The Cotonou Agreement and its Implications for the Regional Trade Agenda in Eastern and Southern Africa
Subregional trade arrangements (RTAs) in Eastern and Southern Africa have proliferated in the past 10 to 15 years. The small size of most of the countries in the region, some of which are landlocked, and the security needs in the post independence...
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| Language: | English en_US |
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World Bank, Washington, DC
2014
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2003/06/2416988/cotonou-agreement-implications-regional-trade-agenda-eastern-southern-africa http://hdl.handle.net/10986/18167 |
| Summary: | Subregional trade arrangements (RTAs) in
Eastern and Southern Africa have proliferated in the past 10
to 15 years. The small size of most of the countries in the
region, some of which are landlocked, and the security needs
in the post independence period largely explain the rapid
expansion. These arrangements are characterized by multiple
and overlapping memberships, complex structures, and
eventually, conflicting and confusing commitments. The
influence of RTAs has been limited to assisting the region
in increasing trade, attracting foreign direct investment,
enhancing growth, and achieving convergence among member
countries. But despite their limitations, RTAs have the
potential, if properly designed and effectively implemented,
to be an important instrument in integrating member
countries into global markets. In 1998 most of the Southern
African countries, as members of the Africa Caribbean
Pacific group (ACP), signed the Cotonou Agreement with the
European Union, which includes the negotiation of economic
partnership agreements (EPAs) between the EU and the ACP.
The Cotonou Agreement explicitly leaves to the ACP countries
to decide the level and procedures of the EPA trade
negotiations, taking into account the regional integration
process. This raises the question of how to decide on the
groupings in the context of conflicting regional trade
agendas. The author argues that the Cotonou Agreement and
EPA negotiations could become the external driving force
that will push the regional organizations to rationalize and
harmonize their regional trade arrangements, thus
strengthening the integration process and economies of the
region, and assisting the Eastern and Southern Africa region
in becoming a more active partner in the global economy. |
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