EPAs? A matter of political will

A report by Oxfam International and Third World Network Africa in the context of the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP)-EU EPA negotiations notes that the standard-GSP would not be very satisfactory for African countries (compared to their current preferential access under the Cotonou Agreement).
This report, "A Matter of Political Will", also points out that GSP+ would provide access to EU markets "at levels very similar to access under the Cotonou Agreement, in ways that are compatible with World Trade Organisation rules." According to the EU, 15 countries currently benefit from GSP+.
GSP+ would primarily be of interest to non-LDCs because according to the EU, the EBA preferential access to the EU market available to LDCs is more far-reaching than that available under the GSP+.
The Oxfam-TWN report finds that "In 88 per cent of the cases where t he standard-GSP applies higher tariffs than Cotonou, duty-free access is provided under the GSP+. Indeed, every single ACP export that would face a tariff jump of 20 per cent or more in its ad valorem duty under the standard-GSP would receive duty-free treatment under GSP+. In the majority of cases where GSP+ is not duty free, it offers the same level of access as Cotonou."
For example, excluding bananas and sugar, for the countries studied, the Report finds that GSP+ would provide exactly the same level of duty-free access as the Cotonou Agreement for Papua New Guinea, Zimbabwe, Mauritius and Cote d'Ivoire.

In particular, according to the report, GSP+ "would provide ACP countries with tariff-free access into the EU for all major export sectors, including horticulture, wood, and fish." It also looks in more detail at the sectors which would face non-zero tariffs under GSP+ for a number of African countries and Papua New Guinea.
On comparative rules of origin, the report notes that the EU's standard GSP, GSP+ and EBA do all have stricter rules of origin than the Cotonou Agreement. After looking in more detail at rules of origin issues such as cumulation, minimum tolerance and fish exports, it suggests some solutions.
The report outlines the procedure for applying for GSP+ and highlights its finding that a number of the countries studied have already met almost all the criteria for GSP+.