International Trade Integration

With the creation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) there has been constant efforts made to create more markets, standardize tariffs and trade laws among countries and remove trade barriers in trying to create free markets.

The WTO agreements cover goods, services and intellectual property. They set procedures for settling disputes and prescribe special treatment for developing countries. The WTO requires governments to make their trade policies transparent and notify them about laws in force and measures adopted through regular reports by the secretariat on countries’ trade policies. many bi lateral and multi-lateral agreements taken place have harmonized international trade to a large extent.

Several countries have begun to form unions along with such agreements to harmonize and free trade regulations in a bid to create free markets. An example of such a union is the customs union which free trade amongst the members countries without customs duties and tariffs, there is however a common external trade policy formulated which determines common import duties that are levied for imports from a third-party country other than the member country.

Another such example is the African continental free trade area among countries in the African Union. The main objectives of the CFTA are to create a single market for goods and services, deepening the economic integration of the continent, free movement of business persons and investments and thus pave the way for accelerating the establishment of the Customs Union.

References

https://sdg.iisd.org/commentary/policy-briefs/african-continental-free-trade-area-completes-first-month-of-trading/
https://www.managementstudyguide.com/international-trade-integration.htm
https://au.int/en/ti/cfta/about#:~:text=The%20main%20objectives%20of%20the,establishment%20of%20the%20Customs%20Union.