The Tripartite FTA and the services sector

The document analyzes the proposed Tripartite FTA involving 26 member states from COMESA, EAC, and SADC. While the agreement aims for comprehensive liberalization of goods trade, the author argues that the approach to services is conservative and vague, relying on a 'lowest common denominator' strategy. A key area of potential progress is Annex 12, which addresses the movement of business persons, though the author notes critical gaps regarding the definition of 'temporary' movement and the lack of mutual recognition for professional qualifications.

• The Tripartite FTA aims to integrate 26 countries from the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the East African Community (EAC), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), representing a combined population of over 560 million and a GDP of approximately $1 trillion.
• Negotiations are structured in two phases: the first focuses on goods, while the second covers competition policy, intellectual property rights, and trade in services. However, discussions on the movement of business persons are intended to be 'front-loaded' as a parallel track during the first phase.
• The draft agreement's approach to services is described as vague and conservative compared to its goals for goods. While it seeks to eliminate all import duties on intra-regional goods, it only commits to 'credible' liberalization in priority services sectors and 'progressive' liberalization for non-priority sectors.
• Annex 12 proposes allowing business visitors, traders, investors, intra-company transferees, and professionals to move between member states without prior approval or numerical limits. However, the text fails to define 'temporary' movement, which could allow member states to maintain severe restrictions.
• The draft agreement does not address the mutual recognition of professional qualifications or accreditation, which remains a significant barrier to the actual practice of professions across borders, as evidenced by restrictive policies in South Africa for engineering, accounting, law, and medicine.
• Provisions for intra-corporate transferees could significantly benefit multinationals by removing numerical or time-bound restrictions on senior staff movement, contrasting with existing restrictive national policies in countries such as Botswana, Egypt, Kenya, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
• The proposed dispute resolution mechanism is limited because only member governments, rather than individual complainants or professionals, can initiate disputes.

APA

Stern, M. (2012). The Tripartite FTA and the services sector. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Policy-Briefing-45.pdf

Chicago

Stern, Matthew. The Tripartite FTA and the services sector. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2012. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Policy-Briefing-45.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Stern |first1=Matthew |title=The Tripartite FTA and the services sector |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=February 2012 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Policy-Briefing-45.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stern2012tripartite, author = {Stern, Matthew}, title = {{The Tripartite FTA and the services sector}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2012}, month = feb, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Policy-Briefing-45.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }