DECISION ON THE REPORT OF THE 8th ORDINARY SESSION
OF THE AU CONFERENCE OF MINISTERS OF TRADE,
21-25 OCTOBER 2013, ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA
Doc. EX.CL/816(XXIV)
The Executive Council,
TAKES NOTE of the Report of the Eight Ordinary Session of the Conference of AU Ministers of Trade (CAMOT 8) held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from 21 to 25 October 2013; and ENDORSES the recommendations contained in the Report and the Addis Ababa Declaration of CAMOT 8 on AGOA, EPAs and WTO;
On WTO issues:
1. NOTES the outcome of the 9th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC9) held in Bali, Indonesia in December 2013, mainly on trade facilitation, agriculture and LDC issues;
2. INVITES the Ministers of Trade to evaluate the implications of the Bali Agreement and report on its implications for Africa;
3. REAFFIRMS full solidarity with all African countries engaged in the process of acceding to the WTO and INVITES Members of the WTO to define transparent rules for the implementation of provisions of Article XII of agreement establishing the WTO.
On Economic Partnership Agreements,
4. STRESSES that the objectives for Economic Partnership Agreement (EPAs) are the achievement of sustainable development of African countries, their smooth and gradual integration in the world economy and the eradication of poverty;
5. REAFFIRMS that EPAs must be development-oriented instruments, should not undermine Africa’s economic integration and should ensure meaningful market access and policy space;
6. RECOGNISES that EPAs are to be a WTO compatible agreement and needs not include WTO plus commitments;
7. STRESSES the need to include the EPAs on the agenda of the Fourth Africa-EU Summit to end the current impasse in the EPA negotiations, bearing in mind the upcoming Fourth Africa-EU Summit scheduled to take place in Brussels, Belgium, on 2-3 April 2014;
8. ENCOURAGES on going consultations at the level of RECs for harmonization of positions of Member States in order to be able to defend a common position reached by consensus that is acceptable to both parties.
On AGOA,
9. CONGRATULATES the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia for successfully organizing and hosting the 12th AGOA Forum;
10. TAKES INTO ACCOUNT Africa’s international trade relations and economic partnerships particularly in the context of Sub-Saharan Africa-U.S. Trade and Investment Relations and its cornerstone policy, the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA);
11. WELCOMES the positive outcomes of the 12th AGOA Forum, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on August 12-13, 2013, under the theme “Sustainable Transformation through Trade and Technology”;
12. MANDATES the African Group of Ambassadors in Washington, D.C., to continue engaging actively with the U.S. Administration and members of Congress towards a timely, seamless and meaningful reauthorization of AGOA by October 2014 for a period of at least 15 years to ensure that trade with the U.S. takes place on a predictable, reliable and legally secure basis in order to inspire investors’ confidence;
13. CALLS UPON the U.S. Administration to integrate AGOA into an inclusive, predictable and sustainable framework that would promote industrial, commercial and agricultural development in the beneficiary countries, as well as expand targeted trade-capacity building and technical assistance in quality assurance and standards, simplify compliance requirements, improve trade-related infrastructure and trade facilitation; enhance trade support and trade finance; and strengthen the regional integration processes in Africa;
14. DIRECTS that a delegation/team of Experts headed by the Chairperson of the Commission and consisting of Commissioner for Trade and Industry, the RECs and others travel to the United States of America (USA) to consult and negotiate with the US Administration on all aspects regarding the extension of AGOA for the next fifteen (15) years.
On BIAT/CFTA,
15. RECOGNIZES the importance of the Boosting Intra African Trade Agenda and the establishment of the Continental Free Trade Area to the continent’s economic development agenda;
16. TAKES NOTE of the on-going Tripartite FTA negotiations between COMESA, EAC and SADC;
17. URGES the AUC, RECs and Member States to make progress and accelerate the implementation of the Boosting Intra Africa Trade Agenda and the CFTA;
18. DIRECTS the AUC, RECs and Member States to fast track the preparations for the negotiations of the CFTA to enable its establishment by the indicative date of 2017.