European, African Trade Blocs Seek To Improve FTA

by Ulrika Lomas, Tax-News.com, Brussels

24 April 2015

Delegations from the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) States and the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) convened on April 22, 2015, in Gaborone, Botswana, for their third Joint Committee meeting under the free trade agreement (FTA) between the two sides.

The two sides exchanged views on possible new approaches in a number of areas pertaining to rules of origin and trade facilitation. They noted that there might be room to improve the existing FTA, which entered into force on May 1, 2008.

EFTA said that this is particularly relevant considering that both sides have since signed more ambitious agreements with other trading partners.

Total EFTA-SACU merchandise trade (import and exports) was valued at USD2bn in 2014. The EFTA States exported goods to the value of USD0.9bn to the SACU States while imports amounted to USD1.1bn.

SACU is a customs union comprising Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa and Swaziland. EFTA is a free trade organization made up of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.

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