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Inaccessible funding

Those I spoke with noted that EC funding for the private sector is virtually inaccessible.

The European Development Fund has bureaucratic processes worse than any in the Caribbean, and its support seemed largely to exist to fund European consultants.

My interlocutors concern was that even modest levels of support could not be delivered by the European system in the time scale in which change has to occur, not least because it was always accompanied by rules that were at odds with individual corporate success.

As a consequence there was a deep cynicism about the real meaning of the EPA and about Europe, and a sense that Caribbean companies would have to face the full force of competition by diverting their own resources.

And finally and more generally - perhaps because few had seen the schedules - there was uncertainty about when change would occur or how much time might be available in which to adapt.

There were also worries about the continuing existence of European non-tariff barriers that it was felt would enable the EU’s regulatory authorities to deny entry to Caribbean foodstuffs despite the promise of free access.

And there was concern about what the EPA said on rules of origin.

This was because manufacturing companies around the region were increasingly sourcing raw materials from many parts of the world and from Europe, before processing or using them in a manufacturing process for shipping them on to the US, Canada and Europe as finished products.

from: BBC

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