Brussels, 21/12/2007 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 20 December, welcomed the Council's formal adoption of the market access offer to ACP countries under the terms of Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs). At this stage, of the 78 countries affected, 35 - individually or in small groups - have signed partial or full agreements with the Commission, and 32 other countries will enjoy duty-free and quota-free access to the Community market given their status as least developed countries (LDCs). Only one full EPA has been concluded, that, on 16 December, with the Caribbean region. In a press release, the Commission confirms its intention to pursue its efforts in 2008 to change partial EPAs into full EPAs. It says that, next year, it will focus on changing sub-regional and several country agreements for the Pacific, West Africa, East Africa and Central Africa regions into real regional agreements which include all the countries, developing and least developed; completion of existing regional agreements and those under discussion, with the widest coverage possible of issues such as services and rules - in some cases, it is provided for as a continuous process related to capacity development and regional reform; the pursuit of EU commitments in terms of aid for trade to conclude the 10th EDF. Working hand in hand, the threat of a trade breakdown was avoided, and the foundations of a more ambitious and sustainable economic partnership laid, said Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson. He went on to say that it had not been easy to put these changes in place, but the leadership shown by several ACP countries and an unprecedented offer from the EU meant that a full EPA could be settled, that continued duty-free, quota-free market access for almost all LDCs could be guaranteed and that progress had been made towards concluding full regional EPAs. The EU avoided the worst by the last-minute conclusion of partial or full EPAs with the ACP countries, which could have lost their preferential access to the European market. Thanks to the conclusion this week of partial EPAs with virtually all non-LDC ACP countries, the produce of these countries (with the exceptions of rice and sugar) will be allowed to enter the EU duty-free and quota-free from 1 January 2008. Had this not been the case, these countries would have been faced with an increase in European customs duties which might have seriously disrupted their exports. The WTO gave Europe until 31 December to replace the trade preference scheme which it had with its former colonies with the EPAs that the Commission has been negotiating for five years with six regions (Caribbean, Pacific, East, West, Central and Southern Africa). (E.H.)