President Abdel Fattah El Sisi arrived in Niger on Saturday July 6, 2019 to chair the 12th Extraordinary Summit of the African Union, set to be held in Niamey on Sunday and Monday.

The summit will witness the launch of African Continental Free Trade Area after completing the number of the required endorsements, Presidential Spokesman Bassam Rady said.

Rady said the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) is one of Egypt's priorities in light of its chairmanship of the AU, as it will create the largest free trade area in the world and boost intra-African trade volumes.

On May 30, the AfCFTA officially went into force.

The AfCFTA agreement seeks to triple the volume of intra-African trade from 17% to 60% by 2022.

It also aims at reducing imports, improving productive and manufacturing capacities and supporting infrastructure projects in Africa.