The round of negotiations between the European Union and the area of the Pacific belonging to the ACP group (Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu) opened at Nadi in the Fiji Islands on 10 September. The objective among the priorities defined by the Cotonou Accord between EU and ACP is to conclude by 2007 the new global Economic Partnership Accord (EPA) and the fourteen bilateral accords for the promotion of trade and development in the region. European Commissioner for Development Poul Nielson attended the inaugural ceremony and also signed with the local authorities a programme of 21 million Euros financed by the European Fund for Development, aimed at promoting education for all. After Central Africa, Eastern Africa, Western Africa, South Africa and the Caribbean, the countries of the Pacific represent the sixth region with which the EU has begun negotiations.
