Vanuatu participated in the Pacific Regional Workshop on Trade in Services, organised and sponsored by the Australian Government (DFAT), held in Suva, Fiji between 18 and 22 October, 2023. Vanuatu attendees comprised of officials from the Department of External Trade, PacerPlus Implementation Unit and Vanuatu Foreign Investment Promotion Agency (VFIPA). Other participants to the workshop include government officials in the region who are members of the PacerPlus Agreement.

The workshop was timely as it supports the redesign of the financial year 2023-2024 (FY23-24) Trade in Services, Movement of Natural Persons and Investment Activities. Consultation on this was made by the new Trade in Services and Investment Adviser (TSIA) with all member countries prior to the workshop.

The purpose of the workshop was to assist participants gain good understanding of how important Trade in Services (TiS) is for the Pacific Island Countries (PICs) and how the TiS components are treated in Trade Agreements they are party to such the WTO and PacerPlus. Given TiS has been and remains a significant contributor to growth in all PICs, a friendly business environment policy is a must-have in order to maintain and enjoy the benefits from the various modes of TiS.

Member countries key obligations in their schedule of commitment in the Services sector was a key topic which provided a good opportunity for participants to note whether or not such commitments have been observed and gaining the benefits as intended. The broad topics covered included (i) Market Access (ii) Domestic Regulation, (iii) Recognition, and (v) Transparency.

The Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations (PACER) Plus is a regional trade and development agreement between the Pacific Island Forum (PIF) Countries, Australia and New Zealand. During initial discussions and eventually led to the signing of the agreement, such development will contribute to raising the living standards, create jobs and increase exports from Pacific Island countries, while also lowering barriers and providing greater certainty for businesses operating in the Pacific.

While all Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) members are encouraged to join PACER Plus, to date ten (10) PIF members ratified and have been Party to the Agreement since its entry into force on 13 December 2020: Australia, Cook Islands, Kiribati, New Zealand, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.

Trade in Services has been and remains critical to the development of most if not all of the PIF countries. Given their small markets (population), isolation from major international markets and lack of extractive resources, the services sector proved to be dominant in all PICs, demonstrating and consistent share of GDP of around 50-60% in most PICs.