Overhauling free trade deals a must: Report
Fiji Times
Overhauling free trade deals a must: Report
22 April 2008
The EU will do irrevocable damage to the development prospects of some of the smallest and poorest countries in the world unless it overhauls free trade deals due to be finalised this year, Oxfam said in a report yesterday.
"In Partnership or Powerplay" released at the 12th UN Conference on Trade and Development in Ghana, Oxfam presents a comprehensive analysis of the proposed texts.
It concludes that, if finalised, these Economic Partnership Agreements would hurt poor people and undermine development across Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific.
"The Pacific had proposed a quite different type of deal that would have served development in the region far better," said Barry Coates, Oxfam New Zealand Executive Director.
"However, as evidenced by the recent exchange of letters between the Pacific and the EU, the European negotiators took a very tough stance, and the texts reflect that.
"It’s no wonder that only two Pacific countries have signed on, and even then mainly to avoid the EU raising tariffs on their exports."
Papua New Guinea and Fiji initialled interim EPAs at the end of last year, thereby avoiding the EU raising tariffs on important exports such as fish and sugar from the beginning of 2008.
