What do Africa, Caribbean and Pacific countries gain from Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs)?
Put simply, after more than thirty years of bilateral trade with Europe, the ACP still exports just a few basic commodities, most of which fetch lower prices than they did twenty years ago. Old recipes have not promoted diversification, competitiveness, growth. And they are no longer compatible with WTO rules on non-discrimination and have been successfully challenged. New solutions are necessary and urgent. The ACP-EU’s Economic Partnership Agreements are the agreements that the EU is negotiating with the six African Caribbean and Pacific regions that will replace the trade chapters of the Cotonou Agreement when the trade preferences of this agreement expire in 2008. EU and ACP countries have until that date to negotiate new agreements that are WTO compatible. The EPAs are intended to be broad agreements, helping first of all to build regional markets and diversify economies in the ACP regions before opening up trade to build increased, balanced and sustainable trade between the two r
