The regional free trade agreement, PACER Plus, will come into force on December 13. Queries regarding this release can be directed to Antonina.Browne@cookislands.gov.ck. Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown says the agreement is important to his country: “economic diversification is a cornerstone of our development strategy and international trade policy must be an important strategic tool we use to strengthen and diversify our … In the third and final piece of a three-article series, Wesley Morgan calls for nations like Australia to cement the long-term relationship with its Pacific family and build a more integrated regional economy. Eight countries are Parties to the Agreement: Australia, Cook Islands, Kiribati, New Zealand, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands and Tonga. As with every Agreement, however, it will be up to us to take advantage of those opportunities in the months ahead.” Cook Islands Ministry of Finance. Cook Islands recently became the eighth country to ratify Pacer Plus, following Kiribati, New Zealand, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Australia. ... Tonga, Solomon Islands, Niue and Cook Islands. The Cook Islands delegation to the PACER Plus meetings also participated in the Pacific ACP Trade Officials and Ministers Meetings, as well as the Forum Trade Officials and Ministers Meetings. PACER Plus is within the scope of WikiProject Australia, which aims to improve Wikipedia's coverage of Australia and Australia-related topics. In contrast to previous trade agreements to which the Cook Islands is party, PACER Plus includes detailed provisions not only on trade in goods but also trade in services and investment, increasingly important areas of international trade. “PACER Plus enters into force for Australia, Cook Islands, Kiribati, New Zealand, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands and Tonga,” Minister Littleproud said. As with every Agreement, however, it will be up to us to take advantage of those opportunities in the months ahead.” In doing so, it has played a coordination role within Government in efforts to prepare for ratification, working closely with the Business Trade and Investment Board, the Crown Law Office, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Finance and Economic Management and others on various aspects of the Agreement. Frank Grozel & Poul Hansen United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Queries regarding this release can be directed to Antonina.Browne@cookislands.gov.ck It entered into force on 13 December 2020. The PACER Plus trade deal is led by New Zealand and Australia and has nine Pacific Island signatories, but only Samoa has ratified it. PACER Plus is due to enter into force on 13 December 2020, and will mark the largest free trade agreement (FTA) to … Tonga's government has committed to ratifying the Pacer Plus trade deal. Time and again, studies detailed the structural features that differentiate Pacific economies: small size, distance from markets, expensive transport links, a reliance on imports, and vulnerability to disasters (such as intense cyclones) and shocks (such as the COVID-19 pandemic). RAROTONGA, Cook Islands (Cook Islands News, June 19, 2017) – The controversial PACER-Plus deal was signed this week despite the notable absence of three major Pacific island economies, raising questions about the viability of the agreement to the region. As Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown said, “We are certain that PACER Plus will open new trade and investment opportunities for the Cook Islands that have not existed before. The Cook Islands is the eighth signatory of PACER Plus to ratify the Agreement, thus bringing the Agreement into force with the Cook Islands being one of the original parties. PACER Plus is a free trade agreement between members of the Pacific Islands Forum (the Forum Island Countries plus Australia and New Zealand). Relevance to Pacer Plus Pacer Plus negotiations began in 2009 and concluded in 2017, with 11 countries signing the Agreement. Agriculture Minister David Littleproud said PACER Plus was an important part of our broader engagement in the Pacific and provided an avenue to help foster a secure and stable region. Cook Islands was the eighth country to ratify PACER Plus, following Kiribati, New Zealand, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Australia. This comes as New Zealand last week became the first country to ratify the deal that has also been signed by nine Pacific countries and Australia. The Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations Plus, or PACER Plus, will start after the Cook Islands became the eighth signatory to formally ratify the deal this week. Pacer Plus countries currently include Australia, Cook Islands, Kiribati, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands and Tonga. Cook Islands was the eighth country to ratify the agreement on 14 October 2020, triggering the 60-day countdown for PACER Plus to enter into force. As with every Agreement, however, it will be up to us to take advantage of those opportunities in the months ahead.” “PACER Plus ready to go sends a very strong message that the Pacific region and New Zealand are ready to do business,’ Fiso John Fiso said. The Pacific Islands Trade Portal An online information system to facilitate the implementation of the PACER plus Agreement. "PACER Plus will make trade easier for signatories to the agreement, which will grow jobs, boost sustainable economic growth and contribute to a safer and more prosperous Pacific," David Parker said. After more than a decade of negotiations, the region's PACER Plus free trade deal is set to start on December the 13th. PACER Plus negotiations commenced in 2009 and the Agreement was opened for signature in Nuku'alofa on 14 June 2017. The trade deal known as Pacer Plus will have immediate benefits for the Cook Islands when it comes into force later this year, says the Cooks' deputy prime minister. "To assist Pacific Island countries' agencies, such as their trade agencies, such as their customs agencies, such as their quarantine agencies to be up to speed with any requirements for compliance that is needed in terms of their inwards trade as well as their outwards trade.". As Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown said, “We are certain that PACER Plus will open new trade and investment opportunities for the Cook Islands that have not existed before. The objective of the Agreement is to maximise opportunities for Forum Island Countries (FICs) to use trade and investment as engines of growth, to create jobs and ensure higher incomes and living standards. PACER Plus is a regional trade, development and economic cooperation agreement between Pacific Island Countries and Australia and New Zealand covering trade in goods, services and investment. PACER Plus is due to enter into force on 13 December 2020, and will mark the largest free trade agreement (FTA) to focus on trade amongst Pacific Island nations. The agreement expands the existing Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations (PACER) to include further trade liberalisation and development assistance. Mark Brown said the first benefit would be access to help from New Zealand and Australia. Overall, the capacity building provided by OCO is designed to support the PACER Plus Parties to optimize the use of preferences provided for by PACER Plus. The Cook Islands is putting its ratification of the regional trade deal known as PACER Plus on hold. The trade deal known as Pacer Plus will have immediate benefits for the Cook Islands when it comes into force later this year, says the Cooks' deputy prime minister. Cook Islands was the eighth nation to ratify PACER Plus , enabling the agreement to enter into force. Last October, the Cook Islands put its ratification on hold over fears it would miss out on economic assistance when it graduated to developed-country status. PACER Plus will enter into force on 13 December. PACER Plus covers trade in goods (rules of origin and verification Eight countries are need to ratify the trade agreement to bring it into force. As Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown said, “We are certain that PACER Plus will open new trade and investment opportunities for the Cook Islands that have not existed before. PACER Plus is a one-way trade deal and squandered opportunity for the Pacific islands writes Adam Wolfenden. The Australia and New Zealand-led deal was signed in 2017, although two of the region's biggest economies, Papua New Guinea and Fiji, have refused to join. Prior to entry into force of the Agreement in December, MFAI will coordinate a final round of national consultations to explain key provisions of the Final Agreement and identify trade-related needs. We have participated actively over the years in the PACER Plus negotiations and fought hard to ensure that the Agreement will work for us. The 22 officers from Cook Islands, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Tonga, Niue, Nauru, Samoa, Solomon Islands who are participants of the training will receive updated technical information on PACER Plus Rules of Origin and its application. Cook Islands National Security Policy will be released at a time when its need to work on the Pacer Plus will be pronounced. PACER Plus negotiations began in 2009 and concluded in 2017. As with every Agreement, however, it will be up to us to take advantage of those opportunities in the months ahead.” Photo: Cook Islands News. By the middle of the year the required number of countries are expected to have ratified it, allowing the deal to come into force. Other parties to PACER Plus to date are Australia, Kiribati, New Zealand, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands and Tonga. Quoting Radio New Zealand – 21 February 2020 “The trade deal known as Pacer Plus will have immediate benefits for the Cook Islands when it comes into force later this year, says the Cooks' deputy prime minister. PACER Plus entered into force on 13 December 2020. For the past three years, the Cook Islands has been working to put in place legal and other arrangements to enable the Government to ratify the Agreement. PACER Plus will only enter into force after eight of the signatory countries step in to ratify. 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