‘ACP-EEC’spells'good

news’ for Fiji,Tonga, Samoa

Three Pacific Island nations that with 49 developing African and Caribbean nations, are associate members of the European Economic Community, are getting significan benefits from the relationship.

This was clear at the April con ference in Suva at which Suva hosted a joint meeting of the ACP EEC (African, Caribbean. Pacific- European Economic Community) Council of Ministers, It was the first such meeting held outside Europe.

It began with disillusioned moans from the ACP group, but ended on a note of accord that delegates from a ll the 61 countries in attendance said they were delighted with.

The purpose of the meeting was to discuss amendments and mter pretations concerning the 1976 Lome Convention, which binds the ACP states and the nine EEC na tions together in various trade and a id deals.

A significant agreement for Western Samoa and Tonga was that if their banana sales to New Zealand drop below an average value, the

EEC will pay them compensation.

The EEC agreed to the expansion of the Stabex Scheme to permit this.

The scheme props up the prices of certain commodities from ACP countries by requiring the EEC to pay compensation when prices slump.

Expansion of the scheme does not affect Fiji, whose banana trade is now extinct.

But in the case of copra, for in stance, Fiji received $F613,000 last year to offset the copra price slump, and this year it will get $F 1,400,000.

Tonga and Western Samoa will get smaller copra compensation amounts.

Discussing other EEC aid for the South Pacific, its commissioner, Mr Claude Cheysson, said Fiji, Samoa and Tonga would get SFIO million for regional projects over four years from this year.

Most of the money would go to a telecommunications scheme de signed to hook the three countries into a space-satellite com munications system.

Other money would go to the University of the South Pacific, and for fisheries, agricultural and biolo gy research.

Mr Cheysson said the three coun tries would also get separate grants over the same period.

Fiji would get SFIO million of which $F6,400,000 would be used for building roads, airstrips and jet ties, and $F1,500,000 would be spent on major port works.

Western Samoa would get $F6,500,000 of which SF3 million would be spent on hydro-electric schemes.

Tonga would spend its $3,500,- 000 on fishing projects, jetties, and in buying public works equipment.

The Suva meeting approved Papua New Guinea’s application to accede to the Lome Convention.

Mr Cheysson said other British and French territories would be en titled to join the group as they at

tained independence.

All United States territories, however, were excluded.