About European Free Trade Association ( EFTA )
The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) is the intergovernmental organisation of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. It was set up in 1960 by its then seven Member States for the promotion of free trade and economic integration between its members.
EFTA was founded by the Stockholm Convention in 1960.
EFTA has three committees with an advisory role whose mandate is to provide advice to its member states on all issues of relevance to the organisation.
- The EFTA Parliamentary Committee
- The EFTA Consultative Committee
- The EEA EFTA Forum
The Consultative Committee of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) is a forum for trade unions and employers’ organisations in the four member countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. Through its co-operation with social partners in the European Union, the Committee also serves as a link between social partners in EFTA and in the EU.
The EFTA Council is the highest governing body of EFTA. The Council usually meets eight times a year at the ambassadorial level (heads of permanent delegations to EFTA) and once a year at ministerial level.
The day-to-day running of the Secretariat is headed by the Secretary-General based in Geneva, who is assisted by three Deputy Secretaries-General, one based in Geneva and the other two in Brussels. The four posts are appointed by the EFTA Council and shared between the Member States.
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