From Africa Recovery, Vol.14#3 (October 2000), Watch page

TRADE
Europeans okay duty-free access for least developed countries

A proposal to grant duty- and tariff-free access to Northern markets for all exports by the world's 48 least developed countries (LDCs) has moved closer to reality. On 20 September the European Commission endorsed a plan to allow "everything but arms" from LDCs into the EU without duties or tariffs. The announcement goes beyond the previous European position, raised at the abortive World Trade Organization meeting in Seattle in December 1999, of support for duty-free access for "essentially all" LDC exports. That formulation, developing countries argued, would allow the EU to exclude textiles, leather goods and agricultural products, which are of greatest interest to African, Caribbean and Pacific producers.

According to European Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy, the new proposal would cover all but 25 products that are weapons-related. Tariffs on bananas, rice and sugar would be phased out over three years. The measure would remove tariffs on over 1,000 products, affecting 1 per cent of LDC exports to the EU, which totaled some 8.7 bn euros in 1998. "There has been plenty of talk about how market access for poor countries is critical," Mr. Lamy noted. "It's time to put access to our markets where our mouth is. I hope the [European] Council and Parliament can adopt this proposal swiftly and that other developed countries quickly follow suit." EU development ministers have scheduled the proposal for consideration on 10 November, with final action by EU member states possible before the end of the year.

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