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Countries and regions
Central Africa
The EU and Cameroon concluded negotiations on an interim Economic Partnership Agreement in December 2007. The European Parliament approved the agreement in June 2013 and it was ratified by Cameroon in July 2014.
Trade picture
Central Africa countries:
- Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo (Brazzaville), Congo - Democratic Republic of (Kinshasa), Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, São Tomé & Principe
- Oil is the main export from the Central African countries to the EU (45%). Other main regional exports are copper, wood, cocoa, bananas, and diamonds.
- The main imports from the EU into the Central African region are machinery and mechanical appliances, equipment, vehicles, foodstuffs and pharmaceutical products.
EU-Central Africa: Trade in goods
| Year | EU imports | EU exports | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 6.2 | 4.5 | -1.7 |
| 2018 | 6.6 | 4.7 | -1.8 |
| 2019 | 5.7 | 4.7 | -1.1 |
Unless otherwise mentioned “EU” concerns for all indicated years the current European Union of 27 Member States.
Date of retrieval: 22/04/2020
EU and Central Africa
The EU and Cameroon concluded negotiations on an interim Economic Partnership Agreement in 2007. The European Parliament approved the agreement in June 2013 and it was ratified by Cameroon in July 2014.
This agreement lets all goods from Cameroon enter the EU duty and quota-free, and gradually removes duties and quotas over 15 years on 80% of EU exports to Cameroon. It covers trade in goods, aid for trade, institutional issues and dispute settlement.
The interim EPA is a ‘stepping-stone’ agreement. This means the EU and partner countries can deepen the agreement through ‘rendez-vous’ clauses which allow further negotiations on trade-related issues like services, competition, intellectual property, etc.
Gabon and Congo (Brazzaville) have not yet signed the Economic Partnership Agreement. Congo trades with the EU under the EU's Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP).
As an upper-middle income country according to the World Bank classification, Gabon has not been eligible for the GSP scheme since 1 January 2014.
Chad, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, São Tomé and Principe and Equatorial Guinea are least-developed countries, so they benefit from duty-free, quota-free EU access under the EU's Everything but Arms scheme.
The EU and the Central African regional organisations (CEMAC and ECCAS) are studying the possibility to reach a comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement through the stepping-stone agreement already used by Cameroon.
More information on the interim Economic Partnership Agreement between the EU and the Cameroon (Other languages)
Fiche d'information sur l'Accord de Partenariat Economique UE - AFRIQUE CENTRALE (CAMEROUN)
APE Cameroun: Déclaration officielle démantèlement tarifaire
APE Cameroun : Note technique sur le démantèlement tarifaire
APE Cameroun : Offre d'accès au marché transposée en SH2017
Meetings and documents on implementation
Both parties meet regularly to discuss EPA implementation. For more information, please consult:
Trading with Central Africa
- Importing into the EU from Central Africa
- EU trade defence measures on imports from Central Africa
- Exporting from the EU to Central Africa
- Trade defence measures in force in Central Africa
- The EU has delegations in Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo Brazzaville, Gabon
- EU-Central Africa (Cameroon) Economic Partnership Agreement: Creating opportunities for EU and African businesses (factsheet)
See how the interim Economic Partnership Agreement is benefitting exporters in Central Africa: