Brussels, 29/04/2010 (Agence Europe) - Cameroon Trade Minister Luc M'Barga and Côte d'Ivoire Ambassador Marie Gosset held a conference in Brussels on Thursday 29 April, at which they criticised the Geneva banana agreements. These agreements, concluded between the European Commission and the countries of Latin America on 15 December 2009, provide for the phased reduction of European customs duties applied to Latin American countries, which will ultimately end the preferential access to the Community market for bananas from the Africa, Caribbean, Pacific (ACP) countries. The aim of this round of lobbying was to enlist the support of the European Parliament which, under the terms of the Lisbon Treaty, will be called on to approve this trade agreement in the next few weeks. These countries also want the €190 million accompanying measures, agreed by the Commission as compensation for the Geneva agreements, to be altered in their favour.
The two officials explained at some length the potential negative economic consequences of the agreements for their respective countries. “In our unstable countries, the economy is the stabilising factor for society and especially for rural activity. These agreements, which threaten our producers, threaten the stability of our countrysides,” M'Barga said. “We feel betrayed by Europe. We understand that Europeans have to look for new partners. … The problem now is our future relations with Europe. This future may be dependent on this issue. Is Europe not turning its back on the African states?” the minister wondered. Gosset regretted that the Cotonou agreements were not mentioned in the Lisbon Treaty, unlike previous treaties. She also said she was seriously concerned that this problem might spread to products other than bananas in future.
The two delegations were received by the Commission on Thursday afternoon. According to a source close to the matter, the meeting did not bring any significant progress.
The three main African banana producers, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana export 550,000 tonnes of bananas to the EU annually. The European market represents 5.5 million tonnes annually, with 73% of that amount being supplied by Latin American countries. (A.N./transl.rt)