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Bahamian Parliamentarians Updated On The Bahamas Government’s Position To The Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) With The European Union (EU)
Related to country: Bahamas

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Parliamentarians Get EPA Update:
By Sasha L. Lightbourne -
Nassau, Bahamas:



However, some – including members of Bahamians Agitating for a Referendum on Free Trade (BARF) – have argued that it amounts to The Bahamas giving up its sovereignty.

Minister of State for Finance Zhivargo Laing explained to members of parliament during a luncheon at British Colonial Hilton Hotel on Wednesday what the government’s position is on the EPA.

"We are trying to brief parliamentarians on the development, the history, the status of the Economic Partnership Agreement to date," he said.

"We need to have them understand what the consultation process is with the Trade Commission, to understand what the structure of the agreement is, to understand what the commitments and obligations The Bahamas might have in the agreement, what the commitment and obligations on the part of the European community will be, and also to try to speak to some of the concerns and fears that Bahamians may have expressed."

Mr. Laing said more consultation will be done in informal settings between the government and opposition and then the public will be duly informed.

"We are organizing town meetings for the public and expect for them to begin as early as July," he said. "Those meetings will be extended into August and September, so the public needs to listen out for the dates and locations."

He said target areas for the government are Over-the-Hill communities as well as some of the Family Islands, including Grand Bahama, Abaco, Eleuthera, Andros and Long Island.

Telecommunications, construction, real estate, fisheries and agriculture are all areas that will be reserved for Bahamian citizens under the EPA, the minister said.

Leader of the Opposition and former prime minister, Perry Christie, shared his initial reaction to Mr. Laing’s presentation.

"We welcome the presentation because we really wanted to see what had developed since we left office on the EPA," he said.

"It was informative to hear what the minister had to say because we realize that the government has yet to make a final decision based on its own considerations and considerations of the private sector groups who they are consulting."

Mr. Christie told the Journal that the Opposition is looking forward to a determination by the government on the EPA.

"We anticipate that determination as to what is going to evolve because a lot of people are on edge in the services sector to see whether or not their own interests will be protected as they seem to suggest here," he said. "The Opposition will still have to take a wait and see approach."

Mr. Christie said however that he was pleased that the presentation took place.

"This is the kind of thing we tried to do in our term where there is parliamentary consultation as well so that we can minimize the extent to which we divide on a matter of this kind or not divide at all," he said. "The level of consultation that takes place between opposition and government needs to increase.

"This is a countrywide matter and this was a very good step taken by the government of The Bahamas."

The Caribbean Regional Negotiating Machinery (CRNM) has indicated that it completed its own internal reflections on the EPA negotiations with the aim of identifying core elements of the EPA process that have worked for the region and those which may be improved and incorporated into future negotiations.

It concluded that strengthening the consultation components of the negotiating process is "inextricably linked to ensuring the optimum engagement with and participation of key stakeholders, particularly the private sector, whose input is critical to the formulation of the negotiating agenda and strategy."

The CRNM also urged increased emphasis on increasing the allocation of resources to facilitate private sector engagement and to build the capacity of firms to identify and articulate defensive and offensive interests in external trade negotiations.

June 26, 2008

June 26, 2008 | 9:44 PM Comments  0 comments

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