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EU: Low-level for Govt. ministers
By Marisa de Silva
Government has sent two cabinet ministers and a delegation of officials on a whirlwind five-day, five-nation visit to Europe yesterday, with the intent of expediting the implementation of a duty-free system for Sri Lankan exports, especially apparels, but they have secured appointments with only junior ministers at the other end.

Investments Minister Anura Bandaranaike was suddenly asked by President Chandrika Kumaratunga mid this week to beef up a Government delegation led by Trade Minister Jeyeraj Fernandopulle to five European Union countries to present Sri Lanka's case to enable the export of some 7000 products, mainly apparels to EU countries, free of any duty. Apparel exports account for nearly 50 percent of Sri Lanka's total exports.

But trade analysts complained that while these EU countries gave a recent LTTE delegation VIP treatment, including appointments with Minister of Development Pierre Vaesen in Belgium, Federal Minister for Economic Co-operation Wieczorek-Zeul in Germany, the two governments had lined up only deputy ministers to meet the Sri Lankan government delegation.

The LTTE delegation headed by its political affairs chief S.P. Thamilselvan also met cabinet-level ministers in all the Scandinavian countries they visited, Ireland and South Africa. They were met by officials only in Italy. The Bandaranaike-Fernandopulle delegation is scheduled to meet EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson, and have secured a meeting so far only with a cabinet-level minister in Rome.

The delegation will spend a day in London where they have no work before leaving for Germany, France, Belgium, Italy and Portugal. A private sector delegation was due to join the hurried visit, but only one apparel sector businessman, Ashraff Omar, is in the delegation which also includes BOI Chairman Saliya Wickramasuriya and BOI Director-General Commerce K.J. Weerasinghe.

The decline in exports during the first quarter of the year as a result of the tsunami and the adverse impact of the withdrawal of the quota system is expected to trigger mass-scale unemployment.

"The scheme known as the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) Plus -- the new zero rate duty scheme to be introduced shortly by the EU -- will give Sri Lanka's economy a well needed boost, and give us a competitive edge over other apparel exporting countries, because Sri Lanka is a small supplier in comparison to others," Mr. Weerasinghe told The Sunday Times before departure.

He said they hoped to brief the EU countries of Sri Lanka's current economic situation and thereby accelerate the implementation of the zero-rate duty (duty free) scheme for the benefit of the country's export industry.

The EU has delayed the implementation of this duty-free scheme due to internal issues within the grouping, especially regarding the eligibility of certain countries. The scheme was originally to come into force on April 1, and has now been delayed till July 1.

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