Pacific ACP Trade Ministers to discuss PICTA and PACER Plus
PRESS STATEMENT (114/08)
20th October 2008
PACP TRADE MINISTERS TO DECIDE ON EXTENSION OF PERIOD TO NEGOTIATE PICTA TRADE IN SERVICES AGREEMENT
The Pacific ACP Trade Ministers which started their two-day meeting in Nadi, Fiji will have to decide on an extension to the negotiations to expand the Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement (PICTA) as an agreement on trade in goods only to include trade in services.
The work on the extension of PICTA to include a trade in services agreement started in March this year with the aim of concluding the negotiations around September/October this year.
“For reasons that I believe are known to your Excellencies, negotiations have also fallen behind and may now have to be completed by the first quarter of 2009,” says Tuiloma Neroni Slade, the new Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat when he opened the meeting in Nadi, Fiji today.
“I am also informed that there are obstacles to the inclusion of trade in services as a protocol to the PICTA, and that the feasible option might be to renegotiate a comprehensive PICTA that has coverage both in goods and services. It would seem that over time a more comprehensive agreement of this type might ultimately replace the current PICTA,” says Mr Slade.
On the issue of the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations (PACER) – plus negotiations, Mr Slade told the Trade Ministers that the establishment of the office of the Chief Trade Adviser (CTA) remains an issue of some difficulty.
Pacific Forum Leaders who met in Niue in August recognised the priority given to the early appointment of the Chief Adviser and the functioning of his/her office.
The Leaders had directed the PACP Trade Ministers to quickly establish the CTA or some other mechanism to provide services and support to Forum Island Countries envisaged from the CTA.
“We in the Secretariat have taken steps to seek funding for the operations of the Chief Trade Adviser, including from Australia and New Zealand, and while there are hopeful indications, the Secretariat is quite unable to assess with any measure of accuracy when the services of the CTA might be recruited or when the office might be operational,” says Forum Secretary General Mr Slade.
The PACP Trade Ministers Meeting will also discuss the progress of the negotiations of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union and other trade related issues.
ENDS.
For more information contact Mr Johnson Honimae, Forum Media Officer on phone 679 672 2000( Novotel Hotel), mobile 679 9458763 or email: johnsonh@forumsec.org.fj
20th October 2008
PACP TRADE MINISTERS TO DECIDE ON EXTENSION OF PERIOD TO NEGOTIATE PICTA TRADE IN SERVICES AGREEMENT
The Pacific ACP Trade Ministers which started their two-day meeting in Nadi, Fiji will have to decide on an extension to the negotiations to expand the Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement (PICTA) as an agreement on trade in goods only to include trade in services.
The work on the extension of PICTA to include a trade in services agreement started in March this year with the aim of concluding the negotiations around September/October this year.
“For reasons that I believe are known to your Excellencies, negotiations have also fallen behind and may now have to be completed by the first quarter of 2009,” says Tuiloma Neroni Slade, the new Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat when he opened the meeting in Nadi, Fiji today.
“I am also informed that there are obstacles to the inclusion of trade in services as a protocol to the PICTA, and that the feasible option might be to renegotiate a comprehensive PICTA that has coverage both in goods and services. It would seem that over time a more comprehensive agreement of this type might ultimately replace the current PICTA,” says Mr Slade.
On the issue of the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations (PACER) – plus negotiations, Mr Slade told the Trade Ministers that the establishment of the office of the Chief Trade Adviser (CTA) remains an issue of some difficulty.
Pacific Forum Leaders who met in Niue in August recognised the priority given to the early appointment of the Chief Adviser and the functioning of his/her office.
The Leaders had directed the PACP Trade Ministers to quickly establish the CTA or some other mechanism to provide services and support to Forum Island Countries envisaged from the CTA.
“We in the Secretariat have taken steps to seek funding for the operations of the Chief Trade Adviser, including from Australia and New Zealand, and while there are hopeful indications, the Secretariat is quite unable to assess with any measure of accuracy when the services of the CTA might be recruited or when the office might be operational,” says Forum Secretary General Mr Slade.
The PACP Trade Ministers Meeting will also discuss the progress of the negotiations of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union and other trade related issues.
ENDS.
For more information contact Mr Johnson Honimae, Forum Media Officer on phone 679 672 2000( Novotel Hotel), mobile 679 9458763 or email: johnsonh@forumsec.org.fj
