EU Reaches Trade Deal With East African Community
The European Union has said the conclusion of a new trade deal with the East African Community (EAC) means that EAC countries no longer have to worry that their improving economic status will lead to the loss of full duty-free and quota-free access to the European market.
According to the EU, the finalized Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) will “provide legal certainty for businesses and open a long-term perspective for free and unlimited access to the EU market for products from Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda.”
An interim EPA was signed in 2007. Imports from EAC countries have entered the EU duty- and quota-free since January 1, 2008.
All EAC members, with the exception of Kenya are classed as least developed countries (LDCs) by the United Nations. Free EU market access was withdrawn for Kenyan exports at the start of this month, after negotiators failed to reach a deal on the EPA by an October 1 deadline.
The EU has now confirmed that, under the new EPA, all EAC members – least developed or more advanced – will benefit from the same “predictable and uniform trade scheme.”
Betty Maina, CEO of the Kenya Association of Manufacturers, said that, “because of the delay in concluding the EPA, Kenyan firms will unfortunately have to pay taxes for still another three to six months before the full legal processes for reinstatement into the duty free schedule can be concluded.”
The EU also said that the two blocs had reached a balanced agreement on export taxes and had concluded an agreement that includes provisions covering the free movement of goods, cooperation on customs and taxation, and trade defense instruments.
Source: taxnews- EU Reaches Trade Deal With East African Community
