Michel on EPAs: ’I do not accept these excuses’
EUX.TV | Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Michel on EPAs: ’I do not accept these excuses’
By Raymond Frenken
LJUBLJANA, Slovenia (EUX.TV) — Continued opposition to new economic partnership agreements for Europe’s former colonies is too often based on "simplistic" arguments that are not acceptable to the European Commission.
"I do not accept these excuses," says European Development Commissioner Louis Michel in an interview with EUX.TV. "If they really want to profit from globalization, they have no choice."
The economic partnership agreements, known as EPAs, this week again feature prominently on the agenda of the joint parliamentary assembly of countries in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific (ACP), together with the European Union, meeting here in Slovenia, which holds the rotating EU presidency.
Michel again is under fire from ACP countries who feel they are being "bullied" into signing EPAs, fearing they’ll loose out by having to give up preferential access to European markets.
"They have to create the conditions for integrated markets," Michel said in the interview."If they don’t succeed in integrating markets, they will not succeed and they will not take profit of the added value of globalization."
Watch the full interview here:
"Of course there will be a future for EPAs," Michel said. "I am so sure that we will succeed in having full EPAs, but I think now we have to explain, and we have to explain to our partners. And we also have, in a certain sense, to explain to those who, in a simplistic way, try to make an ideological challenge with the EPAs, that they are wrong."
WTO requires level playing field
EPAs are designed to create a level playing field among developing countries. At present, most ACP countries — Europe’s former colonies — still enjoy preferential treatment in international trade, with better access to European markets than non-ACP countries. Under the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO), that system is not sustainable.
"If they really want the poor countries becoming developed countries, having the same advantages as we have in Europe, they have to accompany EPAs. They have to push their countries to make the reforms, the necessary and needed reforms, in order to give them the possibility to acceed to the trade world and to the international trade."
At the ACP-EU parliamentary meeting last October in Kigali, Rwanda, the assembly adopted a declaration calling on all members to at least initial — not sign — an economic partnership agreement with the EU before the end of 2007. Most countries in Africa have yet to do so; most in the Caribbean have.
"We need more time to understand the effects of EPAs," said Chosani Njobvu, MP from Zambia, in an interview. "I’m not sure if in this meeting we can gather enough votes to stop the European Commission bullying us."
Kenya MP Margaret Kamar is more upbeat, and argues that it mostly takes further explanation and clarification of the impact of EPAs.
"With more discussion, everybody is going to sign for them, just like the Cotonou agreement," Kamar says, referring to a treaty signed in 2000 between the ACP states and the European Union.
Communication, clarification seen as key factor
"The problems have been a lack of communication and a lack of understanding. Meetings like this are really helping us to expose the inner things that we not clarified, and a lot of clarifications are going on, and I’m seeing more countries becoming more comfortable as we discuss," said Kamar.
Michel also sees progress and continues to underline the benefits of EPAs in a globalized world.
"Things are progressing and more and more countries are becoming completely conscious that the economic partnership agreement can be a development process and a development program," said Michel. "And I try now to put in motion a real dynamic of explanation, campaigning in order to let them understand that it is really important to boost the regional integration."
At the ACP-EU meeting here in Slovenia, regionalization is a specific item on the agenda. The EU wants to share its own example to encourage ACP countries to step up regional cooperation.
’You will not have, for the poor countries, access to the free trade world, without regionalization. You can not do that. In fact, what we did with success in Europe, has to be done in Africa," said Michel.
"If you want them to benefit from international globalization, then they have to integrate economically and regionally, and we are trying to help them to do this."
"The time is now"
Critics argue that economic partnership agreements remain controversial. Wilkie Rasmussen, co-President of the parliamentary assembly, said during the opening of the ACP-EU assembly on Monday that the Commission did not respect "sensitivities" in its approach.
"I don’t accept these excuses, or this pretext," responds Michel. "The time is now. If they want really to profit from globalization, they have no choice. They have to create the conditions for integrated markets. If they don’t succeed in integrating markets, they will not succeed and they will not take profit of the added value of globalization."
"Globalization was not invented, was not created in a very obscure place by big capitalists. In fact, globalization is the consequence of a very open communication process that gives a lot of advantages and already value for the poor countries."
"I’m a strong believer in globalization," the commissioner continues. "Of course, we have to accompany... we have to create solid states which can control... which can distribute the prosperity. That is the reason why we, on the European commission side, to have a special envelope of 3 billion euros in order to boost governance, in order to consolidate the states.... access to health... access to education... access to justice... access to administration... access to the primary needs."
The ACP-EU assembly will vote on the EPAs on Thursday morning.
