Dissertation : "Post-Cotonou agreement, a new framework ?"

Abstract

The objective of this paper will be to answer the question of whether the new agreement concluded in April 2021 is a radical shift away from the previous agreements, especially in comparison with the Cotonou Agreement. The theory that will be employed in this paper will be the historical approach of neo-institutionalism theory and complemented by incremental change theory. These two theories will be applied to a comparative analysis between the Cotonou Agreement and the Post-Cotonou Agreement. The findings of this research is that there has been no major break with what was done under Cotonou, some aspects have been strengthened while others have been modified. Perhaps Post-Cotonou will be the precursor of a more radical change in the future, but it certainly lays the groundwork for it.