Brussels, 29 May 2024
The Foreign Affairs Council, in its Trade configuration, will meet in Brussels starting at 9.30. Ministers will hold a first policy debate on trade and competitiveness and the future of EU trade policy. As the second item on the agenda, ministers will have the opportunity to exchange views on trade and investment relations between the EU and Africa. Over a working lunch ministers will discuss the follow-up to the 13th World Trade Organisation Ministerial Conference (MC13).
Meeting page: Foreign Affairs Council (Trade), 30 May 2024
Trade and competitiveness – The future of EU trade policy
Ministers will have the opportunity to hold a policy debate on “Trade and competitiveness – the future of EU trade policy”.
This debate will take place at a particularly crucial time following the conclusion of the current institutional cycle, after the publication of Enrico Letta’s independent high-level report on “Much more than a market” and in preparation for the upcoming Mario Draghi report on Europe’s competitiveness.
The discussion will also focus on the essential role of trade policy in the EU’s access to critical raw materials.
The war of aggression against Ukraine, the energy transition, the increase in trade barriers and the fragmentation of trade, as well as the emergence of new technologies are challenging aspects of the current geopolitical context that the EU will need to take into account when shaping its trade policy.
Questions such as how trade policy can help EU businesses achieve the necessary efficiencies and minimise the negative impact of the current geopolitical challenges will be addressed, as well as the coherence of the trade policy with other EU policies and how to improve and secure access to the critical raw materials the EU needs for the green and digital transitions.
EU trade policy (background information)
EU-Africa trade and investment relations
The Council will discuss the state of trade and investment relations between the EU and Africa and how to deepen our relations in order to build a mutually beneficial partnership at the multilateral, continental, regional and bilateral levels.
Ministers are expected to discuss the latest developments relating to the negotiations and the implementation of trade and investment agreements with African countries.
Ministers will also discuss the new forms of engagement, such as partnerships on critical raw materials and synergies created through the “Global Gateway” strategy.
The relationship with Africa is an essential priority for the European Union. The EU is Africa’s largest trading partner, largest investor and largest donor of official development assistance (ODA).
More than 90% of exports from African countries enter the EU duty free as they are covered by the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), the economic partnership agreements (EPAs) with sub-Saharan Africa, or the free trade agreements (FTAs) with certain North African countries.
At the sixth European Union-African Union summit in February 2022, both sides agreed to boost regional and continental economic integration, in particular through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
This deepening of trade relations with African countries must be implemented at the multilateral and bilateral levels, with increasing inclusion of shared challenges such as sustainable development.
The Council welcomed the imminent entry into force of the Economic Partnership Agreement with Kenya and the Sustainable Investment Facilitation Agreement with Angola. EU-Africa relations (background information)
Samoa agreement (background information) Global Gateway (background information)
Follow-up to the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC13)
During a working lunch, ministers will exchange views on the follow-up to the MC13 which took place from 26 February to 2 March 2024 in Abu Dhabi.
Despite intensive efforts deployed by the EU in the run-up to the MC13 and at the MC13 itself, the conference delivered less than had initially been hoped for. The lunch will provide an opportunity for ministers to discuss the lessons learnt at the MC13, to examine the latest developments and to reflect more broadly on post-Abu Dhabi perspectives, including the “unfinished business” of the MC13.
Against the backdrop of increasing global challenges, ensuring the continuity of the WTO work is no longer sufficient. A broader WTO reform is needed. In the absence of a clear mandate from the MC13, one of the main challenges now is how to establish a reform agenda.
The lunch debate will allow ministers to cover the multilateral aspects of EU trade policy in greater depth, and thus contribute further to the discussion on the future of EU trade policy.
The WTO’s 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13)