Directorate-General for Trade

Economic partnerships

For more on the legal framework for trade with ACP countries, see African, Caribbean, Pacific

The ACP countries and the EU have long and preferential relations that are governed today by the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement signed in Cotonou on 23 June 2000 and concluded for a period of 20 years.

In order to enhance the contribution of trade to development, the ACP States and the Community decided in Cotonou to overhaul their previous trade relations. Whereas these had been primarily based, since Lomé I, on non-reciprocal trade preferences granted by the Community to ACP exports, the Community and the ACP countries have agreed to conclude new WTO-compatible trading arrangements, progressively removing barriers to trade and enhancing cooperation in all areas related to trade. This current legal framework for trade is primarily conceived as an instrument for development.

To this end, Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) are being negotiated with ACP regions engaged in a regional economic integration process. EPAs are thus intended to consolidate regional integration initiatives within the ACP and to foster the gradual integration of the ACP into the global economy on the basis of an open, transparent and predictable framework for goods and services. EPAs are trade and cooperation agreements at the service of development.

The four pillars of EPAs

1. Partnership

EPAs are partnership agreements, entailing rights and obligations for both sides. Compliance with the obligations by each side is essential for the achievement of the entire undertaking. In particular, while the Union will be prepared to further open up its market to ACP products and tackle all other trade barriers, the ACP States must be prepared to implement appropriate policies to strengthen their supply capacity and to reduce transaction costs.

2. Regional integration

Regional integration is a powerful means of fostering integration into the world economy. The EU itself has built its strength on regional integration. The recent progress made in regional integration within the ACP reflects the political decision of the ACP States to base their own integration into the world economy on regional economic integration. EPAs will therefore be based on regional integration initiatives existing in the ACP. They will keep step with the integration process within the ACP, as provided for in the Constitutive Act of the African Union or as agreed among the ACP States as a whole.

3. Development

EPAs are above all instruments for development. They will therefore be designed with all the flexibility required to take account of the economic, social and environmental constraints of the ACP countries concerned and of their capacity to adapt to the new trading environment. On the other hand, they must be integrated into the development policy of the ACP countries and into the support strategies of the EU.

4. Link to WTO

EPAs are not an end in themselves, but are intended to act as a stepping stone to the gradual integration of the ACP countries into the world economy. They will therefore build on the rules of the WTO, taking account of the results of the Doha Development Agenda.

However, in some respects EPAs will go beyond the WTO. This is so because they will define, within the broad framework of WTO rules, more specific and more operational, bilateral trade-related provisions (for example in the area of sanitary and phytosanitary standards). These are intended to tackle the practical barriers to trade among the ACP countries themselves and between the ACP and the EU. This will help establish closer integration among the parties and be supported through trade-related assistance.

For more information on trade-related assistance, see Programmes (Aid for Trade)

EPAs are scheduled to enter into force by 1 January 2008 at the latest. The non-reciprocal Lomé IV trade preferences will continue to be applied during the interim period (2000-2007).

Negotiations

Formal EPA negotiations at the level of all ACP countries started in September 2002. Since October 2003 regional negotiations with ACP regions (West Africa, Central Africa, Eastern and Southern Africa, East African Community, Southern African Development Community, Caribbean, Pacific) - have been launched. EPA negotiations are supported through trade-related assistance providing support for the negotiation process, ACP supply and trade capacity.

At the end of 2007, a first full regional EPA was initialled with Cariforum and a number of interim agreements were concluded with certain countries or regions in Africa and the Pacific, that serve as a stepping stone for full regional EPAs currently under negotiation.

• Detailed information on the current state of play in Negotiations

ACP Sustainability Impact Assessment

To provide a qualified assessment of the negotiation of ACP-EC Economic Partnership Agreements, Commission departments have launched a study which includes an examination and overview of the potential major economic, environmental and social impacts of these negotiations.

For more information, see details of the study in Assessments.

Supporting information

• On 17 June 2002, EU foreign ministers unanimously adopted the mandate for the European Commission to negotiate EPAs with the ACP. The strategy underpinning the mandate is set out in the explanatory memorandum
• On the ACP side, guidelines for the negotiations were agreed by ACP Trade and Finance Ministers on 21 June and confirmed by the ACP Council on 27 June 2002