The negotiating groups are responsible for drafting chapters of the final FTAA document and have been meeting at least every 18 months for the past four years. This allows the negotiators to hammer out the details of the draft chapters of the FTAA in secret. The draft will be on the agenda at the next Summit of the Americas, which will be held in Quebec City in April 2001. The following descriptions of what the negotiating groups are likely to include in their draft documents are based on the stated objectives of each of the negotiating groups, and what we know about the attempted MAI and WTO policies. The purpose of the policies in this section is to gradually eliminate tariffs and non-tariff barriers that restrict trade.
Tariffs are fees or taxes imposed by governments on the import and export of goods.
They are usually imposed to make imported goods more expensive than domestically produced goods. Non-tariff barriers include anything that could have the same effect as a tariff, such as environmental or labor regulations. This was part of the failed WTO talks at the Seattle Ministerial in 1999 and would open national markets to international investors in such areas as health, education, telecommunications, water and other services. One of the first steps in liberalizing services is the privatization of publicly owned services. The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have laid the foundations for liberalization by requiring countries to privatize many services as part of their structural adjustment programs.