The COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) Agreement will come into force on July 25, 2024, following the attainment of the required threshold. To activate the Agreement, at least 14 out of the 29 Member/Partner States needed to deposit their Instruments of Ratification

The Agreements entry into force was confirmed after the Republic of Angola deposited its Instrument of Ratification on June 25, 2024, bringing the total number of ratifications to 14�"the necessary number for the Agreement to be enacted.

This announcement was made during the 37th Tripartite Task Force Meeting, held on July 20, 2024, alongside the 6th African Union Mid-Year Coordination Meeting in Accra, Ghana.

The meeting was attended by the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of the three Regional Economic Communities (RECs): H.E. Elias Mpedi Magosi, Executive Secretary of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and Chairperson of the Tripartite Task Force; H.E. Veronica Nduva, Secretary General of the East African Community (EAC); and H.E. Chileshe Mpundu Kapwepwe, Secretary General of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA).

During the meeting, H.E. Magosi, Executive Secretary of SADC and current Chairman of the Tripartite Task Force, noted that the Member/Partner States that have deposited their Instruments of Ratification include Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Egypt, Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. These countries collectively accounted for 75% of the Tripartite GDP in 2022.