Non-Tariff Barriers

Complaint

Complaint number

NTB-001-197  

NTB Type

1.8. Import bans  

Complaint

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) suspended the transfer of soft drinks and beer from other countries, citing that only products from nations with bilateral agreements will be accepted. This suspension directly contravenes the spirit of the East African Community (EAC) and its commitment to fostering free trade and economic cooperation among Partner States.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that limits acceptance of products to those from countries with bilateral agreements undermines the EAC's principles of regional integration and free movement of goods. It creates unnecessary trade barriers and hinders the seamless exchange of goods between EAC Partner States, which is fundamental to the EAC Customs Union's objectives.
Addressing this issue is critical to ensuring that all EAC partner States can trade without restrictions and continue to benefit from the shared economic goals outlined in the EAC Treaty.  

Progress update note

DRC informed the RMC meeting of 17th October 2024 that the measure is temporary based on WTO Law on Safeguard measures and is meant to protect domestic industries.
The RMC meeting noted that even based on WTO Rules, DRC had not followed the right procedures for the application of the safeguard measures as there was no investigation done to show proof of serious injury or threat to injury caused to DRC factories by the excess transfer of drinks from other Partner States and there was no investigation done to establish the causal link between the closure of the factories and the transferred of goods from EAC Partner States.
The meeting further observed that DRC is a member of EAC and any safeguards measures taken should be per the EAC Customs Union Protocol Safeguard Measures stipulated under Article 19.  

Policy or regulatory NTB

No 

Location

Democratic Republic of the Congo: Ministry of External Trade (Government institution)  

Reporting Country or Region

Uganda  

Country specific trade issue

No  

Date of incident

2024-09-11  

Status

In process  

Product Description

Beers and Soft drinks

Computer-assisted translation

• English
• Arabic
• French
• Portuguese

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Total value

0  

Date reported

2024-10-03 12:13  

Modified

2024-10-19 17:23