Brussels, 13/09/2000 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission and Tunisia this week began negotiations on the agricultural products access regime, as stipulated in the association agreement (see yesterday's EUROPE, p.13). The first phase was focused on the establishment of a precise evaluation of reciprocal trading systems and regulations and tariffs applied on both sides, before tackling, in a technical framework, the product by product negotiations. A meeting is scheduled in November to conclude the matter.
The aim is to revise the provisions applied since 1998 with a view to improving the access of farm produce exported from Tunisia and to achieve full trade liberalisation in "successive stages".
On the Tunisian side, the main request concerns olive oil, presented as a "central product". Tunisia insists that greater account should be taken of the social and traditional nature of this production and calls for the duty-free quantity currently allowed access by the EU (46,000 t/per year) to be increased to 50,000 t/per year. The new system would also comprise a partnership allowing to target markets other than those of the Euro-Mediterranean area with increased use of inward processing traffic, that is, the use of Tunisian olive oil in food preparations and preserves re-exported towards third countries. Currently, in addition to its annual exports of 46,000 tonnes duty free, Tunisia supplies to the European food industry around sixty thousand additional tonnes which are not fully taxed as they are re-exported towards third countries. The European side understands this product is of great importance to Tunisia, but negotiators must take the EU market situation into account (currently marked by increased production, Community sources state).
For other products, the aim is to improve the system in force and review certain access mechanisms (timetables, entry fees, choice of more commercially viable products, etc.), so as to grant Tunisia the advantages that have already been granted to other third Mediterranean countries, as well as to include new products on the list of products covered by the agreement. In exchange, consideration is being given to easing protection of the Tunisian market for certain European products. Tunisian sources said that, since 1998, the agreement has allowed for the position of European products to improve on that market as it had allowed for better intra-European geographic diversification of Tunisian agricultural exports, previously concentrated on France and Italy. On the European side, the easing of the tariff and non-tariff obstacles that still hamper sales on the Tunisian market is strongly desired, notably for products which Tunisia needs (cereals, meat, dairy products, etc.). The list of concessions will be set out in detail following negotiations.