INTERNATIONAL TRADE ARRANGEMENTS SA TRADE AGREEMENTS Agriculture DIRECTORATE: INTERNATIONAL TRADE NOVEMBER 2009 1
CONTENT Americas AGOA TIDCA MERCOSUR Africa SACU SADC Europe TDCA EFTA 2
Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Signed by Pres. Clinton in 2000 Benefits 40 countries in Sub-Sahara Africa Expires in September 2015 Provides for: o Unilateral market access; SSA to USA oduty free, quota free imports into USA o800 agricultural tariff lines o Assistance is available to find leads (Trade Hub) SA uses 20% of 800 lines opportunity to improve 3
SACU-USA Trade, Investment and Development Cooperation Agreement (TIDCA) Signed in 2008 Prepares the grounds for free trade negotiations in future Not yet fully implemented requires agreements on specific areas of cooperation with SACU Benefits o Capacity building in trade o Investment opportunities and joint ventures 4
SACU-MERCOSUR Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) Signed in 2004 Not yet implemented in the process of ratification Members are Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay Benefits o Tariff reductions (between 25% -100%) o 160 lines in agriculture is included SACU exports are severely less than imports!! 5
Southern African Customs Union (SACU) Customs Union established in 1910 o Members: RSA, Botswana, Lesotho & Swaziland o Namibia was added in 1991 Agreement provides for: o Common External Tariff o Free flow of goods o Sharing of revenue o Common negotiating mechanism o Harmonization of the industrial and trade policies 6
Southern African Development Community (SADC) Established in 1980; RSA joined in 1994 SADC has fifteen members (Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe) Free Trade Area was formally launched, based on SADC Trade Protocol, in August 2008 Major agricultural products exported by SA are maize, wheat, fruits, vegetables and sugar 7
Removal of Non-Tariff Barriers in SADC Role of Private Sector o Identify a NTB o Report to the government Role of Government o Record the nature of the NTB explained by the trader o Investigate and determine the accuracy of NTB o Report the NTB to applying country and SADC Sec. Role of SADC Monitoring Unit o Keep records of all NTB-related information o Monitor the elimination process 8
SA-EU Trade and Development Cooperation Agreement (TDCA) EU is SA s main trading partner (+ 42% of SA agri exports) EU consists of 27 Member States The most important agricultural products SA exported to the EU in 2008 were: Wine, Grapes, Oranges, Apples and Pears. The agreement has the following features: TDCA entered into force in 2000 70% of agricultural imports into SA will be duty free after 12 years. 61% of agricultural imports into the EU will be duty free after 10 years (72% if partial liberalization included) 9
SACU EFTA FREE TRADE AGREEMENT EFTA members are: Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) is not part of the EU EFTA countries are net-importers of agricultural products. The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) signed in June 2006 and entered into force on 1 May 2008. Agreement to be gradually implemented over a period of nine years. Export opportunity for canned fruits, juices and fresh fruits 10
MARKET ACCESS REQUIREMENTS To qualify for lower duties under any of the trade agreements, the exporter should adhere to the following: o o o Rules of Origin (SARS Website) Sanitary and Phyto-sanitary (SPS) measures and technical standards Procedures, e.g. application for permits/quotas or certification if required o Specific forms, related to each agreement, that must accompany every consignment (may be obtained from SARS). Full agreements are available online: www.sars.gov.za and follow the links: - Customs and Excise; Trade; Trade agreements 11
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT Directorate: International Trade of the DAFF Tel: 012-319 8452 Fax: 012 319 8001 Email: DITR@daff.gov.za 12
END THANK YOU 13