EPAs: "Stop ou encore"

The Economic Partnership aggreements (EPAs) between the EU and the ACP countries shoud have been negociated until 31st of December 2007. But because of a strong opposition of most of African countries, no aggreements were found. The African countries feared the complete liberalization that would have followed the ratification of these aggreements. What are the problems?

• The WTO aggreements ask for the reciprocity of the trade aggreements. If the EU accepts to open its markets to ACP countries, the ACP countries should open their markets to EU products. This is very problematic as the level of infrastructures, the production capacities and development of the countries cannot be compared. More flexibility should be given to this rule of reciprocity, both in the EPAs and at the WTO.
• The WTO allows specific trade arrangements for the developing countries and least advanced countries. The EU initiative "everything but arms" concerned the least advanced countries. But it is not possible to have a specific aggreement for some of the developing countries (the ACP for example). However, we cannot compare the situation of Brazil, India and China from one side and Antigua and Barbuda, Burkina Faso and Lesotho from the other side.
  
• EPAs should promote the regional integration. However, the EU does not let the time to the African countries to strenghten their sub-regional cooperation. Moreover, the EU always refused to involve South Africa in the negotiation (South Africa has a specific trade aggreement with the EU and are not part of the ACP aggreements). How to build a regional integration without South Africa?
• Do the ACP countries need the full liberalization of their market? No. At least, it is not the priority. Lets help to build infrastructure and strenghten their productive capacity first. The problem is the partnership is not clear and ambiguous. The EU make the promise to increase the European Development fund, but the reality of the additional fund have to be proved.
• The agenda was unrealistic. How to ask to ACP countries to fully open their market? It is impossible for some countries to evaluate the impact of these aggreements. First because they don't have yet statistics about their trade. More time is needed anyway.
  

For all that reasons, NGOs, trade unions and African countries are right to oppose these EPAs. (see the press release of ITUC). But the problem is wider. The WTO rules are also questionned and the ACP countries together with the EU should go there and negociate more flexibility on the rule of reciprocity for example. The EU has a lot of things to loose in these negotiations. So we must change urgently the shape of the negotiations.

See my other articles on the EPAs and the action of the GPYF we organized together with Action Aid. For another point of view, read this article "Commerce: Que faire avec l'Afrique" sur Télos.

les APE en débat

Les APE, kesako? Les accords de partenariats économiques doivent définir les relations commerciales entre l'Union Européenne et les pays ACP (Afrique-Caraïbes-Pacifique). Actuellement en cours de négociation, ils doivent permettre de se mettre en conformité avec les règles de l'OMC, notamment le respect du principe de réciprocité (en gros: si je t'ouvre mes marchés, tu dois aussi m'ouvrir les tiens). La commission européenne accentue la pression pour trouver un accord avant la fin de l'année, malgré la précipitation, l'impréparation et les conséquences potentiellements désastreuses de son application.

Je vous invite à lire cet article d'Agoravox sur la venue de Mandelson et Michel à Yaounde pour disctuter de ces APE. Cet article résume bien les enjeux.

A relire également, la résolution du MJS que j'avais fait passé à l'époque sur ces APE et l'action du Global progressive Youth forum que nous avions organisé à Bruxelles avec des liens vers les rapports d'Action Aid et d'Oxfam. Nous avions adopté une résolution GPYF / ActionAidInternational/Coalition des Jeunes Africains contre la faim que vous pouvez lire ici.


Désolé, peu de temps en ce moment pour poster des articles plus régulièrement. Fin de thèse oblige, ce blog sera en activité réduite jusqu'à la fin de l'été.

Forum Europe-Afrique de la IUSY

J'étais à Johannesbourg la semaine dernière pour participer au forum UE-Afrique organisée pour discuter de la contribution de la IUSY à la consultation publique sur la relation Europe / Afrique. 40 participants venus d'Afrique et d'Europe. Nous avons échangé sur les thématiques du travail décent, de la paix et de la sécurité, du développement et du commerce, et de la démocratie et gouvernance. En tant que coordinateur IUSY pour les mouvements sociaux et le GPYF, j'ai moi même particulièrement travaillé sur les thématiques du travail décent et de développement.

En particulier, la déclaration demande à la Commission Européenne d'explorer toutes les alternatives possibles aux Accords de Partenariats Economiques UE-ACP qui doivent être signés d'ici à la fin de l'année et, permettant la libéralisation des pays ACP, risquent d'avoir de lourdes conséquences pour le développements de ces pays.

Lire la contribution de la IUSY sur le site Europafrica.org

World Social Forum and GPYF

Mes activités à la IUSY.. La préparation du Forum Social Mondial qui se tiendra du 20 au 25 janvier prochain à Nairobi. La mobilisation s'organise dans le cadre du Global Progressive Youth Forum. Ici la présentation des activités du GPYF.

The Global Progressive Youth Forum (GPYF) Activities at WSF 2007
The work of the GPYF at present is mainly focused on ‘Youth and Decent Work’ as part of the Decent Work Alliance. The Decent Work Alliance consists of International Trade-Union Confederation (ITUC), European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), SOLIDAR, Social Alert, Global Progressive Forum and Global Progressive Youth Forum.

Indeed, this focus allows all three organisations to bring under the framework of the Decent Work Alliance its common work on employment and young people from a European to a global perspective. IUSY’s ‘Rights@Work’ Campaign, ECOSY’s ‘More and Better Jobs’ and IFM-SEI’s work on Child Labour are all vital in ensuring a strong youth perspective in the global employment agenda.

A number of activities to be undertaken at the WSF will be co-ordinated under the framework of the Global Progressive Youth Forum (GPYF), which will combine the efforts of the IFM-SEI, ECOSY and IUSY.
These activities will be done as part of the DW Alliance.
At the WSF the ‘Decent Work Alliance’ will launch its campaign ‘Decent Work-Decent Life’. It is the intention of the GPYF to participate in the launch in order to ensure a strong youth voice from the beginning of the campaign.
Within the framework of the DW alliance activities, the GPYF will hold a one-day conference on ‘Youth and Labour’ and two workshops on the following issues:
o Rights@Work and Employment for Young People (to be done in co-operation with the youth of the international trade union organisation)
o Decent Work in Africa: what should be the priorities? Why? How?
Also within the Decent Work Alliance framework, the GPYF will launch a campaign on Child Labour, which will be lead by IFM-SEI.

Africa’s Time has Come!
Following a recent lobby activity undertaken in conjunction with ActionAid International on Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) at the European Parliament, the GPYF will capitalise on this successful partnership and articulate a GPYF-Action Aid Activity on “EPAs and Africa: what consequences for the African Youth?” within the framework of the WSF 2007. We hope that this activity will prompt member organisations to mobilize around lobby work to influence the negotiations of EPAs in 2007, which will have strong consequences on the development of African countries.
Furthermore the GPYF will organise a meeting of the participants from its member organisations present in Nairobi and African NGOs comprised of young people who are involved in the Global Coalition Against Hunger.
In view of the planned EU-African Summit in 2007, the WSF provides an opportunity to facilitate a strong dialogue between our European and African Member Organisations present in Nairobi. Therefore the GPYF strongly urges their European Member Organizations to send representatives to Kenya. It is proposed that the GPYF will outline at the WSF what its demands will be within the context of the EU-African Summit in 2007.
For more information or questions, please contact us by email:
youth@globalprogressiveforum.org