22/03/2018 (Agence Europe) – On Thursday 22 March, the EU welcomed the launch on 21 March of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) with the adoption of the legal instruments by the African Union at its extraordinary assembly in Kigali, Rwanda. “This historic decision … represents a significant step towards deepening continental integration. The adoption and signing of the AfCFTA legal instruments and the signing of the Protocol on free movement of persons are concrete commitments to liberalisation and to building on what has already been achieved at the regional level”, the Commission says in a press release. The EU is “ready to support the implementation” of the project “in the spirit of the African Union-European Union partnership”. The matter will be discussed at the meeting of the Commission of the AU and the European Commission in Brussels on 23 May. (AN)