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Sunday, October 12, 2003
RP posts trade surplus from EU
THE Philippines gained a net trade surplus of 4.5 billion Euros in 2002 from the European Union (EU) because it had an aggregate export of P7.5 billion worth of goods and imported only 3.5 billion euros.
Ambassador Johannes "Jan" De Kok, head of the delegation of the European Commission to the Philippines reported this during a press forum here upon invitation of the EU-funded Economic Self-Reliance Program Caraballo and Southern Cordillera Agricultural Development (ERP-Cascade).
De Kok said despite trade shortfalls, the country fared well in its trading with the EU as shown by the trade surplus, mainly because of the access to the 15 nation-state members of the EU.
Market access is not a problem here, De Kok said, highlighting that the EU is now the biggest trading bloc in the world. The Philippines can now aim to double its exports of 7.5 billion Euros much in the same way as we would encourage the doubling of the imports such that in the ultimate trade-off, the country would still be gaining, he added.
Considering the population of the EU, which de Kok placed at about 370 million, it is important that exporters and entrepreneurs should absorb orders in large volumes.
"They must have first the capacity to sustain their product supply if they commit and enter into the market," De Kok cautioned.
He added indigenous products and goods that are produced in an organic and environment friendly manner are given prime preference in the EU market. Local producers and manufacturers have to take this in consideration when they enter and compete in the EU market.
He said major consideration for agriculture products are the health safety standards, citing that for livestock, the recent outbreaks of foot and mouth disease, swine fever and chicken flu, and the mad cow disease have taken their toll in the market.
"Organics rate high in the European market. Fruits and vegetables with high pesticides and heavy metal residues will definitely be rejected which should be noted here because Benguet vegetables farmers have been known to be heavy users of pesticides on their vegetables intended for the market," he stressed.
De Kok started his two-day working visit to the Cordillera and Region II for an on-site appreciation of the Cascade programs with a Kapihan forum.
Cascade began in 1997 and is set to end in 10 months time. He said he was quite impressed with the program accomplishments, giving Cascade a rating of seven on the scale of one to 10. This is based on several monitoring visits from the EU as well as testimonies of project beneficiaries and agency partners.
Cascade has a total program fund of P18,780,000 aimed at poverty reduction in various poor farming communities. Half of the amount are EU grants while the rest are counterparts of the national government, the local governments and the beneficiaries themselves.
De Kok declined to commit whether the Union will fund a follow-on program with the closing of Cascade but assured that this will not mean a reversal of the communities before there were given assistance.
"We have invested a lot of money in these areas and it is our obligation to our tax payers in Europe that Cascade’s achievements in poverty reduction in this areas will not be in vain. We will go back and find ways and means to ensure the sustainability of EU programs like Cascade that will in the future include the areas the Cascade has not reached," De Kok iterated.
Further, discussions with authorities from the National Economic Development Authority in Manila have been underway to tackle post-Cascade programs. But one source of irritant in this grant aid project, he said, was the bureaucracy in the union as well as in the host country and in the target beneficiaries whose rules and procedures are not easy to understand and follow, as well as the difficulty of the national government in fulfilling its financial commitment.
Cascade covers 19 municipalities in Nueva Vizcaya, Nueva Ecija, and Benguet. In Nueva Vizcaya, the municipalities covered are Ambaguio, Bagabag, Bayombong, Diadi, Kasibu, Solano, Quezon, Villaverde, Alfonso Castaneda, Aritao, Dupax del Sur and del Norte, Santa Fe, and Kayapa. In Nueva Ecija, the town of Carranglan while in Benguet, they are the municipalities of Bokod, Kabayan and Itogon. All are indigenous communities and mostly located in upland and mountainous areas. Nathan Alcantara
(October 11, 2003 issue)
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