The EU and Tunisia are aiming to exchange their offers on access to the agricultural market, which will be asymmetric in favour of the latter, by the end of 2018, with a view to concluding the free-trade talks launched at the end of 2015 next year, the European Commission announced in a stock-take before the committee on international trade of the European Parliament on Thursday 21 June.
The second session of talks, held in Tunis from 28 to 31 May, saw progress in the three key sectors in which an agreement may support reforms in Tunisia, explained Monika Hencsey, head of the southern neighbourhood unit at the Commission's DG Trade.
On agriculture, the “parties have agreed on the key parameters for an exchange of asymmetric offers with transition periods and sensitive products” and progress has been made on the provisions on the protection of geographical indications, she explained.
Concerning services, “good progress” has been noted for digital services, online trade and telecommunications. Work is underway towards a visa facilitation agreement that will ensure professional mobility in relation to services.
On energy and raw materials, the EU has proposed an “ambitious” chapter aiming to “ensure fair competition and support reforms in the sector”.
The next round of talks will be held in Brussels in the autumn.
Preserving the Tunisian agriculture sector
The rapporteur for Parliament, Patricia Lalonde (ALDE, France), pledged that Parliament “would be attentive to the involvement of civil society and ensure that Tunisian farming comes out from the negotiations stronger”, stressing that the sector accounts for 11% of the country's GDP and 18% of its jobs.
Highlighting regional instability, with Libya as its neighbour, low levels of regional economic integration and unemployment among young graduates as major difficulties for the Tunisian economy, Lalonde reiterated that the agreement would be “above all political” and that it aimed to “breathe new life into the Tunisian economy by bolstering trade with the EU, and by bringing them closer together. The forthcoming agreement must be progressive and asymmetric, as called for by Parliament”, she stressed.
Emmanuel Maurel (S&D, France) called for a “thorough impact assessment” of the future agreement, as he doubts that Tunisia is truly ready to open up its agriculture market. “There is major vulnerability in the Tunisian agriculture sector and the agreement must not increase this, such as in its citrus sector, given that Spain is the largest exporter and the Tunisian sector is too fragile”, he stressed.
On behalf of the NGO Solidar Tunisie, Lobna Jeribi called for a new partnership model built on a high added-value economy and innovation to reinforce the democratisation process and the social and economic transition of the country, based on a sectorial approach and a 'positive list' for the liberalisation of services.
Representing the Tunisian agriculture union Synagri, Karim Daoud called for a new agricultural development model with an ambitious programme for small-scale Tunisian farming, which generates more than 70% of national production, and to develop organic farming, high-quality products and denominations of origin. “Europe must include a proper plan to develop our agriculture in the CAP, as it has done for Spain and Portugal”, he said. (Original version in French by Emmanuel Hagry)