The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Rules of Origin Manual serves as a guide to the operationalisation of Annex 2 on Rules of Origin, which is an essential part of the AfCFTA.

This manual provides detailed information and guidance on how to determine the origin status of goods traded between State Parties within the AfCFTA. It spells out in great detail the application of rules used to determine this origin status, as well as procedures for administering these rules and any institutional framework that is necessary for implementation.

Under AfCFTA, state parties are expected to grant tariff preferences to goods that meet certain origin criteria. The purpose of these rules is to ensure that goods entering a particular country from another member state within the AfCFTA have actually been made or produced with sufficient local content to qualify for preferential tariff treatment. Without such rules, it would be difficult for state parties to protect their local production and competitive domestic industries against competition from non-AfCFTA countries.