Assembly/AU/Decl.2 (X) Page 1 DECLARATION ON ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENTS (EPAs) DOC. EX.CL/394 (XII) The Assembly: 1. RECALLING the objectives of the Abuja Treaty and the Constitutive Act of the African Union to accelerate the political and economic integration of Africa; 2. ALSO RECALLING the objectives of the Cotonou Partnership Agreement to make EPAs serve as instruments for the promotion of sustainable development, eradication of poverty, and reinforcement of regional integration; 3. FURTHER RECALLING AU Summit decisions that EPAs should serve to support African integration and promote unity and cohesion in Africa; 4. CONCERNED about the non-ratification of the revised EPAs by some ACP States; 5. ALSO CONCERNED about the lack of progress in the EPAs negotiations towards making them to achieve the development objectives of Cotonou Partnership Agreement; 6. FURTHER CONCERNED that the process leading to the conclusion of Interim Economic Partnership Agreements did not build on what was negotiated earlier and in particular that political and economic pressures are being exerted by the European Commission on African countries to initial Interim Economic Partnership Agreements; 7. AWARE that some countries had to initial Interim EPAs in order to avoid trade disruption and to conclude World Trade Organization (WTO) compatible arrangements by the deadline of 31 December 2007; 8. FURTHER-CONCERNED that the European Commission did not put much effort to explore other options to ensure that no Africa Caribbean Pacific country is worse-off; Hereby, 1. REITERATES that EPAs must serve as instruments for the promotion of sustainable development, eradication of poverty and the reinforcement of regional integration in Africa, as agreed in the Cotonou Partnership Agreement; 2. CALLS for the review of the interim EPAs, in line with the concerns raised by African Heads of State during the Second Africa-EU Summit;