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| Title: | Europe: partner or exploiter of Africa? The G-90 & the ACP |
| Authors: | Goodison, Paul Stoneman, Colin |
| Year: | 2004 |
| Periodical: | Review of African Political Economy |
| Volume: | 31 |
| Issue: | 102 |
| Pages: | 725-734 |
| Language: | English |
| Geographic terms: | developing countries Southern Africa |
| Subjects: | international economic relations free trade areas European Union SADC |
| External link: | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0305624042000327822 |
| Abstract: | Given that for most of Africa the EU is its major trading partner, there is a significant contradiction in the formal position of the EU in the WTO and EPA (Economic Partnership Agreement) negotiations: the EU insists on a standstill in tariff reductions for ACP countries in a WTO context, while insisting on progressive tariff elimination by the ACP on substantially all imports from the EU as part of the EPA negotiation. This makes it difficult to see what benefits LDCs could gain from an EPA. For the SADC countries, the threats from an EPA would appear even more acute as a result of the existence of the SACU (Southern African Customs Union) and the current implementation of the EU-South Africa TDCA (Trade Development and Cooperation Agreement). Further threats for Africa include EU CAP (Common Agricultural Policy) reform and EU food safety standards. This paper argues that many of the alleged benefits of free-trade-area agreements with developing countries will prove to be illusory for ACP countries, including those in southern Africa, given the wider developments in EU policies. This is of little concern to the EC (European Commission) since its underlying motivations have nothing to do with the structural transformation of southern African economies. Notes, ref. [ASC Leiden abstract] |
