THE DICKENSON BAY AGREEMENT

AGREEMENT ESTABLISHING THE CARIBBEAN FREE TRADE ASSOCIATION

ANNEX "D"

1. Special arrangements are provided in this Annex for the progressive elimination by Barbados and British Guiana of quantitative restrictions on imports consigned from each other of the goods itemised under the Standard International Trade Classification (original) as follows :-

    SITC Item No.         Description of Product

     91-01                      Margarine: animal, vegetable or mixed

2. Barbados and British Guiana shall eliminate all quantitative restrictions on imports consigned from each other of the goods mentioned in paragraph 1 of this Annex as soon as practicable and not later than 1st January, 1971.

3. On 1st January, 1967, Barbados and British Guiana shall each establish for imports to which paragraph 2 of this Annex applies, a quota of a size not less than 25 per cent above the basic Guianese quota.

4. On 1st January, 1968, and 1st January in each succeeding year, Barbados and British Guiana shall each increase the quota established in accordance with paragraph 3 of this Annex by not less than 25 per cent of an amount equivalent to the basic Guianese quota as already increased pursuant to this Annex.

5. Barbados and British Guiana shall each notify to the Council details of the quota established in accordance with the provisions of this Annex.

6. For the purpose of this Annex -

"Basic Guianese quota" means any quota or the total of any quotas which have been established by British Guiana in respect of imports in the calendar year 1964 of the goods consigned from Barbados.

ANNEX "E"

List of Government aids referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 17:-

(a) currency retention schemes or any similar practices which involve a bonus on exports or re-exports;

(b) the provision by governments of direct subsidies to exporters;

(c) the remission, calculated in relation to exports, of direct taxes or social welfare charges on industrial or commercial enterprises;

(d) the exemption, respect of exported goods, from charges or taxes, other than charges in connection with importation or indirect taxes levied at one or several stages on the same goods if sold for internal consumption, or the payment, in respect of exported goods, of amounts exceeding those effectively levied at one or several stages on these goods in the form of indirect taxes or of charges in connection with importation or in both forms;

(e) in respect of deliveries by governments or governmental agencies of imported raw materials for export business on different terms than for domestic business, the charging of prices below world prices;

(f) in respect of government export credit guarantees, the charging of premiums at rates which are manifestly inadequate to cover the long-term operating coats and losses of the credit insurance institutions;

(g) the grant by governments (or special institutions controlled by governments ) of export credit at rates below those which they have to pay in order to obtain the funds so employed;

(h) the Government bearing all or part of the costs incurred by exporters in obtaining credit.

SUPPLEMENTARY AGREEMENT UNDER ARTICLE 31(3) OF THE AGREEMENT
FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE CARIBBEAN FREE TRADE ASSOCIATION
SIGNED AT DICKENSON BAY, ANTIGUA ON 15 DECEMBER 1965 (1968)

WHEREAS an Agreement (hereinafter referred to as the "Principal Agreement") for the Establishment of a Caribbean Free Trade Area was signed at Dickenson Bay, Antigua, on behalf of the Governments of Antigua, Barbados and British Guiana on the 15th December, 1965;

AND WHEREAS it is provided by Paragraph 3 of Article 31 of the Principal Agreement that, in the event of the notification of difficulties in relation to carrying into effect any provision thereof to the Government of Antigua by any Signatory Territory prior to its ratification thereof, the Principal Agreement shall not take effect with respect to that Territory except in accordance with a supplementary agreement between all the Signatory Territories providing for the resolution of such difficulties;

AND WHEREAS a Supplementary Agreement required to be read and construed as one with the Principal Agreement has been signed on behalf of the Governments of Antigua, Barbados and Guiana in keeping with the provisions of paragraph 3 Article 31 of the Principal Agreement;

AND WHEREAS Guyana has not yet ratified the Principal Agreement and, acting under the provisions of paragraph 3 of Article 31 thereof has notified the Government of Antigua that certain difficulties have arisen in relation to carrying the Principal Agreement into effect in view of an undertaking given by the Signatories of the Principal Agreement, at the Fourth Conference of Heads of Government of Commonwealth Caribbean Countries, to conclude a further supplementary agreement on terms approved by post-Conference machinery to give effect to the resolutions adopted at the said Conference for the establishment of a wider Caribbean Free Trade Area;

AND WHEREAS it was so resolved at the said Conference that the Governments of the Commonwealth Caribbean Countries should approach the task of freeing trade by using the Principal Agreement as a basis with suitable modifications;

AND WHEREAS the terms of the further supplementary agreement to be concluded for the purpose of effecting such suitable modifications to the Principal Agreement as aforesaid have been approved by the post-Conference machinery hereinafter mentioned;

AND WHEREAS the Governments of Antigua, Barbados and Guyana are desirous of hereby concluding in conformity with the abovementioned provisions of the Principal Agreement such further supplementary agreement for its suitable modification and thereby providing for the resolution of the difficulties which have arisen, as aforesaid.

NOW, THEREFORE IT IS HEREBY AGREED BY THE GOVERNMENTS OF ANTIGUA, BARBADOS AND GUYANA AS FOLLOWS:

ARTICLE 1
SUBSTITUTION OF NEW PREAMBLE TO PRINCIPAL AGREEMENT

All the words appearing in the Principal Agreement before Article 1 thereof are hereby deleted and the following substituted therefor:

THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE SIGNATORY TERRITORIES -

SHARING a common determination to fulfil within the shortest possible time the hopes and aspirations of the peoples of the Caribbean Territories for full employment and improve living standards;

CONSCIOUS that these goals can most rapidly be attained by the optimum use of available human and other resources and by accelerated, co-ordination and sustained economic development;

AWARE that the broadening by domestic markets through the Elimination of barriers to trade between the Territories is a pre-requisite to such development;

CONVINCED that such elimination of barriers to trade can best be achieved by the immediate establishment of a free trade area which will contribute to this ultimate creation of a viable economic community of Caribbean Territories;

MINDFUL of the difference levels of development attained by the Territories of the Caribbean;

HAVE AGREED as follows

ARTICLE 2
AMENDMENT OF PROVISIONS OF PRINCIPAL AGREEMENT

There are hereby made, to the provisions of the Principal Agreement referred to in the first column of the First Schedule hereto, the amendments specified opposite such references, respectively in the second column of the said Schedule.

ARTICLE 3
SUBSTITUTION OF NEW ARTICLE 25 OF PRINCIPAL AGREEMENT

Article 25 of the Principal Agreement is hereby deleted and the following substituted therefor -

"

ARTICLE 25
INVISIBLES

The Council shall as soon as practicable, having due regard to international obligations, decide the treatment to be given to invisible transactions and transfers amongst Member Territories with a view to promoting the objectives of this Agreement."

ARTICLE 4
INSERTION OF NEW ARTICLES 38 AND39 IN PRINCIPAL AGREEMENT

The following Articles are hereby inserted in the Principal Agreement after Article 37 thereof -

"ARTICLE 38
PROTECTION OF GUYANESE PETROLEUM PRODUCTS

1. Notwithstanding anything in this Agreement, any quantitative restrictions within the meaning of Article 13 may, during any period for which the Government of Guyana is party to any protective Agreement in that behalf relating to a petroleum product produced in Guyana, be applied on imports into Guyana of that petroleum product form any other part of the Area:

Provided that no such restriction shall be so applied on imports of any petroleum product, other than Bunker C, asphalt or road oil, during any year except with a view to preventing the importation of that petroleum product into Guyana to any extent in excess of -

(a) one third of such amount of that petroleum product as is reasonably considered by the Government of Guyana to be marketable in Guyana during such year; or

(b) the difference between such amount of that petroleum product as is reasonably considered by the Government of Guyana to be marketable in Guyana during such year and any lesser amount of that petroleum product which is reasonably considered by the said Government to be producible in Guyana during such year, whichever is more.

2. During any period first hereinbefore in this Article referred to in connection with a petroleum product produced in Guyana, customs duties shall, at rates not lower than those in force when this agreement takes effect, be applicable to any permitted imports into Guyana of that petroleum product from outside the area.

3. Not later than -

(a) the commencement, during any year, of period mentioned in paragraph 2 of this Article;

(b) the commencement, during any such period, of any year, Guyana shall notify to the Council the Amounts mentioned in paragraph (b) of the proviso to paragraph 1 of this Article in relation to that year and shall, at the request of any Member Territory, inform the Council in strictest confidence of the reasons of the Government of Guyana for arriving at such amounts.

4. In this Article, "the petroleum product" includes any like or substitutable petroleum product.

5. This Article shall not have effect for longer than 15 years from the Commencement of a period mentioned in paragraph 2 of this Article.

ARTICLE 39
PROMOTION OF INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT IN LESS DEVELOPED TERRITORIES

Upon any application made in that behalf by the less developed Territories as defined in Annex B, the Council may, if necessary as a temporary measure in order to promote the development an industry in any of those Territories, authorise by majority decision such Territories to suspend Area tariff treatment of any description of Imports eligible therefor on grounds of production in other Member Territories, any of whom may, during the period for which such authorisation is in force, suspend Area tariff treatment of the like description of imports eligible therefor on grounds of production in the less-developed Territories."

ARTICLE 5
VARIATION OF ANNEXES TO PRINCIPAL AGREEMENT

The Principal Agreement is hereby amended -

(a) by deleting Annex C and substituting for the letter "B" in the caption to Annex B, the letter "C" ;

(b) by deleting from the Basic Materials List, which forms the Schedule to the last-mentioned Annex, the items set out in Part 1 of the second schedule hereto, and by inserting the word "EX" immediately before the following items numbers in that list, that is to say, 291-09, 312-01, 511-09, 655-06 (wherever it appears), 699-05 and 699-06;

(c) (in substituting for every such classification of materials as appears in the said Basic Materials List against any item number mentioned in the first Column of Part II of the Second Schedule hereto The classification set out opposite in the second column of that Part:

(d) by substituting for Annex A and Annex D the annexes set out in the Third Schedule and the Fourth Schedule hereto, respectively, and inserting (with appropriate caption) to Annex A to the Principal agreement the Resolution set out in the Fifth Schedule hereto;

(e) by substituting for the letter "E" in the caption to Annex E the letter "F" and insert as Annex E to the Principal Agreement the annex set out in the Sixth Schedule hereto.

ARTICLE 6
SCHEDULES

The Schedules of this Agreement are an integral part of this Agreement.

ARTICLE 7
RESCISSION OF PREVIOUS SUPPLEMENTARY AGREEMENT

The Supplementary Agreement heretofore made between the parties to this Agreement and required to be read and construed as one with the Principal Agreement is hereby rescinded.

ARTICLE 8
CONSTRUCTION OF THIS AGREEMENT

This Agreement shall be read and construed as one with the Principal Agreement.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, duly authorised, have signed the present Agreement for the Governments of Antigua, Barbados and Guyana.

Done in a single copy which shall be deposited with the Government of Antigua by which certified copies shall be transmitted to all other Signatory and participating Territories.

Signed by V.C. Bird
For the Government of Antigua on the 18th day of March, 1968
at St. John's Antigua.

Signed by Errol Barrow
For the Government of Barbados on the 18th Day of March, 1968
at St. John's Antigua

Signed by Forbes Burnham
For the Government of Guyana on the15th day of March, 1968
at Georgetown, Guyana

FIRST SCHEDULE

Article 2

Continue with: SECOND SCHEDULE