The ministers agreed on framework of a negotiating structure for the conduct of their EPA negotiations with the EU:

1. The negotiation structure currently in place at the all-ACP level could be replicated at the ESA level, this being at the Ministerial and Ambassadorial level
2. These two levels could be fully backed up by technical staff drawn from member states, private sector, civil society, other stakeholders and the Secretariats of regional organisations supported by experts from colloborating organisations such as the ACP secretariat, UNCTAD, AIF, Commonwealth Secretariat.
3. There is a need to set up regional coordinating mechanism in Brussels, which will liase closely with Geneva
4. The ambassadors, working closely with technical support, could develop implementation mechanisms and guidelines, define financial requirements and in collaboration with capitals, regional organisations and the ACP secretariat mobilise the necessery resources to undertake negotiations.

In light of the foregoing, Ministers tasked their Ambassadors, in collaboration with the Secretariats of regional organisations and with the active involvement of all relevant stakeholders, identify the issues for negotiations during the second phase and submit a draft negotiation mandate by the end of September 2003. In the definition of the draft EPA negotiating mandate the need to ensure coherence and consistency with regional integration initiatives. Subsequent to this decision, the COMESA carried out further technical work on rules of origina (including cumulation), market access issues, trade in services, investment issues, fisheries, WTO compliance and rules etc.

In Cancun in the margins of the WTO conference, ESA ministers held a review of progress meeting on EPAs in which they decided that the COMESA Secretariat should notify the ACP secretariat and the EU the names of countries currently making up the ESA configuration. Other decisions by Ministers werew as follows:

1. That the COMESA Secretariat would be the lead organisation providing and coordinating technical support to the ESA negotiations on EPAs
2. That each ESA country should notify the COMESA Secretariat which negotiating cluster they could take the lead (or act as an alternate) in the negotiations
3. That the negotiating clusters should be agriculture, fisheries, market access, trade related issues, services and development issues.

Timeframe
Countries are currently engaged at their various levels ins considering draft negotiating guidelines, including capitals, Brussels and within their regional organisational structures. It is expected that an ESA Ministerial meeting will be held in December 2003 at the margins of the COMESA Council of ministers to finalise the guidelines/mandate, and subsequently take a decision for the official launch of the ESA negotiations on EPAs.

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