The African Continental Free Trade Area Competition Policy : Model, Dispute Resolution Mechanism, Institutional Framework and AfCFTA Relationship with Existing Regional Competition Regimes

Although the aspiration of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is to reduce and progressively remove trade barriers, enhance intra-African trade at the continental level and increase Africa’s global market share, anti-competitive conduct is likely to pose as a barrier hindering the realization of the main objectives of the AfCFTA. That is why, Articles 4, 6 and 7, in addition to other key provisions recognize that cooperation in competition policy is critical in meeting the objectives of the AfCFTA. As a result, negotiations on competition policy are ongoing and it is expected to be undertaken under successive rounds and result in a Protocol on Competition Policy.While the AfCFTA has been celebrated as the largest free trade area (FTA) to be established, it is not the first FTA to have a provision on competition policy. For instance, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has dedicated its chapter fifteen to competition policy, monopolies and state enterprises. Chapter sixteen of the Trans-Pacific Partnership(TPP) FTA has competition policy provisions covering: the establishment of competition law and authorities; anticompetitive business conduct; procedural fairness in competition law enforcement; privates rights of action; cooperation; technical cooperation; and consumer protection. These FTAs can act as a laboratory of experimentation for the AfCFTA on how competition policy within a free trade area would be like. Yet, Africa as a region is unique in itself and faces unique challenges such as the existence of multiple and overlapping trade regimes that require African crafted solutions. Whereas there exists numerous issues and concerns on the future of the African continental competition policy, this article will focus on the model to be adopted, the dispute resolution mechanism, the institutional framework and how the continental competition policy will relate with existing regional competition regimes