Post 2015: Global Action for an Inclusive and Sustainable Future

productive capacity through value-addition and
integration into global supply chains (Stevens,
2012). For example, lDcs can now make use of
non-originating imports such as cloth, which puts
them in the same position as beneficiaries of the
uSa african Growth and opportunity act. the new
regimes apply multiple roo criteria rather than only,
for example, value-added thresholds. 114 this means
that exporters from developing countries may face
different rules for different types of product across
different sectors.
8.5.3 Commodities policy
current Eu policy on addressing some of the
vulnerabilities associated with lIcs’ commodity
dependence is limited to the acp countries, but
changes to the cpa trade regime have introduced
a degree of uncertainty about how a new regime or
mechanism might develop. the previous policy had
issues about how to define commodity dependence
and the associated vulnerabilities (nissanke and
Kuleshov, 2012).
For example, the most recent Eu action plan
on commodities states that the term commodity
Dependent Developing countries (cDDc) is
used for convenience and refers to countries that
are particularly exposed to price variability in
international agricultural commodity markets and
thus share certain development challenges (com,
2004). a more analytically rigorous definition could
provide a sounder basis for identifying countries
that require assistance in relation to commodityspecific
issues (nissanke and Kuleshov, 2012).
there is a need to update the Eu’s current action
plan on commodities in several respects to address
two areas of difficulty:
• The lack of a commonly agreed measure of
commodity-related vulnerability; and
• Implementation challenges: Strategies have
effectively amounted to market surveys and
generic agricultural development recommendations,
lacked detail and have been difficult to
implement. a focus on competitiveness has not
significantly improved outcomes.
It will be important for Eu policy to move towards
interventions aimed at preventing the emergence
of vulnerabilities at a more macro level. this goes
beyond ensuring that there are adequate resources for
shock facilities, as discussed in the Eu’s most recent
communication on trade and development (com,
2012c). For example, the European commission
has already introduced various shock-absorbing
schemes, most recently the FlEx, vulnerability
FlEx (v-Flex) (see chapter 7) and Food Facility
initiatives. 115 building on the v-FlEx, which was
set up in 2009 to mitigate the effects of global food
and financial crises on acp countries, the Eu
‘will work to set up a new shock-absorbing scheme
focusing on broader exogenous shocks with a crosscountry
dimension’ (Griffith-Jones and te velde,
2012). However, the Eu could be more ambitious in
enhancing resilience building efforts in the broader
field of programmable aid, in addition to some reform
of shock facilities and their operationalization. this
is with a view to designing effective ex-ante rather
than just ex-post interventions.
8.5.4 Investment policy
as discussed in Section 8.3, lIcs are experiencing
rapidly changing investment patterns. the Eu has
also seen some major changes arising from the lisbon
treaty, in particular it now has exclusive competence 116
in FDI as part of the common commercial policy,
although there are questions about how principles
of inclusive and sustainable development will be
integrated into Eu investment policy. there is, for
example, rather limited discussion in the Eu’s most
114 value-added thresholds can be defined in terms of the maximum percentage of imported inputs in total inputs or the value of the product, or
in terms of the minimum percentage of the value of the product that must be added in the country of origin.
115 these have been assessed recently by te velde et al. (2011).
116 ‘Exclusive competence’ indicates that policy in the specified area is formulated at the Eu rather than at the individual member State level.
poSt-2015: Global actIon For an IncluSIvE anD SuStaInablE FuturE
It will be
important for
EU policy to
move towards
interventions
aimed at
preventing the
emergence of
vulnerabilities
at a more
macro level.
159