The primary aim of the Economic and Trade Cooperation programme is to contribute to the development of a trade regime that promotes sustainable development and the integration of ACP countries into the world economy. The ACP countries are in the process of negotiating their economic and trade relations through Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) that intend to establish reciprocal free trade agreements (FTAs) between the EU and the six ACP sub-regions. In response to the need of policy makers to familiarise themselves with the technical aspects of the negotiations, the trade team conducts practical research and provides analysis in the forms of websites, publications, seminars and workshops. For a more detailed description of our programme, see the Economic and Trade Cooperation work plan for 2010-2011 and see the general overview.

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Recent programme publications, articles & books

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Trade Negotiations Insights. July-August edition 2010! Read this Special Issue on the Fiscal implications of EPAs and domestic resource mobilisation > En français - à venir - Discussion Paper 99: Joining up Africa Support to Regional Integration. By James Mackie, San Bilal, Isabelle Ramdoo, Henrike Hohmeister and Takesh Luckho. Discussion Paper 98: Trade relevant provisions in the Treaty of Lisbon. Implications for Economic Partnership Agreements. By Eleonora Koeb and Melissa Dalleau. Discussion Paper 97: Trade and Production Adjustments in ACP Countries: Lessons from the Caribbean Rum Programme. By Corinna Braun-Munzinger and Paul Goodison. Discussion Paper 95: Agricultural Trade Adjustments: Lessons from SADC experiences(ECDPM). Discussion Paper 96: The EU Commitment to Deliver Aid for Trade in West Africa and Support the EPA Development Programme (PAPED). By Sanoussi Bilal, Dan Lui and Jeske van Seters (ECDPM). Discussion Paper 92: Global Financial and Economic Crisis: Analysis of and Implications for ACP-EU Partnership Agreements (EPAs). By Sanoussi Bilal, Peter Draper (SAIIA) and Dirk Willem te Velde (ODI) Policy Management Report 17: The Interim Economic Partnership Agreements between the EU and African States: Contents, challenges and prospects. Edited by Sanoussi Bilal (ECDPM) and Christopher Stevens (ODI). Discussion Paper 90: Regionally Owned Funds: Mechanisms for delivery of EU Aid for Trade in ACP regions? By Corinna Braun-Munzinger (ECDPM), April 2009. The Cariforum-EU Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA): The Development component. An European Parliament study by ODI, ECDPM and CaPri. March 2009 Discussion Paper 89: Contentious issues in the interim EPAs: Potential Flexibility in the negotiations. By Dan Lui and San Bilal (ECDPM), March 2009. Economic Partnership Agreements and the Future of the ACP group. Background note for the 6th Summit of the ACP Heads of State and Government, Accra, Ghana, 30 September - 3 October 2008. Discussion Paper 86: The Aid for Trade Agenda and accompanying measures for EPAs, Current state of affairs. By Dan Lui (ECDPM), November 2008. > DIE-ECDPM study on Monitoring Economic Partnership Agreements, Inputs to the negotiations and beyond. New study on The new EPAs: comparative analysis of their content and the challenges for 2008. See PMR14. French version of Discussion Paper 79:Des engagements à la mise en oeuvre: Le suivi des accords de partenariat économique (APE) . Our team contributed to the special edition of the Revue Grain de sel, EPA special issue: Economic Partnership Agreements: presentation, analyses, viewpoints, n° 39, Paris: Inter-réseaux. Also available in French. .. The Cotonou Agreement: across-the-board reform of ACP-EU cooperation Are non-governmental stakeholders really participaring in the negotiations? The EPAs in West Africa: a panorama of alternatives Keeping promises and meeting the EPA challenges: more political will needed Navigating New Waters: A Reader on ACP-EU Trade Relations An essential reader and reference tool for trade experts and interested parties, bringing together key analysis on all aspects of trade negotiations between the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states and the European Union. This title can be bought online at www.thecommonwealth.org/publications. .. Letter in the Financial Times "Doubt over EU development credentials" By Dr. Sannousi Bilal and others. To see full list of programme publications, click here.

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Programme news and events

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New Vacancy for ECDPM Young Professionals Programme : Research Assistant for ECDPM’s Economic & Trade Cooperation Programme, www.acp-eu-trade.org and Trade Negotiations Insights / Eclairage sur les négociations FARA-CTA-ECDPM workshop on "Promoting access to Regional and International Markets for Agricultural Commodities in West and Central Africa, Accra, Ghana, 23-24 June 2010. > More information FARA-CTA-ECDPM workshop on 'Promoting access to Regional and International Markets for Agricultural Commodities in Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA)' Nairobi, Kenya, 24-25 March 2010 > More information CTA-ECDPM-GTZ-NTF-SACAU workshop on 'Aid for Trade Strategies and Agriculture: Towards a SADC agenda' , Windhoek, Namibia, 9-11 November 2009 > More information ECDPM Informal Workshop: EPA negotiations: Addressing the Contentious Issues and Delivering Development Support, Martin's Central Park, Brussels, 8-9 July 2009 > More information. Kick Off meeting, NETRIS, Network of Regional Integration Studies, Tanzania, 22-24 June 2009, > More information on network CTA-ECDPM workshop on 'Strengthening Agricultural Trade Strategies: Towards a Caribbean agenda', Belize City, 6-8 November 2008 > More information > Final conference report SAIIA -ODI-ECDPM conference, Regional Economic Integration in Southern Africa, Johannesburg, 24-25 November 2008 > More information EU - Caribbean Economic Partnership Agreement (signature): extracts from the signature of the first full Economic Partnership Agreement with 15 countries (recorded 15/10/2008) South-North Network pages on acp-eu-trade.org website, incl. information on SN2 meetings, Ethiopia, 4-5 April 2008 ECDPM-ODI-Aprodev stocktaking meeting - Brussels, 17 April 2008 > More information. CTA-ECDPM Dialogue Meeting: Challenges of Changing : Agricultural Markets in the context of ACP-EU Trade Identifying an aid for trade agenda for the agricultural sector. Brussels, 14-15 April 2008 > More information. > Highlight Report of the conference South-North Network meeting organised by ECDPM, Addis Ababa, 4-5 April 2008 EPA Negotiations: Where do we stand? - Regular Updates! Towards a Monitoring System for the ACP-EU Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) - a joint project by the German Development Institute (DIE) and ECDPM. Seminar on'The Challenges of the SADC EPA negotiations' - 26 Juni 2007. Organised by the European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM), the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) and the Regional Trade Facilitation Programme (RTFP).