Sustainability Impact Assessment in Support of Negotiations with Partner Countries in Eastern and Southern Africa in view of Deepening the Existing Interim Economic Partnership Agreement

The objective of the Sustainability Impact Assessment is to estimate possible impacts of a deepening of the Economic Partnership Agreement between the EU and five ESA partner countries (ESA5). However, in order to be able to assess future impacts of further liberalisation, it is likewise necessary to understand impacts thus far. Therefore, the scope of this study includes a mini ex-post evaluation of the EPA to review impacts across all areas of the Agreement (EU Member states as well as the ESA5 countries), which are inter-related and crucial for understanding the economic, human rights, social aspects, environmental (including climate), and development cooperation impacts of the current agreement by way of secondary and primary data collection and analysis.

In addition, the implementation of all elements of the agreement will be assessed. Thereafter, the project will focus on a forward-looking analysis to implement the SIA, taking the findings of the mini ex-post into consideration. The SIA analyses the economic, human rights and social as well as environmental impacts of the deepened EPA between the EU and ESA5. The purpose is to provide a better understanding of these impacts, to support the negotiations and to provide recommendations how to mitigate any negative effects and strengthen the positive impacts via policy action.

Visit our dedicated project website to find out more about Sustainability Impact Assessments, Economic Partnership Agreements and this particular SIA in support of negotiations with partner countries in Eastern and Southern Africa.