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Other Services Negotiation ( GATS , COMESA and EPA)

Other Services Negotiation ( GATS , COMESA and EPA). Mauritius National Consultation Workshop on SADC Services Negotiation Port Louis, 16 th July, 2012 . Prepared By: Mrs Viola S. Nanyaro SADC Secretariat . outline. Introduction GATS Negotiation Introduction (basic GATS information)

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Other Services Negotiation ( GATS , COMESA and EPA)

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  1. Other Services Negotiation(GATS, COMESAand EPA) Mauritius National Consultation Workshop on SADC Services Negotiation Port Louis, 16th July, 2012 • Prepared By: • Mrs Viola S. Nanyaro • SADC Secretariat

  2. outline • Introduction • GATS Negotiation • Introduction (basic GATS information) • State of play in main areas of negotiations • COMESA Services negotiations • EPA Services Negotiation • SADC • ESA (Mauritius)

  3. General Agreement on Trade in Services

  4. GATS Introduction (Basic info.) • Services negotiation started during Uruguay round resulting to General Agreement on Trade in Services – GATS • Basic principles of GATS • All services are covered by GATS • Most-favoured-nation treatment (MFN) applies to all services, except the one-off temporary exemptions • National treatment (NT) applies in the areas where commitments are made • Transparency in regulations, inquiry points • Regulations have to be objective and reasonable • International payments: normally unrestricted • Individual countries’ commitments: negotiated and bound • Progressive liberalization: through further negotiations

  5. GATS Introduction (Basics Info.) Ctd. • Modes of supply • Mode 1- services supplied from one country to another (e.g. international telephone calls) = Cross-border • Mode 2 - consumers or firms making use of a service in another country (e.g. tourism)= Consumption abroad • Mode 3 - a foreign company setting up subsidiaries or branches to provide services in another country (e.g. foreign banks setting up operations in a country)= commercial presence • Mode 4 - individuals travelling from their own country to supply services in another (e.g. fashion models or consultants) = presence of Natural persons • Liberalization Commitments ( Market Access & National Treatment) • Specific Sector through Schedules of commitment • list limitations such as quantitative limitations (suppliers, operations, transactions, natural persons); legal entity requirements; and capital requirements. • Article V: Economic integration (e.g. SADC, COMESA, etc.)

  6. GATS Negotiation Area • There are four major areas of services negotiations: • market access (bilateral, plurilateral& multilateral) • domestic regulation • GATS rules on emergency safeguard measures, government procurement and subsidies • Implementation of LDC modalities (i.e. special treatment for least-developed countries under GATS Article IV.3)

  7. Market Access • Negotiations under article XIX: Negotiations on Specific commitment (successive rounds) • Negotiation in each round through bilateral, plurilateral or multilateral • Phase I: started in 2000 by developing guidelines and procedures for Negotiations • In 2001: Doha Ministerial Declaration incorporate negotiations under Art. XIX as single undertakingof the Doha Development Agenda (DDA) • Bilateral negotiations has been underway since 2002 • Plurilateral negotiations started during Hong Kong Ministerial meeting in 2005

  8. Market Access cont. • Bilateral negotiations • Started in 2001 and adopted as part of DDA single undertaking • DMC established June 2003 as deadline for submission of offers and conclusion of negotiation January 2005 • Cancun revised the dates to May 2005 then Hon Kong to July 2006 due to stalemate in NAMA postponed to July 2007, Since then no new timelines • April 2011, 71 initial offers and 31 revised offers had been submitted Members are considering plulateral negotiations

  9. GATS Neg. Cont. (Plurilateral) • Plurilateral negotiations started during Hong Kong ministerial meeting 2005 (voluntary participation, direct engagement among MS) • About 21 collective requests submitted by early 2006 (2 rounds of negotiation) from 2007 cluster discussion to allow for Capital experts to attend • By July 2012 : 19 participating member (engage in technical talks on the legal structure) • The approach receives a lot of challenges • Closed Article V sessions?? Non-MFN?? Negative List? Future incorporation into GATS! Dispute settlement mechanism! • seen as ill-founded on the current stalemate of DDA • Actual negotiations on the services liberalization to likely start in 2013

  10. Domestic Regulation(art. VI:4) • Working party on DR established in 1999 • Negotiations continues as part of regular work • Developed discipline in the accountancy sector • On-going work on horizontal disciplines (will apply to all measures affecting trade in services within the scope of the GATS) • So me progress has been registered on horizontal disciplines • Last meeting held June 2012 • Technical issues related to draft discipline (applications) • Reflected on the implication of draft discipline • Secretariat Background Note (regulatory practice and issues in various sectors )

  11. Negotiations on GATS rules • Covers rules on emergency safeguard measures, government procurement and subsidies • Working Party on GATS Rules was established in March 1995 • focused discussions as mandated in the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration • Not able to move to a text-based process • fundamental divergences over the objectives and expected outcome of the negotiations • Engaged in substantive technical discussions to better understand the proposals and the options available

  12. Implementation of LDC modalities (Art. IV.3) • a set of LDC modalities established • Urge members in making specific commitments, to give special priority to providing “effective market access” in sectors and modes of supply of export interest to LDCs and develop “appropriate mechanisms” with a view to achieving full implementation • to the extent possible, to consider making commitments providing access in Mode 4 (in the categories of M4 identified by LDCs in their requests • In 2008, the ministerial meeting it was decided for a waiver which was adopted during MC8 • allows WTO members to deviate from their most-favoured nation obligation of non-discrimination in order to grant preferential treatment to service suppliers (including under Mode 4) from LDC members

  13. COMESA Services

  14. COMESA Services Negotiations • Framework for liberalizing trade in services in COMESA adopted by Council in June 2009 • The Regulations on Trade in services (provides for Committee on Trade in Services) • Annex on the temporary movement of persons • 1st meeting of the Committee in Sept. 2009 • Services negotiating guidelines developed • Identified 7 priority sectors (business, communication, construction, energy, financial, tourism and transport) for initiating negotiations

  15. COMESA Services Neg. Ctd. • 2nd meeting in May 2010 • Agreed on 4 priority sectors (communication, financial, tourism and transport) as point of start for negotiations • The other 3 sectors to be included once schedules of commitments are done in the 4 priority sectors • 3rd meeting of the Committee was held in May 2011 • States initiated the process of exchange of information based on their draft schedules of commitments • Member States agreed to finalize their schedules of commitments and submit to the COMESA Secretariat • 9 validated schedules in the four priority sectors by July 2012 (DRC, Djibout, Egypt, Kenya, Mauritius, Swaziland and Rwanda) • 4th Meeting in July, 2012

  16. COMESA services Neg. Ctd. • Complimentary process • Sector meetings for consideration of the specificities of each sector/sub-sector • started with insurance sub-sector in Nov. 2011 • Next sector???? • Services statistics collection in the 4 sectors • pilot project covering Kenya, Mauritius, Uganda and Zambia • Roll out in the other Member States and sectors???

  17. EPA Negotiations

  18. SADC EPA Services Negotiation • Four SADC EPA Participating Countries (SEPC) • Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland and Mozambique (Angola, Namibia + South Africa as observers) • Negotiations started in May/June 2008 in Brussels • EC submitted aDraft Text on Services for consideration by SADC EPA Group • Clarification on the text was made in Sept. 2011 • SADC EPA countries developed a text in reaction to EU text • considered during a Joint technical meeting Nov. 2011

  19. SADC EPA Services Negotiation Ctd. • SADC TWG on services and Investment in May 2012 • Considered points of divergence from the JTWG • For convergence of the two text, agreed as follow • SADC Texts: • improve some articles (Definitions, Right to Regulate, Transparency, Regional Integration, Other Agreements, Subsidies, Business Visitors, and Intra-Corporate Transfers) • Rationalizes provisions on Domestic Regulations and Economic integration through technical edits and deleting duplicative and unnecessary language • Modality for MR to be negotiated in tandem with liberalisation commitments and • Disciplines on DR to await for finalisation under WTO on the same and the determine whether there is need to supplement the same in the sectors of interest to SEPC

  20. SADC EPA Services ctd. • From EU’s text the agreement was: • Adopt EC’s position on : • Emergency Safeguards Measures; Modification of Schedules;Electronic Commerce; and Administration of Measures of General Application • It EU’s proposal to exclude subsidies from the scope , and MFN obligation is unacceptable • Subsides and Mode 4 • Issues to be addressed in drafting the comprehensive agreement • preamble, MFN, RI and Confidential information • Provisions to be finalised towards the end of negotiation in the final text including • scheduling commitments; Asymmetric Development; and Timeframes for categories of natural persons) • Seek further clarification from EU on • Security Exceptions; Progressive and Asymmetric liberalization; and the definition of Direct Taxes in the EU text

  21. EPA Negotiations

  22. EPA Negotiation: ESA . • Services negotiations (a chapter under Comprehensive EPA) • Substantive progress made in developing the text • Principle: emphasize on the need to have coherence between regional TIS framework and liberalization with the EC party) • Although provisions under RI provides that EPAshall guide ESA’s regional services integration • In developing the text a number of agreement have bee reached on several articles dealing with • Principles, Market access, other agreements and • Sectoral tourism and travel, Postal, maritime and computer services (expect development aspects) • Capital movement

  23. ESA Services Cont. • No agreement articles on • MFN, MFN exceptions and review, anti-competitive practices and safeguard measures • New financial services Both parties to consult on these • Consultation by EU on • new positions or proposals, (GATS based proposal for DR and more information on MR) • Consultation by ESA on • new proposals by EU on telecommunications and e-commerce • Transparency and

  24. EPA Negotiations: ESA • Mauritius • Participate in EPA negotiation under ESA group (Madagascar, Seychelles, and Zimbabwe) • Signed the interim agreement in 2009 entry into force May 2012 • Currently negotiating Comprehensive EPA which including services chapter • Prepared a draft offer already in 10 sectors • Recreational, Sporting and Cultural services • Excluded sub-sectors include: postal and courier, primary and secondary educational services; Transport (road, rail, pipeline and internal water ways)

  25. Updates from Division of International Trade • WTO Negotiation • A signatory to Telecommunication reference paper? • Revised offers and new offer (which sectors)? • Plurilateral discussions? • COMESA • Progress by the Trade in Services Committee? • Progress on the EPA consultations?

  26. Q &A

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