Greetings from Regions Refocus! We have had a very busy recent few months, with collaborative work on economic policy and women's rights in Southeast Asia, an African-Caribbean exchange on heterodox and feminist policy, a project we're soon launching on post-Independence African policy, preparations for a new web presence, and dynamic discussions on North Africa's trade and economic relationships - the subject of this email. 

We're happy to share with you the outcomes of that workshop, held in Rabat, Morocco in June 2017 and entitled " North Africa's Trade Relationships: Complementarities and Contradictions with the Continental Free Trade Area." Regions Refocus co-convened this space with l'Espace Associatif, Arab NGO Network for Development, and Third World Network-Africa in collaboration with Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung. Bringing together a diverse group of approximately 30 policy-makers, representatives of regional institutions, civil society, women's networks, academics, and activists, this workshop provided an unusual opportunity to air North African perspectives on sub-regional trade relationships, in light of the forthcoming Continental Free Trade Area and its implications for the Maghreb and the broader North African region.