Cotonou Agreement
The Cotonou Agreement is one cornerstone of the EU trade and development policy and particularly vital for Africa’s destiny. On it depends the political and economic future of African countries, their regional integration, their weight in multilateral systems as well as their relations with their main trading partners and donors, such as the EU and the USA.
The Cotonou Agreement is a legal document that binds Europe and Africa in a long term perspective. Signed on 23 June 2000 in Cotonou, Benin, the Agreement determines the ACP-EU relationship at least until 2020. It covers more than one hundred states: the 27 states of the enlarged EU and the 79 ACP (African, Caribbean and Pacific) states. 48 of the ACP states are African countries.
Both parties have committed themselves to promote the economic, cultural and social development of the ACP states as well as to a stable and democratic political environment. Non-compliance with the Agreement has consequences for both parties.
Respect for human rights is a declared fundamental element of the ACP-EU relations (Article 9). This clear commitment offers African citizens an additional legal basis for demanding their political and social rights.
The new Partnership Agreement builds on the expired Lomé Conventions I-IV, which go back to 1975 and provided for development cooperation and for trade preferences for the former colonies of EC member states.