Consultations stalling RP-EU FTA talks
Manila Bulletin | February 28, 2012
Consultations stalling RP-EU FTA talks
By BERNIE CAHILES-MAGKILAT
The start of negotiations for the Philippines-EU bilateral free trade agreement has been put on hold as Trade and Industry Secretary Gregory L. Domingo insisted of conducting wider consultations with stakeholders.
EU Ambassador Guy Ledoux told reporters at the sidelines of the "1st EU-Philippines Meeting on Energy that EU has long been ready to start with the negotiations after both countries signed the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement in June last year.
The signing of the PCA signaled the start of negotiations for the proposed bilateral FTA between the Philippines and EU. The text was initialed by the two chief negotiators, European Commission’s Asia Director James Moran and the Philippine Ambassador to the European Union, HE Enrique Manalo. EU Member States representatives in Brussels witnessed the ceremony.
According to Ledoux, Domingo has met with EU officials in Bali in May last year where he sought for more time because the agency has yet to conduct more consultations with stakeholders on the impact of the proposed FTA with domestic industries.
"Now, it is up to the Philippine government. We are ready to negotiate anytime," said Ledoux.
The next opportunity for EU to follow up on the start for the proposed FTA would be on the upcoming ASEAN-EU meeting.
Among ASEAN countries, EU is expected to conclude negotiations with Singapore and Malaysia this year.
The EU had shelved the proposed EU-ASEAN FTA because of the difficulty to come up with a unified regional agreement given the divergence of interests in the 10-member ASEAN countries.
He said that the human rights issue the EU has with Myanmar is just one of the range of issues that made the regional FTA not feasible.
Earlier, Trade and Industry Undersecretary for international trade group Adrian S. Cristobal Jr. has raised the concern that the country’s agricultural sector and the marginalized farming community would be greatly disadvantaged by the highly subsidized EU farm sector.
"Studies have shown that a full liberalization would benefit the industrial sector like consumer goods such as appliances and IT, but the agriculture sector would be adversely affected," Cristobal said.
"The agriculture would be in a difficult position because our major agricultural exports are the potential loser."
The country’s agricultural sector is highly inefficient and does not enjoy government subsidy. Farmers are also one the marginalized in the economic social strata in the country.
On the other hand, the EU farm sector is known for its efficiency and huge subsidies that it earned the ire of the U.S. and other countries at WTO negotiations.
On investments, however, Cristobal said an FTA deal with EU is an excellent opportunity for tourism, BPO, mining and renewable energy.
"An FTA with EU entails a lot of work for all of us. We have to come up with studies to determine the short term and long term gains. We have to get equal footing in negotiations to realize tangible gains," he said.
With all these concerns, Cristobal said the FTA with EU may take four to six years to realize. (BCM)
