New association of OCTs with European Community proposed by the Commission to give preference to the poorest is criticised by OCTs - Review in progress in Council

Brussels, 27/11/2000 (Agence Europe) - The terms of the new regime for association between the European Union and the twenty Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs), for the period 1 March 2001 to 31 December 2007, are on the table of the Council and Parliament. The proposal, adopted by the European Commission on 15 November, for renewing their association with the Community according to the terms of the Amsterdam Treaty, was presented to the EU 15 Foreign Ministers on 20 November, and is currently the subject of a detailed review by the Council bodies, taking into account the concerns expressed by some of the delegations. The aim is to adjust the special regime which, since 1991, has allowed the small insular States constitutionally linked to four Member States (France, United Kingdom, Netherland, Denmark) to benefit, among other things, from a very favourable trade regime, financial resources from the European Development Fund (EDF) and loans from the European Investment Bank. The objective is to make the status of these countries and territories develop in four ways by: a) promoting the economic and social development of the OCTs more effectively; b) developing economic relations between the OCTs and the European Union; c) taking greater account of the diversity and specific characteristics of the individual OCTs, including some aspects relating to freedom of establishment; and d) ensuring that the effectiveness of the financial instrument is improved.

In order to implement these clauses of the Treaty, the Commission felt it was appropriate to follow the recent Council and Commission declaration on the Community's development policy, by gearing efforts to the fight against poverty, on explicit country by country criteria, adjusted to the level of development of the countries and territories concerned. Thus, it proposes:

• A new financial aid regime (EUR 175 million have already been earmarked for OCTs from the 9th EDF for financing cooperation between the Union and the countries of the ACP group according to the Cotonou agreement), which, progressively, would reserve the allocation of financial resources to the poorest OCTs or the poorest population groups (some OCTs, like the Netherlands Antilles, for example, are richer than certain regions of the Community, stresses a source close to the Commission). Emphasis will also be placed on addressing social and environmental issues, and the decision-making process for attribution of funds will be decentralised.
• Maintaining a preferential trade regime (zero tariff entry for all originating products without limit, except rice and sugar which are subject to annual quotas), together, however, with two innovations: a) the abolition of the cumulation of origin of goods rule for sugar, not only for sugar produced in the ACPs and processed in OCTs but also Community sugar processed by OCTs, because of the problems entailing the introduction of Commission safeguard measures in recent years (in November 1999, February and September 2000) and action before the Court of Justice, the Union having felt that the processing carried out was too minimal to warrant preferential access to the European market; b) slight amendment to the regime for rice: the overall quota of 35,000 tonnes, in force since 1997, would be maintained, but 10,000 tonnes from this quota would be reserved for the least developed OCTs (who complained they cannot obtain licenses).
• Strengthened cooperation in fields such as current payments, trade and the environment, intellectual property and consumer protection.

Once adopted, the new association decision will replace that of 1991 that expires on 28 February 2001 after having been amended in 1997 then extended in February 2000.

OCTs reproach the Commission for not having consulted them and for preparing counter-proposals

The proposal was strongly criticised by the OCT delegations present in Brussels on 16 and 17 November last during the OCT 2000 ministerial conference which brought together 13 delegations of the OCTs and representatives of the four Member States concerned. The OCTs opposed to the new regime envisaged reproached the Commission for not having consulted them and, in a "final declaration", submit their own views on the situation.

Recalling that, under the Amsterdam Treaty (Article 182), the association must first and foremost allow promotion of the interests and prosperity of the inhabitants of these countries and territories with a view to their economic, social and cultural development, the OCTs consider that the "Commission proposal contains provisions counter to their interests, and urge the Council to abstain from any decision until they have submitted their own views". They also appeal to the EU Member States to safeguard the OCTs' interests in compliance with the principles established in the Treaty. The delegations decided to establish the "Association of OCTs with the European Community" and, pending its establishment, to entrust a specific mandate to a committee of OCT representatives in Europe to collect and reconcile their positions with a view to guiding the Council in its decision.