In
furtherance of ECOWAS efforts to attain economic integration within the region,
a two day sensitization workshop on the European Union/West African Economic
Partnership Agreement (EPA) for members of the media in West Africa will be
convened on the 20th and 21st September 2016 in Abuja, Nigeria.
The
sensitization programme which will be conducted in collaboration with West
Africa Economic and Monetary Union of West Africa (WAEMU), aims to improve the
awareness and capacity of regional journalists by enabling them disseminate
factual information about the EPA to Community citizens.
The
workshop will ensure that participants are familiarized with the EU/West Africa
EPA and introduced to Regional Trade Agreements and their relation with
multilateral trading systems.
Furthermore,
members of the media will be intimated with the development component of the
agreement, the Economic Partnership Agreement Development Programme (EPADP) as
well as the market access opportunities within the context of the EPA which is
based on the ECOWAS common External Tariff (CET).
Negotiations
for the EPA were concluded in 2014 with the aim of improving inter and
intra-regional trade among ECOWAS member states and the European Union.
Presently
all 28 members of the EU have signed the agreement while 13 West African
countries have signed, with the exception of Nigeria, the Gambia and
Mauritania.
