As ACP meeting opens…
THE 11th Special African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Ministerial Conference opened here yesterday with Prime Minister Samuel Hinds reiterating Guyana’s disappointment with the provisions in the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between CARIFORUM countries and the European Union (EU) on trade in products with sugar content.

‘AGRI CHAT’: Minister Robert Persaud in discussion yesterday with, from left: European Commission High Commissioner to Guyana Ambassador Geert Heikens; Mr. Nick Jackson – former Chief Executive Officer of GuySuCo; Mr. Jos Van Campen, EU Beet Confederation Grower; and Mr. Nikiforos Silevas, EU (Agriculture) Commissioner. (Cullen Bess Nelson photo)

“We will have to insist on the removal of the accumulation stipulation that prevents one regional supplier from engaging in value addition in a sister State, for the purpose of exporting the product into the European Union (EU) duty free,” Mr. Hinds indicated.

He said, while ACP States have been urged to develop this type of South/South cooperation, the exclusion of government guarantees on price and member States being the buyers on last resort remain the biggest blow.

“This is evident in the abolition of the intervention price and the position of a price guarantee of 90 per cent of the reference until 2012, in a regime that extends until 2015, with no assured buyer of last resort.

“We have negotiated long term agreements with private buyers on purely commercial grounds, without the previous guarantee of price,” the Prime Minister said.

Prime Minister Sam Hinds (centre) among the delegates attending the 11th Special ACP Conference as they pose for a group photo on the steps of the Guyana International Conference Centre.

Mr. Hinds said Government’s investment in the state-of-the-art Skeldon Sugar Modernisation Project (SSMP) in Region Six (East Berbice/Corentyne), is testament to its commitment to secure a self-sustaining and regenerating, economically viable industry.

“The industry’s focus is on value-added products, such as packaged sugar, refined sugar and molasses utilisation,” he explained to the distinguished gathering of ACP Ministers.

Mr. Hinds noted that, with the current global economic downturn, no buyer, however well established, can be regarded as completely secure as opposed to a government backed guarantee.

This situation, he said, is synonymous to worsening terms of trade.

“We are worse off now than before with the EPA,” Mr. Hinds lamented.

He declared that the EU slow pace of delivery of accompanying measures and its strict conditionalities are restricting the disbursement of timely support to countries whose economies are facing severe consequences arising from the 36 per cent price cuts on sugar.

“In this regard and acknowledging the limited capacity of our administrative machinery, we must continue to press Europe to simplify its approaches to the delivery of support to sugar protocol countries affected by the reform of the EU sugar regime and to improve the record of disbursement,” the Prime Minister urged.

He said, despite these challenges, Guyana has outlined very clear policies aimed at encouraging business and investment and significant improvements in key areas, such as the supply of electricity and road infrastructure, are expected in the coming years.

STRIDES

In addition, strides have been made in export diversification with more exports in the areas of value-added products and services but, at the global level, the financial crisis and accompanying economic crises are projected to result in a decrease in export by nine per cent in volume terms in 2009, Mr. Hinds stated.

“This, coupled with possible reduction in remittances, can have a significant socio-economic effect on the economy and threatens to reverse the gains achieved over the past several years.

“Recent information emanating from the World Trade Organisation (WTO) suggests that several of the more developed members have resorted to protectionist measures as a response to the ongoing crises. These include tariffs, quotas, import restrictions, administrative requirements, licensing requirements and export subsidies.

“We would like to encourage the developed countries and, in particular, our development partners to take these issues into account in the solutions being addressed to counter this global problem,” Mr. Hinds said.

Alluding to the impact of climate change on ACP sugar, the Prime Minister called on member States to adopt a common strategy as they prepare for negotiations in Cophegan, Denmark, this December.

He repeated that, in Guyana’s case, most of the coastland lies below sea level and a change in weather pattern can negatively affect the agriculture sector, thereby directly affecting agriculture export.

On this score, Mr. Hinds said polices to combat climate change are a top-most priority on this Government’s development programme.

“Guyana is willing to play its part in the fight to mitigate the impact of climate change and is ready to integrate its rainforest in a global carbon credit scheme within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC), specifically under the proposed Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) mechanism,” he offered.

Mauritius Minister of Agro-Industry, Food Production and Security, Mr. Satya Veyash Faugoo, who is also the ACP Ministerial Spokesperson on sugar, said in light of the troubles caused by the global financial and economic crises, the conference has been arranged at an opportune time as the ACP/European Commission (EC) trade in sugar is at an important crossroad.

He announced that, in October 2009, the price for ACP sugar exported to the EU will suffer a drastic cut of 36 per cent and the Sugar Protocol will be terminated, together with its legally bending guarantees of a non-annually negotiated price, agreed individual quantities for buyers of last resort provision and indefinite duration.

Faugoo said developing countries, particularly small island developing States like those in the ACP which are not responsible for the global economic downturn and are still reeling from the food, fuel and climate related crises, remain the most vulnerable economies.

UNPRECEDENTED

“With the unprecedented global economic meltdown, growth is slowing…with the falling GDP in the developed world and rising unemployment…millions of people are falling into poverty,” he concurred.

Faugoo appealed to the international community, the G-20 nations in particular, to pay special attention to small and vulnerable economies in these uncertain and difficult times.

Guyana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mrs. Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, said sugar is not just another commodity but a way of life and the Caribbean has consistently argued for special and differential treatment involving longer transitional periods, technical and financial assistance and market access for smaller economies.

She said one of the major developments in the Caribbean trade agenda, since the 10th ACP Ministerial Meeting, has been the negotiating and signing of the EPA between CARIFORUM States and the EU.

It provides for substantial liberalisation of market access for both goods and services and replaces the non-reciprocal preferential trade arrangement which existed previously under the Lome and Cotonou conventions.

“We are not opposed to free trade but we are also mindful of our vulnerabilities and we must not be ashamed to speak of these. As such, the terms and conditions of trade must be fair and just,” Rodrigues-Birkett said.

She voiced Guyana’s support for an early and successful conclusion of the WTO Doha Development Round.

Assistant Secretary General of the ACP Group, Mr. Ferdinand Nyabenda spoke, as well, at the three-day forum themed ‘Adapting to sugar arrangement under EPAs’.