After a week of what he described as tenuous meetings, Minister of Trade and Industry Leslie Miller said yesterday that he does not recommend that the government sign onto the World Trade Organization.
Mr. Miller made the suggestion on Thursday during a press conference to report on his trip to Hong Kong for the WTO meeting.
According to Mr. Miller, the WTO is something that requires serious government study and public input before signing.
He said that due to the small amount of progress made in Hong Kong, another meeting has been scheduled for April 2006, to try and make some headway on outstanding issues.
One of those issues was an impasse that the United States and The European Union had reached on farm subsidies, causing some economic problems for developing countries.
Mr. Miller recommended that the government revisit signing onto the WTO in the next five years.
He said there is still a lot of work to be done as to whether this playing field is truly going to be leveled.
“Until all these things are smoothed out and all the small countries of the world know what the benefits are for them, and know whether the industrialised world is going to come through with some of the promises and ideas that they put on the table, it makes no sense, in my humble opinion, for us to be in any rush to join the World Trade Organization,” Mr. Miller said.
The Bahamas was one of 39 countries with observer status at the meeting.
Mr. Miller said that before The Bahamas signs onto the WTO, the public must be properly educated on the matter, something that he intends on doing early in the New Year.
The Bahamas is seeking membership in the WTO, a multilateral trading system between developed and developing countries.
“We met with the top people in the WTO’s accession process who are going to be assisting us in having numerous town meetings throughout the length and breadth of The Bahamas,” Mr. Miller said. “The educational process is paramount so that everybody knows what to expect, because whether we like it or not or believe it or not, once you sign on the dotted line everyone is going to be coming after you.”
The Trade and Industry Minister described the WTO as “FTAA plus one.”
He believes that certain cuts to tariffs would be detrimental to businesses in The Bahamas because it would give foreign companies certain rights and privileges to operate locally.
Mr. Miller said that The Bahamas is a small, vulnerable developing island nation, which is dependent on customs duties as the major source of revenue for central government administration.
“Many small countries have been crushed once they have joined the organisation, they have had their markets open and their economies have been obliterated,” Minister Miller said.
Some of the topics addressed at the Hong Kong meeting included issues that would impact the future growth and development of small and vulnerable regional countries, such as the African Caribbean and Pacific nations (ACP), of which the Bahamas is a member.
“A fundamental issue for these nations is the erosion of preference, which would result in further impoverishment,” Mr. Miller said. “In this regard special and differential treatment is of critical importance.”
Mr. Miller said that he informed WTO officials that the government of The Bahamas is carefully weighing the pros and cons of membership to that organisation and when and if a decision is made to join, that decision will be made with a knowledge-based approach.
“At all times we are mindful of our ongoing commitment to the people of The Bahamas, to ensure that the Bahamas’ interests are protected,” he said.
By: Stephen Gay, The Bahama Journal
