Egypt’s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly will attend the African Union (AU)’s 13th extraordinary summit on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) on Saturday.

Madbouly is attending the event, which ill be held virtually between the AU’s heads of states and governments, on behalf of President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi.

The summit is expected to see the adoption of the decision on the start of trading under the AfCFTA and the adoption of the Johannesburg Declaration on the start of trading under the trade area, according to the AU’s agenda.

The agreement establishing AfCFTA  was signed in March 2018 in Rwanda’s Kigali, entering into force on May 2019.

33 African countries have ratified the AfCFTA agreement which aims to create a market of 1.27 billion consumers with a cumulative GDP of approximately $2.3-$3.4 trillion.