ACP-EU-TRADE

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The acp-eu-trade.org newsletter -- No. 40/June 2010
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Dear readers,

Welcome to the June issue of the acp-eu-trade.org newsletter!

Below you will find a link to the June issue of Trade Negotiations Insights, a collection of press articles published during the past month and a selection of recently added documents in the acp-eu-trade.org library. As usual, we also provide some resources on recent and upcoming events relevant to ACP-EU trade relations.

ACP-EU stakeholders are encouraged to participate in the various services provided via this website with the aim to exchange relevant information, build up trade negotiating capacity and facilitate networking activities. We therefore invite our readers to take an active role in www.acp-eu-trade.org by:

• Registering on-line as a trade and development expert to help mobilise the best expertise in ACP-EU trade and development matters and give interested parties easier access to information on relevant internationally recognized experts or consultants;
• Submitting relevant background and policy documents, news and links that will enrich the ACP-EU trade debate;
• Subscribing to this monthly newsletter as well as other partners’ to be kept informed of latest developments in the ACP-EU trade realm;
• Sharing your views on the current ACP-EU Trade debate and providing feedback on the relevance and future focus areas of www.acp-eu-trade.org

We appreciate any feedback on this newsletter and look forward to your reactions. You may send your comments to acpeutrade@ecdpm.org.

Enjoy your reading!

Editor: Melissa Dalleau (md@ecdpm.org)

- Announcement - Do not miss in the coming weeks our Special issue of Trade Negotiations Insights entirely dedicated to Taxation and Development !

* ACP-EU sign Second Revised Cotonou Agreement
ACP Press Statement, 22 June 2010
The African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group with its principal development partner, the European Union, today signed the second five-yearly review of the Cotonou Agreement in a historic event in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. After more than a year of negotiations with the EU, both parties signed the revised agreement in a colourful event – witnessed by ministers, ambassadors and officials from the ACP and the EU countries at the close of the 35th Session of the ACP-EU Council of Ministers.[…] The revised Agreement, amongst other things, addressed a number of important issues between the two parties. One of them is the need to expedite progress towards the attainment of MDGs as well as aid effectiveness and global challenges such financial market shocks.
-> Access the text of the Agreement amending for the second time the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement, Council of the European Union, 7 June 2010
-> Read also the Statement by the President of the ACP Council, His Excellency Mr. Paul Bunduku-Latha, Deputy Minister to the Ministry of Economic Planning, Trade, Industry and Tourism of the Gabonese Republic at the joint press conference held on this occasion.
-> Watch the Video of the Signature of the Revised Agreement

* Guyana's concerns shared by ACP member states
Caribbean Net News, 22 June 2010
Guyana participated at the African Caribbean Pacific (ACP) Council of Ministers Meeting held in Ouagadougou, Africa on June 17 to 19 where member states echoed the concerns first raised by Guyana about unresolved issues including Most Favoured Nations (MFNs), Rules of Origin, market access and export taxes.[…] The Council discussed several issues including the status of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPAs) trade in bananas, sugar and cotton, climate change and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and has petitioned the EU to revisit some of the conditions which the ACP finds difficult to accept. […] The Foreign Minister indicated that while efforts should be made to find common ground on a Joint ACP-EU Declaration on EPAs and unresolved issues, it is incumbent on the ACP Council to issue a Declaration. The suggestion received widespread support from member states and an ACP Declaration is being finalized. […]
It asked that the EU and the Commission “ensure that the new provision of the Cotonou Agreement regarding the need to review support programmes such as the Accompanying Measures Support Programme with a view to deciding on appropriate additional measures to be implemented in order to guarantee the Commission’s commitment to continued support of the ACP Commodity Sector, including sugar, beyond 2013.”
-> See also on this subject, ACP member states express concerns over unresolved issues, Starbroek news, 27 June 2010

* EPAs on banking to boost trade within Africa
Business Daily, Allan Odhiambo, 28 May 2010
Economic pacts with Europe that centre on more efficient and competitive banking and insurance services will offer opportunities to grow intra-Africa trade, a new study by a UN agency said. “The institutional landscape on which intra-Africa trade takes place will change dramatically depending on the model of liberalisation that the economic partnership agreements (EPAs) adopt,” the UN’s Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) said in a report presented at the ongoing annual conference of the African Development Bank (AfDB) in Abijan, Cote d’Ivoire. […] “The services economy being the new frontier for the expansion of trade, intra-African trade would be positively affected if EPAs could lead to more efficient and competitive banking and insurance sectors on the continent,” the agency said in its report, Assessing Regional Integration in Africa IV.
-> Read the mentioned report Assessing Regional Integration in Africa IV Enhancing Intra-African Trade

* [ACP Group] Secretary-General Dr. Chambas calls for open discussion on the future of ACP Group
ACP Press Statement, 7 June 2010
The African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Day has been marked in Brussels, Belgium, with Secretary-General Dr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas calling for an open discussion on the future of the Group.
Speaking at the symposium to mark the anniversary in Brussels, Dr Chambas said that the adoption of the Lisbon Treaty in December 2009 and its conspicuous silence about the ACP has raised legitimate concerns on the future of the ACP Group. “The question of ACP Group’s existence beyond 2020 is an issue that we should openly discuss and today’s anniversary should allow us some leeway for reflection. It is no secret that the answer to this question rests with the Group,” the Secretary-General, said.

* Private equity firms face EU curbs
Johnstone Ole Turana, Business Daily, 1 July 2010
Private equity and venture capital firms are set to run into headwinds as Europe, the main source of funds, seeks to restrict their borrowing through reciprocal arrangement. The proposal in the European Parliament seeks to entrench the tool where recipient countries should allow for unfettered access by European fund managers. “The passage of this regulation will impact heavily on the ability of PEs and VCs to raise funds from the European market which is the main source due to ease of access and availability of willing investors,” said Martin Lore the CEO of Africa Venture Capital Association (AVCA). What is likely to raise eyebrows is the drive to have a reciprocal arrangement for fund managers, a situation spelt out in the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPAs) but have been opposed by the Africa, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries.

* Caricom leaders discuss critical trade matters
Jamaica Observer, 05 July 2010
CARICOM leaders yesterday mulled over the implications for the region's continued participation in free trade negotiations in the current economic crisis, among other things. They were meeting during Caricom's working sessions which resumed yesterday morning at the Rose Hall Hotel in Montego Bay. The meeting also discussed the Canada-Caricom negotiations for a trade and development agreement, and the CARIFORUM/EU Economic Partnership Agreement, according to a statement from the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM).

* EU and West African hold EPA talks in Ouagadougou
EC DG TRADE, EPA Flash News, June 2010
From 2 to 11 June 2010 European and West African officials met at technical level in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) to discuss the way ahead in Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) negotiations. Talks resulted in progress on rules of origin and issues such as the calendar for phasing out tariffs and dispute settlement. However, more work is needed including on West Africa's market access offer, agricultural subsidies, and the Protocol on implementing the EPA Development Programme (PAPED). A follow-up meeting on rules of origin is to be held in Brussels on 12-16 July, while a meeting at technical level, followed by one with Senior Officials, is foreseen for 13-17 September in Brussels.

* [civil society] Accords de partenariat économique : Le bras de fer Afrique de l’Ouest-Union européenne continue (available in french only)
Fatouma Sophie OUATTARA, LeFaso.net, 15 June 2010
Les parties prenantes aux négociations sur l’Accord de partenariat économique (APE) entre l’Afrique de l’Ouest et l’Union européenne, se sont retrouvés la semaine dernière à Ouagadougou. A l’issue de cette rencontre qui a accouché une fois de plus d’une souris, les organisations de la société civile ont donné une conférence de presse dans la soirée du vendredi 11 juin. Le dialogue de sourds entre l’Union européenne et l’Afrique de l’Ouest concernant les APE est loin d’être terminé. C’est du moins ce qui ressort du point de presse de la société civile, à l’issue des négociations intervenues au cours de la semaine dernière.
-> See also on this subject, [opinion/civil society] L’arrogance et l’intransigeance de l’Union Européenne poussent les négociateurs africains à rejeter tout APE !, Maurice Oudet, ABC Burkina, 12 June 2010

* National Association of Nigerian Traders commends the EU Council
Success K. Uchime, AllVoices, 5 June 2010
The National Association of Nigerian Traders (NANTS) has commended the European Union (EU) Council’s promise to provide financial support for West Africa’s Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA), development support program (EPADP) by making available 6.5billion Euro over the next five years. The Head, Legal Department, of the Traders Association, Aniekan Ukpe Esq. who stated this in a pres release from its Abuja, the nation’s capital office on May 17, 2010, said the fund will be drawn from the existing European Development Fund (EDF) and Community budget. […] He stated: “The huge disappointment the EU position entails for the West African region is not simply borne out of the short-fall in the figures but more importantly that the EU seeks to largely draw the funds from an already earmarked EDF which lies to the benefit of not just West Africa, but the entire African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP) countries in given proportions.” According to him the clear manifestation is that the EU is not committing any dedicated funds to the EPADP, a position it has always maintained. “Questions that could possibly arise in the present scenario are; how exactly does the EU intend to push funds from the EDF into the EPADP? Is it by part re-allocation or source funding? Does this calculation signify and announce the closure or demise of the EDF as far as West Africa is concerned? Is this an indication that the rumor about recycling of funds is evident?”

* EIB President welcomes second revision of Cotonou agreement and signs technical support for Liberian energy project through West African Power Pool (also available in French)
EIB Press Release, 22 June 2010
The European Union and 79 countries from Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific (ACP) proceeded to the signature, in Ouagadougou, of the second revision of the Cotonou Partnership Agreement. The latter will notably allow the European Investment Bank to enhance its financing of regional infrastructure projects together with ACP sponsors. It will also offer the possibility for the Bank to accompany South African intermediaries in their drive towards regional economic integration for projects located in the rest of Africa. [… ] Alongside the ACP-EU Joint Council of Ministers, President Maystadt also signed a technical assistance agreement with Mr. Amadou Diallo, Secretary General of the West African Power Pool (WAPP) for the preparation of the “Mount Coffee Hydropower Rehabilitation Project”. […] Since the entry into force of the Cotonou Agreement in 2003, about EUR 4.2 bn worth of projects have been signed by the EIB under its Cotonou mandate in ACP countries, more than a third being in the infrastructure sector (energy, transports, telecommunication as well as water and sewerage).

Trade Commissioner meets East African Community Trade Ministers in Tanzania
EC DG TRADE Press Release, 9 June 2010
On 9 June 2010 European Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht met Trade Ministers from the East African Community (EAC) in Dar es Salaam to discuss the way ahead in Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) negotiations. The Ministerial meeting was preceded by a Senior Official negotiation round. The Commission and EAC representatives from Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda appreciated the progress made, especially with regard to Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, Technical Barriers to Trade, and Customs and Trade Facilitation. Both parties are to accelerate and intensify negotiations with a view to conclude a full and comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) for mid-November 2010. EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht made it clear that he would do his upmost to maintain applied tariffs provided that both parties conduct negotiations in good faith. The parties also addressed the "Development Matrix" to be attached to the Agreement.
-> related PRESS RELEASE from the EAC portal, EAC-EC Economic Partnership Agreement Negotiations Held in Dar es Salaam, EAC Press Release, 9 June 2010
-> Read the joint EAC-EC Communiqué issued on the Framework for an Economic Partnership Agreement (FEPA) and negotiations for the comprehensive EPA at this occasion

* EU sets November deadline for new trade pact with EAC
Allan Odhiambo, Nairobi Business Daily, 11 June 2010
The European Union (EU) has set a November deadline to conclude long running negotiations with East Africa over the signing of a new economic partnership agreement (EPA). The new deadline followed an unsuccessful round of talks in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania this week aimed at unlocking a stalemate on the signing of a framework on the Economic Partnership Agreement (FEPA).
“We didn’t agree and both sides agreed to maintain the status quo as we work towards beating the new November deadline,” said David Nalo, Permanent Secretary at the East African Community (EAC) Affairs Ministry.
Among the sticking issues ahead of this week’s talks had been a demand by EAC states for an enhanced development budget to compensate them for revenue losses expected to result from removal of tariffs on EU imports. The European Commission (EC) has argued that it already disburses a lot of budgetary allocation in development support to the region and will not make additional commitment.
-> See also on this subject, EAC, EPA pacts for November 2010, David Muwanga, East African Business Week, 16 June 2010 and East Africa, EU trade talks suffer fresh setback, George Omondi, Nairobi Business Daily, 9 June 2010

* Activists Warn Over Economic Partnership Deal
Joe Nam, The New Vision online, 8 June 2010
Over 15 fair trade lobby organizations have warned the East African Community leaders against signing the Framework Economic Partnerships Agreements (EPAs) with the European Union. The Framework Economic Partnerships Agreement (FEPA) between the European Union and the East African Community is scheduled to be signed today in the Tanzanian capital of Dar-es-Salaam, despite widespread criticism. Among the critics of the agreement are former Tanzanian president Benjamin Mkapa and Malawian president Bingu wa Matharika. "We are calling on our governments to rethink the EPAs. The EPAs we are entering into are based on the same ideology of the Washington consensus of market fundamentalism which promote the neo-liberal policies of deregulation, liberalisation and privatisation.
-> Read also: CSOs insist govt should re-think EPAs, Joseph Olanyo, East African Business Week, 8 June 2010, and Activists up in arms against EPA pact, Levina Kato,Daily News Online Edition, 8 June 2010

* [regional integration] Commencement of the EAC Common Market : Statement by the EAC Secretary General
EAC press release, EAC Secretariat
1st July 2010 marks the commencement of the operationalisation of the East African Community (EAC) Common Market. Following the completion of the ratification of the Protocol on the Common Market, the complex and long march towards transforming the EAC region into a Common or Single Market begins with resolve and fervour. […] It is important to underline the words complex and long march. Unlike the operationalisation of the Customs Union which had a big bang start up with the Common External Tariff and zero rating of Customs duty in respect of intra-regional trade in goods (except for goods destined to Tanzania and Uganda from Kenya), taking effect from day one, the operationalisation of the Common Market is a process. Indeed, the process itself is complex in terms of what is required to be undertaken at the levels of the Partner States and, in certain respects, at the level of the EAC itself.

* [regional integration] COMESA may miss deadline for duty-free trade
Radio vop, The Zimbabwean, Harare, 24 June 2010
Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) Secretary General Sindiso Ngwenya on Tuesday warned member countries that the regional body might fail to achieve a duty free trade area by 2012 as planned due to delays by some countries to submit their tariff alignments proposals.
-> For previous press release, see: COMESA makes progress on the Customs Union, COMESA press release, mid-June 2010, as well as our events section for more info on the COMESA trade and customs committee.

* EU’s ‘divisive’ trade deal comes under fire at SADC conference
Loyiso Langeni, BusinessDay, 25 June 2010
Southern African Development Community (Sadc) executive secretary Tomáz Salomão yesterday (24/06/10) criticised the European Union (EU) for trying to “impose” a preferential free-trade agreement on countries in the region. […] Mr Salomão said economic partnership agreements with the EU “should be relevant to the needs of the region, if not, this process should not be allowed to exist”. He said most Sadc members opposed the agreement as it had the potential to divide the region. “We are also partly to blame because we failed to negotiate as a bloc with the EU,” Mr Salomão said. He was speaking at a conference to discuss ways to improve co-operation and socioeconomic development in the region.

* [Bostwana] Botswana in fragile balancing act at EPA talks
Mbongeni Mguni, Mmegi Online, 18 June 2010
As it plays host to the six SADC EPA states in key discussions in Gaborone this week (18/06/10), Botswana is expected to negotiate common ground and foster regional cohesion ahead of further discussions with the EU around August/September. Botswana, economically the largest of the four countries that signed an interim EPA (IEPA) last June, will use this week’s meeting to nudge South Africa, Namibia and Angola towards proposals that could see the finalisation of EPA negotiations with the EU. Besides being eager for regional cohesion, Botswana’s zeal is driven by practicalities such as its potential loss of a large import market, critical SACU revenues and the adverse economic impact of antagonising key coastal states like Namibia and South Africa.
In addition, Botswana - which has lucrative export lines to the EU - could lose out should the World Trade Organisation (WTO) enforce the December 2007 deadline SADC EPA countries agreed to for their negotiations with the EU. Botswana’s rivals in exports to the lucrative EU market could gleefully push the WTO to enforce the deadline, jeopardising the country’s beef and base metals exports.
[…] A positive for the SADC EPA group is that the EU has warmed to discussion of unresolved issues, marking a break from its previous insistence that IEPA signatories notify the WTO of the agreement and implement it.

* NGO letter: Undue pressure on Namibia to sign an interim EPA
EPA WATCH, 18 June 2010
In a joint open Letter to Trade Commissioner Karel de Gucht, 30 NGOs expressed their concern over the undue pressure on the government of Namibia to sign the interim EPA. The negotiations on the “SADC” EPA are still ongoing and contentious issues still remain outstanding. The NGOs urged the Commissioner to stop the pressure on Namibia, but to engage positively with the “SADC EPA” countries, and show policy flexibility in addressing the outstanding issues in the negotiations.
-> Read the mentioned open Letter on undue pressure on Namibia to sign an interim EPA

* [Regional Integration] Southern Africa: Customs Union to Consider Signing New Members
Loyiso Langeni, Business Day, 28 June 2010
The Southern African Customs Union (Sacu) would discuss opening up its membership to other countries in the region at a top-level meeting next month, Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said. […] Mr Davies said the union could be "an instrument for development integration". Any expansion of the customs union - a topic discussed before - will require a resolution to the impasse dividing SA and Namibia from smaller members Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland.
SA threatened last year to tighten its border controls with Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland after the three smallest members signed interim bilateral free-trade agreements with the European Union (EU), in contravention of Sacu rules. SA has not yet done so, however. ‘[…] Peter Draper, head of the development through trade programme at the South African Institute of International Affairs, said so far Mozambique was the only country to show interest in becoming part of the customs union […]. Mr Draper also questioned the National Treasury's willingness to subsidise new members through the customs union revenue sharing scheme. SA - the dominant economy in the region - massively subsidises the national budgets of other Sacu members.
-> See also: SACU to address challenges at July summit, Tang Danlu, Xinhua (People’s Daily Online, Beijing), 16 June 2010 and Sacu reviews contentious revenue-sharing formula, Terence Creamer, engineeringnews, 21 June 2010

* [Solomon/V-flex] Signature to Cotonou Strengthens Relationship
Solomon Time Online, 28 June 2010.
Minister of Planning and Aid Coordination, Hon. Steve Abana was amongst the first to sign the Second Revised Cotonou Agreement in Burkina Faso. […] The minister stressed that Solomon Islands maintains a cordial and strong relationship with the EU, which remains the single largest multilateral donor partner in the country's development endeavors through successive European Development Fund resource packages.
In September, Solomon Islands will receive EURO 15.2 million under the vulnerability-flex facility, for which Minister Abana recently signed instruments with Ambassador Aldo d'Arricio, the EU Representative to Solomon Islands based in Port Moresby.

* PIPSO Needs Support to Exploit Opportunities
Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat Press Release, via Solomon Times Online, 25 June 2010
Smart business management and decision-making by the private sector, and regional cooperative actions are some of the ways that could assist the private sector in the Pacific region exploit the global economic recovery opportunities. Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat Tuiloma Neroni Slade made the comments when he opened the Pacific Islands Private Sector Organisation (PIPSO) Regional Workshop in Nadi, Fiji on 23rd June.
The three-day workshop with the theme "Strengthening Pacific Islands Private Sector to meet Global Recovery Opportunities" is organized through the assistance of the European Union under the Pacific Regional Economic Integration Programme (PACREIP).

* Trade relevant provisions in the Treaty of Lisbon. Implications for Economic Partnership Agreements
Koeb, E. and M. Dalleau, Discussion Paper 98, Maastricht: ECDPM, June 2010
This note will seek to highlight the main changes introduced by the Lisbon Treaty that may impact on EU trade and development policy and will consider the effects these may have on the EPA process. After reviewing, in Section 2, key relevant aspects of the Lisbon Treaty, Section 3 focuses on the new EU trade policy setting and its implications for the EPA process. Section 4 then ventures on a number of other policy areas (EU external action, development cooperation, migration) that may also affect EPAs, while Section 5 brings the discussion to a close by summarising some key considerations.

* EU-ACP Economic Partnership Agreements: State of Play at June 2010
The European Commission, State of Play at June 2010, 15 June 2010
Negotiations towards more comprehensive and inclusive EPAs have continued in parallel to the process towards signature of the interim agreements. The EU approach is based on the Cotonou Agreement and the negotiation directives of 12 June 2002. These foresee comprehensive, regional arrangements that include trade in goods, trade in services and investment as well as a range of trade related rules such as competition policies, trade facilitation, sanitary and phytosanitary standards, protection of intellectual property rights, trade and environment and labour standards.

* European Parliament decision of 15 June 2010 on the setting up and numerical strength of the Delegation to the CARIFORUM-EU Parliamentary Committee
European Parliament decision, 15 June 2010
“The European Parliament ,
– having regard to the Constituent Act of 29 December 2008 of the CARIFORUM-EU Parliamentary Committee,
– having regard to Rule 198 of its Rules of Procedure,
1. Decides to set up a Delegation to the CARIFORUM-EU Parliamentary Committee;
2. Decides that the numerical strength of the delegation shall be 15 full members;
3. Decides that nine members shall be taken from the Committee on International Trade and six from the Committee on Development;
4. Instructs its President to forward this decision to the Council and the Commission for information”

* Official text - EU-US-Latin America banana agreements.
EU Official Journal. 9 June 2010.
- EU Council Decision of 10 May 2010 on the signing and provisional application of the Geneva Agreement on Trade in Bananas between the European Union and Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru and Venezuela and of the Agreement on Trade in Bananas between the European Union and the United States of America
-Geneva Agreement on Trade in Bananas
-Agreement on trade in bananas between the European Union and the United States of America

* Assessing Regional Integration in Africa IV Enhancing Intra-African Trade
UNECA-AfDB-AU Report, May 2010
ARIA IV, which is a joint-publication of the ECA, the AUC and the AfDB, finds on average that over the past decades, only about 10 to 12 per cent of African trade is within the continent which is one of the lowest intra-regional trade levels worldwide. Low intra-African trade implies that many opportunities are lost for benefiting from the gains of trade, promoting growth and accelerating development. Indeed, the empirical research reviewed in ARIA IV suggests that there is a positive correlation between trade openness and economic growth, in particular through the transmission of technological innovation and the creation of enhanced capacity to compete with more advanced economies on the international market. Greater trade openness also increases competition in the local market, which in turn increases productive efficiency, economic growth as well as price convergence across countries and regions. Finally, trade liberalization contributes to economic growth by creating incentives for governments to adopt less distortionary domestic policies and more disciplined management of the macro economy. The situation raises serious questions relating to the reasons for the low level of intra-African trade and the potential for reversing the situation.
ARIA IV attempts to answer these questions through rigorous analysis and
makes concrete proposals that can be implemented by member States, Regional
Economic Communities, private sector operators and other key stakeholders to deepen intra-Africa trade. The analyses and findings also provide policy advice that contributes to the attainment of the objectives of the Abuja Treaty and the African Union

* Global Economic Prospects - Summer 2010 'Fiscal Headwinds and Recovery'
World Bank Report, 10 June 2010
The global economic recovery continues to advance, but Europe’s debt crisis has created new hurdles on the road to sustainable medium term growth, cautions the World Bank’s latest Global Economic Prospects 2010. The World Bank projects global GDP to expand between 2.9 and 3.3 percent in 2010 and 2011, strengthening to between 3.2 and 3.5 percent in 2012, reversing the 2.1 percent decline in 2009. Developing economies are expected to grow between 5.7 and 6.2 percent each year from 2010-2012. […] Regardless of how the debt situation in high-income Europe evolves, a second round financial crisis cannot be ruled out in certain countries of developing Europe and Central Asia, where rising non-performing loans, due to slow recovery and significant levels of short-term debt, may threaten banking-sector solvency. […] Many developing countries will continue to face serious financing gaps. Private capital flows to developing countries are forecast to recover only modestly from $454 billion (2.7 percent of the developing world’s GDP) in 2009 to $771 billion (3.2 percent of GDP) by 2012, still far below the $1.2 trillion (8.5 percent of GDP) in 2007. Overall, the financing gap of developing countries is projected to be $210 billion in 2010, declining to $180 billion in 2011—down from an estimated $352 billion in 2009.
Over the next 20 years, the fight against poverty could be hampered if countries are forced to cut productive and human capital investments because of lower development aid and reduced tax revenues, the report says. If bilateral aid flows decline, as they have in the past, this could affect long-term growth rates in developing countries—potentially increasing the number of extremely poor in 2020 by as much as 26 million.

* Economic Development in Africa Report 2010
UNCTAD Report, 18 June 2010
The increasing role of large developing countries in global trade, finance, investment and governance, coupled with their rapid economic growth, has stimulated debate on the implications for Africa’s development. The Economic Development in Africa Report 2010 examines recent trends in the economic relationships of Africa with other developing countries and the new forms of partnership that are animating those relationships.[….] The report places the new relationships and multiplying partnerships within the context of South–South cooperation. It argues that South–South cooperation opens new opportunities for Africa, and the main challenge facing African countries is how to harness these new relationships more effectively to further their long-term development goals. There is a need for policies at the national level to ensure that Africa–South cooperation does not replicate the current pattern of economic relations with the rest of the world, in which Africa exports commodities and imports manufactures. In this regard, African countries and their developing country partners should manage their growing and evolving relationships in a manner that supports and enhances technological progress, capital accumulation and structural transformation in the region. The report also stresses the need to broaden the country and sectoral focus of cooperation with the South to ensure that the gains are better distributed across countries. Furthermore, it argues that South– South cooperation should be seen as a complement rather than a substitute for relations with traditional partners, and that the latter can make South– South cooperation work for Africa by strengthening support for triangular cooperation as well as through better dialogue with developing country partners

* Trade Regionalisation and Openness in Africa
Lelio Iapadre, Francesca Luchetti, European University Institute, Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies, Working Paper, June 2010
The intensity of trade among countries belonging to the same region depends not only on the existence and effectiveness of a regional integration agreement, but also on other factors, which include the overall trade policy orientation and the relative level of geo-graphic and economic barriers affecting intra- and extra-regional trade. After presenting a set of indicators aimed at measuring correctly the intensity of bi-lateral trade preferences, this paper shows that most African countries tend to trade more intensely with partners belonging to the same region than with the rest of the world. However, this is not so much the result of the weak regional integration agreements that are in force in Africa, as a consequence of the manifold barriers limiting the degree of international openness of African countries. Under this perspective, a relatively high level of intra-regional trade, far from revealing the success of preferential integration policies, confirms that Africa’s participation in the process of globalisation is still very limited.

* The Costs and Benefits of Duty-Free, Quota-Free Market Access for Poor Countries: Who and What Matters
Antoine Bouët, Kimberley Elliott, David Laborde Debucquet, Elisa Dienesch, Center for Global Development, Working Paper, March 2010
This paper examines the potential benefits and costs of providing duty-free, quota-free market access to the least developed countries (LDCs), and the effects of extending eligibility to other small and poor countries. Using the MIRAGE computable general equilibrium model, it assesses the impact of scenarios involving different levels of coverage for products, recipient countries, and preference-giving countries on participating countries, as well as competing developing countries that are excluded. The main goal of this paper is to highlight the role that rich and emerging countries could play in helping poor countries to improve their trade performance and to assess the distribution of costs and benefits for developing countries and whether the potential costs for domestic producers are in line with political feasibility in preference-giving countries.

* Doing Business in the East African Community 2010
Report prepared as part of the EAC Investment Climate Program supported by the World Bank Group and DFID, 24 May 2010
Countries in East Africa generally show mixed results in Doing Business’s annual reports, but there are pockets of good practice that, if adopted by all countries in the region, would yield a very healthy business environment, according to Doing Business in the East African Community 2010. Released on May 24, the 62-page report takes a close look at business regulations in Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. The average rank of these five countries is 116 out of 183, ranging from Rwanda at 67th to Burundi at 176th (see table to right).

* Are simplified Customs Procedures for Imports Effectively Controlled?
European Court of Auditors, Report, 7 June 2010
The European Court of Auditors has assessed whether the regulatory framework and control approach developed by the European Commission and put in place in the Member States effectively control simplified customs procedures for imports. According to a Special Report published by the Court today, simplified procedures are not yet effectively controlled in the majority of the audited Member States. As such, there is no reasonable assurance of the correct collection of traditional own resources or that traders comply with the obligations deriving from the common trade policy. In order to improve controls on simplified procedures the Commission should urge Member States to rapidly implement the recently-developed regulatory framework and guidelines, monitor their implementation and further enhance the framework in the light of the Court’s and its own audit and monitoring results.

* Leveraging World Bank Resources for the Poorest: IDA Blended Financing Facility Proposal
Benjamin Leo, Center for Global Development, Working Paper, 08 June 2010
With the Millennium Development Goals deadline only five years away, the international donor community faces significant challenges due to the global economic crisis, record government deficits and simultaneous funding requests from nearly every multilateral development institution. This paper proposes a new World Bank financing model for creditworthy emerging economies, such as India and Vietnam, which currently receive billions of dollars in IDA assistance. In contrast to the current IDA-centric financing model the IBRD would provide the same loan value to qualifying emerging economies while IDA would provide grant subsidies to buy down the concessionality level of these IBRD loans. As such, these countries would be held harmless both in terms of id volumes and lending terms.

* Our Common Strategic Interests Africa’s Role in the Post-G8 World
Tom Cargill Chatham House Report, June 2010
This new paper from Chatham House argues that global players that develop greater diplomatic and trade relations with African states will be greatly advantaged. For many countries, particularly those that have framed their relations with Africa largely in humanitarian terms, this will require an uncomfortable shift in public and policy perceptions according to the paper. But without this shift, many of Africa's traditional partners, especially in Europe and North America, will lose global influence and trade advantages to the emerging powers in Asia, Africa and South America. The paper also argues that economic fortunes across Africa are diverging, making it less meaningful to treat Africa as a single entity in international economic negotiations. However, it also claims that it is in the global interest that the African Union should be granted a permanent place at the G20 and that in turn, a more focused, sophisticated and strategic African leadership is needed.

* LDCs Terms of Trade during Crisis and Recovery
International Trade Centre, ITC Trade Map Factsheet #3, June 2010
This latest Trade Map factsheet determines whether LDCs, in either aggregate or individual terms, have seen an improvement or deterioration in their terms of trade in recent years and to assess whether or not there have been significant differences between LDCs’ terms of trade evolution with emerging markets and developed economies. While trade values with emerging markets, such as China, proved more resilient than with developed economies, LDCs’ terms of trade have deteriorated significantly with all partners analysed, whether developed or emerging markets. In addition to examining the LDCs’ terms of trade performance between 2006 and 2009 and related considerations of vulnerability due to import and export composition, this factsheet provides an update on LDCs’ export recovery in terms of value and volume following the crisis. Overall, the findings support the observation that the post-crisis context for LDCs is one in which they are “exporting more for less.

* How imports improve productivity and competitiveness
OECD Report, May 2010
Trade in intermediate goods and services are a direct consequence of the international fragmentation of production, the rise of vertical supply chains and related sourcing strategies of firms. Firms are outsourcing and offshoring in order to lower costs, acquire higher quality inputs, and generally improve their competitiveness. The implications are significant. Import barriers can deny firms access to the goods and services they need to compete internationally. Rather than protecting domestic jobs, trade restrictive policies can produce plant closures and job losses. On the other hand, more liberal trade policies allow firms to fully benefit from international production networks.

* Trade and the economic recovery: why open markets matter
OECD Report, May 2010
Governments should embrace an ambitious trade liberalisation agenda and work to a successful conclusion of the Doha Development Agenda, says this OECD report on trade and the economic recovery.

* Trade policy and the Economic Crisis
OECD, Report, May 2010
This report highlights trade policy conclusions and recommendations from a major study that started in 2008.

* Sixth Report on Potentially Trade Restrictive Measures
EC Trade Report, 28 May 2010
The EU´s major trade partners have put in place almost 280 so-called trade restrictive measures during the economic crisis over the last 18 months says the latest report published by the European Commission. Contrary to the G20 commitment, hardly any measures have been removed despite signs of economic recovery in most countries. The European Commission now calls on its main trading partners to remove these restrictions in order to give a much needed boost to the recovery. The report looks at the level of trade restrictions in force while the downward trend of the economy is gradually reversing. During the first months of 2010, the world economy rebounded better than had been anticipated. However, it continues to be a multispeed upturn: stronger across the emerging economies and more hesitant in the industrialised world. The European Union's trade flows are also recovering, albeit at a slower and rather hesitant pace, as compared with other major economies.

* Africa Resists the Protectionist Temptation. The 5th GTA Report
Simon Evenett, 5th Global Trade Alert Report, May 2010
With the return to economic growth of many industrialised economies in either late 2009 or the first half of 2010, combined with sustained expansions in the emerging market economies, came the hope that protectionist pressures would ease in the world economy through 2010. If anything, the period since our last report was published in January 2010 has been one of the busiest for the Global Trade Alert team. Nothing short of a mountain of evidence has been uncovered in recent months concerning state measures announced after the start of our reporting window, November 2008.[….]
Sub-Saharan African governments have not resorted to protectionism on the scale of industrialised countries and some developing country peers during the recent global economic downturn. Sub-Saharan Africa is also the recipient of preferential access to the markets of many industrialised countries. This Report contains two papers on the likely reforms to the United States and European Union trade preference regimes and their potential implications for Sub-Saharan Africa. These papers will also be of interest to those following the West's policies towards Sub-Saharan Africa.

* The Myth and Reality of Chinese Investors: A Case Study of Chinese Investment in Zambia’s Copper Industry
South African Institute of International Affairs, China in Africa Project, May 2010
[This paper] argues that Chinese FDI has the potential to bring about both positive and negative results, depending on the structure and quality of the host economy, as well as the strategies and policies employed by the host government to manage the investment. While Chinese companies often apply poor labour and environmental standards, this is also true of other foreign companies operating in the Copperbelt. Furthermore, evidence suggests that Chinese investors are learning from and adapting to the Zambian context, and are gradually embracing the corporate social responsibility agenda. As a result of this progressive transformation, Chinese companies active in Zambia are beginning to play a more positive role in the country’s overall development.

* Regional Integration, Fragility and Institution Building: An Analytical Framework Applied to the African Context
Thierry Verdier, European Union Institute, Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies, Working Paper, June 2010
The purpose of this paper is to discuss how regional integration processes may contribute to state- building and promote exit from fragility for countries characterised by weak state institutions. After presenting a simple conceptual framework to discuss the effects of external and regional integration on fragile states, we analyse the policy trade-offs that may arise in such contexts. The paper then reviews the specific regional experiences of Sub-Saharan countries and their inter-actions with fragility issues. Finally, we discuss policy implications for the EU in the context of its regional trade and development policies with African fragile countries. The central conclusions of the analysis are the following: I) a two-tier approach to regional integration, which combines both top-down and bottom-up processes, is necessary; 2) the EU approach to regional integration in Africa should promote “Building-Blocks” and not “Stumbling-Blocks”; and 3) specific considerations should be given to make the trade integration strategy “fragility responsive”.

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IV. Resources from Recent and on Upcoming Events
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* Meeting of the Caribbean Forum of ACP States (CARIFORUM) and the European Union on Regional Integration and Cooperation for Sustainable Development.
17 May 2010, Madrid, Spain.
-> Statement by Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

* AUC EPA Negotiations Coordination Meeting
20-21 May 2010, Abuja, Nigeria
-> Agenda
-> Aide-Memoire

* DG Trade Ad hoc civil society meeting on Trade and Investment (post-Lisbon)
25 May 2010, Brussels, Belgium
-> Agenda
-> Minutes

* ACP Working Group Party Meeting
28 May 2010, Brussels, Belgium
-> Provisional Agenda

* 64th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers
31 May 2010, Abuja, Nigeria
-> Read the ECOWAS Press Release preceding the meeting
-> Read the ECOWAS Press Release following the meeting

* Expert Group Meeting and Workshop on Aid for Trade (AfT) and Africa’s Trading Capacity: Supply, Demand and Performance
31 May-2 June 2010, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
-> Final Communiqué [ English ] [ Français ]
-> Concept Note
-> Presentations and Background Studies

* EC DG Trade-Civil Society Meeting on Trade and Climate Change
1 June 2010, Brussels, Belgium
-> For more information

* Extraordinary Summit of CEMAC Heads of States
6-7 June 2010, Brazzaville, Congo
-> Final Communiqué (French)
-> Press coverage (Afrique en Ligne)

* EU-WA technical officials’ meetings on market access and services
7-11 June 2010, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

* COMESA Workshop on how to build capacity and improve trade policy formulation for the Customs Union, and the integration of COMESA Member States into the multilateral trading system.
7-11 June 2010, Nairobi, Kenya.
-> Press Release

* Seminar for SMEs and BSos of CARIFORUM Countries on ‘Capacity Building to support Implementation of Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) in the Caribbean’
8-10 June 2010, Barbados
-> Read the Opening Statement by the Hon. Patrick Todd Minister of State, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Empowerment, Innovation, Trade, Industry and Commerce, Barbados
-> Read the Remarks by Elsa Fenet Head of Political, Trade, Regional Integration, Press and Information Section of the European Union Delegation to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean

* 25th COMESA Trade and Customs committee
15 June, Harare, Zimbabwe
-> For more information {press}
-> Watch on this subject the videos of COMESA Secretary General sharing his views on the Customs union
-> See also our News Section ‘ESA’

* EU-WA technical officials’ meetings on market access and services
7-11 June 2010, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

* 17th EU-ECOWAS Political Dialogue at Ministerial Level
15 June 2010, Luxembourg
-> Final communiqué (also available in French)

* TRAPCA Tripartite Forum “Towards a tripartite COMESA-EAC-SADC Free Trade Area: The Process, Issues and Priorities"
17-18 June 2010, Arusha, Tanzania
-> Read Taku Fundira’s discussion (Tralac Researcher) on this subject

* 91st ACP Council of Ministers
17-19 June 2010, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
-> Press Release

* European Journalism Centre seminar for ACP journalists on EU trade policy with the ACP countries
21-22 June 2010, Brussels, Belgium
-> For more information

* 35th session of ACP-EC Council of Ministers and ACP-EU Signing ceremony for 2nd Revision of Cotonou Agreement
21-22 June 2010, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
-> Provisional Agenda
-> Opening statement of the President of Council on the 35th Session of the ACP-EC Council of Ministers, by H.E. Mr. Paul, Bunduku-Latha Minister delegate attached to the Minister of Economy, Trade, Industry and Tourism of Gabon

* Debriefing Meeting for Business and Civil Society on DDA Negotiations on Trade Facilitation
22 June 2010, Brussels, Belgium
-> Agenda

* FARA Workshop on 'Promoting Access to Regional and International Markets for Agricultural Commodities in West and Central Africa'
23-24 June 2010, Accra, Ghana
-> For more information

World Bank Group Trade Strategy Consultation,
24 June 2010, Brussels, Belgium
-> See World Bank Group Trade Strategy Consultation Plan
-> View Strategy Approach

* Inter-Regional Co-ordinating Committee Technical Meeting
29-30 June 2010, Lusaka, Zambia

* COMESA Meetings of Committee on Trade in Services
28-30 June 2010, Livingstone, Zambia

* 11th Regional Seminar of ACP-EU Economic and Social Interest Groups
7–9 July 2010, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
-> Programme
-> More Event information

* CDE-ProInvest - ACP-EU Private Sector Conference.
12 July- 13 August 2010, Brussels, Belgium
-> For more information

* 15th Ordinary session of the African Union Summit on “Maternal, Infant and Child Health and Development in Africa.”
19-27 July 2010, Kampala, Uganda
-> For more information

--- IV. Resources from Recent and on Upcoming Events ---

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IV. Resources from Recent and on Upcoming Events
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