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European Commission White Paper on market access for developing countries

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The EU is both the world's most open market for developing countries and their largest trading partner. This is the conclusion of a report published on May 23 by EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson. The first of its kind, the report analyses developing countries' access to the EU market between 1999-2003. It shows that almost half of the EU's imports come from developing countries and that 79% of these imports enter the EU duty free or at reduced rates of duty.

The report finds that:

• The EU is the largest trading partner for the world's poorest countries: 40 % of EU imports originate in developing countries, amounting to € 362 billion worth of trade.
  
• The EU is the world's most open market for poor countries: in 2003 around 80% of developing countries' exports entered the EU duty free or at reduced rates of duty.
  
• The EU has the most open regime vis à vis Sub-Saharan Africa and the other African, Carribbean and Pacific countries: in 2003 African Caribbean and Pacific countries paid full duty on only 3% of their imports to the EU. The remaining 97% entered at zero duty or at reduced rates of duty.
  
• The EU is the most open market in the developed world for the world's 50 poorest countries. In 2003 the EU absorbed 63% of exports from Least Developed Countries to Japan, EU, US and Canada. In the case of agriculture, this figure is more than 70%.
  
• Under the EU GSP between 1999-2003 developing countries share in total EU imports grew from 33% to 40%.
  
• The EU is the main importer of agricultural products from developing countries, absorbing more than the US, Japan and Canada put together.
  
• The EU provides more than half of the world's total trade development assistance. Every year since 2001, the EU has given about 750 million euros in trade development assistance.
  
• Sub-Saharan Africa remains a region where free access to the EU market has been insufficient to deliver development because of insufficient production facilities and infrastructure. The report identifies the need to build effective regional African markets. This is the chief objective of the Economic and Partnership Agreements currently being negotiated between the EU and ACP regions, four of which are in Sub-Saharan Africa.

In presenting the report to the European Parliament Commissioner Mandelson stressed:

• That the EU could continue to improve market access by building new preferences into the EPAs currently under negotiation and by ensuring the full and final implementation of EBA at the end of 2008 by completing the phase-out of duties for the three remaining products: rice, sugar and bananas.
  
• That the EU can target its preferences more effectively through completing the 2005 review of the GSP which will remove from preferential access programmes country's now capable of competing effectively without preferential treatment.
  
• That the EU can improve the use of its preferential access programmes by ensuring the successful conclusion of the review of rules of origin this year.
  
• That with the EU market already offering significant market access, the focus now needs to be on capacity building: helping developing countries develop the capacity to trade with Europe. The Commissioner argued that Europe must lead the G8 in expanding levels of trade development aid. It is also a central plank of the Commissions approach to EPAs: building assisting economic integration and capacity building among developing countries.
  
• That the EU will also work for a pro-development Doha Round.

Background

The EU currently offers generous preferential market access to developing countries under the following schemes:

• The Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) provides preferential access to 178 developing countries.
  
• As part of the GSP, the "Everything But Arms" initiative (EBA) provides quota and duty free access for products from the world's 50 poorest countries.
  
• The preferences granted to 77 countries in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific under the Cotonou Agreement; these will be replaced by new agreements as part of the EPAs.
  
• The bilateral and regional preferential agreements with Chile, Mexico, Mediterranean countries, South Africa or countries in the Balkans region.

Report: "Opening the Door to Development: Developing Country Access to EU Markets 1999-2003"

For more information:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/trade/issues/global/development/index_en.htm

For more information on the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs)
http://europa.eu.int/comm/trade/issues/bilateral/regions/acp/index_en.htm

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