Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL amending Annex I to Council Regulation (EC) No 1528/2007 as regards the exclusion of a number of countries from the list of regions or states which have concluded negotiations
Date: 2011-09-30
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: ACP countries, free-trade agreement, generalised preferences, ratification of an agreement, trade agreement (EU), withdrawal from an agreement

EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 30.9.2011 
COM(2011) 598 final 

2011/0260 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

amending Annex I to Council Regulation (EC) No 1528/2007 as regards the exclusion of 
a number of countries from the list of regions or states which have concluded 
negotiations  

 
 
  
 
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL  

After the negotiation process of the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) with the ACP 
regions which started in 2002 and was concluded in December of 2007, a number of countries 
have  neither  taken  the  necessary  steps  towards  ratification  of  an  EPA  nor  concluded 
comprehensive regional negotiations. 

In particular, the Republic of Burundi, the Union of the Comoros, the Republic of Ghana, the 
Republic of Kenya, the Republic of Namibia, the Republic of Rwanda, the United Republic of 
Tanzania, the Republic of Uganda, the Republic of Zambia, have concluded negotiations but 
have not signed their respective Agreements. 

The  Republic  of  Botswana,  the  Republic  of  Cameroon,  the  Republic  of  Côte  d’Ivoire,  the 
Republic of the Fiji Islands, the Republic of Haiti, the Kingdom of Lesotho, the Republic of 
Mozambique,  the  Kingdom  of  Swaziland,  and  the  Republic  of  Zimbabwe  have  signed  but 
have not taken the necessary steps towards ratification of their respective Agreements. 

Therefore, these countries no longer meet the conditions of the Market Access Regulation for 
advance  provisional  application  of  trade  preferences  which  were  extended  to  them  as  of  1 
January  2008  in  anticipation  of  the  steps  towards  ratification  of  an  EPA.  According  to  the 
criteria  set  out  in  Article  2(3)  of  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  1528/2007  of  20  December 
2007,  trade  preferences  granted  to  these  countries  should  no  longer  be  maintained.  The 
attached proposal is intended to amend the list of countries that benefit from the preferences 
(Annex I of Council Regulation (EC) No 1528/2007) by removing those which have still not 
taken  the  necessary  steps  towards  ratification  of  an  EPA.  The  Commission  will  continue  to 
work with a view to ensuring that these countries become a contracting party to an EPA, and 
will use to the full the recent momentum of different negotiations to create a sustainable long 
term trade regime with these partners in keeping with the EPA negotiating directives and the 
priorities set out in the Cotonou Agreement.  

The  Commission  has  informed  the  Council,  the  European  Parliament,  the  ACP  Group  of 
States  and  civil  society  that  the  current  situation  is  not  sustainable,  as  duty-free  quota-free 
market access is still granted to beneficiary countries which are not taking the necessary steps 
towards  ratification  of  the  agreements  on  which  this  access  is  based,  thus  removing  the 
justification for its advance provisional application. 

Should the countries removed from Annex I take the necessary steps towards ratification of an 
EPA, they would continue to benefit from the respective trade preferences and could therefore 
be re-instated in the Annex as soon as possible in order to provide continuity of their market 
access.  To  this  end  the  Commission  should  be  empowered  to  adopt  delegated  acts  in 
accordance  with  Article  290  of  the  TFEU  for  the  purpose  of  amending  Annex  I  in  order  to 
reinstate these countries.  

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2011/0260 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

amending Annex I to Council Regulation (EC) No 1528/2007 as regards the exclusion of 
a number of countries from the list of regions or states which have concluded 
negotiations  

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 207(2) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national Parliaments, 

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

Negotiations  on  the  Economic  Partnership  Agreements  (‘the  Agreements’)  between:

The  CARIFORUM  states,  of  the  one  part,  and  the  European  Community  and  its 
Member States, of the other part were concluded on 16 December 2007; 

The  European  Community  and  its  Member  States,  of  the  one  part,  and  the  Central 
Africa Party, of the other part were concluded on 17 December 2007 (the Republic of 
Cameroon); 

Ghana, on the one part, and the European Community and its Member States, on the 
other part were concluded on 13 December 2007; 

Côte d’Ivoire, of the one part, and the European Community and its Member States, of 
the other part were concluded on 7 December 2007;  

The Eastern and Southern Africa States, on the one part, and the European Community 
and its Member States, on the other part were concluded on 28 November 2007 (the 
Republic  of  Seychelles  and  the  Republic  of  Zimbabwe),  on  4  December  2007  (the 
Republic  of  Mauritius),  on  11  December  2007  (Union  of  the  Comoros  and  the 
Republic of Madagascar) and 30 September 2008 (the Republic of Zambia); 

The SADC EPA states, on the one part, and the European Community and its Member 
States,  on  the  other  part  were  concluded  on  23  November  2007  (the  Republic  of 
Botswana,  the  Kingdom  of  Lesotho,  the  Kingdom  of  Swaziland,  the  Republic  of 
Mozambique) and 3 December 2007 (the Republic of Namibia); 

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(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

The  East  African  Community  Partner  States,  on  the  one  part,  and  the  European 
Community and its Member States,, on the other part were concluded on 27 November 
2007; 

The  Pacific  States,  of  the  one  part,  and  the  European  Community,  of  the  other  part 
were concluded on 23 November 2007. 

The  conclusion  of  negotiations  on  the  Agreements  by  Antigua  and  Barbuda,  the 
Commonwealth  of  the  Bahamas,  Barbados,  Belize,  the  Republic  of  Botswana,  the 
Republic of Burundi, the Republic of Cameroon, Union of the Comoros, the Republic 
of  Côte  d’Ivoire,  the  Commonwealth  of  Dominica,  the  Dominican  Republic,  the 
Republic  of  the  Fiji  Islands,  the  Republic  of  Ghana,  Grenada,  the  Cooperative 
Republic  of  Guyana,  the  Republic  of  Haiti,  Jamaica,  the  Republic  of  Kenya,  the 
Kingdom  of  Lesotho,  the  Republic  of  Madagascar,  the  Republic  of  Mauritius,  the 
Republic  of  Mozambique,  the  Republic  of  Namibia,  the  Independent  State  of  Papua 
New  Guinea,  the  Republic  of  Rwanda,  Federation  of  Saint  Kitts  and  Nevis,  Saint 
Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the Republic of Seychelles, the Republic of 
Suriname, the Kingdom of Swaziland, the United Republic of Tanzania, the Republic 
of  Trinidad  and  Tobago,  the  Republic  of  Uganda,  the  Republic  of  Zambia1  and  the 
Republic  of  Zimbabwe  permitted  their  inclusion  in  Annex  I  to  Council  Regulation 
(EC)  No  1528/2007  of  20  December  2007  applying  the  arrangements  for  products 
originating  in  certain  states  which  are  part  of  the  African,  Caribbean  and  Pacific 
(ACP)  Group  of  States  provided  for  in  agreements  establishing,  or  leading  to  the 
establishment of, Economic Partnership Agreements2. 

The  Republic  of  Botswana,  the  Republic  of  Burundi,  the  Republic  of  Cameroon, 
Union of the Comoros, the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire, the Republic of the Fiji Islands, 
the Republic of Ghana, the Republic of Haiti, the Republic of Kenya, the Kingdom of 
Lesotho,  the  Republic  of  Mozambique,  the  Republic  of  Namibia,  the  Republic  of 
Rwanda, the Kingdom of Swaziland, the United Republic of Tanzania, the Republic of 
Uganda,  the  Republic  of  Zambia,  and  the  Republic  of  Zimbabwe  have  not  taken  the 
necessary steps towards ratification of their respective Agreements, 

Consequently,  in  the  light  of  Article  2(3)  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  1528/2007,  and  in 
particular point (b) thereof, Annex I to that Regulation should be amended to remove 
those countries,  

In order to ensure that partners can swiftly be reinstated in Annex I to that Regulation 
as soon as they have taken the necessary steps towards ratification of their respective 
Agreements, and pending their entry into force, the power to adopt acts in accordance 
with  Article  290  of  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union  should  be 
delegated to the European Commission in respect of reinstating the countries removed 
from Annex I through this Regulation. It is of particular importance that the European 
Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including 
at expert level. The European Commission, when preparing and drawing-up delegated 

1 
2 

OJ L 330, 9.12.2008, p.1 
OJ L 348, 31.12.2007, p. 1 

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acts,  should  ensure  a  simultaneous,  timely  and  appropriate  transmission  of  relevant 
documents to the European Parliament and the Council, 

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: 

Article 1 

Regulation (EC) No 1528/2007 is amended as follows:  

(1) The following Articles 2a and 2b are inserted: 

"Article 2a 

The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 2b to 
amend  Annex  I  by  reinstating  those  regions  or  states  from  the  ACP  Group  of  States  which 
were removed from that Annex by virtue of [Regulation (EU) No …/…3], and which have 
since  taken  the  necessary  steps  towards  ratification  of  their  respective  Agreements  after 
removal from Annex I. 

Article 2b 

Exercise of the delegation 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

The  power  to  adopt  delegated  acts  is  conferred  on  the  Commission  subject  to  the 
conditions laid down in this Article. 

The  delegation  of  power  referred  to  in  Article  2a  shall  be  conferred  on  the 
Commission  for  an  indeterminate  period  of  time  from  the  entry  into  force  of  this 
Regulation. 

The delegation of power referred to in Article 2a may be revoked at any time by the 
European Parliament or by the Council. A decision of revocation shall put an end to 
the  delegation  of  the  powers  specified  in  that  decision.  It  shall  take  effect  the  day 
following  the  publication  of  the  decision  in  the  Official  Journal  of  the  European 
Union  or  at  a  later  date  specified  therein.  It  shall  not  affect  the  validity  of  the 
delegated acts already in force. 

As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to 
the European Parliament and to the Council. 

A  delegated  act  adopted  pursuant  to  Article  2a  shall  enter  into  force  only  if  no 
objection  has  been  expressed  either  by  the  European  Parliament  or  the  Council 
within a period of 2 months of notification of that act to the European Parliament and 
the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the European Parliament and the 
Council  have  both  informed  the  Commission  that  they  will  not  object.  That  period 
shall  be  extended  by  2  months  at  the  initiative  of  the  European  Parliament  or  the 
Council." 

3 

OJ L …, ………., p. . 

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(2) Annex I is replaced by the the text set out in the Annex to this Regulation. 

Article 2 

This  Regulation  shall  enter  into  force  on  the  day  following  that  of  its  publication  in  the 
Official Journal of the European Union. 

It shall apply on 1 January 2014.  

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. 

Done at Brussels, 

For the European Parliament 
The President 

For the Council 
The President 

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ANNEX 

"ANNEX I 

List  of  regions  or  states  which  have  concluded  negotiations  within  the  meaning  of  Article 
2(2): 

ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA 

THE COMMONWEALTH OF THE BAHAMAS 

BARBADOS 

BELIZE 

THE COMMONWEALTH OF DOMINICA 

THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 

GRENADA 

THE COOPERATIVE REPUBLIC OF GUYANA 

JAMAICA 

THE REPUBLIC OF MADAGASCAR 

THE REPUBLIC OF MAURITIUS  

THE INDEPENDENT STATE OF PAPUA NEW GUINEA 

FEDERATION OF SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS 

SAINT LUCIA 

SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES 

THE REPUBLIC OF SEYCHELLES 

THE REPUBLIC OF SURINAME 

THE REPUBLIC OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO" 

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LEGISLATIVE FINANCIAL STATEMENT FOR PROPOSALS HAVING A 
BUDGETARY IMPACT EXCLUSIVELY LIMITED TO THE REVENUE SIDE 

1. 

NAME OF THE PROPOSAL: 

Regulation  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  amending  Annex  I  to  Council 
Regulation (EC) No 1528/2007 as regards the exclusion of a number of countries from the list 
of regions or states which have concluded negotiations.  

2. 

BUDGET LINES: 

Chapter and Article: Chapter 12, Article item 120 (Customs duties) 

Amount budgeted for the year 2011: EUR 16 653 700 000  

3. 

FINANCIAL IMPACT  

Proposal has no financial impact on expenditure but has a financial impact on 

⌧ 
revenue – the effect is as follows: 

(EUR million to one decimal place) 

Budget 
line 

Revenue4 

Article 
120 

Own resources – 
customs duties 

1 year period 
starting 
01/01/2014 

2014 

+ 381.6 

Situation following action 

2015 

2016 

Article 120  

+ 381.6 

+ 381.6 

4 

Regarding  traditional  own  resources  (agricultural  duties,  sugar  levies,  customs  duties)  the  amounts 
indicated  must  be  net  amounts,  i.e.  gross  amounts  after  deduction  of  25  %  of  collection  costs. 
According to the current Own Resources Decision (Council Decision (EC, Euratom) No 436/2007 of 7 
June 2007 on the system of the European Communities' own resources (OJ L 163, 23.6.2007, p. 17-21). 
This might be subject to change with entry into force of a new Own Resources Decision. 

EN 

8 

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4. 

ANTI-FRAUD MEASURES 

The present proposal only amends the list of beneficiaries of the Regulation (EC) No 
1528/2007  and  does  not  concern  measures  of  the  Regulation  related  to  the  fight 
against fraud.  

5. 

OTHER REMARKS  

Regulation (EC) No 1528/2007 granted a number of countries duty-free, quota-free access to 
the EU market under certain conditions. The present proposal amends the list of beneficiaries 
(Annex I) of this Regulation. If a country is removed from a list of beneficiaries, it will export 
to the EU under a different trade regime which is either less favourable or at best equal to the 
regime offered by the Regulation, resulting in more customs duties being collected on behalf 
of the EU. 

The calculation of impact on the EU budget takes the situation created by Regulation (EC) No 
1528/2007 as the status quo (duty-free, quota-free access to the EU market, no duties paid). 
Then,  for  each  country  concerned,  it  compares  the  status  quo  to  duties  paid  under  an 
alternative trade regime each country will enjoy once removed from the list of beneficiaries, 
which is as follows:  

• 

• 

• 

for  least-developed  countries  (LDCs):  the  Everything  But  Arms  (EBA)  scheme, 
offering duty-free, quota-free access to the EU market (no duties paid); 

for  upper-middle-income  countries  (UMICs):  the  most-favoured-nation  (MFN) 
treatment (duties paid as per general EU tariff schedule);5 

for other developing countries (DCs): the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) 
that suspends or reduces tariffs (some duties paid, some at a reduced rate). 

Please  note  that  the  final  impact  on  the  EU  budget  will  depend  on  the  number  of  countries 
removed  from  the  list  of  beneficiaries.  The  present  amendment  proposes  to  remove  18 
countries  from  Annex  I,  of  which  9  would  not  benefit  from  the  EBA  scheme  and  therefore 
their exports to the EU would be subject to a duty. However, if they fulfill certain conditions 
before  the  amendment  takes  effect  on  1  January  2014,  they  will  continue  to  benefit  from 
current trade preferences. In this respect, the figure given is a maximum, as it assumes all 9 
concerned  countries  will  be  removed:  in  fact,  if  a  country  continues  to  benefit  from  the 
Regulation, the customs duties will not accrue to the EU budget and the figure will be lower. 

Table  1  gives  a  breakdown  of  budgetary  impact  per  country  concerned.  The  calculation  is 
based on the year 2009 and assumes that trade flows remain constant. The amount of dutiable 
imports  reflects  the  status  of  the  country,  i.e.  the  applicable  trade  regime  in  absence  of  the 
preferences  provided  by  Regulation  (EC)  No  1528/2007.  The  customs  duties  that  are  to 
accrue to the EU budget are calculated by multiplying the amount of dutiable imports (column 
4)  by  the  margin  of  preference  (the  difference  between  the  applicable  duty  rates  under 
Regulation (EC) No 1528/2007 and alternative trade regime, column 5). The total net amount 

5 

Assuming  that  the  GSP  reform  (Proposal  for  a  Regulation  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the 
Council applying a scheme of Generalised Tariff Preferences) is adopted. 

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of duties to accrue to the EU budget reduces the gross total by the 25% percent collection cost 
retained by the Member States.  

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Table 1: Budgetary impact per country potentially concerned by the proposed amendment to 
Regulation (EC) No 1528/2007: 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 = 5*4 

Dutiable 
Imports 
1000  
EUR 

Pref  Reg 
1528/2007 

% 

Pref  value 
(duties) 
1000 
EUR 

Country 

Country 
status 

EU Imports 

UMIC 
LDC 
DC 
LDC 
DC 
DC 
LDC 

Botswana 
Burundi 
Cameroon 
Comoros 
Fiji 
Ghana 
Haiti 
Ivory Coast  DC 
DC 
Kenya 
LDC 
Lesotho 
Mozambique  LDC 
Namibia 
Rwanda 
Swaziland 
Tanzania 
Uganda 
Zambia 
Zimbabwe 

UMIC 
LDC 
DC 
LDC 
LDC 
LDC 
DC 

1000  
EUR 
370.707
39.000
1.741.473
9.000
92.402
1.087.880
19.000
3.051.022
1.075.563
101.000
679.000
585.765
37.000
130.656
348.000
371.000
233.000
234.992

35.639
0
333.724
0
89.986
376.548
0
1.029.512
751.792
0
0
298.663
0
125.764
0
0
0
167.459

TOTAL 
TOTAL net (after collection costs) 

Source: COMEXT (Eurostat), DG TRADE calculations 

81,7 
0 
14,9 
0 
75,3 
10,3 
0 
10,3 
5,8 
0 
0 
19,5 
0 
52 
0 
0 
0 
30,1 

29.111 
0 
49.858 
0 
67.782 
38.654 
0 
105.662 
43.804 
0 
0 
58.156 
0 
65.427 
0 
0 
0 
50.365 

508.819 
381.614 

EN 

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