COMESA Secretary General Sindiso Ngwenya is expecting a doubling of two-way trade after COMESA, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East African Community (EAC) sign a US$3 trillion, rather than a $1.3 billion, free trade agreement.
Ngwenya said the signing of the agreement by the three entities will positively affect two-way trade rates, as well as investments within the African countries. The agreement is expected to reduce the costs of bilateral trade among these countries and double two-way trade rates.
The remarks came during a speech on Monday at the opening of the third meeting of the ministerial council of the three entities. Trade ministers from 26 countries that belong to the organizations, in addition to representatives of other international organizations in Sharm al-Sheikh, attending the meeting.
