11 Amendments of Antoni COMÍN I OLIVERES related to 2021/2178(INI)
Amendment 3 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the positiveCalls for a more pronounced shift in EU- Africa relations towards a partnership on an equal footing, allowing both sides to pursue their own interests but also to identify common areas of cooperation; stresses that free, fair and sustainable trade facilitates inclusive economic growth and sustainable development and contributes to poverty reducnotes that trade liberalization on its own cannot ensure the attainment of development objectives without taking into account the economic, social and environmental impact of FTAs; stresses that fair and sustainable trade facilitates inclusive economic growth and sustainable development and contributes to poverty reduction by enabling sustainable agricultural development, ensuring food security, boosting green industrialisation, creating employment opportunities and promoting regional integration; highlights, in this regard, the importance of the new partnership agreement between the EU and the members of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States, the upcoming summit between the African Union and the EU, and joint innovative initiatives such as the EU multi-stakeholder dialogue for sustainable cocoa;
Amendment 9 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1 a. Stresses that fair trade between the EU and Africa entails that African products access the EU market without the same degree of reciprocity for EU goods, given that some degree of protection is necessary to ensure the development of competitive and sustainable agriculture systems and nascent green industries in Africa;
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
Amendment 23 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2 a. Believes that the AU-EU partnership should seek to build on potential synergies, and deploy accompanying measures to contribute to the African priority of sustainable and green industrialisation; underlines that the long-term objective of industrial development needs to be appropriately matched by short-term programmes and initiatives that ensure continuity and coherence with regional and continental frameworks, especially by building on existing initiatives like the Boosting Intra- Africa Trade initiative (BIAT) of the African Union;
Amendment 27 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2 b. Points out that the “Aid for trade” agenda should play a role in mobilizing resources to address trade-related constraints, financing infrastructure needs and helping to build the capacity of African countries to establish appropriate regulatory structures;
Amendment 28 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. EIs of the opinion that EPAs should be considered to be, first and foremost, an instrument of development cooperation rather than trade liberalisation; regrets that current EPAs place too much weight on trade liberalisation, which prevents the consolidation of nascent industries in the African countries due to competition of EU products; emphasises that economic partnership agreements need toshould support and be coherent with the various regional trade communities in Africa and the further development of the AfCFTA, contribute to the building of resilient and sustainable regional value chains, and help to boost and diversify intra-African trade; calls for chapters ensuring consistency with development needs and policies and the UN sustainable development goals to always be included, monitored and implemented; stresses the need to generate economic opportunities for African women, especially by providing them with ICTs skills and encouraging employers to hire more women, and improve gender equality in all social fields across the continent;
Amendment 36 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3 a. Points out that EPAs can potentially undermine African continental trade integration because of their fragmented nature and non-alignment with existing regional frameworks; underlines that the current orientation of EPAs could thwart the efforts of African countries to industrialise; regrets that labour rights commitments in EPAs are weak and that there is no guarantee that jobs created in partner countries will comply with the standards laid down in the ILO core conventions;
Amendment 38 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3 b. Notes that, despite the large abolishment of export subsidies and coupled subsidy payments, CAP direct payments to EU farmers continue to account for up to 50% of total farm income in the EU; regrets that EU spending in agricultural development in African countries is small in relation to the needs for innovation and increase of production capacity; calls on the Commission and Member States to provide more support to African agricultural development;
Amendment 40 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 c (new)
Paragraph 3 c (new)
3 c. Is deeply concerned that EPAs with countries of the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) have boosted a large volume of EU dairy exports to Western African countries, especially milk powder, which hinder local production, aggravate unemployment, contribute to food insecurity and consolidate rural malaise;
Amendment 41 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 d (new)
Paragraph 3 d (new)
3 d. Points out that the inclusion of the most-favored-nation (MFN) clause in the EPAs could pose a threat to the AfCFTA; stresses that the principle of reciprocity between all countries, whatever their situation, should be replaced by reciprocity between equals, differentiating between those who find themselves in very different situations;
Amendment 44 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Welcomes the reform of the Generalised Scheme of Preferences as one of the EU’s key trade instruments for supporting developing countries in their efforts to promote sustainable development, reduce poverty and ensure respect for human rights; welcomes, in particular, the aim to facilitate increased economic growth and job creation in developing countries on the African continent; calls onurges the EU to make ensure that European trade policy towards Africa is fully in line with the principle of Policy Coherence for Sustainable Development (PCSD) and that it does not contradict efforts by African partners to establish viable economic structures.