Council Decision (EU) 2020/13Show full title

1. Preamble

Apart from the general reference to the Cotonou Agreement(1), and its successor agreement, once applicable, special reference will be made, inter alia, to the following:

• The commitment of the parties to promote and expedite the economic, cultural and social development of the ACP States, with a view to contributing to peace, prosperity, security and sustainable development, as well as to promoting a stable and democratic political environment;

• The commitment of the parties to the respect for human rights, including core labour rights, democratic principles and the rule of law, which constitute the essential elements of the ACP-EU Partnership, to good governance, including anti-corruption, which constitutes a fundamental element of the ACP-EU Partnership;

• The commitment of the parties to a set of internationally agreed principles and rules aimed at fostering a mutually supportive relationship between trade and sustainable development, including supporting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030 Agenda) and its Sustainable Development Goals, international labour agreements and standards, including the promotion of full and productive employment and decent work for all, and international climate agreements, such as the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change;

• The commitment of the parties to centre their partnership on the objective of reducing and eradicating poverty, consistent with the objectives of sustainable development and the gradual integration of the ACP countries into the world economy; to build, therefore, ACP-EU economic and trade co-operation on regional integration initiatives existing within the ACP countries;

• The objective of ACP-EU economic and trade co-operation to foster the smooth and gradual integration of ACP States into the world economy, with due regard for their political choices and development priorities, and in particular their own poverty reduction strategies, thereby promoting their sustainable development and contributing to poverty eradication in the ACP countries;

• The commitment of the parties to support the regional integration process within the ACP Group of States and to foster regional integration as a key instrument for the integration of ACP countries into the world economy;

• The commitment of the parties to strengthen economic, trade and investment co-operation and to create a new trading and investment dynamic between them, with a view to facilitating the transition of the ACP countries to a liberalised global economy and to foster the development of the private sector and in particular micro, small and medium-size enterprises (MSMEs);

• The commitment of the parties to take account of the different needs and levels of development of the ACP countries and regions;

• The commitment of the parties to respect their obligations assumed within the framework of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and to further the objectives of the WTO;

• The joint objective of the parties to enhance co-operation and capacity-building, as appropriate, in all areas relevant to sustainable trade and investment, and to achieve progressive and reciprocal liberalisation of trade in goods and services, in accordance with WTO rules, taking into account the level of development of the ACP countries and the economic, social and environmental constraints they are facing;

• The commitments of the parties to ensure that efforts undertaken in the framework of the Cotonou Agreement and its successor agreement and those undertaken in the framework of Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) are mutually reinforcing;

• The right to regulate economic activity in the public interest in accordance with international obligations, to achieve legitimate public policy objectives such as the protection and promotion of public health, social services, public education, safety, the environment, public morals, social or consumer protection, privacy and data protection and the promotion and protection of cultural diversity.

(1)

The ACP-EU Partnership Agreement was amended by the Agreement signed in Luxembourg on 25 June 2005 (OJ L 209, 11.8.2005, p. 27) and by the Agreement signed in Ouagadougou on 22 June 2010 (OJ L 287, 4.11.2010, p. 3).