Achim Tillessen, head of programming and the productive sector for an EU delegation at a meeting in Zimbabwe last week, said various factors ranging from poor infrastructure to supply-side constraints were impacting on ACP countries' ability to fully participate and benefit from international trade.
"Many ACP countries have a big problem on infrastructure for them to trade properly," Tillessen said.
Only 19 per cent of ACP exports to the EU are finished products. Said Tillesen, adding that the EU's share of total imports from ACP countries had continued to decline from seven per cent in 1976 to about three per cent last year.
Bananas represent around one per cent of ACP exports to the EU.
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