Negotiations on an economic agreement between Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA) and the European Union (EU) advanced in May when the two parties agreed to start implementing an interim agreement.

The interim Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the EU and four Eastern and Southern African states – Mauritius, Madagascar, Seychelles and Zimbabwe – came into effect on 14 May following several years of painful negotiations.

The agreement provides access to the EU market free of import duties and quotes for exports from the four countries, which will, in turn, be required to gradually open their markets to European exports over a 15-year period, with exceptions for certain products the countries consider sensitive.

The agreement covers provisions on rules of origin, development cooperation, fisheries, trade defence instruments and dispute settlement. The ESA group comprises Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Seychelles, Sudan, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles, Zambia and Zimbabwe concluded an interim EPA with the EU at the end of 2007, and the first four countries signed in August 2009 in Mauritius.

The four countries have now completed steps towards ratification so the agreement can be applied.

All the four countries that have operationalized the agreement are also SADC Member States.

EPAs are trade and development agreements that the EU is currently negotiating with the six African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) regions. These regions are SADC, ESA, the Economic Community of Central African States (CEMAC) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECoWAS), and groups representing Caribbean and Pacific nations.

They seek to replace the trade chapters of the 2000 Cotonou Agreement between the EU and the ACP countries. In 2000, ACP countries and the EU opted for a more ambitious trade and development relationship covering not just trade in goods, but also services, trade-related rules, investment and development cooperation.

Negotiations for such comprehensive trade and development agreements started in 2002. However, it became clear towards the end of 2007 that it would not be possible for all ACP regions to finalise negotiations before the end of the Cotonou trade regime on 31 December 2007.

A series of interim agreements were concluded to minimise trade disruption for ACP countries arising from the expiry of the Cotonou trade regime in 2008 while maintaining progress towards comprehensive regional EPAs.

The entry into force of the interim EPA with the four ESA countries is seen as a stepping stone to a wider and more comprehensive deal currently under negotiation between the EU and the whole ESA region. However, membership of the various negotiating groups does not reflect the membership of the Regional Economic Communities (RECs). For example, the ESA group is not made up of all countries in eastern and southern Africa.

Similarly, the SADC negotiating group, consisting of Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland and the United Republic of Tanzania, is also not made up of all SADC Member States.

Speaking at a ceremony to mark the start of the EPA implementation process between the EU and ESA, the EU Trade Commissioner, Karel de Gucht said the agreement with the four countries was a result of “hard work of negotiations” from both sides.

“With this trade deal we hope to accompany the development of our partners in Eastern and Southern Africa and open up better and lasting business opportunities,” he said.