Barriers down, trade up the aim as AEC draws closer
Barriers down, trade up the aim as AEC draws closer
Nations like Laos will need to remove non-tariff barriers to boost the free of goods when the Asean Economic Community comes into force later next year, a senior policy maker advised.
Ministry of Industry and Commerce's Foreign Trade Policy Department Deputy Director General Mr Saysana Sayakone spoke to Vientiane Times yesterday.
“Laos does not have the range of goods that some other Asean members do, however efforts to remove non-tariff barriers are still strongly recommended,” he said.
Mr Saysana is also Head of the Coordination Committee on the Implementation of the Asean Trade in Goods Agreement (CCA) of Laos.
He made the comments during his chair of the 16th Meeting of the Coordination Committee on the Implementation of the Asean Trade in Goods Agreement (CCA) in Vientiane yesterday.
He recommended that some measures had become barriers to trade which needed to be removed to boost free trade.
“Laos has a limited number of such measures in place but it has to go along with the guidelines of Asean standards to ensure we can access trade in the community,” he said.
“However in future non-tariff measures will have to remain within guidelines in accordance with the regulations of the World Trade Organisation,” he said.
“Plenty of benefits for our country will come from easily accessibility to trade on the Asean stage.”
The meeting agenda included the revision and approval of the adjustment of various tariffs by each country member in the period of 2015-18 as well as consulting on non-tariff measures (NTMs).
The meeting discussed the establishment of an informative web-accessible repository of regulations linked to Asean's official website.
The rules in relation to the use of certificate of origin (Form D) and the trade facilitations were amongst other essential issues covered.
Asean has set particular goals, especially improvements in regulations and facilitation for the free flow of goods when the AEC comes into effect by the end of 2015.
On this special occasion, the progress in negotiations with development partners was also revealed, particularly the discussions in Asean Plus Three which include China, Japan and the Republic of Korea.
The CCA meeting is organised four times a year with hosts rotating between Asean state members.
This occasion was the second time for Laos to implement its duty as host of the regional meeting.
Prior to this, the 16th Meeting of Sub Coordinating Committee on Asean Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA) Rules of Origin (SCAROO) was organised with the aim of fostering negotiation and to further refine issues regarding the rules of origin of products in the marketplace.
The outcomes of the previous meeting were also reported to the CCA, with a number of revised regulations and measures the being approved.
vientiane times
