Since 2014, the European Union (EU) has in place a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTAs)
with Georgia and Moldova as part of the Association Agreement. The European Commission has
commissioned a consortium led by the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) to undertake an
evaluation of the implementation and impact of the DCFTAs. The evaluation will be carried out between
February 2021 and April 2022 and will analyse the economic, social and environmental, and human rights
(including labour rights) effects which the DCFTAs have had since their application. In terms of the
evaluation criteria, as requested by the Terms of Reference (ToR), the study will assess the effectiveness,
impact, efficiency, coherence and relevance of the DCFTAs.
This draft Inception Report provides a brief summary of the DCFTAs, the political and economic context in
which they have been negotiated and in which they operate. The report also presents the literature findings
on the effects and implementation of the DCFTAs and outlines the methodology and the assessment
framework for this ex-post evaluation.