I move:
That Dáil Éireann approves the terms of the Agreement on the Accession of the Democratic Republic of Sao Tomé and Principe to the ACP-EEC Convention of Lomé and the Final Act related to that Agreement, signed on 28 March 1977, copies of which have been laid before the Dáil.
With the permission of the Ceann Comhairle, I propose to address myself at this stage to all four motions. Motions Nos. 21, 22 and 23 concern the accession agreements under which three states become parties to the Convention of Lomé which was originally signed on 28 February, 1975, between the European Community its member states and 46 States of Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific and Indian Oceans.
Articles 89 and 90 of the Convention of Lomé set out the conditions under which states may become parties to the convention after it has entered into force.
Article 90 of the Convention stipulates that any request for accession to the convention by a state whose economic structure and production are comparable with those of the ACP States shall require approval by the ACP-EEC Council of Ministers, the body responsible for administering the convention. Such a state may then accede to the convention by concluding an agreement with the European Economic Community. On 14th July, 1976, the ACP-EEC Council of Ministers approved the requests for accession to the convention from Sao Tomé and Principe, Cape Verde and Papua New Guinea. Agreements concluded between the Community and these three states were signed subject to ratification, in Brussels on 28th March, 1977.
Article 89 of the convention provides that a country or territory to which part 4 of the Treaty of Rome applies—that is overseas countries and territories—and which becomes independent and requests accession to the convention shall, with the approval of the ACP-EEC Council of Ministers, accede to the convention by depositing an instrument of accession with the Secretariat of the Council of the European Communities. Such states are not required to conclude agreements with the Community in order to accede to the convention. Following approval of their accession by the ACP-EEC Council of Ministers on 14th July, 1976, Surinam, the Seychelles and the Comoro State acceded to the convention in accordance with Article 89, on 16th July, 1976, 27th August, 1976 and 10th September, 1976 respectively.
Dáil approval is necessary to enable three accession agreements concluded in accordance with Article 90 of the convention to be ratified by Ireland. Dáil approval is also necessary in the case of the agreement of 28th March, 1977 amending the Internal Agreement on the Financing and Administration of Community Aid signed on 11th July, 1975 which makes the necessary provision to enable the states which accede under both Articles 89 and 90 to benefit from the financial measures in the convention.
The Lomé Convention, which came into force 18 months ago, was a decisive step towards a new and more equitable relationship between a number of industrialised and developing countries and has been rightly acclaimed as a model of its kind. It is the widest agreement that has been negotiated between such countries, both in the areas it covers and in the number of participants, and its relevance and value to developing countries is confirmed by the desire of these states to accede to it. By introducing a number of new elements into Community/Third World relations it sets an example for regional agreements between industrialised and developing countries.
The trade provisions of the convention provide duty-free access into the Community, without quotas or quantitative restrictions for all ACP industrial and agricultural products, except for agricultural products that fall under the common agricultural policy for which special arrangements have been made. The important aspect of this concession is that it does not involve reciprocity on the part of the ACP States.
The scheme for the stabilisation of export earnings, known as Stabex, is perhaps the most novel feature of the convention. The purpose of the scheme is to compensate the ACP States in the event of a fall in their export earnings from a number of basic products. Stabex, therefore, makes it possible to forecast and plan on the basis of the earnings which the ACP countries can expect from their exports of these products. 375 million European units of account have been allocated to the scheme for the duration of the convention, divided into five annual instalments of 75 million European units of account or approximately £49 million. The transfers take the form either of interest-free loans, which are repaid by the recipient states when certain conditions have been fulfilled relating to the increase in their export earnings or, in the case of the 24 poorest countries, they take the form of grants.
For 1975, transfers totalling 73 million European units of account were made to 18 ACP countries, covering nine products. So far, 31 million units of account have been transferred to 11 ACP States for 1976, covering 13 products, including cocoa, coffee, tea, bananas, cotton and palm oil.
The industrial co-operation provisions aim at facilitating the industrialisation of the ACP States, in particular through the transfer and adaptation of technology. Partnership between European and ACP industry in order to promote industrialisation in the ACP States is fostered through the Committee for Industrial Co-operation and the Centre for Industrial Development established under the convention.
The ACP/EEC Council of Ministers and ACP/EEC Consultative Assembly of Parliamentarians enable the provisions adopted in the Lomé Convention to be managed jointly. A particularly valuable forum, I believe, is the Consultative Assembly, which enables parliamentarians of the Nine, through their contacts with their colleagues in the ACP States, to bring to their national parliaments, a greater awareness of the problems of the Third World.
It will be recalled that the main purpose of the financial and technical co-operation provisions in the Lomé Convention is to correct structural imbalances in the various economic sectors of the ACP countries and thereby to assist their economic and social development. This is obviously an objective of fundamental importance. A total amount of 3,390 million European units of account or approximately £2,200 million has been provided for this purpose in the European Development Fund established by the convention and from the resources of the European Investment Bank. The co-operation financed by the fund is mainly in the agriculture, industry and infrastructure sectors.
The convention gives the ACP States a crucial role in determining the aid to be granted and in administering it. Thus indicative programmes of aid are drawn up by mutual agreement between the Commission and the ACP States and these are later submitted for opinion to the member states. The ACP States are also closely involved in the appraisal and execution of individual projects within the programmes of aid. The new role of the beneficiary countries in the aid relationships is highlighted by the fact that from the conception of an aid programme to its ultimate execution it is the ACP State which has the final say on the way its allocation of money is spent.
The sense of partnership which pervades the Lomé Convention is also evident in the provisions which encourage regional co-operation among ACP States and which seek to lay the foundation for increased inter-developing country trade and co-operation. The convention permits initiatives to be taken to meet needs not always catered for by large aid programmes. One such initiative is the creation of an experimental programme of micro-projects which will benefit small local communities. In this scheme, which will cost 20 million European units of account, assistance is given to local activities such as the building of small dams, bridges, wells, silos, dispensaries, clinics and so on.
In effecting the transfer of resources from the Community to the ACP States, which is the primary purpose of the convention, opportunities of a commercial nature arise. Most of the work associated with development projects under the European Development Fund will be carried out by organisations from the Community member states although every effort will be made, and this is consistent with the philosophy of the EDF, to involve local firms. To date, three Irish firms of consulting engineers have been awarded contracts from the EDF. The total value of these contracts amounts to £300,000. The operation of the EDF is still at a comparatively early stage and this sum represents only a portion of the return which I expect and which I and my Department are making every effort to realise.
This then is, very briefly, the Convention of Lomé to which Papua New Guinea, Cape Verde and Sao Tomé and Principe are acceding. The accession agreements which are the subject of the motions before the Dáil are similar in type. They provide for the application of the provisions of the convention to the three acceding states and set out transitional arrangements and timetables. Explanatory memoranda have been made available to the Members of the House.
In regard to Motion No. 22 the Community has drawn up an internal agreement amending the Internal Agreement on the Financing and Administration of Community Aid—which was signed on 11th July, 1975— so that the three new states will be in a position to benefit fully from these provisions of the convention, while at the same time ensuring—in accordance with Articles 89 and 90—that the advantages presently accruing to the original ACP States will not be adversely affected by the new accessions.
This amending internal agreement embodies two technical adjustments in the administration of the European Development Fund. The first results from the fact that three former Overseas Countries and Territories—Surinam, the Seychelles and the Comoro State—which were associated with the Lomé Convention have recently become independent and have now acceded to the convention as ACP States. Consequently the amending internal agreement provides for the transfer of an appropriate amount from the Overseas Countries and Territories sub-head of the European Development Fund to the ACP sub-head. Obviously, this transaction which involves an amount of 31.6 million European units of account does not affect the overall volume of Community aid. The second change is more substantive and provides for an increase of 22.5 million European units of account in the ACP sub-head to take into account the accessions of Papua New Guinea, Sao Tóme and Principe, and Cape Verde.
It is intended that this latter amount will be partly offset by a sum of 13 million European units of account which had originally been intended for the French Overseas Departments but which, because of certain subsequent adjustments, was never actually disbursed. Therefore, the residual amount to be contributed by the member states of the Community is 9.5 million European units of account of which the Irish share, at 0.6 per cent, amounts to 57,000 European units of account or approximately £37,000 at the current value of the unit of account, which is 65p. While the overall amount for the new ACP states will be committed during the life-time of the Convention —that is, before 1st March, 1980—it is expected that the actual expenditure will be spread over a period of five or six years, commencing in 1978.
The Lomé Convention is significant in that it has shown that, through good-will and co-operation, changes can be made in the present inequitable relationship between the industrialised and developing world. Debate on the creation of a new international economic order conducted in an atmosphere of confrontation is futile. It is clear that the process of achieving a more equitable world order depends on the co-operation of all countries.
We live in a period when the relationship between the industrialised and developing world is under examination. This is not a debate that we can afford to ignore. It is not enough to say that the problems of the Third World are not of our making. In a world of increasing interdependence yet one with continuing massive disparities of wealth and living standards there is a moral obligation on all countries to ensure an equitable distribution of the world's resources.
Aside from the moral obligation to help the underprivileged areas of the world it should be evident that it is in our own interest that a more balanced relationship should emerge. If the fundamental restructuring of the world economic order which is required is not achieved by dialogue and in agreement, then we are heading for a confrontation which will indeed fundamentally alter the present world order, but at what cost, and to whose benefit? The improvement in the atmosphere surrounding discussion of economic relations between developed and developing countries which has taken place, has enabled some modest progress to be made. By successfully negotiating and implementing the Lomé Convention, the European Community has set an example in this area in which we can take pride. In doing so, however, we should not be complacent about the problems that remain.
Ireland, as a relatively privileged member of the International Economic Community is conscious of its obligation to help to alleviate the problems of the underprivileged of the Third World. Within the Community, Ireland contributed actively to the elaboration of the Lomé Convention. We will continue to support and advocate the adoption by the European Community of positive and constructive policies in the field of development co-operation.
I conclude by welcoming the accession of Sao Tome and Principe, Cape Verde and Papua New Guinea to the Lomé Convention and commend these motions to the House.