Trade policy implications of economic partnership agreements (EPAS) between the European Union (EU) and Namibia

Namibia which forms part of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) group of former European colonies, is traditionally enjoying preferential trade market access to the European Union (EU). This means goods from Namibia are facing lower tariffs and non- tariff barriers when entering the European market. This trade regime between the EU and Namibia was enshrined in successive agreements. As a result of the outcome of legal and other challenges - at the level of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the latest one, the Cotonou Partnership Agreement (CPA) There will be a fundamental shift in this trade relationship. This will provide Economic Partnership Agreement (EPAs) which will usher in reciprocity in trade between two parties. The EU has initialled the Interim Economic Partnership Agreements (IEPA) covering trade in goods with some members of SADC (Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland and Mozambique) and is currently negotiating full EPAs which will cover trade in services. Therefore, Namibia decided not to sign the IEPA due to the inability of the negotiating partner (EU) to address the concerns it had raised upon initialling the IEPA text

Author dc:creator

• Hassane, Dessande B.

• International trade
• European Union
• Commercial treaties

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/11070/489

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:repository.unam.edu.na:11070/489