EU Enters Trade Deal With Four African Countries

The European Parliament today endorsed the European Union’s first economic partnership deal with an African region, the Interim Economic Partnership Agreement, which provides Madagascar, Mauritius, the Seychelles and Zimbabwe with duty- and quota-free access to the EU market.

The deal will enable the four countries to sell their goods, mostly coffee, sugar cane and tobacco, in the EU without paying tariffs or quotas. In return, the countries will open their markets to EU exports over the next 15 years.