RP to push for 2-tariff cut measures at WTO

The Philippine agriculture sector will push for the inclusion of two tariff cut measures proposed in the forthcoming meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Cancun, Mexico this September.

Agriculture Undersecretary Segrefedo Serrano told a special session of the House of Representatives’ Committee on Agriculture that the country will have to insist on the inclusion of the provision on special products (SPs) and amendments to special safeguard measures (SSM) in the agricultural trade.

"If these are not considered, we will rally other developing countries to reject any deal on agricultural trade," Serrano said, adding that the Philippine position is being backed by no less than China, the world’s biggest market.

The agricultural trade draft, prepared by the WTO’s chairman of the committee on agriculture Stuart Harbinson, calls for further tariff reduction measures on agricultual products for all the 146 members of the global trade body.

Serrano said the SPs and SSMs will provide struggling economies like the Philippines the mechanisms to protect its agricultural sector in the face of the developed countries’ refusal to eliminate their trade-distorting subsidies.

Poor countries are lashing out at the European countries and the United States for opposing critical or significant proposed trade reforms that would level the playing field for less-developed nations.

The Philippine government, in its official stand on talks on reforms in global agricultural trade, wants the SPs imposed because classifying commodities as "special products" will give poor nations the flexibility to slow down on reducing their tariffs.

Serrano explained that the SPs will have to be self-declared so that governments will not be obliged to further cut tariffs on sensitive products such as corn, rice and sugar.

At the same time, developed countries should not be provided SSMs which they can use to block the surge in imports from their competitors.

"Both the US and the EU have rejected outright the SPs and SSMs and we hope that we could persuade more developing member countries to join us so that we could be a stronger force," said Serrano.