South Centre Policy Brief 15, December 2008.

The ability of governments to procure from firms of its own choice can be an important development tool and can also be an instrument for macroeconomic management. Providing preferences to local producers of goods and suppliers of services and set-asides may be part of an industrial policy or an instrument to attain social objectives and can have immense implications for national development, local business and job creation.

This Policy Brief analyses the scope of international trade rules governing government procurement in the European Union’s Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) and Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with developing countries, the key provisions of EPAs regarding this topic and its potential implications for development.

Date: 4 - 5 March, 2009

Time: 10:00 am - 5:00 pm

Venue: Luanda, Angola      Workshop on Economic Partnership Agreements organised by South Centre in Angola.

South Centre Analytical Note - May 2008

At the close of 2007, the EU completed a comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the Cariforum countries.  The EPA with the Cariforum is comprehensive in the sense that it extends to trade in goods, services and all the new generation issues including government procurement, competition law, and others. This analytical note provides an overview of key provisions related to trade in services in the Cariforum EPA text and comments on the possible implications for other ACP countries.

Policy Brief 6 March 2007

Executive Summary 

The negotiations for Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) between the European Union (EU) and the African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Countries are likely to result in additional layers of intellectual property right protection, at least in the case of the agreement with Cariforum countries. A review of the ongoing negotiations and various draft texts and papers demonstrates an inadequate focus on the need for technological development, promotion of public health, protection of genetic resources and traditional knowledge as well as for ensuring access to knowledge. Considering the level of economic development in ACP countries, the negotiations should not include IP rights as part of the partnership agreement. Instead they should focus on industrial on various EU policies that have impeded participation of the ACP countries in the value-chain of products, protection of biodiversity and traditional knowledge and the use of TRIPS flexibilities.

 Click here to download