President Wavel Ramkalawan chaired a scheduled meeting of the Cabinet today, Wednesday 8th June at which a number of policy memoranda were considered.
Cabinet approved for Seychelles to accede to the “ATA and Istanbul Convention”. The ATA is a system that provides for the free movement of goods across borders and their temporary admission into a Customs territory with relief from duties and taxes. The ratification of the Convention by Seychelles aims to facilitate trade between itself and other members of this system, by reducing the administrative requirements associated with such procedures.
Cabinet also approved for the amendment of the Terms of Reference of the National Technical Barriers Committee (NTC). The multi-stakeholder Committee is responsible to ensure that technical regulations, standards and conformity procedures applied on traded products are not causing unnecessary barriers to trade. The work of the Committee is part of the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Agreement and other regional and bilateral trade agreements which Seychelles is party to.
Cabinet was briefed on the Trade Obstacles Alert Mechanism project and gave approval for implementation of the online trade support tool developed and financed by the International Trade Centre (ITC). This online platform will help in the reporting of inward and outward trade obstacles faced by traders in Seychelles. More consultations are projected to be follow to inform stakeholders on the platform and gather their inputs.
Cabinet approved for the revision of Seychelles’ baselines and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), and the establishment of the outer limits of the Territorial Sea (TS) and Contiguous Zone (CZ) in accordance with the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). This revision will slightly increase the Seychelles EEZ and the establishment of the TS and CZ will formalize Seychelles rights in these Maritime Zones.
Cabinet was briefed on Government’s fiscal performance in Quarter 1 of 2022, and shared views on strategies for improvement.
Further details to the media will be provided by the relevant Ministry.