EC/Eastern and Southern Africa States (ESA) agreement: interim agreement establishing a framework for Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA)

PURPOSE: to propose the signature and provisional application of the interim agreement establishing a framework for an Economic Partnership Agreement between Eastern and Southern Africa States on the one part and the European Community and its Member States on the other part.

PROPOSED ACT: Council Decision.

CONTENT: the content of this provisional agreement is identical to that of the interim agreement establishing a framework for an Economic and Partnership Agreement with the countries concerned. For details, please refer to summary of the Commission’s initial proposal of 16/12/2008.

To recall, this interim agreement concerns trade and development cooperation issues between the Community and its Member States and the Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius , the Seychelles and Zimbabwe.