ISDS Case Map
Caribbean
On Thursday June 12, organizations from around the region staged a protest against the EU-Caribbean Economic Partnership Agreement in front of White Hall, the prime minister's office in Trinidad.
Calling for a re-negotiation of a new Economic Partnership Agreement, Federation of Independent Trade Unions and Non Governmental Organisations president David Abdulah says aspects of the agreement could prove to be harmful to the people of Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean.
The unprecedented impact of rising energy prices on the cost of ocean transport means that moving goods from one nation to another has become a bigger barrier to global trade than tariffs.
This paper on government procurement and EPAs written by Stephen Woolcock from LSE recommends that ACP countries first open their procurement markets on a regional basis, before making commitments to the EU.
There are strident calls for the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), due to be signed by Cariforum in July, to be amended, varied or simply not signed. Any possible renegotiation of the treaty, it is acknowledged, might come at a potentially intolerable cost.
This paper examines the investment provisions of the CARIFORUM Economic Partnership Agreement and their implications for development. The paper also clarifies the link between investment provisions in an EPA and existing bilateral investment treaties. It concludes with recommendations for both review of the investment provisions in the CARIFORUM EPA, and for other ACP states that decide to embark on negotiations on investment with the EU.
Telecommunications and real estate in The Bahamas are two sectors that are, for now, off limits for negotiations under the proposed Economic Partnership Agreement between the European Community and CARIFORUM, State Minister for Finance Zhivargo Laing reported yesterday.
The Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the European Commission and the Caribbean states will be signed in July. The decision was made at the 26th Special Meeting of the Council for Trade and Economic Development which ended in Antigua and Barbuda on Saturday.
For the moment, Caribbean countries should limit signing of the full Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with Europe in the trade of goods section.
Anyone could be forgiven for wanting to fall asleep whenever the new Economic Partnership Agreement between Europe and the Caribbean comes into the conversation. The language is so complex and dry that only professional diplomats can understand it. (And even some of them are pretending). But the Caribbean needs to pay attention, because the economic consequences of this new agreement are heading towards it like an express train with potentially catastrophic consequences.
