Resource information
Trade preferences are expected to
facilitate global market integration and offer the potential
for rapid economic growth and poverty reduction for
developing countries. But those preferences do not always
guarantee sustainable external competitiveness to
beneficiary countries and may risk discouraging their
efforts to improve underlying productivity. This paper
examines the EU beef import market where several African
countries have been granted preferential treatment. The
estimation results suggest that profitability improvement
achieved by countries under the Cotonou protocol compares
unfavorably with the returns to nonbeneficiary countries in
recent years. Rather, it shows that public infrastructure,
such as paved roads, has an important role in lowering
production costs and thus increasing external
competitiveness and market shares.
