EU pledges R47bn aid for trade in Africa

Clive Emdon THE 25-MEMBER European Union (EU) has pledged up to €5 billion euros (R47bn) to boost trade with 15 Eastern and Southern African states. According to the Chinese news agency Xinhua Online, officials at a special forum held to discuss an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) said substantial progress had been made in its discussions. These focused on a new reciprocal trading system which is expected to be implemented in 2008 when the existing treaties governing trade expire. The EU’s commitment is intended to help bolster trade and the production of goods and services to promote equal trading with Europe. The EU, in pressing for a new reciprocal trading pact with African countries, suggested they should stop over-reliance on heavy taxation as a source of government revenue.