CRITICAL COLLEGE OF NEGOTIATORS MEETING IN JAMAICA

CHRIST CHURCH, BARBADOS – A College of Negotiators Meeting will be convened in Kingston, Jamaica from March 31 to April 1, 2003. The session will finalize CARICOM’s preparation for the 13th Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) Trade Negotiation Committee (TNC) Meeting in Puebla, Mexico from April 8 to 11. The College comprises Lead and Alternate Lead Negotiators representing CARICOM in the FTAA’s nine Negotiating Groups and one Ad Hoc Group on Rules of Origin (an ad hoc group of the Negotiating Group on Market Access). The Negotiating Groups include: Negotiating Group Market Access (NGMA); Negotiating Group Investment (NGIN); Negotiating Group Services (NGSV); Negotiating Group Government Procurement (NGGP); Negotiating Group Dispute Settlement (NGDS); Negotiating Group Agriculture (NGAG); Negotiating Group Intellectual Property Rights (NGIP); Negotiating Group Subsidies, Antidumping and Countervailing Duties (NGADCV); Negotiating Group Competition Policy (NGCP). Caribbean Regional Negotiating Machinery (RNM) chief, Ambassador Dr. Richard Bernal, will provide an overview of the status of FTAA negotiations. Lead and Alternate Lead Negotiators will report on the status of discussions in their respective groups. They will focus on the areas for follow-up action by CARICOM Member States. College Members will review issues to be raised in the context of bilaterals with countries or groups of countries during the TNC. The TNC is expected to pursue discussion of principles, methods and modalities to guide the negotiations in all market access negotiating groups with the aim of reaching consensus on these matters to facilitate the process of presentation of revised offers. Countries are required to present requests for improved offers between February 16 and June 15, 2003. Initial exchange of market access offers for agricultural and non-agricultural goods, services, investment and government procurement were made between December 2002 and February 2003. The RNM will provide a status report on initial offers presented and received by CARICOM to date. The College will review the way forward regarding CARICOM’s exchange of offers. Allied to this, Lead Negotiators in the five market access areas will present a preliminary global assessment of the offers received by CARICOM in order to: (i) Call for a review of CARICOM offers; (ii) Identify areas for trade-offs across negotiating groups and areas; and, (iii) Develop a regional strategy towards the formulation of CARICOM request for improved offers received from other FTAA countries and presentation of revised offers. The CARICOM Lead Negotiator for the FTAA Consultative Group on Smaller Economies (CGSE) will report on the discussions in the CGSE on the development and operationalisation of the Hemispheric Co-operation Programme (HCP), and the preparation of National/Regional Trade Capacity Building Strategies and Action Plans. The College will also indicate areas in which Member States and the RNM require immediate technical assistance to facilitate fuller participation in the negotiations. For More Information Contact: Nand C. Bardouille Tel: (246) 430-1678 email: nbardouille@sunbeach.net