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Peace at Last... Now the Real Work Can Start |
29 July 2008
Just in the nick of time, it seems, all the warring parties have now - with the exception of a minority of European governments led by Spain - accepted the banana agreement brokered at world trade talks in Geneva over the last fortnight. The WTO General Council, which meets tomorrow in Geneva, should enshrine an agreement to reduce EU banana import tariffs for so-called 'third country' (non African, non-Caribbean) fruit by 35% over the next seven years. The "Geneva Agreement on Trade in Bananas ", dated 27 July 2008, represents a historic breakthrough for this controversial commodity sector, after more than 15 years of challenges to the European Communities import policy in the GATT and the WTO. The signatories to the Geneva Agreement, which includes a clause settling all existing disputes in the WTO, are the European Communities, Colombia, Panama, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Honduras, Guatemala, Peru, the United States, Brazil, Mexico, Nicaragua and Venezuela.
Cameroon had led an ACP group counter-proposal yesterday, seeking a grace-period before cuts were implemented, but last night accepted that, provided the African and Caribbean exporting governments can negotiate a satisfactory aid package to restructure their industries, they will accept the agreement, albeit grudgingly. There should be no problem in finding the funds, since the European Commission alone has earned well over 400 million euros in banana tariff income since the last major reform of January 2006, whilst the member states where bananas are landed in the EU-27 have reaped a handsome 1.2 billion euros over the same period. The key will be to ensure that this money goes to those involved in the banana chain that most need the support.
Spain's Rural Environment Secretary, Josep Puxeu, signalled his opposition to the deal yesterday, noting that the agreement had to be ratified by the EU Council of Ministers: "Spain wants to maintain high tariff protection for bananas for as long as possible", he told Spanish language news agency EFE on Monday. However, the Council of Ministers approved a marginally different EC negotiating mandate for a 34% cut in the 176 euro/tonne tariff over six years on 18th July, so it is highly improbable that more than a handful of banana producing governments(1) will vote against the agreement in Brussels. Between them they cannot block the ratification by the EU's top decision-making body, even if the current EU President, Nicolas Sarkozy, who has entered into angry war of words with European Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson in recent weeks, chose to throw his country's weight behind the Spanish rejection.
The breaking out of banana peace now leaves all the players along the chain - from plantation and packhouse workers to the global retailers - the chance to put into practice all the fine declarations of recent years in favour of a transition to a genuinely sustainable banana economy (see the Declaration of Participants from the second International Banana Conference in 2005 at www.ibc2.org )
Sources: EFE, 28th July 21.29 and 15.05, Geneva; AFP, 29th July, Geneva.
(1) - Spain, France, Portugal, Greece and Cyprus
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Bulletin |
Banana Trade News Bulletin
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The new issue of Banana Trade News Bulletin provides a comprehensive guide to the latest developments in the international banana trade.
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