Professional Documents
Culture Documents
CEFTA
CEFTA
Eastern Countries
including
trade-related cooperation
- Reduction of tariff barriers - Create favorable conditions for cooperation at the company level, transportation and infrastructure Harmonization of energy systems and telecommunication networks -Free mobility of Capital and Labor.
Free Trade zone by December 2010.
CEFTA AGREEMENT
Original Agreement
Signed by Visegrad countries Poland, Hungary, Czech, Slovak Signed on 21st December, 1992 in Kakrow, Poland It entered into force since July 1994
CEFTA 2006
Cefta extended to cover rest of the South East European countries Agreement came into effect from 2007 Areas covered CEFTA- Services, Investment, Government Procurement, Intellectual Property Rights
PARTIES OF AGREEMENT
Poland Hungary Czechoslovakia Slovenia Romania Bulgaria Croatia Macedonia Albania Bosnia and Herzegovina
JOINED
1992 1992 1992 1996 1997 1999 2003 2006 2007 2007
LEFT
2004 2004 2004 2004 2007 2007
Moldova Montenegro
Serbia UNMIK-Kosovo
2007 2007
2007 2007
CURRENT MEMBERS
ALBANIA
MACEDONIA MOLDOVA
CROATIA
MEMBERSHIP CRITERIA
Membership with WTO Signing of an Association
Agreement with EU
Consent form of all Cefta
States
Simplify and facilitate customs procedures, stimulate rapid implementation of the common rules of origin in all the Parties To identify, review and propose measures for elimination of technical barriers to trade and nontariff barriers among the parties. Provide technical and administrative support to the Joint Committee, to any sub-committee, expert group or any other body established by the Joint Committee
Sub-committee on Technical Barriers to Trade and Non Tariff Barriers CEFTA Secretariat
common declarations.
Main text has 52 articles in total. They provide the geneal
provisions for all isses governed by the agreement. The areas that require a more detailed regulation are treated in the annexes.
Annex 1 to Annex 9 ( liberalization in agricultural and industrial
product, concessions, rules of origin, customs assistance, promotion of investment, appointing a mediator, arbitration)
Common declaration (apply the rules and procedures of the
World Trade Organisation, cooperation and assistance, on Articles 20 and 21, on Articles 22 and 23)
OBJECTIVES OF CEFTA
Consolidate in a single agreement trade
settlement
Provides an excellent framework for the parties to prepare
for EU accession
GOALS
CEFTA 2006 was initiated and concluded for the achievement of the following goals:
Consolidating of the existing level of liberalisation through the network of bilateral free trade agreements. and facilitating the movement of goods in the region.
for
public
Enhancing
countries
ALBANIA
125
8364
1529
2916
12649
12.1
2253 922
BENEFITS
Reducing/eliminating customs duties and introducing
members in several new trade areas (services, public procurement, investments, protection of intellectual property).
Mandatory application of the rules of the World Trade Organization in all areas of trade members.
Abolishing of export subsidies in the trade among the Three possibilities for rules of origin ( CEFTA cumulation,
The Share of CEFTA Countries in Croatian Exports and Imports 2001 - 2012
25.0%
20.0%
6.3% 15.0% 3.2% Albania 10.0% 14.4% 12.0% 5.0% Macedonia
Moldova
1.2% 3.0%
0.0%
25.0%
The Share of CEFTA Countries in Slovenian Exports and Imports 2001 2012
20.0%
7.3%
15.0% 2.5% 4.2% 4.3% 10.0% 3.6% 2.6%
3.9% 0.0%
EU trade policy
Others will be implementing the SAA, liberalizing trade
towards the EU
World trade liberalization and globalization will bring fierce
the Parties includes provisions for the elimination of Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs), which fall within the mandate of certain structures created under CEFTA:
The Subcommittee on Technical Barriers to Trade
(TBTs) and NTBs, the Subcommittee on Agriculture and Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Issues, and the Subcommittee on Customs and Rules of Origin.
regular identification of NTBs. It is important to categorise accurately what kind of NTBs is affecting the trade among CEFTA Parties since different types of NTBs will require different solutions.
Therefore, the OECD developed, in consultation with the CEFTA Secretariat and trade experts a Multilateral Monitoring Framework (MMF),
composed of sets of indicators for each of the key NTBs
areas, with the aim of establishing an instrument for the coordination of actions for the elimination of NTBs at multilateral level, complementing the actions already taken by the Parties at bilateral level.
and TBTs, held in Sarajevo in June 2011, formally endorsed the selection of the 12 priority sectors (and corresponding priority products), and agreed that Parties would undergo monitoring based on the MMF to support the reduction of NTBs.
CEFTA Contact Points were to co-ordinate replies from
relevant institutions and ensure all replies were submitted to OECD by 5 September 2011 latest.
CONCLUSION
CEFTA 2006 is an exceptionally important step in the efforts for regional cooperation and integration of the region. In the very period before its entry into force, all its members will have to do everything necessary for the Agreement to come to life and not to become just an international document that looks great on paper. To present, in spite of the existence of bilateral free trade agreements, with some exceptions, the region could not achieve a satisfactory level of foreign trade exchange. Having said that, it can be concluded that the creation of a legal framework for free trade and other types of cooperation in the region is only one component of the process.
Another aspect is the manner in which the CEFTA 2006 signatories and their business entities will use the opportunities offered by the already existing legal framework. In this context, decisive will be the readiness of the governments to adjust their national economic policies to the new conditions created with CEFTA 2006, as well as the ability of their business entities to prepare and concur new markets and opportunities.
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