Objective
The objective of the 8th Technical Working Group on Rules of Origin (TWG) Meeting was to make progress in the drafting of the text of Appendix IV on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Product-Specific Rules of Origin (RoO). The Meeting considered Chapters 82 to 97 of Appendix IV. All the positions arrived at in these Chapters were reviewed during the 9th Meeting of the TWG.
Main Results
A team from UNCTAD provided continuous technical support during the negotiations, sharing best practices, providing technical inputs regarding the possible drafting method, criteria, meaning, and implications of selected Product-Specific Rules of Origin (PSRO) in given sectors, and for different countries depending on their productive capacities and economic perspectives.
Prior to the meeting, in order to facilitate the negotiations and build consensus, the UNCTAD team elaborated a technical, complex paper on HS Chapter 71 [Natural or cultured pearls, precious or semi-precious stones, precious metals, metals clad with precious metal, and articles thereof; imitation jewelry; coin].
As a result of the support, the African Union Commission (AUC), in collaboration with UNCTAD, was requested to prepare another advanced, technical paper on HS Chapter 86 [Railway, tramway locomotives, rolling-stock and parts thereof; Railway or tramway track fixtures and fittings and parts thereof; Mechanical (including electro-mechanical) traffic signalling equipment of all kinds] to facilitate consensus among African Union Member States in this critical sector.
The meeting was attended by delegates from Algeria, Botswana, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Morocco, Namibia, Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic, Senegal, Seychelles, South Africa, eSwatini, United Republic of Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The meeting was also attended by officials from the African Union Commission (AUC) and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
Technical assistance was delivered in English and French. Simultaneous translation was provided in Arabic, English, French, and Portuguese.
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