The European Union (EU) is negotiating new trade partnerships (EPAs) with African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) countries. However, this paper deems that the EU is choosing power politics over partnership. Therefore, it draws attention to aspects of EPAs that put future economic development at risk.
The paper claims that ACP countries are inextricably linked to the EU, but there is a deep imbalance. It indicates the high dependency on the EU, which limits ACP ability to hold out for a fair deal. In addition, the suggested deals that are currently on the table would have the following negative impacts:
- ACP countries will be stripped of important policy tools they need in order to develop
- the deals require ACP farmers to compete under similar rules as European producers without seriously tackling the manifold competitiveness constraints they face
- they will break regional integration and threaten South–South integration
- they will make it harder for ACP countries to break away from commodity dependence
- the deals require the majority of the world’s developing countries to give up the very flexibilities they have fought for in the Doha “Development Round”
The paper states that in a fair deal, the EU would fully open its markets to all exports without asking ACP countries to reciprocate. This can ensure that ACP countries have the policy freedom to govern their markets in the public interest, and pursue regional integration on their own terms. Moreover, the paper calls for:
- comprehensive independent evaluations and impact assessments of what has been initialled, before any deal is signed and committed into law
- vigorous engagement by parliaments across Europe and the ACP and full examination of the deals
- the EU to offer ACP countries long-term options for trade. The options would include renegotiation of any aspect of the initialled EPAs to reduce the deals to the minimum needed for World Trade Organisation (WTO) compliance
- ACP countries to make a strategic decision on which route they want to pursue, fully consulting all stakeholders
- the EU to agree complete flexibility in approaching negotiations on services, investment, technology transfer, and other trade-related areas
- the EU to provide additional, binding, predictable, and swiftly disbursed support to tackle infrastructure and competitiveness constraints in ACP countries
The paper finally underlines that the EU needs to rethink, and agree to change course, as it is in its own interests to do so.