African leaders adopted the Protocol to the Treaty Establishing the African Economic Community Relating to Free Movement of Persons, Right of Residence and Right of Establishment in 2018 to demonstrate the imperative of the free movement of persons for continental integration, particularly for the effective implementation of the AfCFTA. However, as of July 2022, the Protocol has only been ratified by four countries: – Rwanda, Niger, Sao Tome and Principe, and Mali – far below the 15-ratification threshold required for it to come into force.
The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the African Union Commission (AUC) launched a study to identify and demonstrate the benefits of the free movement of persons for implementing the AfCFTA; to establish the factors that account for the slow ratification of the AU’s Free Movement of Persons Protocol and to make policy recommendations on how to accelerate the ratification of the Protocol.
