| This weblog shares information on key ACP-EU programmes and events from Brussels relevant to agriculture and rural development in ACP countries. Date : [DATE] CTA Brussels Newsletter Main events in the week
- Financing Agriculture
- Our video guest: Jean-Marie Ndayishimiye, CAPAD
- Farmers Want EU Door Wide Open
- African observatories will gather biodiversity data
- Court supports EU decision on fuel additive
- New study highlights EU dependence on fish imports
- Jamaica: Displaced Sugar Cane Workers get Help
- EU Votes 6.5 Billion Euros for Ecowas Nations
- Countries agree on European sugar exports
- EC$17 million expected to help combat global crisis
- Parliament vote seals ban on illegal timber
- Renewable energy centre for West Africa opens in Cape Verde
- Parliament calls for EU ban on cloning for food
- EU sets November deadline for new trade pact
- EU lending arm positions itself for full EA unity
- Audit Queries Impact of EU Funding On EAC
- New hope for stalled world trade talks
- Highly nutritious green cakes could save lives
- SG Chambas highlights the need to broaden tax bases in ACP countries
- GMOs: Member States to be given full responsibility on cultivation
- Biodiversity: new report highlights win-win business practices
- Green growth a core priority for the European Investment Bank
- Financing Agriculture
2010-07-15 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : ACP-EU Trade, Rural development, Aid effectiveness, Environment, Archive, Regional Fisheries, Food Security
The 20th Brussels Development Briefing will be on ‘Financing agriculture and will take place on the 15th of September 2010. As an input to the UN Summit on MDGs to be held in New York on 22-26 September 2010, we will discuss issues related to financing development in the context of agriculture and rural development. This will include issue such as Aid and ODA, taxation (Domestic tax revenues), private investment (new donors), revenue generation. For more information please contact: lopes@cta.int or boto@cta.int Brussels Development Briefings Videos of the last Briefing Past Briefings
- Our video guest: Jean-Marie Ndayishimiye, CAPAD
2010-07-15 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : Rural development
Our video guest this week is Mr. Jean-Marie Ndayishimiye, the technical coordinator of CAPAD. The CAPAD is a Confederation of Farmer’s Associations in Burundi. On the occasion of his visit to the CTA Brussel’s Office, Mr. Ndayishimiye accorded to us an interview, in which he presents the organization and activities of the CAPAD. Mr. Ndayishimiye explains how the CAPAD helps to improve the supply capacities of farmers in Burundi. In particular, he speaks about the programs for small scale farmers as well as the crosscutting issues such as HIV-Aids and gender equality. Watch the video CAPAD
- Farmers Want EU Door Wide Open
2010-07-15 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : ACP-EU Trade
There is still a chance to improve access to the European Union (EU) for SA 's agricultural products, before an economic partnership agreement for southern Africa is concluded this year, says trade and industry deputy director-general Xavier Carim. The agricultural business sector is lobbying hard for the government not to miss the chance to push for the total opening up of the highly regulated EU market, not only for SA but for the Southern African Development Community (Sadc). In the talks, the 27-member EU, SA's largest trading partner, is speaking as a unit to the various African economic regions, while the African regions are forced to speak to the EU as single entities. The sticking point is that the EU is uncompromising in treating SA differently from the rest of the community because of the strength of its economy. Mr Herbital Maluleke, international trade intelligence manager at the Agricultural Business Chamber , says the most contentious issues yet to be resolved involve the alignment of market access, tariffs and rules of origin, as well as a most favoured nation clause. The clause is a special level of status given to a strategic partner country by another on trade issues. Source: businessday.co.za Read more ACP-EU Trade EPA
- African observatories will gather biodiversity data
2010-07-15 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : Rural development, Environment, Archive
Scientists are pooling remote-sensing satellite data and geographical information services for two pan-African digital observatories that will provide accurate and readily accessible information on biodiversity and forest cover for policymakers. European satellites will help track deforestation, desertification and land degradationUnder a grant awarded in 2009, the European Commission's (EC) Joint Research Centre (JRC) is supporting the development of the observatories, details of which were discussed at the fourth EuroScience Open Forum (ESOF 2010) this week. One is the Observatory for the Forests of Central Africa (OFAC), which aims to serve as a single reference centre for scientific and technical information to help develop policies and programmes on the sustainable management of biodiversity, forest cover and food security in Central Africa's forests, which support around 40 million people. It will help bridge the knowledge gap by providing easily accessible information for policymakers, Paolo Roggeri, staff member from the JRC told the forum. European satellites will provide data on vegetation cover and drought to help track deforestation, desertification and land degradation - including illegal logging in the region. The portal will be divided into themes such as soil, forests, drylands, agriculture, biodiversity, and disasters, and each theme will contain reference maps, specific analysis of development issues and related scientific topics. The observatory will also train local foresters in collecting baseline data. The other initiative supported by the grant is the Digital Observatory for Protected Areas (DOPA), an online information system aimed at helping policymakers assess the state of protected areas and prioritise interventions in natural parks supported by the European Union. The digital observatory is designed as a set of web services that help assess, monitor and forecast the vulnerability of large ecological systems, and will cover the entirety of Sub-Saharan Africa. Source: africagoodnews.com Read more JRC OFAC
- Court supports EU decision on fuel additive
2010-07-15 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : ACP-EU Trade, Environment
Europe's highest court has rejected a claim from an American company that an EU decision to restrict a potentially risky chemical compound was unlawful. The outcome will be seen as a vindication of the precautionary principle, the ‘better-safe-than-sorry' approach that underpins many EU laws to protect health and the environment. In a judgement yesterday (8 July), the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that an EU law to restrict the fuel additive MMT was lawful. The ECJ rejected the company's claim that restrictions were unlawful. “In the absence of adequate and reliable data”, EU lawmakers were faced with “serious doubts...as to whether MMT was harmless for health and the environment”, the court said. Therefore the EU was justified using the precautionary principle “to take protective measures without having to wait for the reality and the seriousness of those risks to be fully demonstrated”. The ECJ also rejected the company's complaint about a legal requirement that all fuel containing MMTs bear the label “contains metallic additives”. This was an appropriate way to ensure consumers' right to information, the judgement said. Mike Lewis, Afton's vice-president and managing director for Europe, added: “Despite the overall ruling, we are pleased that the court confirmed the need for an independent scientific risk assessment and the interim nature of the limits.” A spokeswoman for the Commission said: “The Commission welcomes the ECJ's unequivocal endorsement of the legislation adopted by the Council and Parliament and looks forward to its full implementation by the member states.” Source: European Voice Read more The ECJ The precautionary principle
- New study highlights EU dependence on fish imports
2010-07-15 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : Regional Fisheries
European Union (EU) citizens are eating more fish than can be produced in EU waters and are thereby increasingly dependent on imports, according to a new report by the think tank nef (New Economics Foundation) and OCEAN2012. The study, Fish Dependence: the increasing reliance of the EU on fish from elsewhere, calculates that if the EU only consumed fish from its own waters, resources would run out by 8 July. After that date, for the rest of the year the EU would be dependent on fish products imported from elsewhere in the world. Moreover, over the past 10 years the date the EU would become reliant on imports occurs earlier in the year; in 2010 it is one month earlier than in 2000. The authors point to the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), scheduled to enter into force in 2013, to reverse the trend and ensure the viability of EU fisheries, rather than importing increasing quantities of fish. Source: The new economics foundation Read more Report DG Fisheries
- Jamaica: Displaced Sugar Cane Workers get Help
2010-07-14 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : Rural development
Displaced sugar workers in the Monymusk Sugar Dependent Area have received grants under the Economic Mitigation Programme, a Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries initiative supported by the European Union (EU). Speaking at the presentation at the Halse Hall Great House, Clarendon, recently, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Dr. Christopher Tufton, pointed out that so far 180 persons have benefitted from grants. "We expect that approximately 623 persons will benefit from grants in the Monymusk area. We have issued some $27 million to those 180 (who have already received grants)," he stated. Female recipients received $170,000 each, while male recipients each received $150,000. Source: Jamaica Information Service Read more Sugar Agreements EU Relations with Jamaica
- EU Votes 6.5 Billion Euros for Ecowas Nations
2010-07-14 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : ACP-EU Trade
The European Union has offered to make available 6.5 billion Euros for financing programme initiatives in West African countries under the Economic Partnership Agreement Development Programme over a four-year period (2010-2014). This came just as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), yesterday said the economy of the countries in the region has witnessed some measure of growth. The sub-regional organisation underscored the need to mobilise additional resources and to meet the region's priorities and make them available for all West African countries. The Authority of ECOWAS acknowledged the EU gesture in a communique issued at the end of its thirty-eighth Ordinary Session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of the ECOWAS held last Friday in Sal, Republic of Cape Verde, under the chairmanship of President Goodluck Jonathan, who is also Chairman of the group. It also stressed the need for early conclusion of an agreement with the EU within the context of a larger dimension of economic development."This will allow the West Africa region to find the uniqueness of its trade regime vis-à-vis Europe. It stated that this conclusion is essential to a compromise on market access, adequate financing for the EPA Development Programme (EPADP) and resolution of persistent points of divergence. Source: This Day Read more ECOWAS EPA-ECOWAS
- Countries agree on European sugar exports
2010-07-14 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : ACP-EU Trade
Zambia has agreed to cooperate with other sugar exporting countries accessing the European Union (EU) market under the ‘Everything But Arms (EBA)’ to benefit from new opportunities. Commerce, Trade and Industry Deputy Minister Lwipa Puma, who recently attended a council of ministers meeting that reached the agreement, said Zambia wanted to work with other countries in accessing support to gain from the EU market. The Least Developed Countries (LDCs), under the EBA facility, are estimated to export 442,000 tonnes for 2009/10 marketing year and 891,000 for 2010/11 season. Zambia is projected to export 135,000 tonnes for the 2009/10 and 250,000 tonnes of 2010/11 marketing season. And the total exports to the European Union for 2009/2010 stood at 1,826,000 tonnes while for 2010/2011 are estimated at 2.531,000 tonnes. Dr Puma said it was important for Zambia to collaborate with other African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries on sugar exports to the EU as recommended by the council of ministers. Dr Puma said the council of ministers noted that based on the latest estimates, there would be a deficit of around 200,000 tonnes for the 2009/10 marketing year. The council of ministers said unlike the Sugar Protocol, the requirements under the new Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) sugar arrangements had significantly changed, with regard to latest developments in the world sugar market. Dr Puma said it was agreed that ACP suppliers should continue to argue for additional market access and against the opening of the terms of reference and operating rules in the context of the Free Trade Areas (FTA’s). Source: State House Zambia Read more EU Relations with Dominican Republic EU-ACP Trade
- EC$17 million expected to help combat global crisis
2010-07-14 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : Rural development
Dominica is set to receive EC$17 million dollars (EURO 5.2 million) from the European Commission to cushion the effect of the global economic crisis.This is according to a press release from the European Commission (EC). The release informed that this financial assistance comes as part of the commission’s vulnerability assistance scheme, which was adopted last year to aid African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries battle the crisis. A total of 13 ACP countries were opted for $230 million in assistance under the program. Grenada has also received EURO 5.29 million. “The funds which are non-reimbursed are to be used by Dominican authorities at their discretion and convenience,” the release stated. “The vulnerability instrument is based on the forecast of fiscal losses and other vulnerability criteria thereby helping to ease the impact rather that acting after the damage is done, whilst assisting the worst affected countries to reduce the social costs of the crisis. It provides rapid targeted grants and is meant to complement to the loan-based assistance of other development institutions, with whose support it was developed,” the release informed. The Dominica vulnerability disbursement is in addition to ongoing EC interventions in the country that include a Business Gateway Project, the Waitukubuli National Trail Programme, The Carib Territory Water System project among others, the release said. “There are also two EU funded financial sector budget support projects ongoing which are the Private Sector Growth and Development Programme (EURO 11.8 million) AND THE Rural Sector Development Programme (EURO 6.32 million,” the release also stated. Yesterday, the Banana Industry Trust commissioned three inland reception distribution centers in Fond Cole, Portsmouth and Marigot. These centers which cost a total EC $8.2 million were funded by the EC. Source: dominicanewsonline.com Read more EU Relations with Zambia
- Parliament vote seals ban on illegal timber
2010-07-14 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : Environment, ACP-EU Trade
The European Parliament (7th July 2010) backed a compromise to close EU markets to illegal timber. MEPs voted to approve a political inter-institutional agreement on a new regulation that sets obligations on operators that place timber or related products on the EU market. The new legislation issues a ban on illegally-harvested timber. Covering the whole timber supply chain from logging sites to European consumers, the law aims to guarantee legally-sourced products access to EU markets while halting deforestation in third countries. "EU legislation to ban the sale of illegally-sourced timber represents a major international breakthrough, from the forests around the world that are ravaged by illegal logging to the EU market where timber and wood products are sold," said MEP Satu Hassi (Finland, Greens/EFA), who represented the Parliament in the final negotiations. Currently around a fifth of all timber and related products, like furniture, is suspected to come from illegal sources. When the legislation enters into force in late 2012, the operator who first places timber or a timber product on the EU market will have to trace its origins or face sanctions. All subsequent sellers will then have to declare who they bought the timber from and who they sold it to in order to ensure that the legality of the wood can be traced at any point in the supply chain. However, member states have the right to decide whether to impose criminal-law penalties and fines on offenders. The regulation only recommends that consideration should be given to the environmental damage caused, the value of the timber and lost tax revenue. Member states will still have to give their formal assent to the legislation, which they are expected to do after the summer holidays. Source: Euractiv Read more The illegal logging of timber Forest and illegal logging
- Renewable energy centre for West Africa opens in Cape Verde
2010-07-14 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : Environment
A new regional centre to help develop the renewable energy potential for West Africa opened yesterday in Cape Verde, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), which is supporting the facility, said. The Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE), a specialized agency of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), is based in Praia, the capital of Cape Verde. It is supported by UNIDO and the Governments of Austria, Cape Verde and Spain. It will help develop renewable energy and energy efficiency markets in West Africa, formulate policy, build capacity and quality assurance mechanisms, as well design financing plans. The centre will also implement demonstration projects with potential for regional scaling up. The agency has also developed an energy programme for 18 countries in West Africa, including all ECOWAS member States, funded by the Global Environment Facility. ECREEE will become the main implementing agency of the $150 million programme that will focus on the energy access agenda and energy efficiency in key sectors of the economy. Source: africagoodnews.com Read more EERE Relations de l'UE avec le Cap Vert
- Parliament calls for EU ban on cloning for food
2010-07-14
The European Parliament reiterated its opposition to meat and milk produced from cloned animals yesterday (7th July 2010), piling pressure on the European Commission to ban food produced in this way. Voting on Wednesday, the Parliament reaffirmed its first-reading position to exclude food derived from cloned animals or their offspring from a draft EU regulation on novel foods. The Commission and EU member states would like to regulate the sale of "novel foods" – defined as food made with new production processes or which was not widely consumed before 1997. But MEPs have adopted a more restrictive approach, asking the Commission to table a separate legislative proposal to expressly ban food from cloned animals and their descendants. If EU countries reject the Parliament's position, a conciliation procedure will be launched to find a compromise. In the meantime, the Parliament is asking for a moratorium on all sales of food derived from cloning, a position it has maintained since it first passed a resolution on the matter in 2008. Source: Euractiv Read more Cloning Food Safety Committee
- EU sets November deadline for new trade pact
2010-07-14 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : ACP-EU Trade
Kenya has been pushed into a tight spot after Europe set a November deadline to conclude long running negotiations with East Africa over the signing of new trade and economic partnership agreements. The new deadline followed an unsuccessful round of talks in Dar es Salaam this week aimed at unlocking a stalemate on the signing of a framework on the Economic Partnership Agreement (FEPA).Among the sticking issues ahead of the Dar es Salaam talks had been a demand by EAC states for an enhanced development budget to compensate them for revenue losses expected to result from removal of tariffs on EU imports. The EC has argued that it already disburses a lot of budgetary allocation in development support to the region and will not make additional commitment. Analysts said the new November deadline now leaves Kenya in a precarious position because its stands to be the biggest loser should the EAC fail to sign EPAs with Europe. Due of its position as a non-member of the Highly Indebted Poor Country (HIPC), failing to sign the EPAs would force Kenya to trade with the EU on the less generous General System of Preferences (GSP) platform. Source: Business Daily Read more EU Relations with Kenya EPA with the East African Community
- EU lending arm positions itself for full EA unity
2010-07-14 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : ACP-EU Trade
The European Investment Bank is seeking to strengthen its presence in the East African Community as the region prepares to enter the next phase of integration — the Monetary Union. The EIB is the long-term lending institution of the European Union. In the past five years, it has strengthened its presence in the region by setting up a permanent base in Nairobi, which now acts as the regional hub for East and Central Africa.“While we have been in the region for the past 40 years, we moved in permanently in 2005 and set up a permanent presence in Nairobi,” Vice President Plutarchos Sakellaris said. He was touring East Africa last week to inspect various development projects that the bank supports.Development aid from the European Union to EAC is also increasing, with Mr Plutarchos saying the region’s focus on infrastructure development is in line with the bank’s plans. On July 1, the EAC transformed into a Common Market. The region has a large market of about 130 million people. Last year, EIB achieved an all-time high of $99.3 billion in loan signatures.Out of this, about $11.31 billion went to countries outside the EU, including Africa where EIB operates under the Cotonou Agreement.Since 2005, the Vice President said, the Bank has provided more than $1.12 billion for projects in the region, with the energy sector the largest beneficiary (52 per cent of project funding). Out of the $1.12 billion the bank invested in the region, $282.7 million (25 per cent) was lent to Kenya. Mr Plutarchos was speaking at an event to launch a $6.03 million EIB support programme for the upgrading of the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, East Africa’s leading transport hub. Source: European Investment Bank Read more EIB and ACP countries EAC
- Audit Queries Impact of EU Funding On EAC
2010-07-14 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : Aid effectiveness, ACP-EU Trade
The European Court of Auditors, in its report: "Effectiveness of EDF (European Development Fund) Support for Regional Economic Integration in East Africa and West Africa," pointed out that the existence of multiple regional organisations with overlapping mandates and membership as well as weak capacity has undermined regional economic integration."The overlapping membership poses considerable problems, as some member countries belong to two different trade areas (Comesa and EAC). In addition, there are overlaps and incompatibilities in membership with the Southern Africa Development Community (Sadc)," the report asserts. East Africa has four regional integration bodies which include the East African Community (EAC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the Inter-governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC). The audit pointed out that Comesa and EAC are primarily aiming for regional economic integration, with the EAC already having put in place a customs union and a common market while COMESA eyes to transform its current free trade area (FTA) into a fully functional customs union.IGAD, on the other hand, covers regional economic integration in its mandate, but focuses more on conflict resolution and food security issues while the IOC has a mandate for economic and trade cooperation and focuses mainly on regional cooperation in natural resources management, particularly fisheries. Nevertheless, IOC participates in the programming and implementation of the 9th and 10th EDF regional indicative programmes for the East Africa region. The audit disclosed lack of coordination in the way it managed programmes under the fund. Source: The New Vision
Read more The European Development Fund East African Community
- New hope for stalled world trade talks
2010-07-14 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : ACP-EU Trade
A robust rebound in world trade and political progress at the G20 have set the stage for a renewed push to agree a global trade deal, according to top-ranking officials from the EU, US and China. EurActiv reports from the European Business Summit (EBS). The Doha round of trade talks is currently stalled but with trade up 10% this year and leaders praising the World Trade Organisation (WTO) for its success in containing protectionism, cautious optimism is emerging that the time may be ripe for a breakthrough. WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy said the issue was discussed at the G20 summit in Toronto last week, where world leaders had a ''frank'' exchange for an hour and a half about the major obstacles to signing off on a new deal which some say would inject fresh stimulus to the recovering economy. Lamy said 80% of the work has been done and that the US, EU and China have made ''painful concessions'' but that thorny issues such as industrial tariffs, fisheries subsidies and the services sector remain. He said he hoped the progress made at the G20 summit would mean that ''political leaders are ready to engage in order to push through a deal''. However, he sounded a note of caution, noting there had been some unhelpful rhetoric on the issue since talks broke down in 2008.''Right now we are stuck because the big players are trading words instead of concessions. They are talking instead of negotiating,'' Lamy told a European Business Summit session on trade. Source: Euractiv Read more EU latest news on trade The Doha Round
- Highly nutritious green cakes could save lives
2010-07-14 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : Food Security
Donors hope spirulina, a blue-green, protein-packed algae, will deliver on its promise by the time a US$1.7 million cultivation project in Chad, funded by the European Union (EU), ends in December 2010. "It's as close as we will get to a miracle food," said Mahamat Sorto, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) officer managing the project. Aid agencies see the plant as a possible cheap solution to global malnutrition.Health food stores in rich countries have promoted spirulina as an energy-enhancing supplement, but it has been eaten for centuries in various parts of the world. The plant's dry weight contains up to 70 percent of protein matter, based on chemical analyses from the French Oil Institute, university research laboratories in Malaysia and Bangladesh, and the Siam Algae company, a Thai commercial group. A 2008 FAO position paper on spirulina reads like a commercial brochure: "An easily digestible high protein product with high levels of B-carotene, vitamin B12, iron and trace minerals, and the rare essential fatty acid y-linolenic acid [also called gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), or omega-6]". FAO noted that spirulina cultivation had "a small environmental footprint" with low water needs, production could take place in salty conditions that would kill other crops, and there were no "obvious negative cultural or religious issues associated with its consumption". Source: africagoodnews.com Read more FAO on Spirulina
- SG Chambas highlights the need to broaden tax bases in ACP countries
2010-07-13 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : Aid effectiveness
Secretary-General of the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group, Dr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas has emphasized the importance of mobilising internal resources to broaden existing tax bases to be efficient to attain economic growth and reduce poverty. Speaking as one of the panelists during the launch of the 2010 African Economic Outlook (AEO) in Brussels this week, under the theme ‘Mobilisation of Public Resources, Tax Governance and Aid in Africa’, Dr Chambas said that increasing tax revenues also means that the taxation systems must be reformed.Dr Chambas wanted the reforms to focus on following aspects: continued enlargement of the tax base by taxation suited to the rural sector, subjecting the informal sector to taxation and streamlining tax breaks and customs benefits. He added also the need for strengthening policies and strategies for the mobilization of resources by enhanced performance by tax and customs departments, better organization of the various financial control systems and fighting corruption, fraud and tax avoidance. The AEO Report also finds that strategies towards more effective, efficient, and fair taxation in Africa typically lie with broadening the existing tax base. Policy options include cracking down on fraud and evasion, removing tax preferences, particularly for large corporations and traders, dealing with abuses of transfer pricing techniques by multinationals and taxing extractive industries more fairly and more transparently. Welcoming the Report, Dr Chambas said that the AEO is a tool for economic development in the continent. He commended the Report and those who helped to produce it, in particular, the African Development Bank and the OECD. ACP is one of the key partners of the project. According to the AEO, the global crisis brought a period of relatively high economic growth in Africa to a sudden end: Africa’s GDP growth was slashed from an average of about 6% in 2006-2008 to 2.5% in 2009. Given the pace of population growth this means that growth of per capita GDP came to a near standstill. Average growth is expected to rebound to 4.5% in 2010 and 5.2% in 2011, although the recession will leave its mark.Dr. Chambas was also thankful to the EU for being part of the launch stating that the ACP Group is please to contribute, by way of its intra-ACP resources, to the financing of the publication. Source: ACP Secretariat Read more African Economic Outlook Tax and development
- GMOs: Member States to be given full responsibility on cultivation
2010-07-13 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : Food Security
Today the Commission proposed to confer to Member States the freedom to allow, restrict or ban the cultivation of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) on part or all of their territory. While keeping unchanged the EU's science-based GM authorisation system, the adopted package consists of a Communication, a new Recommendation on co-existence of GM crops with conventional and/or organic crops and a draft Regulation proposing a change to the GMO legislation. The new Recommendation on co-existence allows more flexibility to Member States taking into account their local, regional and national conditions when adopting co-existence measures. The proposed regulation amends Directive 2001/18/EC to allow Member States to restrict or prohibit the cultivation of GMOs in their territory. Source: European Commission Read more Q&A Biotechnology and the EU
- Biodiversity: new report highlights win-win business practices
2010-07-13 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : Environment
A new report funded by the European Commission makes a strong case for integrating biodiversity into private sector business plans and core activities around the globe. The report reveals considerable recent growth in eco-certified products and services, growing consumer concerns for sustainable production, and shows how biodiversity can provide a substantial business opportunity in a market that could be worth US$ 2-6 trillion by 2050. It makes seven key recommendations for businesses, and calls on accounting professions and financial reporting bodies to develop common standards to assess biodiversity impacts, and develop new tools for this purpose. “TEEB for Business” will form part of the TEEB synthesis report to be launched at a meeting of the Convention on Biological Diversity in Nagoya, Japan in October 2010 Read more The TEEB for Business report The EU Business and Biodiversity Platform
- Green growth a core priority for the European Investment Bank
2010-07-12 NEWSLETTER_CATEGORIES : Environment
On 8 July 2010 the EUR 10 million Environnementale II credit line was signed in Nouméa (New Caledonia) by EIB Vice-President Philippe de Fontaine Vive and the heads of four New Caledonian banks – Banque Calédonienne d’Investissement (BCI), Société Générale Calédonienne de Banque (SGCB), BNP Paribas Nouvelle-Calédonie (BNP NC) and Banque de Nouvelle Calédonie (BNC). More specifically, the Environnementale II credit line is a subsidised facility that will enable the four New Caledonian banks to finance on better terms projects in the renewable energy, environmental and waste treatment sectors, such as the construction of wind farms or photovoltaic systems or the deployment of more environmentally friendly means of transport. These loans are aimed especially at environmental businesses of all sizes and private firms in New Caledonia with more than 100 employees or generating an annual turnover of over XPF 1.2 billion (EUR 10 million). Furthermore, the EIB has recently joined the GRAINE association, to which it will make available EUR 30 000 to help finance its assistance fund. The signature of this loan marks an important step in the EIB’s determination to work more closely with development financing institutions, in particular to provide more effective support for the Overseas Countries and Territories. Source: European Investment Bank Read more EIB and ACP countries EU Relations with New Caledonia
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