While the general objective of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) negotiations between the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries and the European Union (EU) is to foster the smooth and gradual integration of ACP states into the global economy, for SADC, the agreement should see the continuous strengthening of regional integration.

One of SADC’s major principles in approaching the EPA negotiations is that EPA must support regional integration initiatives of SADC and not undermine them.

EPAs will therefore need to be based on the integration objectives of SADC on trade, in line with the 15-year Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP), which aims to establish a Free Trade Area (FTA) by 2008 and a Customs Union by 2010.

During the launch of the RISDP in March, SADC’s chairperson, President Benjamin Mkapa said, “As we build up to the operationalisation of the SADC Free Trade Area scheduled for 2008, we must already increase the pace of intra- SADC trade.”

SADC is already midway in the process of implementing its Trade Protocol and is aiming to increase intraregional trade to levels above the current 22 percent. Intra-SADC trade is projected to increase to 35 percent by 2005.

The SADC EPA would need to be consistent with the Trade Protocol, as amended in August 2000, to further integrate intra-regional trade. Specific strategies adopted so far to achieve this objective are:

• the gradual elimination of tariffs;
• adoption of common rules of origin;
• harmonization of customs rules and procedures;
• attainment of internationally acceptable standards, quality, accreditation and metrology;
• harmonization of sanitary and phyto-sanitary measures;
• elimination of non-tariff barriers; and
• development and integration of trade in services.

When member states started to implement the protocol in September 2000, almost 47 percent of all goods traded in SADC were at zero tariffs. “It is expected that by 2008 over 85 percent of the goods will be at zero tariffs, thus ushering in a free trade area in the region,” says Fudzai Pamacheche, Supervisor of the SADC Trade, Industry, Finance and Investment Directorate.

The trade protocol is seen as the most important legal instrument in the region’s quest for economic integration and SADC expects that any EPA would reinforce SADC efforts, especially by promoting the harmonization of trade policies in the region.

SADC’s emphasis on compliance with the trade protocol means that the overarching goal should not be premised on the EPA but rather on SADC’s own regional integration programmes with EPA only playing a complementary role.

The Cotonou Agreement under which the EPA is being negotiated is intended to yield development oriented free trade areas, which in SADC’s case should take into account the interlinked objectives of sustainable development, poverty eradication and the smooth integration of member states into the world economy.

Given the negative impact of globalisation it is imperative that the multilateral trade agreements that SADC engages in strengthen rather than weaken the progress already made towards regional integration.

“It has been observed that globally, intra-regional trade as a percentage of total trade has been growing steadily,” says Pamacheche.

One of the approaches of the EPA negotiations between the ACP and the EU countries is that regional negotiations should be for those regions, such as SADC, which have functional regional integration processes and mechanisms.

The approach was motivated by practical considerations of the greater e fficiency of conducting complex trade and aid negotiations with groups of closely related countries rather than with all 77 ACP states.

This approach is supported by an officially declared intention by the EU to support the process of regional cooperation and integration being undertaken between various groupings of ACP countries.

EPA negotiations are now in their second phase, which began in October 2003 and must be finalised by 31 December 2007. The first phase, which was at an all ACP EU level, was launched in September 2002. ?