Economic Partnership Agreements: A Challenge for Trade Justice

Zambia has been negotiating EPAs under the ESA group though it belongs to both SADC and COMESA . COMESA is the Secretariat of the Eastern Southern Africa group of countries all of which are members of COMESA regional groupings. It is worth noting that each of the negotiating regional blocks has taken different approaches to the negotiations. For the ESA group, it has been a central focus that the EPA includes development objectives and strategies in all negotiating components of the EPA. These development needs, objectives, and strategies have been articulated in what is known as the “draft EPA text” and its accompanying regional development matrix (list of developmental projects submitted by ESA Member states). COMESA Is the Secretariat of the Eastern Southern Africa group of countries all of which are members of COMESA. A mutual exchange of privileges or favours. In reciprocal trade agreements, one nation extends certain benefits to another (such as the lowering of tariff duties) and In turn receives the same or similar benefits. The EPAs are being negotiated on the primary basis that the trade preferences going to developing countries under the Lome agreement violate key WTO principles and also that ACP countries have become poorer despite preferential (favoured) access to EU markets. The EPAs are essentially a move from the use of the principle of preferences to promote trade to reciprocity . The WTO, the EU and the World Bank consider free trade is an ideal way for ACP countries to make social and economic progress. However, Zambia’s experience with liberalisation under the Structural Adjustment Programme refutes this notion. A lot of industries such as Nitrogen Chemicals of Zambia and several textile industries were liquidated which laid off a lot of people from employment.