The Deputy President said Kenya will next month hold a young entrepreneurs conference to be attended by US President Barack Obama, which will centre on innovation and trade among other activities.
Ruto thanked the President of Egypt Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and the people of Egypt for the warm hospitality extended to all delegations.
“I wish on behalf of Heads of States and governments to express our appreciation to the President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Government and the people of Egypt for the warm hospitality extended to all the delegations,” said Ruto.
The tripartite integration process was based on a development approach anchored on three pillars namely; market integration symbolised by the TFTA, infrastructure development to facilitate and enhance connectivity, communication and movement of goods and services and reduce the cost of doing business.
It will also be based on industrial development, which will enhance competitiveness and address supply and productive capacity constraints.
The summit further reiterated the tripartite initiative was a decisive step to achieve the African Vision of establishing the African Economic Community envisioned in the Lagos Plan of Action and the Final Act of Lagos 1980, Abuja Treaty of 1991 as well as the Resolution of the African Union Summit held in Banjul, Gambia in 2006.
During the Gambia meeting, the African Union Commission and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) were directed to harmonise and coordinate policies and programmes as important strategies for rationalisation, increasing intra-Africa trade and investment, integration of tripartite economies in the global economy.
The meeting also adopted the post-signature implementation Plan detailing activities that will be implemented at national and regional levels in fulfilment of provisions of the TFTA agreement.
The Summit directed that negotiations on outstanding issues to operationalise the TFTA be concluded expeditiously.
It further directed the commencement of phase II negotiations covering trade in services, cooperation in trade and development, competition policy, intellectual property rights and cross border investment.
President El-Sisi in his opening remarks commended the Tripartite for the progress made in implementation of programmes in the three key pillars of market integration, infrastructure and industrialization.
Sindiso Ngwenya, the Secretary General of COMESA said the vision of creating a single market was precisely to address the challenges that arise from the fragmentation of countries in the region by creating borderless economy, inclusive and that will lead to sustainable development.
