MANILA has assured once more the World Trade Organization (WTO) that it maintains to pass its rice tariff law before the year ends, the BusinessMirror learned.
The Philippine representative made the statement before WTO member-countries during the Committee on Agriculture (COA) meeting on September 25 and 26, according to a Geneva trade official.
The Philippines’s statement was a response to Australia, which sought an update on Manila’s timeline for the passage of the rice tariff bill.
“Australia notes that a bill that amends the Agricultural Tariffication Act [aims to replace quantitative restriction on rice with tariffs] has been approved in the House of Representatives, but it is still pending in the Senate. President Duterte has certified as urgent the passage of the bill during his third State of the Nation Address on 23 July 2018,” Canberra said.
“What is the expected timeline for the passage of this bill?” it added. The Philippine representative to the meeting said that the country targets “to complete the legislation before the end of this year,” according to the official privy to the discussions.
According to the trade official, the Philippine representative explained that the rice tariff bill has been passed by the House of Representatives but the Senate is still deliberating on its own version of the measure. The bill would convert the country’s quantitative restriction (QR) on the staple, which is in compliance with the Philippines’s commitment to the WTO, into a tariffication system
The Philippines has been in breach of its commitment for over a year now after its waiver on the special treatment on rice expired on July 1, 2017. The rice waiver allowed the country to extend its right to impose QR on the staple.
The Geneva trade official said nobody from the WTO member-countries challenged the Philippines’s statement on its rice tariffication update. During the last WTO COA meeting in June, the Philippines assured member-countries that it will exhaust its resources to pass the law immediately.
“The Philippines would, however, like to reassure members that the Philippines will continue to work hard and further enhance its best efforts, within the limits of its resources, so that a rice tariffication law can be enacted at soonest possible time—hopefully this can be done within this year,” the country said.
The consolidated rice tariff bill crafted by the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Food has been pending for second reading since September 17.