Trade Agreement
This article was originally published in SRA
Executive Summary
Implementation of US-Central American trade deal delayed
Implementation of US-Central American trade deal delayed
The countries that signed the Dominican Republic-Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) with the US have yet to implement the deal, despite a target date of 1January 20061.
The US Trade Representative (USTR) said that it expects El Salvador, Nicaragua and Honduras to implement the deal first, probably in spring 2006, and then the Dominican Republic and Guatemala to follow shortly after2.
Costa Rica is the only country whose Congress has not yet ratified CAFTA. Consumer group, Public Citizen, said that reports indicate that Costa Rica's Congress is actually unwilling to ratify the controversial agreement3.
The USTR said that the countries had not met the deadline due to the substantial time it takes to make the required regulatory changes and to adapt their legislative processes. However, it would not be too lenient; it said that only those countries that implement the agreement by 1April 2006 would be eligible for certain agricultural benefits4.
US President Bush signed the deal into law in August 2005. It had been opposed by healthcare lobbyists, such as Médecins Sans Frontières, which had complained that the intellectual property provisions in the agreement could make newer medicines unaffordable and could slow access to essential medicines5.
References
1. USTR statement regarding CAFTA-DR implementation, 30 December 2005, www.ustr.gov
2. Personal communication, USTR, 13January 2005
3. Public Citizen press release, 1January2005, www.citizen.org/pressroom/release.cfm?ID=2103
4. USTR press release, 19December 2005, www.ustr.gov
5. The Regulatory Affairs Journal - Pharma, 2005, 16(9), 682