Brussels, 25/02/2009 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 24th of February, the committee on international trade of the European Parliament (INTA), chaired by Helmuth Markov (GUE-NGL, Germany), gave its conditional green light to the definitive adoption of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) signed in October 2008 between the EU and the 14 States of Cariforum. This group is given subject to this EPA- the only one to have been signed of the eight currently being negotiated with regions or countries of the ACP group- serving the economic interests of the countries of the Cariforum and their effective integration into the world economy. However, in the spirit of the members of INTA, it is also important that commitments are taken by the European Commission and Council on a revision clause to the agreement, and that additional aid to trade is earmarked to accompany the implementation of the EPA.
Going along with their rapporteur David Martin (PES, United Kingdom), the members of the committee call on the plenary session (by 15 votes in favour, 13 against) to give its approval to the EPA if the European Commission responds satisfactorily to the concerns expressed in the oral question which will be put during the second plenary session of March.
The draft recommendation adopted by a majority (17 votes in favour, 12 against) with a view to this is the result of reinforced cooperation between the INTA committee and the committee on development, which took position on 17 February, but solely on aspects of the EPA related to development (EUROPE 9842). The MEPs take the view that the EPA should help to reinforce economic growth, regional integration, economic diversification and reduction of poverty. With regard to this, they stress that the EPA can only be described as "satisfactory" if it succeeds in offering the ACP countries support for their sustainable development, promoting the participation of these countries in multilateral trade by reinforcing the regional integration process, revitalising trade between the European Union and the ACP countries and promoting the diversification of the ACP economies.
They urge the negotiators of all complete EPAs (both on goods and the so-called Singapore questions, as is the case with the EPA between the EU and Cariforum) to aim to ensure the transparent management of natural resources and to highlight the best practices necessary for the ACP countries to make the absolute most of these resources.
The INTA committee stresses that the implementation of the agreement must take account of the integration process within Cariforum, including the single market and economy objectives of Caricom (which aims to establish a single market by 2015), as laid down in the revised Treaty of Chaguaramas.
Regarding the accompaniment measures for the EPAs, which are designed, amongst other things, to compensate for the net loss in Customs revenue which will follow trade liberalisation, the MEPs call on the European Commission to clarify the exact allocation of funds to the various ACP countries, as part of an increase to the "Aid to Trade" budget (the EU has committed to provide 2 billion euros a year from 2010, at a rate of 1 billion from the Commission and 1 billion from the Member States), and the Member States to define additional funding on top of the budgetary commitments for 2008-2013. In order to guarantee the efficiency of the aid, the ACP countries, for their part, have been called upon to state their requirements for additional accompaniment funds, particularly regarding the regulatory frameworks, safeguard measures, the facilitation of trade, aid granted to satisfy international sanitary and phytosanitary and intellectual property standards, and the creation of a mechanism to follow up EPAs.
The Parliamentary committee encourages continued work to reduce customs duty between the developing country and regional groups, which currently make up between 15 and 20% of the value of their market, encourage increased promotion of South-South trade and the economic growth and regional integration of these countries.
The INTA committee would like to see the creation of appropriate and transparent monitoring mechanisms to measure the impact of the EPAs on the increase in wealth of the ACP, and broad consultation of interested parties. The European Commission is called upon to do all in its power to relaunch multilateral negotiations on the Doha development programme at the WTO and to guarantee that trade liberalisation agreements continue to promote the development of the poorest countries. The INTA committee is firmly of the opinion that the global EPAs should come in addition to an agreement on the Doha development round, rather than represent an alternative choice for the ACP countries.
Whilst acknowledging the need for the EPA to include a chapter on trade defence, accompanied by bilateral guarantees, the MEPs call on both sides to avoid abusing these guarantees.
The draft resolution notes that the level of public expenditure for aid and subsidies to agriculture being so much higher in the rich countries creates a disadvantage for the farmers of the ACP countries, by reducing their competitiveness both on the internal market and on the export market, as their products are more expensive than subsidised products from the EU and the United States. The INTA committee therefore supports the exemptions agreed upon to the tariff line, which concentrate on agricultural products and a number of processed agricultural products, given the need to protect the fledgling industry or sensitive products of these countries.
The parliamentary committee points out that the EPA should help towards the achievement of the objectives, policies and development priorities of the ACP States. The text stresses that the EPA should make a contribution to the Millennium Development Objectives and include the specific interests of SMEs of the EU and of Cariforum. The plenary is called upon to ask the European Council to consult the regional councils of the overseas departments (Martinique, Guadeloupe and Guyana) before proceeding with the ratification of the EPA.
In the interests of intra-regional trade, the MEPs recognize the importance for Cariforum and the other sub-regional groups selectively to apply the most favoured nation clause to the European Union.
They note that for the Bahamas, Antigua and Barbados, the loss of customs revenue which will result from the liberalisation of trade will be particularly steep. The other States of Cariforum are in a very different situation, in that either a considerable proportion of EU exports are already free from any obstacles to trade, or that the bulk of liberalisation will take place over a period of 10 to 15 years.
The INTA committee stresses that access to the markets without customs duty and quotas, as agreed between the parties, will bring about a significant increase in trade and be supported by the most flexible and improved rules of origin.
Involving the MEPs with the revision of the EPA
The MEPs welcome the fact that a complete and obligatory re-examination of the agreement has been scheduled no later than five years after the date of signature and every five years thereafter, in order to calculate the impact (including costs) of its implementation. They stress that both sides are committed to modifying the provisions of the EPA and to adapting its application if necessary, and called for the European Parliament and the Parliaments of Cariforum to be involved in all revisions of the agreement.
However, the INTA committee rejected, by a narrow margin, an amendment (by Caroline Lucas, Greens, UK) in favour of an in-depth revision of the effectiveness of the safeguard clauses in the EPA, in order to protect the Cariforum signatories against a drop in prices threatening the local markets and fledgling industries, against food insecurity and the over-exploitation of natural resources.
Regarding the implementation of the EPA, the INTA committee opted for flexible wording stressing the importance of appropriate and transparent control mechanisms under the effective supervision of the competent committee within the European Parliament, via collaboration with representatives of the ACP countries, in order to guarantee global coherence in the commercial and development policies. The amendment of the committee on development on the details for this Parliamentary control to be exercised was not taken up (this amendment called for the Cariforum-EC parliamentary committee, established by the EPA, to act as a member entity of the ACP/EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly, to avoid an expensive and complex proliferation of meetings, but also to take advantage of the system of regional meetings of the joint assembly and of its experience).
The European Commission is called upon to support the creation, within the Cariforum States, of an independent monitoring mechanism with the necessary resources to determine the extent to which the EPA is achieving its objectives. The INTA committee stresses the vital role of the parliaments of Cariforum and all non-State players in the control and management of the EPA and stresses that their commitment calls for a clear and global agenda between the EU and the countries of Cariforum.
The EPA between the EU and Cariforum will cover not only goods, but also investments, competition policy, public procurement contracts, the current account of the balance of payments, the reinforcement of intellectual property protection, the environment, social issues and cultural cooperation. It was signed on 15 October 2008 between the EU and the 13 least poor States of Cariforum, and by Guyana on 20 October. Haïti, which is one of the least developed countries, has until 2010 to sign it. In the meantime, the island will enjoy access to the European market free of duty and quotas for almost all of its products. (A.N./trans.fl)