[Feedback]

[Site Map]

[Contact Us]

Will St. Lucia meet the EPA December 31 deadline?

Contact: Julita Peter

Thursday,  December 6, 2007 –  Prime Minister Honourable Stephenson King and Trade Minister Senator the Honourable Guy Mayers left the island for Guyana on  Friday December 7^th,   for a special Heads of Government and Ministers of Trade meeting.  Discussions focussed  on whether the region was in a position to sign the Economic Partnership Agreement  EPA which comes into effect on January 01, 2008.  The EPA is a new trade agreement  that will replace the existing waiver for the Cotonou agreement, which the region has been operating under. That waiver expires on December 31^st.  Saint Lucia's Trade Minister is fearful that   bananas from the region will be subjected to  UK tariffs, if the new agreement is not in  place by the end of this year.

At a  meeting of the Saint Lucia Senate on Tuesday December 6^th,  Senator the Honourable Guy Mayers said Saint Lucia had been working assiduously towards meeting the deadline. “At the moment the tariff  apply to bananas coming out of Central America at 176 Euro  a ton, and if we do not have that preference extended by the EU beyond December 31^st, 2007 then Saint Lucia and the rest of the Windward island producing countries will be subjected to a tariff of 176 Euro a ton. We hope that does not happen and we are hopping that we will have an extension of the waiver until we can conclude the negotiations,” Sen. Mayers said.

Minister Mayers explained that loosing  preferential treatment will have a significant impact on farmers and the banana industry in Saint Lucia. “The total revenue from bananas exported to the UK in 2006  was in the region of  47 million dollars, and if  the tariff goes into effect, we will be paying tariffs in the region of 20 million dollars; so that means the revenue from bananas will be almost half of what we  got  under the  preferences, ” added Senator. Mayers.     

The loss of   preferential treatment means  the opening up of a new trading scenario especially where CARICOM  is concerned.  At  the special meeting in Guyana the heads were also engage in  discussion regarding the  conditions under which market access will be granted in  the open -

market economy. The issue of  reciprocity is a key concern  for CARICOM.  “ Once the meeting takes place  this week in Guyana, we will be in a better position to know what are the various

areas we are going to open and what are the repercussions  on the economies of CARICOM, ”

Senator Mayers ended.

[ Home ] [ Up ] [Site Help]

© 2007 Government Information Service. All rights reserved.

Read our privacy guidelines.