The EU’s Economic Partnership Agreements – or EPAs – with sub-Saharan countries inked a few years ago are not getting off the ground as African governments don’t like their EU-inspired rules on raw materials policies. African countries are also currently prioritising continent-wide regional integration. By Iana Dreyer.
Tag: EPAs
In brief: Malmström calls on Nigeria to sign EPA as ratification process in limbo
In a speech in Lagos, the European Union’s trade commissioner Cecilia Malmström has called on Nigeria to sign and ratify an Economic Partnership Agreement between the EU and the western African bloc ECOWAS. “My message today is that signing and implementing that agreement is a clear win for the companies, …
Blog: A rare business perspective on Economic Partnership Agreements with Africa
Has European business been ‘outsmarted’ by China’s on the European Union’s Economic Partnerships Agreements (EPAs) in Africa? That’s one of the new kinds of questions the EPA process raises.
EPAs can be a boon for Africa if crafted properly, International Trade Centre’s Gonzalez says
Last week, 18 West African countries inked the first Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) with the European Union (EU). Four more EPAs are expected to be signed in Africa. The negotiations process was long and the EU has been criticised for not handling African’s sensitivities properly. In an interview with Borderlex’s …
Blog: Western African EPA – painful birth
The first full regional Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the EU and sub-Saharan Africa is set to come into force, as sixteen West African countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo), decided last week to implement an agreement …
EU-Africa Economic Partnership Agreement negotiations – ways out of the looming impasse?
[sh_light_text ]Europe’s drive to conclude the long-standing Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) negotiations with sub-Saharan Africa could fail. Its bargaining position is weakening visibly as an economically dynamic African continent is being courted by China, India, Brazil and the United States. This complicates the already complex relationships with partners who still …
