CARIFORUM-EU Economic Partnership Agreement approved unanimously
A MOTION on Guyana’s ratification of the CARIFORUM-European Union (EU) Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) was unanimously approved by the National Assembly yesterday.
The motion to ratify the agreement was moved before the House by People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Member of Parliament and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett.
The minister recalled that negotiations for a new trading regime with the EU began in April 2004 and concluded in December, 2007, with the EPA replacing the trade provisions of the Cotonou Agreement which was signed in 2000, in which the European Community granted the ACP countries non-reciprocal market access to Europe on more favourable terms than those enjoyed by goods of other countries.
She said Guyana benefited from that special access arrangement, especially for its rice, sugar, rum and such. However, the trading arrangements under Cotonou came to an end in December 2007, and there was a commitment by the EU to introduce a WTO-compatible agreement.
She recalled that prior to its signing, the EPA generated robust debates in many circles and “my own government had serious issues with the agreement and we made known our positions”.
“Indeed, apart from the more fundamental issues that have been adequately ventilated prior to our signing the agreement, we were concerned that there wasn’t a provision in the agreement for review. We were very pleased that Guyana’s request to have a five-yearly review was accepted by the EU, almost in the final hours of the conclusion of that agreement,” she noted.
She said a joint declaration was made, and Guyana, together with its sister CARIFORUM countries, signed the agreement in October 2008, with Haiti signing a bit later.
In terms of the overall situation, she said the ACP did not negotiate as one group; it was divided into six negotiating groups, which included the CARIFORUM, comprising the 14 CARICOM countries plus the Dominican Republic.
Minister Rodrigues-Birkett said that the CAIRFORUM region remains the only one to have completed a comprehensive EPA with the EU as of now.
The Foreign Affairs Minister noted in 2007 the EU put in place a Council Regulation, which allowed ACP countries to have duty and quota free access to the EU market until full EPAs had been concluded and implemented.
Last year, she said, the EU put forward a proposal to amend that regulation for ACP countries which had agreed and initialled full or interim EPAs with the EU, but had not signed or ratified these agreements.
“This new proposal, which was adopted in September last year, seeks to remove 17 of the 36 countries from the list. However, if any of these 17 countries proceed to take steps towards ratifying their interim EPAs or agree to full regional EPA by January 1, 2014, they will continue to benefit from the trade preferences under the 2007 regulation,” she explained.
She said with effective lobbying and solidarity within the ACP group, the date has been pushed back to 2016, adding, “I must say that the CARIFORUM group, of which Guyana is a part, is not affected because we have concluded a full EPA; however, the ACP’s solidarity was necessary”.
She said all ACP groups have re-engaged in dialogue with the EU and there has been some progress.
In terms of Guyana, she assured, “The PPP/C Government takes very seriously the agreements to which we are a party; and as such, since the signature of the EPA, we immediately shifted our focus to implementation – implementation not only in terms of complying with the necessary legal and administrative requirements, but more importantly to look at how we can derive the promised benefits of the agreement”.
The minister said that the EPA was enforced as of January 2008, and that in keeping with the WTO requirement to introduce this agreement after December 31, 2007, where the EU committed to have such an agreement introduced.
However, CARIFORUM negotiated a three-year moratorium from January 1, 2008, to December 31, 2010, before entry of its Tariff Liberalisation commitment under the EPA, from January 1, 2011.
She recalled that Minister of Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh, came to the National Assembly with their tariff liberalisation schedule and on January 15, 2011, they implemented the EPA tariff schedule for goods.
“And as far as I am aware, Mr. Speaker, we were the first country to do so, thus demonstrating what I said earlier, our commitment to implementing agreements once we have signed it, but also taking a leadership role in CARIFORUM,” she stressed.
She said the Customs Act was appropriately amended and Guyana fulfilled the requisite obligations.
An important aspect of the negotiation process leading up to the conclusion of the EPA was the necessary private/ public sector consultations at the national and regional levels in CARIFORUM, and those wide-ranging consultations were important for “not only public awareness, but more importantly for political and technical inputs from civil society on what was a critical public policy issue”.
“The need for civil societies inputs and public participation is now even more critical in this implementation process,” the Foreign Affairs Minister emphasised.
As such, she said her ministry will be relying on the cooperation and support of other ministries and agencies in this process, and at the regional level, the heads of government, at an early stage, following the conclusion of the negotiations mandated the establishment of an appropriate technical unit in the CARICOM Secretariat to oversee the implementation of the EPA.
She said they have to work very hard to increase and improve productivity and “we are hopeful that the EU will continue to support us as we make this transition”, and reminded that much has happened since the signing of this agreement, such as the financial and economic crises.
She said if the motion is successful, Guyana will be joining Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, Dominica, and the Dominican Republic that have already ratified the agreement, and also stated that 10 EU member states have also ratified the agreement.
“But more than that, I think Guyana will also be once again playing a leadership role in meeting our obligations under the EPA,” the minister underscored.
PPP/C MP and Minister of Agriculture Dr. Leslie Ramsammy; Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly and A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) MP Deborah Backer; fellow APNU MP Carl Greenidge; and Alliance For Change (AFC) Leader and MP Khemraj Ramjattan, all joined in giving support to the motion.
Backer assured, “APNU has absolutely no hesitation in supporting this motion” and encouraged that they ensure that they benefit from the EPA.
AFC MP Ramjattan said they must take advantages of the terms and articles within this agreement that can make Guyana a better economy.