Ethiopia's Benefit under the EU's Preference Scheme Extended

Tuesday, 05 March Written by Meraf Leykun Tuesday, 05 March 2013 Ethiopian producers and companies are set to increase their exports to the European Union as a result of a new change in the Generalized System of Preference agreement scheduled to take effect in January 2014.The changes made to the new GSP will benefit Ethiopia by avoiding its competitors which previously used to benefit under the GSP scheme.Ines Escudero Sanchez, Director General for Trade at the European Union, informed journalists at a press briefing held at the premises of the European Union (EU) in Addis Ababa on Monday, February 25, that the Generalized System of Preference agreement  has  been reviewed and the changes will take effect as of 1st of January, 2014. “Most of the countries that will no longer benefit from the GSP agreement are competitors of Ethiopia, since they provide the EU market with products that are also supplied by Ethiopia. For Ethiopia, the GSP agreement will still be in effect.”Sanchez also recommended that, Ethiopian suppliers should boost there exports to the European Union Market both in terms of quality and quantity to fully benefit from the opportunity. The European Union Business Forum to Ethiopia (EUBFE), a forum representing 300 European Union companies, is working to  strengthen economic and trade ties between Europe and Ethiopia, according to Chris de Myunk, President of the forum.In a related news, the European Union Delegation and EUBFE held a three day training, from February 25-27, for producers and business companies in Ethiopia, both local and international,  to enhance their know-how and upgrade their knowledge on how to better export to the EU.The EU, the world’s largest single market with more than 500 million consumers and a share of around 20 percent of global imports to its members, has bestowed a wide range of preferential arrangements for least-developed countries including African, Caribbean and Pacific states (ACP). Ethiopia currently is benefiting from the GSP agreement, a preference for countries which have not concluded the relevant negotiations for a comprehensive or interim Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). In 2011 alone, 43 percent of the Ethiopia's exports were destined to the European Union. Source: Capital