Don´t rush least developed countries into partnership agreements, say MEPs 

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Struggling African, Caribbean and Pacific countries should have two more years to negotiate economic partnership agreements (EPAs) with the EU, before the decision is taken to withdraw their free access to the EU market, say MEPs in amendments to the market access regulation that were adopted on Thursday.

MEPs voted to extend the 2014 deadline proposed by the Commission and give these ACP countries until 2016 to ratify their EPAs before losing the right to duty-and-quota-free access to the EU that they have been enjoying since 2007.


MEPs consider that unlimited and unconditional preferences are not a sustainable option but agree with the rapporteur, David Martin (S&D, UK),  that the EU should allow them a "realistic timeframe" to work towards "fair and development-focused" EPAs with African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) partners. "No ACP country should be forced to sign an unsatisfactory EPA. This is not the trade and development relationship we should have", said Mr Martin before the vote. 


The eight countries concerned are Botswana and Namibia plus six poorer countries, Cameroon, Fiji, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya and Swaziland. MEPs say these countries are still grappling with development needs and poverty and would be hit by sharply reduced access to EU markets and therefore need until 2016 to prepare for their EPAs.


Background


Thirty-six ACP countries have been able to access EU markets freely under the Market Access Regulation since the EU negotiated EPAs with them in 2007, even though they were not ready to apply the EPAs in full and ratify them. Today, a number of them have still not taken the steps needed to ratify their EPAs.


The Commission therefore wants to switch eight of them to other, less advantageous, preference schemes. Another nine ACP countries - the poorest in the group - will not be affected by the new arrangements as they continue to benefit from the EU's Everything But Arms (EBA) duty-free, quota-free scheme for the least-developed countries. They are Burundi, Comoros, Haiti, Lesotho, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.


The legislative resolution was adopted by 322 votes to 78, with 218 abstentions.


Procedure:  Co-decision (Ordinary Legislative Procedure), 1st reading