ADDIS ABABA, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- Ethiopia will officially launch trade in goods under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement on Thursday, a senior official has said.

Ethiopian State Minister of Trade and Regional Integration Yasmin Wohabrebbi, addressing a press briefing late Tuesday, said that the East African country's initial export trade under the continental free trade pact will mainly focus on countries in the east and southern African regions.

Data from the ministry show that the country's major export items under the arrangement will include meat, horticultural products, coffee, pulses, and oilseeds, which will be exported via air cargo and land transport, mainly to Kenya, Somalia, and South Africa.

The state minister said that the continental free trade pact will serve as a vital platform to spur market linkages among African countries.

She said AfCFTA's effective implementation "will have significant economic benefits for Ethiopia," boosting the country's trade and investment competitiveness, while also creating job opportunities, and providing better alternative product supply to Ethiopian consumers.

Noting the crucial need to augment the quality and volume of the country's key export commodities, the state minister emphasized the vital imperative to strengthen transportation and technological infrastructures and modernize customs procedures to harness the opportunity.

The AfCFTA, a flagship initiative of the African Union's Agenda 2063, aims to create the world's largest free trade area in terms of the number of participating countries. Since its entry into force in 2019, a total of 47 African countries, including Ethiopia, have ratified the AfCFTA.

With a market comprising 1.4 billion people and a combined gross domestic product of 3.4 trillion U.S. dollars, the AfCFTA seeks to boost intra-African trade by eliminating trade barriers, particularly for value-added goods. The agreement has the potential to generate jobs, create regional value chains, attract investment, and stimulate economic development across Africa, according to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa. ■