ABSTRACT
Historically, the European Union’s (EU) trade and development policy has dealt separately with North African countries (the Maghreb) and those of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). This state of affairs dates back to the post-colonial settlement when the then European Economic Community (EEC) dealt with the Associated African States and Madagascar (AASM) as an assemblage of SSA countries within the Yaoundé Accords (1963-75). This agreement was succeeded by the Lomé Conventions (1975-2000) which maintained the SSA character of ‘Association’, albeit as part of the creation of the wider African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) bloc. North African countries such as Tunisia and Egypt remained outside of this preferential trading system. Not only did they not enjoy the low-tariff and ‘non-reciprocal’ trade structures of Lomé, but they also did not qualify for the European Development Fund. The current ACP-EU Cotonou Agreement (2000-20) maintains this differentiated treatment of Maghreb and SSA nations both in terms of trade negotiations and aid links.
