Economic Partnership Agreement: FCFA 30 Billion Customs Duties Forfeited So Far

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Economic Partnership Agreement: FCFA 30 Billion Customs Duties Forfeited So Far

30 juil. 2021 11:20

The 28th session of the Committee of the Follow-up of the Implementation of the Bilateral Economic Partnership Agreement between Cameroon and the European Union held in Yaounde on July 27 to evaluate progress made so far.

The Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between Cameroon and the European Union (EU) that went operational on August 4, 2016, is said to have caused a fiscal forfeiture of FCFA 30 billion as at June 30, 2021 owing to the suppression of customs barriers. The 28th session of the committee to follow-up the implementation of the EPA took place in Yaounde on July 27, 2021 to assess the rate of implementation and chart a way forward for the future.

According to the committee, the balance sheet as at June 30, 2021 as far as the suppression of customs tariffs is concerned, shows a FCFA 30 billion lost since the start of the implementation of the agreement. The EPA provided for the suppression of customs duties between Cameroon and the European Union as it consecrated for the opening up of the Cameroonian market to imports from Europe and vice versa. Constituted in three phases with three different groups of goods to be imported into the country duty free, the first group which included pharmaceutical products, agricultural inputs amongst others have completely gone through the 100 per cent duty free procedure. Meanwhile, the second group of products which are intended to encourage local production (raw materials, machinery, flour, cargo vehicles, amongst others) benefited from a 15 per cent deduction of custom duties annually and have till date been implemented at 60 per cent. As for the 3rd group of products (fuels, cement, tourism vehicles amongst others) at the rhythm of 10 per cent deduction of customs tariff per year are at 20 per cent implementation. This is so because the 3rd group which was to kick off on August 4, 2020 was suspended and its implementation postponed to January 1, 2021. Thus, its implementation remains at 10 per cent. However, by the time the next stage begins on August 4, 2021, the suppression of customs barriers for group two products will move up to 75 pe...