The Cotonou Agreement (2000) between the European Union and the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states initiated a paradigm shift from non-reciprocal trade preferences to reciprocal Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) compatible with World Trade Organization rules. This paper examines the Agreement’s implications for the complex landscape of regional trade arrangements in Eastern and Southern Africa, where overlapping memberships in blocs such as COMESA, SADC, and the EAC have historically generated contradictory trade rules and hindered deeper integration.

The EPA as an external catalyst:

Using comparative case analysis and recent negotiation data, we argue that the EPA process—by requiring ACP countries to negotiate as consolidated regional groupings—acts as an external catalyst for rationalising these fragmented architectures.

Distributional tensions:

However, the paper also highlights distributional tensions: potential losses of tariff revenues, asymmetrical market-access gains, and divergent interests between coastal and landlocked economies risk undermining cohesion.

Conclusion and conditions for success:

Drawing on primary documents and stakeholder interviews, we conclude that while the Cotonou framework offers a unique opportunity to lock in more coherent and WTO-consistent regional trade agendas, its developmental impact will depend on flexible implementation schedules, robust compensatory mechanisms, and strengthened regional institutions capable of mediating intra-African conflicts of interest.