EU deploys mission for next GSP report on PH

By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora, Philippine News Agency

For the EU to include a country in this scheme, the state must effectively implement 27 international conventions covering human and labor rights, good governance, environment and climate. (File photo: Guillaume Périgois/Unsplash)

MANILA – The European Union (EU) has deployed a mission to monitor the Philippines’ implementation of its treaty commitments that allow it be part of the bloc’s Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+).

The EU GSP+ is a special incentive arrangement which offers zero tariffs on 6,274 products or 66 percent of all EU tariff lines.

For the EU to include a country in this scheme, the state must effectively implement 27 international conventions covering human and labor rights, good governance, environment and climate.

The EU mission was in the country from March 6 to 12 and is the fifth monitoring team to visit the country since Brussels first offered the Philippines a broad range of reduced tariffs in 2014 under the so-called Special Incentive Arrangement under the EU’s GSP+.

The EU Delegation in the Philippines on Friday said the team met with various stakeholders and covered subjects related to the rule of law, human rights, labor relations, good governance and corruption, and the protection of environment and climate.

“The information gathered by the EU’s monitoring mission will feed into the next report to the European Parliament and the Council on the implementation of the Generalised Scheme of Preferences, which will include the assessment of progress regarding compliance with the 27 international conventions by each GSP+ beneficiary,” it said.

The team had an exchange with civil society representatives, trade unions, business leaders and international organizations active in the Philippines.

It culminated in a two-day stocktaking meeting with government representatives, led by the Department of Trade and Industry and senior officials from the Departments of Foreign Affairs, Justice, Labor and Employment, and Environment and Natural Resources.

Also joining them in the meeting are representatives from the Presidential Human Rights Committee Secretariat, and the Supreme Court, among others.

The Philippines is one of only eight countries worldwide benefiting from the GSP+ arrangement.