In this guest contribution for ECDPM, Dr Jide Martyns Okeke argues that collective African leadership and deliberate investments in boosting intra-African trade and digital transformation could accelerate the quest for silencing the guns on the continent.
The European Commission DG NEAR and the office of the High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy released a new policy statement (āCommunicationā) āRenewed Partnership with the Southern Neighbourhood: A New Agenda for the Mediterraneanā on 9 February 2021. The Communication was accompanied by a staff working document āRenewed Partnership with the Southern Neighbourhood Economic and Investment Plan for the Southern Neighboursā. The priorities outlined in the Communication and the investment Plan are to be concretised during 2021 as the new āNeighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument (NDICI), which will finance the EUās international cooperation, is programmed during 2021.Ā
Twenty-five years after its creation (as a successor to the GATT [General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade], 1947-1995), and following many years of paralysis, the stakes for reform are high. This is particularly evident during the post Covid-19 recovery period, as the pandemic exposes the structural vulnerabilities of globalised economies.
The current policy brief lays out the obstacles to both AfCFTA implementation and realisation of its full economic potential. It also explores how the EU can engage in providing targeted support and how to strengthen AfCFTA-related cooperation between Africa and the EU. The analysis and recommendations draw on a review of the literature and policy documents by the German Development Institute (DIE), the African Center for Economic Transformation (ACET) and the European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM), as well as two online expert seminars on 17 and 24 June 2020.
The global Covid-19 pandemic has had an enormous impact on trade across the world. Value chains and tradeĀ have slowed down, or even been brought to a halt, via several channels. This paper investigates the impacts of the pandemic on trade and value chains in Africa, with a special focus on Ethiopia and Kenya. It also makes specific policy recommendations regarding theĀ African Continental Free Trade AreaĀ Agreement in the light of Covid-19.
In this āAgenda for Europe in the Worldā, we share concrete proposals for the new EU leadership, focusing on nine key domains where the EU can make a difference.
