The East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) holds a three day stakeholders’ workshop on anti-dumping and quality assurance in Nairobi, Kenya next week.The workshop organised by the Assembly’s Committee on Communications, Trade and Investment (CTI) takes place on October 16-19, 2011.
The workshop specifically aims at sharing views on how to establish policies for anti-dumping and quality assurance in the EAC region. It further wants to improve strategies and laws on anti-dumping and to assess the challenges associated with dumping in the EAC region with a view to prescribing solutions for the same.
The meeting is to be opened by Hon Dr. James Ndahiro, Chairperson of EALA’s Committee on Communications, Trade and Investments.
Participants shall be drawn from the committee’s membership, officials from the East African Business Council (EABC), manufacturers’ associations, consumers’ bodies in the Partner States as well as the EAC Secretariat.
The meeting is justified by the desire for the EAC region to be safe from dumping and counterfeit products. The workshop shall thus feature various presentations on anti-dumping. The topics range from: avenues for Private Public Partnerships (PPP) to curb imported sub-standards and counterfeit goods in the EAC region, the EAC’s outlook on the counterfeits and anti-dumping. Plenary discussions on the how to strengthen quality infrastructure to prevent entry of sub-standard goods in the EAC region are also envisaged.
It also hopes to discuss in detail the measures and policies to control the entry of fake and counterfeit products in the region, hence facilitating the continual growth of quality assurance in East Africa.
The Protocol on the Establishment of the Customs Union defines dumping in relation to goods as the situation where the export price of goods imported or intended to be imported into the Community is less than the normal value of like goods in the market of a country of origin.
Analysts portend that dumping can harm the domestic industry by reducing its sales volume and market shares, as well as its sales prices. This in turn can result in decline in profitability, job losses and, in the worst case scenario, in the domestic industry going out of business. The use of anti- dumping measures as an instrument of fair competition is permitted by the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
The EAC prescribes anti-dumping measures in Article 16 of the Protocol and has instituted in place the EAC Customs Union (Anti-Dumping Measures) Regulations. The purpose of the regulations is to implement the provisions of Article 16 of the Protocol and to ensure that there is uniformity among Partner States in the application of anti-dumping measures and that to the extent possible, the process is transparent, accountable, fair, predictable and consistent with the provisions of the Protocol.
The region also has effected the Standardization, Quality Assurance, Metrology and Testing Act, 2006. The SQMT Act, 2006 inter alia makes provision for ensuring standardisation, quality assurance, metrology and testing of products produced or traded in the Community in order to facilitate industrial development and trade. It also makes provision for ensuring the protection of health and safety of society and the environment in Community.
The workshop finally hopes to come up with recommendations on how to protect EAC region from dumping and counterfeit products with resolutions expected to be channelled to the Assembly for further deliberations and action.
NOTE TO EDITORS
The East African Legislative Assembly is the legislative organ of the East African Community. Its Membership consists of a total of 52, of whom 45 are elected Members (9 from each Partner State) and seven ex-officio members (the Ministers responsible for EAC Affairs from the Partner States, the Secretary General of the Community and the Counsel to the Community).
EALA has seven Committees. They are Communications, Trade and Investments committee, Legal Rules and Privileges committee, Agriculture, Tourism and Natural Resources committee, General Purpose committee, Accounts committee, Regional Affairs and Conflict Resolutions committee and the House Business committee.
CONTACTS
For More Information, contact: Bobi Odiko, Senior Public Relations Officer; East African Legislative Assembly; Tel: +255-27-2508240 Cell: +255 787 870945, +254-733-718036; Email: bodiko@eachq.org Web: https://www.eala.org Arusha, Tanzania.
