With only 35 months before the planned implementation of the Free Trade Area of The Americas in December 2005, government officials are busy attempting to identify ways of justifying the Bahamas’ need for “special and differential” treatment in its negotiations.
Governor of the Central Bank Julian Francis said Wednesday at a one-day workshop on competition law and policy, that small economies like The Bahamas have unique issues that require special consideration.
Research is being conducted throughout several CARICOM countries to document the characteristics of small economies like The Bahamas that would cause them to require more time in preparing for implementation of the FTAA.
Coordinator of the joint research effort Dr. Taimoon Stewart, a research fellow at the University of the West Indies, said one such characteristic is the issue of competition.
Mr. Francis said yesterday’s workshop was an opportunity to report on the initial findings of the research and discuss the challenges competition poses to small economies.
He added that the Bahamas has strong support from CARICOM countries in compiling information to support the country’s position
Explaining the steps of the FTAA negotiation process, Governor Francis said that the Bahamas’ negotiating team is charged with “hammering out a text which can be acceptable to the government.
“The government has a formal group which exists at the level of the Ministry of Trade and Industry which ties into the Caribbean negotiating group.
It is responsible for referring to the government the final text of the [FTAA] agreement which the government then has to decide whether or not it will accept and eventually sign,” Mr. Francis said.
The referral to government for its consideration will probably begin later this year and is expected to take about one year before a conclusion is arrived at on the text of FTAA draft agreement, Governor Francis added.
To increase the strength of their argument for a longer transition period before complying with the proposed FTAA requirements, CARICOM countries have joined forces to compile empirical evidence with which to participate in FTAA negotiations.
“Our economies are very different from the rest of the economies in the FTAA grouping and these have to be taken into consideration. Special and differential treatment must be given to [CARICOM countries],” Dr. Stewart said.
She added that because the Bahamas is not a part of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy, Bahamian FTAA negotiators must ensure that the country’s special concerns are clearly explained and addressed during negotiations.
Competition policy involves a series of instruments to promote competition in the economy, while competition law will ensure that competition among businesses is regulated and protected, officials said.
Dr. Stewart said having competition legislation enacted would benefit domestic merchants by requiring companies to compete fairly.
Competition law, she said, would help to deter anti-competitive business practices by empowering a national competition authority to monitor business activities and take the steps necessary to preserve fair competition among businesses. The authority would seek to discourage unfair business practices such as cutting prices to eliminate competition, overcharging, and business mergers that are detrimental to consumers.
Because Bahamian merchants are competing against not only each other, but also much larger companies in South Florida, having competition laws in place would benefit local merchants, Dr. Stewart said.
She said, “Having a competition law and a competition authority will serve [the Bahamas’] needs in the context of external anti-competitive conduct.”
By Darrin Culmer, The Bahama Journal
