The European Union (EU) council has finally adopted a decision that paves the way for the signing of the EU-Kenya Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA).
The announcement was made by the Council and the Commission in a joint statement Tuesday on the occasion of the adoption of the Council Decision.
Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs José Manuel Albares noted in the statement that the agreement is set to boost trade in goods and create new economic opportunities, with targeted cooperation to enhance Kenya's economic development.
“This agreement brings us closer to Kenya, and it brings Kenya closer to us. Kenya is considered the economic hub of East Africa and the opening of new areas of cooperation will translate into mutual benefits for our workers, businesses and traders,” he said.
The signing of the agreement is now set for December 18 with President William Ruto informing the Cabinet about it on Wednesday.
The agreement includes a shared commitment to sustainable development, including labour rights, the environment and climate action, Albares added.
It will provide duty-free, quota-free EU market access to all exports from Kenya as soon as it enters into force, as well as partial and gradual opening of the Kenyan market to imports from the EU.
“It includes binding provisions on trade and sustainable development, such as climate and environmental protection and labour rights, and a transparent dispute resolution mechanism,” he stated.
This is the most ambitious economic partnership agreement the EU will have with a developing country when it comes to sustainability provisions.
The EU is Kenya's first export destination and second-largest trading partner, totalling €3.3 billion (Sh552 billion) of trade in 2022-an increase of 27 per cent compared to 2018.
Once the agreement is signed, and European Parliament gives its consent, the agreement can enter into force.
The National Assembly will also have to ratify it as required by the Constitution.
Negotiations on the EPA between the East African Community (EAC) and the EU (EAC-EU EPA) were concluded in 2014.
Kenya signed and ratified the Agreement in September 2016.
The EU and its Member States also signed it in June 2016.
Its implementation has, however, not been possible because not all EAC partner countries signed and ratified it.
The EAC Summit of 27 February 2021, under the chairmanship of Kenya, reached a decision allowing individual EAC states to implement the EPA.
In May 2021, Kenya formally requested to engage with the EU to move forward with the implementation of the Agreement on a bilateral basis.
On February 17, 2022, Kenya and EU signed a Joint Statement at the margins of the EU-AU Summit agreeing to advance negotiations on the EU-Kenya EPA, which will remain open for other EAC partner states.
Negotiations were concluded on May 24, 2023, at a technical level and on June 19, 2023, at the political level.
On September 28, 2023, the Commission submitted its proposals for Council Decisions on the signing and the conclusion of the EU-Kenya Economic Partnership Agreement, together with the text of the Agreement.
According to the Economic Survey 2023, EU was Kenya's second-largest export market in 2022 accounting for Sh133.2 billion in revenues, a 15 percent increase from Sh115.8 billion in 2021.
More than 70 per cent of the country’s flower production heads to the European bloc.
In the period Kenya also imported products worth €2bn (Sh306billion) with two-way trade growing by about a quarter since 2019.
Currently, Kenyan exports to the EU mainly cover coffee, cut flowers, tea and vegetables.