Trade Policy, Poverty Alleviation and Sustainable Development

Abstract

Empirical evidence suggests that increased flows of trade generate wealth (O’Brien and Williams 2007, pp. 148–52). Given that trade issues form a core aspect of the Cotonou Agreement, it is important to evaluate the extent to which EU policies facilitate increases in trade flows between the Polity and the ACP and the extent to which these activities are sustainable in the long term. As highlighted, the rationale behind the Cotonou Treaty (Article 1) is poverty alleviation and the facilitation of the ACP countries into the global economy whilst simultaneously promoting environmentally sound outcomes. In this regard, trade policy clearly has an important role to play. The Cotonou Agreement remains in its early stages and a true assessment of its impact on sustainability is difficult to gauge before the implementation of the economic partnership agreements (EPAs) in 2008.