Public
FTAA.soc/civ/69/Add.1
April 11, 2003

Original: English

FTAA - COMMITTEE OF GOVERNMENT REPRESENTATIVES ON THE PARTICIPATION OF
CIVIL SOCIETY

OPEN INVITATION CONTRIBUTIONS

Executive Summary


The objectives of the agreement are to promote trade liberalization and promote economic growth and prosperity within the region. Additionally, the agreement is to generate increased levels of trade in goods, services and investment by means of market liberalization through clear, transparent and predicable trade rules. I applaud the committee’s efforts to attempt to promote these objectives. I believe the current trade agreement; however, does not promote nor encourage trade directly among members of the territories but will afford extensive duty-free treatment of goods and services by parties who will not be signatories to the agreement. The rules of origin as proposed in the agreement are so broad that I do not know of any good assembled or produced in the region that will not qualify for preferential treatment. The rules of origin will permit parties outside the limitations to sign certificates of origin. Additionally, pricing arrangements for goods assembled or produced in the territories can be sold by enterprises outside the territories with high intercompany prices that will afford the products to be eligible for preferential treatment when in reality very little value added has been incurred in the territories. The agreement should promote extensive use of raw materials grown or produced within the territories if preferential treatment is to be granted to the article.

Additionally, specific rules of origin should be developed for agricultural products that are mixed or processed in one country from agricultural products of multiple countries within the territory. The blending of these materials often still results in an unfinished article for which no tariff change has resulted. However, as the article is now a combination of raw materials from multiple countries, how will the country of origin for the article be determined?

The agreement should seek to promote expansion of international business activity for small and minority enterprises within the territories. These companies historically create the majority of most new jobs in most economies and the agreement as proposed neither promotes nor faster expansion of international trade for these types of enterprises. Futhermore, clarification is mandatory for which small economies are to be afforded special and differential treatment under the agreement. While this goal is admirable, lowering of the special and differential treatment to small and minority enterprises could significantly lend support to accomplishment of the agreements objectives.

Finally, the agreement should promote an efficient and expeditions method for dispute settlement so small and minority enterprises and small economies will not be unfairly punished through extended administrative and judicial process that are not affordable to them. The process of dispute settlement in most major trade agreements works against small and minority enterprises and smaller economies and this methodology must be avoided if the objectives of the FTAA are to be achieved.