PACER Plus: Good for regional air cargo but its full potential depends on final signatures

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Thursday, 27 April 2017

The brief news media reference to the signing of PACER Plus was probably the first that most Australians and New Zealanders had ever heard of the trade agreement. 

Yet it is an arrangement of real significance to Australia, NZ and especially Pacific Island nations.

PACER Plus - the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations - builds on existing trade agreements: the South Pacific Regional Trade and Economic Cooperation Agreement (SPARTECA, 1980) and the original PACER Agreement (2001).

It is - or could potentially be ñ important to the air cargo sector, given that regional air freight is on the rise despite the number of shipping lines providing links both inter-island and between the islands of the two bigger countries.

Unfortunately, PACER Plus has not yet delivered on its expectations.

'Hopes' might be more appropriate than expectations: The sponsors of PACER Plus had a vision that combined trade and economic integration with job creation, raising the standards of living in the Pacific region, furthering the very successful seasonal work programs and encouraging sustainable economic development.

Completely smooth progress was unlikely, given the number of countries involved.  For the most part though, they discussed the possibilities amicably and the majority were in approximate agreement, though NGOs and commentators weighed in with allegations of loss of sovereignty, suggestions that Australia and NZ were just looking for another means of reawakening semi-colonial hegemony, minimisation of climate change and other lobbyist claims.

Then last year, Papua New Guinea, once a PACER Plus enthusiast, decided to retreat, stating it would prefer to negotiate direct trade agreements with Australia and NZ. 

More recently Fiji stood back.  Some took this as a decision to withdraw, but Fiji now says it was anything but and its government is angered by Australiaís Steven Ciobo saying Fiji had joing PBG in opting not to sign.

Faiyaz Koya, Fijiís trade minister, alleged his country was excluded.  He said Fiji had written to the PACER Plus team to say it would not attend the final negotiations and asked for them to be postponed while Fiji worked through its position.  They received no reply, he claimed.

Earlier Frank Bainimarama, Fijiís pm had suggested PACER Plus was still too one-sided and that Fiji wanted to see further amendments. It is to be hoped Fiji will indeed sign up sooner rather than later because without that regional powerhouse, PACER Plus lacks both far-reaching validity and effectiveness.

If PNG were to find a way to align itself that would be even better.

PACER Plus at present groups Australia, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Nauru, NZ, Niue, Palau, Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Kingdom of Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.  A formal signing will be held in Nukuíalofa, Tonga, in June.

- Kelvin King