ISDS Case Map
EPAs
Economic Partnership Agreements between the EU and ACP countries (under the Cotonou Agreement)
They failed us! That's what governments, intellectuals and trade unions in CARIFORUM (CARICOM and the Dominican Republic) who negotiated the Economic Partnership Agreement with the European Union did to this region, says James Paul, of the Barbados Agricultural Society.
Under pressure to sign on to new free trade agreements, Pacific Islands governments interested in securing positive outcomes for their peoples see deals on labour mobility as potential development gains. But is this the right approach? And what are the potential costs?
The Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions has joined in the call for the government to postpone signing the Economic Partnership Agreement recently negotiated with the European Union.
With the failure of the Doha development round trade talks fresh in everyone's minds, the focus now shifts to the equally controversial Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA's).
There are new uncertainties surrounding the proposed signing of the full Economic Partnership Agreement on September 2 between the European Union and CARIFORUM - the Caribbean Community member states and the Dominican Republic.
The ongoing Doha round of World Trade Organisation talks is seen to be undermining regional integration and economic development efforts by African countries, analysts have noted.
Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer indicated that there are still lingering questions over whether Caricom countries will all sign on to the European Union-Cariforum Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) next month, though he has maintained his personal support for the idea of moving forward with the agreement.
A former chief negotiator for the region said it is not too late for Caribbean Community (Caricom) countries to pull out of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with Europe.
The EPA will be disastrous for Africa. Its acceptance would amount to locking the continent into some kind of economic vacuum where its manouevring space would be drastically limited because of the exclusivity of such a deal, especially since the evidence shows that no country in the world has taken off with such bogus and demeaning arrangements.
Article 149 requires the EC Party and the Signatory CARIFORUM states to provide for the protection of plant varieties in accordance with the TRIPS Agreement and to consider, in this connection, accession to UPOV, 1991.
