REGIONAL INTEGRATION AND EPAS: CHALLENGES FOR SADC–EPA GROUP

This research paper analyzes the challenges facing the SADC-EPA group in negotiating Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) with the European Union, focusing on the complexities of multiple membership in regional trade blocs and the impact of the Trade and Development Cooperation Agreement (TDCA) between South Africa and the European Community.

• SADC Member States face significant complexities due to multiple memberships in regional preferential trading arrangements, including SACU, COMESA, EAC, IOC, and ECCAS. While multiple membership is currently manageable for the SADC Free Trade Area (FTA) target of 2008, it becomes a critical problem as the region moves toward a customs union (CU), because a country cannot belong to more than one CU.
• The target for a SADC customs union by 2010, as planned in the RISDP, is considered unrealistic and a 'non starter' in the medium term. The author suggests SADC should focus on its comparative advantages in production, infrastructure, and food security rather than trade integration, which is more advanced in SACU and COMESA.
• The SADC-EPA group is divided into two distinct market access categories due to the existing TDCA between South Africa and the EU. The BLNS countries (Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, and Swaziland) are effectively tied to the TDCA's free trade provisions through their SACU membership, while the MAT countries (Mozambique, Angola, and Tanzania) must negotiate their own market access or FTA with the EU.
• BLNS countries risk being worse off under the TDCA than they were under the Cotonou arrangements, as TDCA provisions for market access into the EU are less favorable. Proposed solutions include requesting the opening of the TDCA for renegotiation, creating a special compensation fund, seeking derogations, or revising revenue sharing formulae.
• The MAT countries (Mozambique, Angola, and Tanzania) have limited bargaining power as Least Developed Countries (LDCs). Options for these nations include pooling resources, joining SACU to access TDCA compensation, strategically joining the ESA group to leverage the bargaining power of 20 countries, or walking away by December 2007 to seek EBA status via multilateral routes.
• Tanzania faces a specific conflict due to its membership in the EAC customs union, which requires a uniform trade regime for members (Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda) toward third parties. This necessitates either a coordinated EAC-EU negotiation, a derogation from the EAC, or the abandonment of the EAC CU project.

APA

Tekere, M. (2005). REGIONAL INTEGRATION AND EPAS: CHALLENGES FOR SADC–EPA GROUP. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/SADC-EPA-Tekere.pdf

Chicago

Tekere, Moses. REGIONAL INTEGRATION AND EPAS: CHALLENGES FOR SADC–EPA GROUP. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2005. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/SADC-EPA-Tekere.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Tekere |first1=Moses |title=REGIONAL INTEGRATION AND EPAS: CHALLENGES FOR SADC–EPA GROUP |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=30 August 2005 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/SADC-EPA-Tekere.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{tekere2005regional, author = {Tekere, Moses}, title = {{REGIONAL INTEGRATION AND EPAS: CHALLENGES FOR SADC–EPA GROUP}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2005}, month = aug, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/SADC-EPA-Tekere.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }