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MEETING OF THE TECHNICAL COMMITTEE OF THE AFRICAN CONTINENTAL FREE TRADE AREA-ZLECAF CHAIRED THIS THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2025 IN KINSHASA BY MINISTER JULIEN PALUKU KAHONGYA

Implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area-ZLECAF, the Democratic Republic of Congo more than determined to operationalize the Technical Council which is the management body of the National Committee for the Implementation of the ZLECAF and the thematic working groups; the Minister of Foreign Trade, Julien Paluku Kahongya chaired this Thursday, September 4, 2025 in Kinshasa the first meeting of the ZLECAF Technical Council in which delegates from the Presidency of the Republic, the Prime Minister's Office and stakeholders took part including the General Directorate of Customs and Excise-DGDA, the National Agency for the Promotion of Exports -ANAPEX, the Congolese Control Office-OCC, the Multimodal Freight Management Office-
OGEFREM, the Federation of Businesses of Congo-FEC and the Federation of Artisans, Small and Medium Enterprises of Congo-FENAPEC
The Minister of Foreign Trade and President of the Technical Council of the ZLECAF-DRC urged these experts who examined and validated the draft of the Internal Regulations of the National Committee for the Implementation of the ZLECAF in the Democratic Republic of Congo to provide technical and strategic orientations, but also identify the obstacles and propose solutions for the implementation of the ZLECAF which is a single African market which promotes economic integration, the increase in intra-African trade thanks to tariff dismantling, stimulation of economic growth and jobs, diversification of trade partners, encouragement of industrialization and the addition of value to products as well as the free movement of people and services.

With trade in goods and services, electronic commerce, investment, intellectual property, competition and dispute resolution which constitute the ZLECAF protocols, the Minister of Foreign Trade called on stakeholders to refine concrete and realistic strategies to take full advantage of this African common market, thus avoiding being the dumping ground of other member countries

For his part, Jules Mwilu Mboo, Secretary General for Foreign Trade and Executive Secretary of the National Committee of the ZLECAF added that this draft of the Internal Regulations will be submitted to the appreciation of the National Committee for the Implementation of the ZLECAF in the DRC of which the Prime Minister, Judith Suminwa is the President.