- Least developed countries are to benefit from a new set of customs rules for their exports to the European Union, it was announced today. A lesser part of their products have to origin in the country to get preference taxation rates.
Algirdas emeta, European Commissioner for Taxation and Customs, today announced that a new "regulation revising rules of origin for products imported under the generalised system of preferences" from least developed countries had been adopted in Brussels.
Rules of origin are used to determine whether imported goods really originate in countries covered by the EU's preferential trade arrangements - including most of Africa - thereby making them eligible for a preferential customs tariff. The current rules of origin, which date back to the 1970s, have been criticised for being too complex, too stringent and out-of-date.
"The regulation adopted by the Commission today will considerably simplify the rules of origin so that they are easier for developing countries to understand and to comply with," a statement sent to afrol News today said.
Mr emeta in particular mentioned Zambia as an example of how the new regulations would benefit least developed countries, allowing producers in the country to "claim origin for many more goods which are processed in their territories, even if the primary materials do not originate there."
"For instance, an operator in Zambia that produces and exports plastics to the EU will benefit from the new rules of origin, because even with up to 70 percent of foreign input the exported plastics can still be considered as originating from Zambia," the statement said.
The new rules of origin agreed to in Brussels today will apply from 1 January 2011, according to Mr emeta.
afrol News - It is called "financial inclusion", and it is a key government policy in Rwanda. The goal is that, by 2020, 90 percent of the population is to have and actively use bank accounts. And in only four years, financial inclusion has doubled in Rwanda.
afrol News - The UN's humanitarian agencies now warn about a devastating famine in Sudan and especially in South Sudan, where the situation is said to be "imploding". Relief officials are appealing to donors to urgently fund life-saving activities in the two countries.
afrol News - Fear is spreading all over West Africa after the health ministry in Guinea confirmed the first Ebola outbreak in this part of Africa. According to official numbers, at least 86 are infected and 59 are dead as a result of this very contagious disease.
afrol News - It is already a crime being homosexual in Ethiopia, but parliament is now making sure the anti-gay laws will be applied in practical life. No pardoning of gays will be allowed in future, but activist fear this only is a signal of further repression being prepared.
afrol News / Africa Renewal - Ethiopia's ambitious plan to build a US$ 4.2 billion dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, 40 km from its border with Sudan, is expected to provide 6,000 megawatts of electricity, enough for its population plus some excess it can sell to neighbouring countries.
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