19-23 May 2014, Auckland, New Zealand
The Sixth Meeting of the FTA Joint Committee (FJC) was held in Auckland in May 2014. Representatives from the ten ASEAN Member States (AMS), Australia and New Zealand, and staff from the ASEAN Secretariat attended the Meeting, which was co-Chaired by:
- Mr. Greg Andrews, Head of FTA Implementation Unit, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, for New Zealand;
- Mr. Michael Mugliston, Special Negotiator, Free Trade Agreement Division, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, for Australia; and
- Ms. Tutiaty Wahab, Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Brunei Darussalam, on behalf of the AMS.
Summary of main outcomes
1. Implementation of the AANZFTA Agreement
NOTED the emphasis given by the Ministers at the 18th AEM-CER Consultations Meeting in August 2013, on the importance of maintaining the AANZFTA as a high-standard and commercially relevant FTA, and therefore the need to expedite the FTA deliverables, which are all important for the private sector and in building confidence towards the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
NOTED that the AANZFTA's evolving implementation structure is expected to continue to progress the FTA agenda.
2. Work Programme of the FTA Joint Committee and Subsidiary Bodies
NOTED the preparations for possible signing of the First Protocol to Amend the Agreement Establishing the AANZFTA at the AEM-CER Consultations in August 2014.
URGED the CTG to ensure that the transitional arrangement for the implementation of the revised Rules of Origin be finalized and put in place well before the targeted entry into force of the First Protocol.
NOTED the progress on the transposition of tariff reduction schedules and urged Parties concerned to expedite the completion of the technical verification process.
NOTED the completion of technical assistance to assist implementation of the AANZFTA Investment Chapter and NOTED the positive feedback from ASEAN Member States in terms of how they benefited from the activities.
ENDORSED understanding on the implementation of the Work Programme under the Article 16 of Chapter 11 (Investment) and ENCOURAGED the joint discussions between investment and services committees to facilitate work on the implementation of their respective built-in agenda.
UNDERSCORED the importance of the projects related to Statistics on International Trade in Services (SITS) in ensuring the availability of statistics to support sound policy-making.
AGREED to undertake the review of services commitments as part of the AANZFTA's general review in 2016 pursuant to Article 9 of Chapter 18 of the AANZFTA Agreement, with preparatory works conducted ahead of the general review.
RECOGNIZED Australia and New Zealand support to the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) projects and the ENDORSED the draft ASEAN Qualifications Reference Framework (AQRF), which is part of the deliverables of the AEM and AEM-CER in 2014.
NOTED the achievements in IP projects such as long-term capacity building for regional patent examination, public education and awareness; IP and genetic resources, traditional knowledge and traditional cultural expressions and ASEAN Member States' accession to and implementation of Madrid Protocol.
NOTED the inclusive approach to providing strategic direction for economic cooperation in the area of competition and UNDERSCORED the importance of joint and shared ownership with respect to economic cooperation activities.
3. Progress in Economic Cooperation
ASEAN Member States EXPRESSED appreciation to Australia and New Zealand for continuing their support to the AANZFTA Economic Cooperation Support Programme (AECSP) up to end of the December 2015.
NOTED the growing maturity of the AECSP and the importance of maintaining the program's momentum, which are now well established and delivering strong results.
TASKED the relevant committees to continue the momentum in project implementation and to update on a quarterly basis, review and identify the priority activities over the next 18 months in their respective components/areas to keep them relevant and to guide the overall financial planning of AECSP.
4. Outreach and other Activities
HIGHLIGHTED the importance of outreach and communications and NOTED the outreach conducted by the Parties at various levels and to various stakeholders. NOTED the continuing effort to engage business in AANZFTA meetings such as the business networking event held on 21 May 2014 and attended by the Hon. Steven Joyce, New Zealand Minister of Economic Development, Science and Innovation, Small Business and Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment as guest speaker and presentation by a representative from New Zealand's International Business Forum in a session at the FJC meeting.
NOTED the operationalisation of an AECSP Communications Approach and AGREED to identify AECSP projects that could be showcased and providing concrete examples where and how a particular project has benefited the Parties.
NOTED the outcomes of the ASEAN-CER Integration Partnership Forum (IPF), held on 21 May 2014 in Auckland, entitled: Agro-food trade: Tackling Non-Tariff Measures – Helping Trade to Flow Freely in Global Value Chains. The materials are uploaded available from the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.