa, and a National Research Foundation (NRF) C2 rated legal scholar. Prof Chitimira holds the degrees Bachelor of Laws (LLB) (Cum Laude) from the University of Fort Hare (UFH); Master of Laws (LLM) from UFH and Doctor of Laws (LLD) from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU). For his doctorate, he specialised in securities and financial markets law. Prof Chitimira is a reviewer and editorial board member of several law journals in South Africa and elsewhere, as well as an external examiner for LLB, LLM and LLD degrees at several universities. He serves on editorial boards of journals and a member of several academic and related associations. To date, he has published eight books and over 100 academic journal articles in securities and financial markets law and related fields. He was elected the Vice President of the Society for Law Teachers of Southern Africa in 2022 and President for the same organisation in 2024.
Patrick C Osode has been a professor in the Department of Mercantile Law at the University of Fort Hare since 2004. He holds the degrees of Bachelor of Laws (LLB, University of Jos, Nigeria), Master of Laws (LLM, University of Lagos, Nigeria) and Doctor of Juridical Science (SJD, University of Toronto, Canada). Professor Osode was awarded a C2 (Established Researcher) Rating in 2024 by South Africa’s National Research Foundation. His teaching and research interests are in Corporate Law, Financial Markets Regulation, International Trade Law, Business and Human Rights, and Public Procurement. He is author/co-author/co-editor of numerous law journal articles, book chapters and books including Enforcing Accountability, Consolidating Democracy and Compelling Sustainable Development in the 21st Century published by Juta in December 2023. Professor Osode is a member of the International Academy of Commercial and Consumer Law (IACCL) and has in the past served as Dean of the Law Faculty at the University of Fort Hare; Interim University Registrar, University of Fort Hare; and Honorary Secretary of the Society of Law Teachers of Southern Africa (SALTSA). He is also, for several years now, Editor-in-Chief of Speculum Juris Law Journal, an accredited, open access, electronic journal published by the Law Faculty of the University of Fort Hare.
