THE PROS and cons of the Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act (CBTPA) in assisting and furthering the efforts of CBI countries for full integration into the Free Trade Area of the Americas Act (FTAA) were explored by JAMPRO's president, Mrs. Pat Francis in her presentation at the Caribbean/Latin American Action Conference currently being held at the Hotel Intercontinental Miami, Florida.
In focusing on the benefits to be derived through CBTPA in the area of trade, Mrs. Francis noted that the textiles and apparels sector will have "greater access to wider markets dependent on whether CBI economies are able to source fabric from within the region. This will prepare Caribbean firms to access wider Latin American markets in anticipation of improved access under the FTAA."
Jamaica has already benefited from the new Act as companies in the apparel sector can now begin to cut their garments in Jamaica instead of improving cut parts. This translates into added jobs and value to the exports.
Mrs. Francis also pointed to several areas where CBTPA will have significant impact. These include the promotion and protection of human rights, particularly as it relates to the observance of internationally accepted worker rights; protection of intellectual property rights; the combating of corruption; and environmental protection. This would level the playing field of standards across the region.
On the other hand, Mrs. Francis observed that there were some drawbacks to the CBTPA. It does not fully recognise the differences in development levels within the region; an example of this, she pointed out is, the US government's refusal to entertain the Caribbean and Central American Apparel Trade (CACTAC) quota arrangements for textile products, thus contravening the principles in the Summit of the Americas Plan of Action to promote regional integration, even for smaller economies.
According to Mrs. Francis, business facilitation measures are ignored by the CBTPA which will therefore not play a significant role in this area. It should be noted that the FTAA regards business facilitation as an important part of the integration process.
The CBTPA does not adequately address trade defence mechanisms within the region so that increased export for sectors such as apparel and textiles may be hindered, Mrs. Francis maintained. She also stated that the FTAA competition policy negotiating group has so far compiled an inventory of domestic laws, in relation to safeguards and other trade defence mechanisms not all of which are WTO-compliant. "More needs to be done in terms of achieving WTO compliance with the participation of the smaller economies working group as the basis for free trade within the region," Mrs. Francis said.
Also speaking at the conference as a member of the JAMPRO mission was attorney-at-law Nicole Foga, adviser to Minister Phillip Paulwell. She addressed the topic of intellectual property benefits and challenges.
Ms. Foga pointed to the fact that Jamaica was in the process of restructuring and modernising its National Intellectual Property System to support the growth of knowledge-based cultural industries in the island. This process has culminated in the creation of the Jamaica Intellectual Property Office (JIPO) which is to be launched in January 2001.
JIPO will deliver to IP rights owners' state of the art service, promote a piracy free environment, and create a strong intellectual property rights regime which is conducive to foreign direct investment.
She also noted that Jamaica was currently updating its intellectual property statutes and JIPO would have the remit of all intellectual property laws. By the first half of next year Jamaica will have in place laws that provide rights and protection which go even beyond the standards required by the WTO.
