OREANDA-NEWS. December 12, 2014. A regional seminar titled, “Preferential rules on origin for products exported by Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia to EU,” was held in Chisinau.  

The event was organised by the Economics Ministry, with the support of the European Commission and Assistance Project on enforcement of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area between EU and Moldova (DCFTA), the Economics Ministry’s information and media communication service has reported.

Attending the seminar were representatives of the central public authorities (Economics, Finance, Agriculture and Food Industry Ministries, Customs Service, Chamber of Commerce and Industry) and business environment, members of the EU Delegation to Moldova, Moldovan business associations, as well as representatives and experts of the Georgian and Ukrainian Customs Services. The event’s goal was to help the customs authorities and business environment representatives to observe the EU requirements on providing preferential origin to goods that will enjoy export preferential treatment within the Free Trade Agreements between EU and Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine.

The head of the General Trade Policies department at the Economics Ministry, Inga Ionesii, emphasised the importance of this event both for the public authorities and entrepreneurial environment. „In the context of the entrance into force of DCFTA for Moldova and Georgia in 2014, this is also to happen for Ukraine in 2016, it is important that we know the rules according to which the products are provided the origin of the country where they were made and which make them eligible for the preferential regime of export to the EU market."

In 2014, the Joint Committee of the regional convention on Pan-Euro-Mediterranean preferential rules of origin accepted Moldova’s application to become part of the Convention. In early 2015, Moldova, following the fulfillment of domestic ratification procedures, will become a full-fledged member of the Convention.

In this way, Moldova will benefit from Pan-Euro-Mediterranean system of cumulation of origin, which will allow diagonal cumulation within a system of free trade agreements between the states that are part to the above-mentioned convention.  Thus, new opportunities to develop production appear in Moldova, on the basis of raw material import and, implicitly, and the potential of the new preferential regime with EU is turned to account.