Bibliographie sélective OHADA

Sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures are measures aimed at the protection of human, animal and plant life and health, within World Trade Organization (WTO) Member territories, from the risks associated with the introduction and spread of pests and diseases into such territories through trade. The WTO, through its Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (WTO-SPS), guides the application of sanitary and phytosanitary measures and provides a set of guiding principles, rights and obligations applicable to Member States. Dispute resolution through the processes of the WTO is available to Members on a Member to Member level within a defined scope and on specific terms. Private parties who operate within the SPS chain at a national level, whether involved in import or export or neither, are dependent on solutions to barriers or disputes available to them through national legislation. In the absence of an enabling legal framework to facilitate aspects of trade such as certainty and continuity in standard setting, the basis of measures taken in science, transparency and legal recourse to resolving barriers or disputes arising, private parties are vulnerable to fluctuations in, for example, their country’s disease-free status. Private parties are also vulnerable to losing relevance as trading partners in periods of ongoing SPS events and to the loss of trust that trading partners have in the country’s ability to trade safely. These are matters that affect private parties who do not have legal recourse to the WTO dispute resolution procedures which are well within WTO concern as they are directly related to the purpose of SPS measures, the principles, rights and obligations on which they are based. Given the importance of agriculture and the increasing inseparability of international rights, obligations and principles in a field of WTO law such as SPS, the importance of a national legislative framework in as far as being the translator of such rights, obligations and principles into legally enforceable rights, obligations, principles, processes and procedures is significant. The rights, obligations, and principles of SPS measures apply to all products, processes and procedures that are within the scope of the agreement and may include at least 36 chapters of the harmonised tariff book. It is necessary to consider also that international trade, national trade and the associated rights, obligations, and principles of the WTO-SPS agreement interact with the social, political, and economic realities of the country within the countries to which the agreement applies. Therefore, researching some of the persistent challenges experienced by the red meat industry in South Africa prone to negative trade-related consequences during and after the outbreak of a notifiable disease, provides insight into the perception of the ability of the legislative framework to provide solutions to these consequences. This research applies a mixed methodology approach whereby qualitative research by means of semi-structured interviews was combined with doctrinal legal research and a quantitative content analysis using Rprogramming. The qualitative research focused on the role of legislation and the perspectives of selected actors in the red-meat industry, specifically in reference to the foot-and-mouth-disease (FMD) outbreaks and subsequent loss of disease-free status since 2019. The doctrinal legal analysis and content analysis focused on the SPS-related legislative framework. The combination of these methods provides a multi-perspective analysis of SPS measures as barriers to trade from a South African perspective and contributes to the mixed-methods turn in legal studies. The objective of this research is to identify and explore persistent challenges to the prevention and resolution of barriers or disputes connected to sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures in the South African context. Ultimately, this research recommends potential practical solutions to the identified challenges with specific focus on SPS-related barriers or disputes that are beyond the strict terms of dispute resolution available through the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Please refer to full text to view abstract.

Une bonne partie de la doctrine juridique semble admettre le contrat de commerce international comme source du droit. Pourtant, plusieurs éléments pertinents intrinsèques et même extrinsèques au contrat de commerce international conduisent à contester sa qualité de source du droit. En effet, s’il est possible de retenir qu’il crée des normes, celles-ci sont en opposition avec les critères habituels et les spécificités de la loi. En recherchant des critères d’acceptabilité auprès de la jurisprudence, l’arrimage reste difficile notamment en raison de ce que les parties se tourneront souvent vers une juridiction arbitrale qui saura leur garantir la non-diffusion du litige et du contrat ; une recherche de confidentialité et de secret qui n’est pas de nature à susciter la naissance d’une force créatrice du droit. Le rôle d’influenceur de la doctrine s’en voit ainsi compromis puisqu’il faut que le contrat établi soit connu pour que la doctrine veuille, par son influence toucher le législateur à ce propos. Bref, dans l’ordre juridique interne, le contrat de commerce international, est contesté en tant que source du droit. La lex mercatoria ne semble pas non plus porter un meilleur écho à la thèse du contrat de commerce international comme source du droit. D’ailleurs, de nombreuses controverses remettent en cause sa qualité d’ordre juridique. Et si les pratiques contractuelles internationales organisées ou relativement spontanées sont d’une grande richesse inventive, elles ne semblent pas suffisantes pour alimenter une vraie théorie des sources mercatiques. La juridicité de la lex mercatoria étant contestée, il n’est possible d’y trouver une source du droit que dans l’hypothèse d’une juridicité propre à la lex mercatoria. Et l’émancipation de la lex mercatoria par rapport à l’ordre juridique national et international semble se confirmer.

This chapter deals with the principle of direct effect as applied in European Union law and explores its suitability in the enforcement of African Union (AU) legal instruments, notably those setting up the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). What motivates the issue of direct effect is the noted reticence of African countries to litigate trade matters between themselves despite the existence of provisions of regional trade treaties creating courts of justice which give standing to Member States. Therefore, it surveys the avenues through which natural and legal persons can uphold their rights stemming from AfCFTA treaties thus contributing to treaty interpretation and increasing security and predictability. Currently, the AfCFTA Dispute Settlement Protocol, modelled after the WTO, does not allow such a possibility, contrary to rights acquired by natural and legal persons before some African Regional Economic Communities (RECs) courts. Nevertheless, this chapter finds that carving out access of natural and legal persons to AfCFTA proceedings may not always work as intended since there are other ways to bypass these obstacles. These loopholes could be the gateway through which direct effect will develop and become a principle of AU law broadly speaking. These gaps further complement this chapter’s suggestions to explore amending the AfCFTA legal instruments, even though its dispute settlement system is yet to be tested, in order to match the standing that natural and legal persons have acquired under the RECs, which, in fine, are building blocs towards achieving the AfCFTA and, eventually, the African Economic Community.

In the more recent decades, international investment law (“iil”) and arbitration have been going through a process of recalibration prompted by both the intensification of cross-border capital flows and the States’ growing concerns over the potential restraints iil may impose upon the pursuit of public interests. The present contribution will pay attention to a specific feature that can be observed within these developments, i.e. the role played by soft law in investment arbitration and, more generally, under iil, also with a view to assessing the impact on the formation of binding international law of instruments formally devoid of normative force within the international legal order. After an introduction (Section 1), the contribution is articulated into four sections. Section 2 will first define the field of investigation. The case law of investment tribunals and the treaty practice under the more recent iia s will be then explored as to the reliance on soft law instruments for the purposes of settling procedural (Section 3) and substantive issues (Section 4). Some final remarks will close (Section 5).

ملخص: التحكيم وسيلة للفصل في المنازعات ،حين يتفق الخصوم على عرض تلك المنازعات على أشخاص يختارونهم و يحددون لهم مهمة التحكيم متضمنة القواعد القانونية و الإجراءات التي تتبع .و لئن كان التحكيم و سيلة قديمة ،إلا أنها انتشرت في منصف القرن الحالي و بالأخص في مجال المنازعات التجارية الدولية ،لما تتسم من سرعة و سهولة ويسر و هو ما تتطلع إليه التجارة بوجه عام .و قد واكب هذا الانتشار ازدهار في حركة الفكر القانوني في فقه التحكيم أو في قضائه ،فعلى المحتكمين عدم وضع أي عراقيل أمام تنفيد قرارات هيئة التحكيم لكي ينالوا غايتهم المنشودة و هو إنهاء النزاع سلميا بقرار ملزم و في وقت قصير و من هذا المنبر سوف نتناول النقاط التالية الكلمات المفتاحية: قضاء –تحكيم –منازعات تجارية . Abstract: Arbitration is a means of settling disputes, when the litigants agree to presentthose disputes to persons of theirchoice and assign to them the task of arbitration, including the legalrules and procedures to befollowed. Although arbitration is an oldmethod, it has spread in the middle of the currentcentury, especially in the field of international commercial disputes, due to its speed, ease and ease, whichiswhattrade in general aspires to. This spread has been accompanied by a boom in the movement of legalthought in the jurisprudence of arbitration or in itsjudiciary. The claimantsshould not put any obstacles in the way of implementing the decisions of the arbitral tribunal in order to achievetheirdesired goal, whichis to end the dispute peacefully by a bindingdecision and in a short time. Fromthisplatformwewilladdress the points next

The UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration provides for the extension of the mandate of the arbitral tribunal post issuance of the final award for the issuance of correction, interpretation, additional award, and remittance of the award back to the arbitral tribunal to remove grounds for challenging the award. Using a doctrinal approach, this paper examines the deviations of the national laws of adopting jurisdictions from the Model Law in regards to this extended mandate, and evaluates the improvements and drawbacks in these deviations. Mainly, the findings of this paper are that, of the many deviations, the positive changes are those that provide comfortable and lenient default provisions for the benefit of inexperienced parties, and since correction, interpretation, additional award, and remittance are useful provisions that are designed to help self-rectify the arbitral process, without adversely delaying it, then the changes that increase the efficacy of these provisions are welcomed. On the other hand, unnecessary deviations are seen as drawbacks that hinder the harmonization of national arbitration laws aimed at by the Model Law. The adopting jurisdictions shall be limited to those acknowledged as such by the UNCITRAL.

Le principe de proportionnalité a été récemment reconnu dans les traités et les accords internationaux du commerce et des investissements avec l’État. Cependant, peu d'études se concentrent sur la nature juridique, le contenu, la portée et les fonctions de ce principe dans le droit économique international. Cette thèse présente une analyse actuelle et détaillée sur ces questions.

This study examines the comparative impact of multilateral trade agreements on intra-regional trade in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) regions in Africa. Annual data was gathered from 2000 to 2018 and dynamic panel data and econometric techniques were used to control for individual country characteristics, endogeneity, serial correlation, heteroscedasticity and interdependencies between the countries in each region. Two estimations were done, one using the tariff measures of multilateral agreements, the second using non-tariff measures of multilateral agreement. The results of the empirical analysis show that the SADC region has a slight edge over ECOWAS in terms of technological progress and investment, especially in trade infrastructure. However, the ECOWAS levels of employment and economic growth are higher than those in the SADC region. These differences further translate into differences that drive intra-African trade in these regions, and how they relate to the role of multilateral agreements in intra-African trade in each of these regions. While technology and investment are key drivers and enhancers of intra-African trade in SADC countries, economic growth and employment stand out as key enhancers of intra-African trade in ECOWAS, especially where multilateral agreement is represented by tariff measures. This study reports that when non-tariff measures are used to represent multilateral agreements, export trade costs, in addition to investment and technology, are the key drivers of intra-African trade in SADC countries. For ECOWAS, under non-tariff measures of multilateral agreements, only economic growth drives intra-African trade.

The sub-Saharan African region is characterized by a high relative degree of openness to trade. The region is also identified with increased inflows of foreign investments with no significant welfare improvement. Economic development emphasizes that the lack of domestic investment in the developing economies could be boosted by trade openness and inflow of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) for impactful enhancement of capital formation. In this article, the impact of trade openness and foreign capital inflow on economic welfare was examined on a sub-regional analysis for sub-Saharan Africa. The study also appraised the effect of openness to trade and FDI inflow on the region's economic welfare. The data for 30 countries from 2000 to 2018 were collected and analyzed, with the Generalized Least Square (GLS) technique to fit the model developed. The study showed that openness to trade has a significant impact on economic welfare for all sub-Saharan Africa regions, while FDI is only significant for the Western sub-region. Hence, the study recommends that the government of the countries in the sub-Saharan Africa region should boost trade openness to enhance efficiency in productivity, and improve industrial development.

Uluslararası ticaretin gelişimi ve artması dünyadaki bütün devletler tarafından hedeflenen bir amaçtır. Ancak devletlerin ulusal hukuk sistemleri arasındaki farklar bu gelişim için belirli engeller oluşturmaktadır. Bu engelleri aşmak için uluslararası ticaret hukukunun yeknesaklaştırılması, yani aynı uluslararası hukuki işleme uygulanacak iki veya daha çok ulusal hukuk sisteminin farklı kurallarının bir kuralla değiştirilmesi çare olarak görülmektedir. Bu amaçla şimdiye kadar bir çok çalışmalar yapılmış ve bir çok yeknesaklaştırma aracı ortaya konulmuştur. Uluslararası ticaret hukukunun bel kemiğini oluşturan uluslararası ticari sözleşmeler alanında hazırlanmış olan yeknesaklaştırma araçları ise bu bakımdan özellikle önem taşımaktadır. Hukukun yeknesaklaştırılması alanında çalışmalar sürdürülmekle birlikte bu konuya şüpheyle bakanlar ve yeknesaklaştırmanın kendi amacına ulaşamayacağını düşünenler de mevcuttur. Bu yeknesaklaştırma sürecinde ortaya çıkan bir takım sorunlarla ilgilidir. Ancak özellikle de uluslararası ticaret hukuku alanında yapılan yeknesaklaştırma çalışmalarında elde edilen başarılar umut vaat etmektedir. Uluslararası ticari sözleşmeler hukuku alanında yapılmış olan ayrı ayrı yeknesaklaştırma çalışmaları ile ilgili araştırmalar mevcut olsa da, konuyu daha kapsamlı bir şekilde ele alan ve meseleye daha geniş bir perspektiften bakan araştırmaların eksik olduğunu görmekteyiz. Özellikle de Türkiye'de bu tür araştırmalarda bir boşluğun mevcut olduğu hissedilmektedir. Uluslararası ticari sözleşmeler hukukunun yeknesaklaştırılması amacıyla ortaya konulmuş çalışmaların ve hazırlanmış olan araçların daha kapsamlı bir şekilde araştırılması, onların sağladığı faydaları göstermek, bu alanda ortaya çıkan sorunları belirlemek ve gerekli çözüm önerileri sunmak açısından önem arz etmektedir. Bütün bunları dikkate alarak biz bu araştırmamızda uluslararası ticaret hukukunun yeknesaklaştırılması kavramını, onun önemini ve sağladığı avantajları, yeknesaklaştırmanın gerçekleştirilmesi yöntemlerini, uluslararası ticaret hukukunun yeknesaklaştırılması alanında çalışmalar yapan ve bu sürece katkıda bulunan uluslararası kurumları, uluslararası ticari sözleşmeler alanında yapılmış olan ve şu an yapılmakta olan çalışmaları, bu konuyla ilgili ortaya çıkan sorunları ve bu sorunların ortadan kaldırılması için sunulan çözüm önerilerini incelemeye çalıştık. [...] The development and growth of international trade is an aim targeted by all states in the world. However, the differences between the national legal systems of states pose certain obstacles to this development. To overcome these obstacles, the unification of the international commercial law is considered a remedy, that is, changing the different rules of two or more national legal systems to be applied to the same international legal process with one rule. For this purpose, so far many studies have been done and many unification instruments have been introduced. The unification instruments prepared in the field of the international commercial contracts, which form the backbone of international commercial law, are particularly important in this regard. Although studies on the unification of the law continues, there are also those who are skeptical about this issue and those who think that it cannot achieve its own goal. It concerns a number of problems that arise in the process of unification. However, the successes achieved in the unification studies especially in the field of international commercial law promise hope. Although there are researches on individual unification studies in the field of international commercial contracts law, we see that there is a lack of research that covers the issue more extensively and looks at the issue from a wider perspecitve. Especially, a vacancy in this kind of research is available in Turkey. It is important to investigate the studies and the instruments that have been prepared for the purpose of the unification of the international commercial contracts law, to show their benefits, to identify the problems that arise in this field and to offer necessary solutions. Considering all these, in this research, we tried to examine the concept of the unification of the international commercial law, its importance and advantages, the methods of realization of unification, the international institutions that work in the field of the unification of the international commercial law and contribute to this process, the problems that arise about this issue and the proposed solutions to eliminate these problems.

In this essay, we describe the overlapping phenomena of new legal hubs (NLHs), international commercial courts, and arbitral courts. We survey their impact on the law and geopolitics of international commercial dispute resolution, identifying key issues these new dispute resolution institutions raise. While the rise of international commercial courts spans authoritarian and liberal states, Western and Asian states, common law and civil law traditions, it also highlights and builds upon regional differences. We question the assumption that the establishment of new courts is always consistent with an increase in the rule of law, particularly in non-democratic states. We close with thoughts about the potential influence and future role of these institutions. Some of the procedural innovations discussed here may lead to shifts in international commercial dispute resolution for years to come, but the question of whether there is sufficient demand for these new institutions lingers.

How do members hold their own trade unions accountable in South Africa? What legal mechanisms, if any, are available to assist union members in receiving adequate representation and service from their unions? This study approaches these questions through a comparative and historical examination of the regulation of the union member relationship in the UK, USA and the RSA. The study commences with an examination of what unions do, how they function and what benefits potentially accrue to their members, while the role played by unions in utilising collectivisation to offset the bargaining power of employers is demonstrated. The need for organised labour, by society in general, but South Africa specifically, is brought into sharp relief. This is, however, offset by the examination of 25 constitutions of broadly representative South African trade unions, where the lack of proper regulation of the union-member relationship is brought to the fore. This already means the common law and current judicial approach that is so reliant on the interpretation and implementation of trade union constitutions to address union-member disputes is unsuitable, certainly in those instances where the constitution is either silent or ambiguous, or where the nature of the relationship between the union and its member(s) mimics that of the constantly present imbalance of power and influence between employers and employees. The comparative examination of union accountability is undertaken against the backdrop of the common historical phases of proscription, acknowledgement/assimilation, and readjustment of and towards trade unions. The historical and contemporary regulation of the union-member relationship in South Africa is examined in the same way. The study demonstrates that purely statutory regulation of the union member relationship by means of punitive provisions and inter-union self-regulation measures are not feasible. A series of possible legal mechanisms – that draw from the comparative examination – are suggested, even though they are to be utilised in a collective (rather than individual) way. Even these suggestions, however, are subject to the challenges of cost-effectiveness, accessibility and efficiency of enforcement by (the) average union member(s). Three proposals are made to foster improved union member accountability: Firstly, the use of section 103A of the LRA by the Registrar so as to place unions that meet the appropriate criteria under administration, in order to restore accountable functioning and elevate the interests of the member(s) over that of the officials of the union; secondly, the introduction of a duty of fair representation – to be administered by the CCMA – to hold both union and employer accountable to members, and; thirdly, in conjunction with the first two proposals, the use of a package of further measures (and an associated information campaign), such as bolstering the financial/institutional capacity of the Registrar’s office, compelling the inclusion of accountability clauses within union constitutions, and minor amendments to the LRA with regard to balloting, reporting/transparency (and the enforcement thereof). If implemented, the expected outcomes are improved labour relations, increased accountability and professionalisation of trade union administration, a realignment of the employer-union divide and elevating the awareness of union member rights and concomitant obligations on trade unions – all of which are of critical importance in South Africa’s post-Marikana society.

La vente commerciale internationale est considérée par tous comme l'épicentre de la mondialisation. Contrat synallagmatique par excellence, elle crée à l'encontre des parties des obligations réciproques. L'une de ces obligations est sans conteste l'obligation de conformité. Contrairement au droit interne qui continue de traiter le sujet à travers une panoplie d'actions qui varient selon l'angle d'attaque de la victime, le droit uniforme issu de la Convention de Vienne du 11 avril 1980 ramène l'ensemble des actions en deux grandes catégories régies soit par les dispositions de l'article 35 CVIM en ce qui concerne la non conformité matérielle, soit par les dispositions des articles 41 et 42 CVIM en ce qui concerne la non conformité juridique. Cette approche unitaire est la pierre angulaire de cette nouvelle édification normative. Sa visée principale consiste au premier abord à éluder les disparités normatives, pierre d'achoppement pour les échanges commerciaux internationaux.

La corruption est une pratique qui freine le développement et peut toucher diverses activités, notamment les activités économiques internationales. Elle porte atteinte au bon fonctionnement du commerce international, nécessitant de lutter contre elle.Cette étude vise à mettre en évidence l’existence d’un cadre juridique anticorruption posé par le droit du commerce international qui est à l’épreuve de la lutte contre cette pratique. Ce cadre juridique anticorruption se matérialise par l’existence d’outils pouvant être rangés en deux catégories : les outils appartenant au corpus des règles du commerce international et des outils complémentaires apportés par d’autres règles de droit très largement connectées au droit du commerce international, tels que l’arbitrage international et le droit des investissements internationaux.Ces outils ne suffisent cependant pas à eux seuls à venir à bout de la corruption. Ils nécessitent un renforcement de la lutte contre la corruption. À cet effet, cette étude montrera que les outils principaux et complémentaires du commerce international sont complétés par des actions des acteurs du commerce international : acteurs privés ou publics. Corruption is a practice that hinders development and can affect various activities, including international economic activities. It undermines the proper functioning of international trade requiring the need to fight against itThis study aims to highlight the existence of an anti-corruption legal framework implemented by international trade law which resists to corruption fight. This anti-corruption legal framework is materialized by the existence of tools that can be classified into two categories: tools belonging to the corpus of international trade rules and complementary tools provided by other legal rules very widely connected to international trade law, such as international arbitration and international investment law.However, these tools alone are not enough to overcome corruption. They require a strengthening of the fight against corruption. To this end, this study will show that the main and complementary tools of international trade are complemented by actions of international trade actors : private or public actors.

Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing threatens the ability of the aquatic systems to continue providing vital ecosystem services and essential food resources. Most of the existing economic analysis on IUU fishing is conducted from the perspective of IUU fishing vessels rather than that of States. This paper seeks to fill this gap and concludes that trade measures against IUU fishing are cost-effective for the international community, as the IUU fishing has reached such a substantial scale that the total harm or loss caused is estimated to be greater than the total abatement costs required. Meanwhile, from a legal point of view, trade measures against IUU fishing might have more tensions with international trade law than with the international law of the sea. This paper draws on relevant GATT and WTO jurisprudence for guidance to eliminate such tensions. Two other comprehensive solutions to ensure legal compliance of trade measures against IUU fishing include taking such measures on a cooperative basis and making use of the standard-setting process through competent international organizations or conferences such as the FAO.

International trade law is at a turning point, and the rules as we know them are being broken, rewritten, and reshaped at all levels. At the same time that institutions like the World Trade Organization (WTO) face significant change and a global pandemic challenges the rules of the market, Africa’s new mega-regional trade agreement, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), is emerging as a promising framework for redesigning international economic law. As this Article will argue, the AfCFTA presents a new normative approach to trade and development that is positioned to rewrite the rules in a more inclusive and equitable way and, over time, possibly affect global trade well beyond the African continent.Historically, trade and development have been linked through the framework of Special and Differential Treatment (S&D), which has been a central feature of the WTO and is increasingly shaping regional trade agreements (RTAs) as well. Although the connection between trade and development is more important than ever before, traditional S&D is not positioned to deliver on broader priorities of social and economic development in the current international climate. Fortunately, as this Article will argue, Africa’s approach under the new AfCFTA sets the stage for a needed refresh of S&D. While the AfCFTA incorporates traditional aspects of S&D, it also includes elements of a forward-looking, rules-based approach to further economic and social development, advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This new dimension of S&D holds great potential for promoting integration through trade, representing the needs of a diverse group of countries in the rulemaking process, and reshaping international economic law more broadly to generate positive development outcomes. This Article begins with an assessment of the AfCFTA as an alternative model for trade and development law, evaluating the agreement in the historical and evolving context of S&D and examining its role in shaping a new normative approach to S&D. The AfCFTA, we argue, represents a shift from using S&D as a largely defensive trade approach to one that positions S&D as an affirmative tool for achieving sustainable development through the design and implementation of the rules of trade themselves, while still maintaining flexibility for countries that need it. This new approach may finally replace the old trade paradigm of the ”haves and have nots” with a system in which trade rules can be designed to benefit all. Although the AfCFTA is still at an early stage and will have to overcome formidable challenges, this Article provides an initial assessment of the AfCFTA’s proactive new model in the context of the substantive areas of law identified as next-stage (Phase II) negotiating priorities: intellectual property rights (IPR), investment, and competition law. The Article’s comparative assessment draws upon the laws of African nations, African and international RTAs, and other proposals for international legal reform. Finally, the Article looks to the future, positing that the AfCFTA could be the best legal instrument available to break the stalemate in international rulemaking, design new trade law approaches to pressing issues like global health and food security, and close the loop between trade rules and development goals, including the seventeen SDGs. As the AfCFTA is rolled out and implemented, it could have a profound impact on trade and development law, reshaping the rules for Africa and perhaps the world as well.

This article engages with the recently adopted agreement for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in the area of services. While services trade had heretofore stood at the queue of African trade pacts, the AfCFTA breaks new grounds by negotiating goods and services concurrently, signalling a paradigm shift and a commitment to a deeper integration of the continent. Upon Members’ implementation of the Protocol on Trade in Services, whose aim is to establish a single market in services, the region will be the largest economic integration agreement ever concluded since the birth of the World Trade Organization (WTO). This paper sets out to analyse the provisions of the Protocol and how they contribute to achieving the objective of attaining a single market where services (alongside goods, people and capital) move unrestricted.