The Fifth Meeting of CARIFORUM-EU Principal Negotiators was convened in Barbados on March 27–28, 2006. The meeting was co-chaired by Ambassador Richard Bernal, Director General of the Caribbean Regional Negotiating Machinery, representing CARIFORUM and Mr. Karl Falkenberg, Deputy Director-General, Directorate-General for Trade, European Commission.
The objective of the meeting was to take stock of and provide guidance to Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) negotiations between CARIFORUM and the EU. Building on negotiations that have taken place at technical level since the launch of the third phase of negotiations in St. Lucia last September, the two sides advanced a number of issues related to approaches to trade liberalization, identifying areas of convergence and issues requiring further discussion. Both sides acknowledged the importance of sequencing of market strengthening relative to market opening and the pace of market opening in relation to the internal and external realities facing CARIFORUM countries.
There was a reaffirmation by the two sides that the ‘development dimension’ must permeate the structure and provisions of the EPA. While there was general understanding on the structure of the EPA, the two sides acknowledged that further discussion was needed to make a determination on the place of regional integration and development cooperation in the Agreement.
Both the CARIFORUM and EU Principal Negotiators agreed to an indicative schedule and output of negotiations in 2006, with the objective of delivering a draft text to be considered at the Third CARIFORUM-EU Ministerial Meeting on EPA Negotiations in December 2006.
At their Fifth Meeting, the Principal Negotiators were also briefed on the outcome of the joint meeting of the CARIFORUM-EC Regional Preparatory Task Force (RPTF), held on March 23, also in Barbados. The RPTF meeting was co-chaired by Mr. Percival Marie representing CARIFORUM and Ambassador Amos Tincani, head of the European Commission Delegation in Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean.
There was recognition that some progress had been made towards the development and implementation of studies identified by CARIFORUM in the Second Phase of EPA negotiations. However, the issue of the availability of resources and necessary technical guidelines to advance these studies continues to affect their advancement. The meeting also examined what steps would be required to make the Non-State Actors forum operational.
To complement the RPTF process, synergies are also being sought with the wider donor community. In this respect, a meeting of representatives of CARIFORUM and the EC with other donors was convened in Barbados on March 24, to further explore support for CARIFORUM in the context of the EPA.
The meeting of Principal Negotiators also discussed the state of play of World Trade Organization (WTO) Doha Development Agenda negotiations. The two sides noted the looming deadline for reaching full modalities, emphasizing that it is important for the negotiations to stay on course and that the development dimension feature at the heart of these negotiations.
There was an exchange of views on Cotonou Article 37(4) EPA Review, an issue that will be discussed further at regional, all-ACP and ACP-EU levels.
The two sides remain firmly committed to advancing EPA negotiations. In keeping with this aspiration, the third round of Technical Negotiating Groups (TNGs) is scheduled to be held in Brussels in May, and the Sixth CARIFORUM-EU Meeting of EPA Principal Negotiators is set for Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic in September 2006.
Six rounds of Technical Negotiating Groups (TNGs) and three meetings of Principal Negotiators involving CARIFORUM and the EC were agreed for 2006. The TNG sessions consist of negotiations on four subject areas:
Market Access (including Agriculture)
Services and Investment
Trade-related Issues
Legal and Institutional Issues
The first of six technical rounds of negotiations in 2006 was convened in Brussels last month, with a second round of talks held last week in Barbados, preceding and setting the stage for the encounter of Principal Negotiators this week.
The RPTF serves to cement the strategic link between EPA negotiations and development co-operation, translating needs for support identified in the course of the negotiations into operational ideas for trade-related and other development assistance.