To say the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) negotiations have been bedevilled by controversy is an understatement. Most African countries have expressed concern on the missing development links within EPAs. To date, only 10 of the 47 countries involved in the negotiations have signed an EPA. A further nine countries have initialled EPAs but have delayed signing them. The delays have been precipitated by outstanding contentious issues. In places where comprehensive EPAs could not be agreed in time, interim EPAs were initialled which are now being signed. This was done ostensibly to safeguard preferences and move on with negotiations on comprehensive EPAs.

In 2009 there were intense negotiations to get countries that initialled EPAs by the end of 2007 to sign them before the end of 2009. Some of the contentious issues include; the understanding of ‘substantially all trade’; Most Favoured Nation clause, Development Cooperation; the bilateral safeguards and rules of origin. The unresolved issues have led to some countries refusing to sign in the SADC region, for example Angola, Namibia, and South Africa.  In the Eastern and Southern African EPA grouping (ESA-EPA) grouping, Zambia and Malawi have refused to sign.  There are also countries that have signed EPAs but have not ratified them because of sub-regional concerns like Lesotho and Botswana who are in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU).

For a full, current up-date on the contentious issues around EPAs read more .