Mozambique will stop paying customs duties on exports to the European Union (EU) after joining the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the EU and southern African countries on Monday, 5 February, the European Commission said.

Mozambique’s membership means that every country in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) has now joined the agreement and makes it the first regional EPA in Africa to become 100% operational. This “means that Mozambique will not have to pay customs duties on exports,” to the European bloc, the commission said.

The European Commission said that Mozambique has become the “last piece of the puzzle to be placed” in this partnership after the other five countries – Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa and Swaziland – joined the agreement in October 2016.

The EPA “offers opportunities for SADC countries to create jobs, attract more investment, industrialise and integrate into global value chains, and on the EU side, European companies are increasingly investing in the region.”

The European Commission also said that Mozambique will gradually, over a number of years, reduce or eliminate customs duties for many exports from the European Union. (macauhub)