WEDNESDAY, 10.30AM
The proposed free trade deal between South Africa and the European Union will cost SA’s Southern African Customs Union partners R350-million, according to the final report on the effects of the deal.
The other Customs Union partners, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland, share external tarfiis with SA and are heavily reliant on income from the Customs Union pool. The report’s findings support Pretoria’s argument that the proposed free trade area with the EU will lead to huge costs for its neigbours.
SA’s union partners have called for the deal to be made with the entire Customs Union, not just with SA.