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COM ( 84) 602 
 
 
 
Vol. 1984/0 230 
  
 
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concernant l'ouverture au public des archives historiques de la Communauté économique 
européenne et de la Communauté européenne de l'énergie atomique (JO L 43 du 15.2.1983, 
p. 1), tel que modifié par le règlement (CE, Euratom) n° 1700/2003 du 22 septembre 2003 
(JO L 243 du 27.9.2003, p. 1), ce dossier est ouvert au public. Le cas échéant, les documents 
classifiés présents dans ce dossier ont été déclassifiés conformément à l'article 5 dudit 
règlem ent. 
In accordance with Council Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 354/83 of 1 February 1983 
concerning the openi ng to the public of the historical archives of the European Econom ic 
Community and the European Atomic Energy Communit y (OJ L 43, 15.2.1983, p. 1), as 
amended by Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1700/2003 of 22 September 2003 (OJ L 243, 
27.9.2003, p. 1), this f ile is open to the public. Where necessary, classified documents in this 
file have been declassified in conformity with Article 5 of the aforementioned regulation.  
In Übereinstimmung mit der Verordnung (EWG, Euratom) Nr. 354/83 des Rates vom  1. 
Februar 198 3 über die Freigabe der historischen Archive der Europäischen  
Wirtschaftsgemeinschaft und der Europäischen Atomgem einschaft (ABI. L 43 vom  15.2.1983,  
S. 1), geändert durch die Verordnung (EG, Euratom) Nr. 1700/2003 vom 22. Septem ber 2003  
(ABI. L 243 vom 27 .9.2003, S. 1), ist diese Datei der Öffentlichkeit zugänglich. Soweit  
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COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
COM(84) 602 final 
Brussels, 5 November 1984
COMMISSION COMMUNICATION TO THE COUNCIL
concerning the aplication of Article 21(4) of the 
first Lome Convention to transfers made as loans to 
Congo and Gabon for the 1975 application year
COM(84) 602 final

u^yn (s&lI. PURPOSE OF THE COMMUNICATION
1. The purpose of this communication is to propose to the Council that the 
Community request the ACP-EEC Committee of Ambassadors, to decide under 
Article 21(4) of the first Lomé Convention, that the transfers made as loans 
to Congo and Gabon for the 1975 application year be repaid.
2. Article 21(2) of the first Lomé Convention stipulates:
"The ACP States which have received transfers shall contribute, in the five 
years following the allocation of each transfer, towards the reconstitution 
of the resources made available for the system by the Community".
3. The following ACP States received transfers in the form of loans for the 
1975 application year:
ACP State 
Fiji
Cameroon
Congo
Gabon
Ghana
Ivory CoastProduct 
Coconut oil 
Wood in the rough 
Wood in the rough 
Wood in the rough 
Wood in the rough 
Wood in the roughAmount 
615 140 
3 601 423 
7 361 677 
6 703 311 
5 176 408 
15 000 000
4. Of these six transfers, that made to Fiji was fully repaid in 1978 since 
the conditions for replenishment laid down in Article 21(3) had been fulfilled 
in the 1977 application year.
5. In the case of the five transfers for wood in the rough, one of the 
conditions never materialized. For structural reasons the quantities have 
remained below the reference level. These countries' wood exports have been 
affected by the gradual exhaustion of forestry stocks together with falling 
Community demand for ACP wood in the rough.
6.  Article 21(4) stipulates:
"If, on expiry of the five-year period referred to in paragraph 2, the resources 
have not been fully reconstituted, the Council of Ministers, taking into 
consideration in particular the situation of and prospects for the balance of 
payments, exchange reserves and foreign indebtedness of the ACP States concerned, 
may decide that:
- the sums outstanding are to be reconstituted wholly or in part, in one or 
more instalments;
- rights to repayment are to be waived."

2
7. The observation period specified in Article 21(2) ended in 1980 for transfers
made for the 1975 application year. A decision was taken by the Libreville
ACP-EEC Council of Ministers of 13/14 May 1982 on the transfers made to
Cameroon, the Ivory Coast and Ghana in the context of the problem of the
shortage of funds. After an examination of each individual case, it was agreed
that the sums owed by these three ACP States, which had transfer entitlements
with respect to the 1981 application year, would be charged against these
1transfers and, on this condition, rights to repayment would be waived.
8. As regards the transfers made for 1975 to Congo and Gabon, which had not 
requested transfers for 1981, it was decided to postpone repayment for a year, 
and on 20 May 1983, the Council delegated to the Committee of Ambassadors the 
power to take a decision to that effect.
9. The Committee of Ambassadors must therefore take a decision pursuant to 
Article 21(4) of the first Lome Convention before the end of the year. The
purpose of this communication is to propose such a decision, as indicated in
.
 
„
 
„
 
2 point 1.
II. GROUNDS
10. The decision the ACP-EEC Council of Ministers is called on to take pursuant 
to Article 21(4), must, for each of the ACP States concerned, take particular 
account of three factors, namely the situation of and propsects for
- the balance of payments
- exchange reserves
- foreign indebtedness.
1A similar decision was reached in the case of the sums owed in respect of the
transfers made to Fiji and Madagascar for the 1976 application year.
See Annex I for the overall situation regarding transfers made for the 1975
and 1976 application years.

- 3 -
The Commission has done its best to gather information on these three factors
Afrom the most appropriate sources.
211· The balance of payments situation in Congo seems to have been strained 
since 1976, tending downwards if anything. Gabon, in contrast, has had a 
number of surpluses and the trend for 1984 is good, although the 1983 results 
cast doubt on this forecast.
12. The level of exchange reserves:3 no clear trend in the case of Congo, 
while the trend for Gabon, despite setbacks, is upwards.
13. The level of foreign indebtedness^ seems to be of about the same order for
both the ACP States in question. Each has debts amounting to some US$1 500 million. 
There is one difference in that Congo has doubled its debt since 1976 while Gabon's 
increased by only a third over the same period. Debt servicing is becoming a 
heavy burden for both countries since debts have been increasing faster than 
exports over the past few years.^
14. Although the above analysis does not paint a particularly optimistic 
picture of the economic trends and prospects in Congo and Gabon, it should be 
pointed out that the situation of these two countries does not differ significantly 
from that of the ACP countries affected by the Libreville decision:^ the case of 
Gabon is comparable to that of Fiji, a comparatively well-off ACP State while 
Congo's situation corresponds to that of the ACP States such as Ghana, with 
greater economic problems.
1See Annexes II to V. The investigation ran into major difficulties especially 
as regards more recent years, and assessing prospects proved even more difficult 
than gauging the current situation. The figures, some of which are provisional 
or even estimated, should be regarded as confidential.
2See Annex II.
^See Annex III.
LSee Annex IV.
^See Annex V.
6See point 7 above; a comparison based on the main factors is also shown in 
Annex V.

- 4 -
15. Unlike the ACP States dealt with by the Libreville decision, neither Congo 
nor Gabon have had transfer entitlements since 1981 against which repayments 
could have been offset. It is undesirable to postpone yet again the decision 
which must be taken pursuant to Article 21(4) of the first Lomé Convention.
To avoid discriminating against the ACP States whose transfer entitlements were 
reduced by an amount equivalent to the sums owed to the system, it would be 
appropriate that Congo and Gabon also repay the sums owing on their transfers.
16. A suitable rate of repayment would be one fifth per year, by analogy with 
Article 43(4) of the second Lomé Convention.
III. PROPOSAL
17. Under Article 2 of Decision 4/84 of the ACP-EEC Council of Ministers of 
20 may 1984, the power of decision provided for in Article 21(4) of the first 
Convention has been delegated to the Committee of Ambassadors with respect to 
the 1975, 1976 and 1977 application years.
The Commission proposes that the Council approve the position outlined above 
to be taken by the Community on the Committee of Ambassadors.
18. A draft article containing the proposed decision is annexed (Annex VI).

ANNEX I
SITUATION OF REPAYABLE TRANSFERS ALLOCATED FOR THE YEARS 
OF APPLICATION 1975 AND 1976
. Repayments received Amounts concerned
on the basis of by the Libreville
Year of Application ACP State Product Amount in ECU art. 21(2) and (3) decision (May 1982)
of the first
Convention .
1975 Cameroun Wood in the rough 3.601 .423 3.601 .423
Congo idem 7.361 .677 - -
Ivory Coast idem 15.000.000- 15.000.000
Fiji Coconut oil 615.140 615.140 (in 78) -
Gabon Wood in the rough 6.703.311- -
Ghana idem 5.176.408 5.176.408
TOTAL 38.457.959 615.140 23.777.831
1976 Cameroun Cocoa Paste 463.558 463.558 (in 78)—
Fiji Coconut oil 1 .499.834 1 .253.399 (in 78) 246.435
Sierra Leone Iron ore 3.977.274 - (1)
Madagascar Raw sisal 1 .762.943 - 1.762.943
Cloves 1 .139.516 1.139.516 (in 80)
TOTAL 8.843.125 2.856.473 2 .009.378
GRAND TOTAL 47.301.084 3.471.613 25.787.209
(1) In the case of Sierra Leone, which was included in the list of least-developed ACP States in the Second Convention 
the debt was cancelled.

ANNEX II
BALANCE OF PAYMENTS CD
1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 tendency 1984
1 . Congo 
Mill t- 94,6 - 59,3 - 8,1 - 26,9 + 80,6 - 335,6 - 84e n.a. ( 2)i
2. Gabon 
Mill É+ 146,5 - 14,5 + 173,8 + 278,6 + 348,0 + 304,3 + 403P + 95e Î
Source :  IMF, International Financial Statistics; p = provisional; e = estimated (both confidential)
CD Definition :  "overall balance” = ^current account] + [net long term capital movements]
= [(trade balance) + (net services) + (net unrequited transfers)] —r
+ [(direct investment) + (portfolio investment) + (other long term capital)J
Ir> terms of IMF :  International Financial Statistics, this definition refers to the following items of the position 77 : 
fjaa - ab) + (ac - ad) + (ae + ag/] + ^(ba) + (bd) + (be)^|
(2) a substantial deficit is to be expected; result of current account roughly - 450 Mill. SDR
P.m. 1975 transfers to the Congo and Gabon, converted into US Dollars at the exchange rate of 31 December 1983, amount
to 7,9 Mill. US t and 7,27 Mill. US t respectively.

ANNEX III
EXCHANGE RESERVES, END OF PERIOD (1)
1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983tendency 1984
1 . Congo 
Mill É 12,17 13,53 9,43 42,23 85,90 123,37 37,01 29P ( 2) 7
2 . Gabon 
Mill Ê116,16 9,91 22,57 20,13 107,50 198,85 311,88 255,7P(3) î
Source :  IMF, International Financial Statistics; p = provisional (confidential)
(1) Definition :  total reserves minus gold = SDRS + reserve position in the fund + foreign exchange
(2) end of October 1983; this figure does not include a possible overdraft in the Franc Zone arrangements, which 
might be important.
(3) end of September 1983.
P ·">. 1975 transfer to the Congo :  7,99 Mill. US t , to Gabon 7,27 Mill. US t at 31.12.8 3 exchange rate.

ANNEX IV
EXTERNAL DEBT, END OF PERIOD (1)
1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983
1 .Congo, Mill t
a)Debt outstanding 
incl. undisbursed730,4 820,9 1.005,3 1 .049,7 1.239,9 1.628,9r 1.803,6P 1 .7006
b)Debt outstanding 
disbursed (DOD)421,0
58%510,5
62%778,3
77%862,5
82%941,5
76%1.133,4r
70%1.369,9P 
76%1 .400e 
82%
2.Gabon, Mill t >
a)Debt oustanding 
incl. undisbursed1 .175,9 1 .331,5 1 .592,8 1 .603,9 1 .394,3 1.210,1r1 .597,7P 1 .4006
b)Debt outstanding 
disbursed (DOD)1.079,5 1 .279,4 1 .277,6 1 .311,0 
81,8%1.188,6 
85,2%1.043,7P
86%871,4P
55%890®
64%
Source :  World Bank, World debt tables, 1982-83 edition; r = revised; p = provisional; e = estimated (both confidential)
(1) Defined as public or publicly guaranteed debts that have an original or extended maturity of more than one year, which 
are owed to non-residents and are repayable in foreign currency.
P -hi. 1975 transfer to the Congo :  7,99 Mill. US S, to Gabon 7,27 Mill. US t at 31.12.8 3 exchange rate.

ANNEX V
Table 1 Comparison of some indicators for the assessment of the external debt situation
Debt service to exports ratio , X
1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983
Congo 8,8 11,0 8,1 19,6 9,6 9j_ 2 18P 32e
Gabon 6,1 9,2 20,8 17,6 16^0 11,9 . 12P IIe
Madagasca r 3,9 3,7 4,3 7,4
Fiji 2,3 2,3 4,4. 2,6 3,2 4,7
Ivory Coast 8,8 10,1 12,8 18,124^ 22,7
Ghana 5,9 3,3 6,5 5,5 5,3 V'
Cameroon 5,4 5,8 7,9 7,7 8,7 10,9 4,0
Africa, south
of the Sahara 5,8 4,9 7,5 7,6
Source: cf. Annex IV (item TDS/XGS), and own calculations (underlined); p = provisional; e = estimated
(both confidential).
1Totat debt service: interest and amortization in X of export earnings (goods and services).

ANNEX V
Table 2 Comparison of some indicators for the assessment of the external debt situation
Debt/exports ratio , ,  X
1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983
Congo 143,6 146,4 204,6 151,6 91,4 94,2 114e 130e
Gabon7 V86,0 86,2 64,6 48,8 36,2 * 37e 41e
Madagascar 57,6 . 63,0 69,3 134,1
Fiji 22,2 25,4 21,7 22,0 29,8 40,4
Ivory Coast 58,8 69,2 91,3 110,7 114,1 132,5
Ghana 74,4 76,8 80,5 76,3 77,4 113,7
Cameroon 71,3 84,1 85,9 94,8 lib i
Africa, south
of the Sahara 64,7 65.6 93,9 88,9
Source:  cf. Annex Iy (item DOD/xgs)^ and own calculations (underlined); e = estimated (confidential).
Public debt outstanding disbursed in X of export earnings (goods and services).

ANNEX V
Table 3 Comparison of some indicators for the assessment of the external debt situation
Reserves/debt ratio , X
1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983
Congo 2,9 2,8 1,5 5,6 9,8 11,6 2 j,7e 2e
Gabon 10,8 0,9 1,9 2,0 9,7 22,3 ' 35,,8e 29e
Madagascar 21,9 28,2 19,2 0,8
Fiji 204,7 183,3 170,1 136,0 99,9 61,8 56,,3
Ivory Coast 6,6 9,9 16,3 4,7 1,1 0,8 o ,,5
Ghana 17,9 24,0 41,0 44,5 34,8 27,7 28,,5
Cameroon 8,5 5,4 4,9 8,6 10,3 4,4 4,,2
Africa, south  
of the Sahara 46,6 36,2 20,0 30,5 38,5 18,6
Source:  cf. Annex Iv (item RES/DOD), and own calculations (underlined); e = estimated (confidential).
^Exchange reserves in X of debt outstanding disbursed.

ANNEX V
Table 4 Comparison of some indicators for the assessment of the external debt situation
Reserves/import ratio , months
1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983
Congo 0,3 0,3 0,2 0,8 0,9 1,4 0,3 0,3e
Gabon 1,0 0,1 0,2 0,2 0,7 1,2' 1,9 1,5*
Madagascar1,1 1,7 1,2 0,1.
Fiji 4,5 5,1 4,1 3,1 3,2 2,2
Ivory Coast 0,4 0,8 1,4 0,4 0,05 0,1
Ghana 1,4 2,0 3,6 4,8 2,9 2,8
Cameroon 0,6 0,5 0,4 0,9 0,9 0,4
Africa, south 
of the Sahara 3,1 2,4 1,7 3,0
Source: cf. Annex ly (item RES/MGS), and own calculations (underlined); e= estimated (confidential).
^Exchange reserves in months of total imports (goods and services).

A N N E X  VI
D R A F T
Decision of the A C P -E E C  Committee of Ambassadors 
concerning the replenishment of certain resources 
transfered under Stabex by virtue of the f ir s t 
Lom é Convention
T H E  AC P-EE C  C O M M IT T E E  O F  A M B A S S A D O R S ,
Having regard to the f ir s t  Lom é Convention, and in particular A rticle 21(4) 
thereof;
Whereas the resources transfered to Congo and Gabon under the export earnings 
sta b iliza tio n  system for the 1975 application year have not been replenished;
Whereas in the case of transfers m ade to other A C P  States for the application 
years 1975 and 1976 which had not been repaid after a  five-year period, the 
Committee of Ambassadors agreed to offset the repayments against the transfers 
those States were e ntitle d  to for the 1981 application year;
Whereas the economic situation in Congo and Gabon is comparable to that of the 
States in question;
Whereas Congo and Gabon should be treated in the sam e way as the countries 
referred to above;
Whereas contributions to resource replenishment should be m ade in several 
instalments,
H A S  D E C ID E D  A S  F O L L O W S :
Sole A rticle
The resources transfered to Congo and Gabon for the 1975 application year under 
the export earnings sta b iliza tio n  system set up under the f ir s t  Lom é Convention 
shall be replenished at the rate of one f if t h  per year from 1985.