Pacific forumNegotiations for the Pacific Forum EPA were launched in 2004. The main topics include development assistance, architecture of the agreement, fisheries, investment and services/tourism. The Pacific region is characterized in particular for its close trading relationship with Australia and New Zealand and its resulting slightly lower dependence on the EU market than many of the African ACP states. Under the Pacific Closer Economic Relations (PACER) agreements, the countries negotiating an FTA with the EU will be required to begin parallel negotiations with Australia and NZ. This resulted in somewhat slower process of the trade negotiations. Many of the key topics of the negotiation have been issues such as market access, preference erosion (in particular with Fiji for sugar). The countries in this region are relatively small (all except Papua New Guinea (PNG) are under 1 million) and the LDCs are in the minority. Interim EPAs were signed by PNG and Fiji. All 14 PACP are negotiating as a region a full EPA.
Thus far, the countries of the Pacific forum EPA negotiating group have agreed to study a possible fisheries partnership agreement and also a tourism partnership agreement. The main issues faced are with sugar and fisheries. Sugar is an important product for Fiji and fishing (especially tuna) is important throughout the region. Pacific states have expressed the desire to see more revenue from fisheries remain in their states perhaps with structural funds from the EU to assist in local value-added capacity building. The challenges for the EU have been in finding common consensus for the EPA FTA. Due to each countries' specific circumstance (generally with one or two very important products) and to the need for any FTA talks to automatically trigger FTA talks with Australia and NZ, the Pacific states have been reluctant on the idea of the FTA.
The Pacific countries have proposed to focus the full EPA on trade in goods, fisheries and development assistance, while including a clause to negotiate trade in services at a later point.
Hans Joachim Keil, Samoa Trade Minister and Pacific Lead spokesperson for EPA negotiations, wrote to European Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton on 10 March 2009 proposing to hold a Joint Technical Working Group meeting in the spring of 2009 in Brussels to seek convergence on outstanding technical issues (MFN treatment, export taxes, infant industry provisions, etc) to the greatest extent possible. Contentious issues must be addressed before additional Pacific ACP countries table goods market access offers, after which time senior officials could decide on the way forward with a view to signing the EPA this year.
