NON-TARIFF MEASURES FACING

ASIA PACIFIC EXPORTERS

CAMBODIAN CASE STUDY

Dourng Kakada and Sok Hach

July 2005

0
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Cover 0
Table of Contents 1
Executive summary 2
Abbreviations and Acronyms 4
Acknowledgements 5

I. Background 6
II. Overview of Cambodian Economy 7
III. Overview of Cambodian Trade 9
1. Exports 10
2. Imports 11
3. Informal Trade 11
IV. Common Non-Tariff Barriers to Cambodian Exports 12
1. Internal Barriers 12
2. External Barriers 13
V. Specific Non-Tariff Barriers by Products 14
1. Garments 14
2. Rubber 15
3. Rice 16
4. Fish and Fish Products 18
5. Pharmaceutical Products 19
6. Other Products and Measures Imposed by Importing Countries 20
VI. Potential Exports if Barriers Removed 21
VII. Conclusions 23

Bibliography 24

Appendix 1: Matrix of Non-Tariff Measures Facing Cambodian Exporters 25

Appendix 2: Table of Non-Tariff Measure Inventory 29
Appendix 3: Questionnaire for Exporters 30

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 Executive Summary

Cambodian exporters are facing both internal and external non-tariff barriers.
Internally, a number of constraints are often cited: high cost of transport, a long clearance
process, relatively high cost of shipment, unofficial fees and inefficient bureaucracy, lack of
capacity to respond to new trade regulations and lack of laboratory investment. The
clearance procedure is negatively characterized as a duplication of activities and overlap of
responsibilities among involved agencies and corruption is cited as the worst constraint for
exporters.
Common Non-Tariff Measures (NTMs) imposed by importing countries which
Cambodian exporters are currently facing can be categorized into three main types: Standard,
Conformity Assessment and Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) measure. Standards vary
according to importing countries whose requirements are often higher than local ones. The
country is lacking a way to have its test and assessment recognised and compliant with
requirements of importing countries. SPS measure is used to ensure food safety for
consumers and to prevent the spread of pests or diseases. SPS measures require new
expertise, laboratories and an adequate system in place. These are currently not yet available
in the country.
After further analysis of several sensitive exported commodities, specific NTMs are
found. Garments are a facing rule of origin criterion attached to Everything But Arms
initiative by the EU and as a result, this industry does not benefit fully from this preference
initiative. To be qualified for this preference, a garment must to be wholly obtained and
locally produced starting from yarn or at least 40 percent of cumulative value added must
come from within ASEAN. It is a serious problem for this country as the textile industry is
very weak and nearly absent; most fabrics and accessories are currently imported from
countries not qualified as originating from Cambodia such as China, Taiwan, Hong Kong
and Korea. The rubber is suffering from price discount about 20 percent due to lack of
certification issued by an internationally recognised, accredited laboratory. An estimate of
about US$ 10 millions every year is lost due to this price discount. Rice exports to China
have been banned for a reason of preventing pests and diseases from being introduced into
China. A number of complicated requirements were imposed and supplied by China. In this
regard, Cambodia is prepared to provide the information required for facilitating the early
completion of any risk assessment concerning plants from Cambodia. The study also found
that a rice exporter is affected by policies of government purchase and subsidies of Thailand
and Vietnam through informal paddy exports in areas along borders. Since 1997, fishery
products exported to the EU have been banned. To protect the health of European
consumers, all third countries intending to export fishery products to the EU must be
authorized by the European Commission and included in the approval list prior to exports.
The approval list is comprises a number of conditions which basically requires new expertise,
additional established legislations and recognised laboratory tests and are difficult for
Cambodia. Additionally, the EU has banned the imports of tuna and swordfish products
from a number of countries including Cambodia for the reason of failure to respect
international conservation laws. There is only one pharmaceutical company currently
exporting its products to a number of countries in Africa. Other companies produce for
local consumptions but also intend to export. Cambodian pharmaceutical products are
currently not qualified to move into international commerce and to join international bids.

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Two requirements among others cited by stakeholders are serious namely Good
Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and the Bio-equivalent study.
The study also found some other products and barriers imposed by importing
countries. Confirel products, a range of products made from sugar palm trees, need to
complete complicated documents to obtain Certificate of Approved Labels for Foods to
access Chinese markets. These requirements induce time consuming administrative hassles,
and extra cost. Black peppers are not accessible to Japanese markets due to the requirement
of a certificate of sterilisation, which requires exporters to pay a huge cost to invest in
technology development. The Australian draft action list which names countries where Giant
Africa Snail (GAS) are known to exist and thereby subjects these countries to more
restrictive inspection, also includes Cambodia. Cambodia will face an obstacle to enter into
organic markets if the country does not rush to put in place the organic certification system.
A number of requirements and procedures needed for organic market access include
certificates, standards, regulations, labelling and consumer recognition etc.
If these barriers are removed, the country can obtain a huge advantage. It allows
Cambodia to diversify exported products and destinations. The export volume is
significantly increased and exporters have bargaining power on price. Finally, the benefits
should be reached by people employed in agriculture sector in rural area and rapid poverty
reduction.
In conclusion, most non-tariff barriers facing Cambodian exporters are concerned
with Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) measures conditional upon the scope of this study.
The study also found barriers in other NTM inventory such as government aids, customs
and administrative procedures and Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT). The compliance with
development and harmonisation of standards is particularly hampered by lack of expertises
and internationally recognized laboratories. There are some points emerging from
consultations with stakeholders including the fact that the technical assistance (TA) on trade
facilitation seems more focused on easing imports into the country rather than smoothing
exports.

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 Abbreviations and Acronyms
AFTA ASEAN Free Trade Area
AIRD Associates for International Resources and Development
AQIS Australia Quarantine Inspection Service
AQSIQ General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine
CamControl Cambodia Import Export Inspection and Fraud Repression Department
ASEAN Association of South-East Asian Nations
CED Custom and Excise Department
CEDAC Centre dEtude et de Dveloppement Agricole Cambodgien ( Study and
Development Centre for Cambodian Agriculture)
CPE Cambodia Pharmaceutical Enterprise
CRRI Cambodian Rubber Research Institute
EBA Everything But Arms
EC European Community
EIC Economic Institute of Cambodia
EU European Union
GAS Giant Africa Snail
GDP Gross Domestic Product
GMO Genetically Modified Organism
GMP Good Manufacturing Practices
GSP Generalized System of Preferences
HACCP Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point
IMF International Monetary Fund
IRA International Rubber Association
LDC Least Developed Country
MAFF Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
MIME Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy
MOC Ministry of Commerce
MOH Ministry of Health
MRA Mutual Recognition Agreement
PPM Pharma Product Manufacturing
SOFRECO Socit Franaise de Ralisation dEtudes et de Conseil (French Company of
Realization of Study and Counsel)
SPS Sanitary and Phytosanitary
TBT Technical Barrier to Trade
UNTAC United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia
WHO World Health Organization

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 Acknowledgements

The authors1 are grateful to government officials from Department of International

Standards in Cambodia, Industrial Techniques, Trade Preferences, CamControl, Drug and
Food, Fishery, Agronomy and Agriculture Land Improvement, and CRRI for kindly agreeing
to be interviewed and providing relevant, detailed information.
The authors would like to thank Mona Haddad from the World Bank and Bijit Bora
from WTO for their constructive comments on the paper. The authors also appreciate
Garment Manufacturer Association in Cambodia (GMAC), SME Cambodia Association and
exporters which received us for interview.
Last but not least, special thanks to Tim Anderson, English editor, and research
assistants of Economic Institute of Cambodia namely Tuy Chakriya, Yem Sokha and Thak
Socheat for their supports during this study.

The remaining errors are the responsibility of the authors.

Dourng Kakada
Sok Hach

July 2005

1
Dourng Kakada is a researcher of Economic Institute of Cambodia (EIC), Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Sok Hach is a director of Economic Institute of Cambodia (EIC), Phnom Penh, Cambodia

5
I. Background

Exporters face two barriers namely Tariff and Non-Tariff Barriers imposed by
importing countries. The tariff barriers are substantially reduced as a result of regionalisation
and globalisation. The progressive elimination of non-tariff barriers is the scope of intense
discussions within the WTO framework. While tariffs are relatively easy to obtain and
measure, and their impact on trade relatively easy to assess, the same is not true of non-tariff
measures (NTMs). The term non-tariff measure is defined to include export restraints and
subsidies, or measures with similar effect, not just import restraints.2. Based on Negotiating
Group on Market Access document (TN/MA/S/5/Rev.1), NTMs are basically categorized
into seven parts:

Part I: Government Participation in Trade and Restrictive Practices Tolerated by

Governments
Part II: Customs and Administrative Entry Procedures
Part III: Technical Barriers to Trade
Part IV: Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures
Part V: Specific Limitations
Part VI: Fees on Imports
Part VII: Others, including intellectual property issues, safeguard measures and
distribution constraints.

Some work on non-tariff regulation of trade has already been undertaken in the
countries covered by this project, providing a useful basis on which to build.3 In addition,
work on non-tariff measures involving a range of analytical approaches has been undertaken.
The OECD recently compiled a very useful analytical summary of this work, but much more
needs to be done.4 This project is intended to contribute to this body of work, by focusing
on NTMs as they relate to exporters in the economies of the Asia Pacific.

This study examines the NTMs facing Cambodian exporters of several major
exported commodities. The list of NTMs is not complete due to limited time and resources,
but it illuminates the main sources of constraints for sensitive exported products, which
were imposed by importing countries. There were 23 interviews composed of eight from
government officials, two from business associations, 12 exporters and one from a research
institute. First, the study tried to assess barriers in five main exported products namely
garments, rubber, rice, fish and fish products and pharmaceutical products. These products
occupy more than 90 percent of the total exports. The barriers of these products are

2 Bijit Bora, Aki Kuwahara and Sam Laird: Quantification of Non Tariff Measures, Policy Issues in International
trade and Commodities, Study series No. 18, UNCTAD, 2002.
3 The two PECC studies from 1995 analysed NTB using the UNCTAD classification. Recent studies on Africa

include: Nyangito, H. et al., "Improving Market Access Through Standards Compliance: A Diagnostic Road
Map for Kenya", in Wilson, J. and Abiola V. (Eds.) (2003) Standards and Global Trade: A Voice for Africa
(Washington D.C.: World Bank), Pp. 1-64; and Rudaheranwa, N. et al., "Enhancing Uganda's Access to
International Markets: A Focus on Quality" in Wilson, J. and Abiola V. (Eds.) (2003) Standards and Global
Trade: A Voice for Africa (Washington D.C.: World Bank), Pp. 371-426.
4 OECD (2003), Overview of Non-Tariff Barriers: Findings From Existing Business Surveys (Paris: OECD in

doc. TD/TC/WP(2002)38/FINAL)

6
assessed through standard literature research and interviews with all appropriate
stakeholders. Other barriers to products are assessed by reading the standard literature and
interviews with business associations and relevant government officials.
This paper covers an overview of the Cambodian Economy and Trade, Common
Non-Tariff Barriers to Cambodian Exporters, Specific Non Tariff Barriers by Products and
analysis of potential exports if barriers are removed. Finally, the paper concludes with the
findings and raises some points which emerged from interviews with stakeholders.

II. Overview of the Cambodian Economy

Cambodia was pursuing a centrally planned economic system after the collapse of
the Khmer Rouge regime. In 1989, the country began the transformation to a free market
oriented economic system even though the country was still in civil war. Due to the support
of the international community, the signing of the 1991 Paris Peace Accords to unify all
conflict parties happened and led to a free and fair national election in 1993 under the
auspices of the United Nations Peace keeping Process known as United Nations Transitional
Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC). With the establishment of the first coalition government,
Cambodia intended in earnest to restore itself into peaceful country. To back political aims,
many reforms have been undertaken with assistance of international community and about
US$ 500 millions each year is funded by various donors. Its GDP reaches about US$ 4.6
billions and per capita GDP is about US$ 325. Its growth rate is about 6 percent per annum,
but decline is forecasted incoming years. This is due to the elimination of worldwide quotas
system for garment industry which currently plays a crucial role in Cambodian economic
development and poverty reduction.

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Table 1: Main Economic Indicators
1960 1990 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

Nominal GDP (million US$) 578 1,313 3,592 3,721 3,983 4,195 4,582

Real GDP (% increase) 4.8% 7.5% 7.0% 5.7% 5.5% 5.3% 6.5%

GDP per Capita (US$) 106 138 281 284 297 305 325

GDP per Capita (% increase) - 5.9% 1.6% 1.0% 4.4% 2.7% 6.6%

Riel/Dollar Parity (year average) 35 537 3,859 3,924 3,921 3,980 4,014

Inflation in Riel (year average) 4.0% 141.0% -0.8% -0.9% 0.0% 1.2% 4.0%

Inflation in Dollar (year average) 4.0% 0.4% -1.8% -2.5% 0.1% -0.3% 3.1%

Budget Revenue (% GDP) 19.7% 3.3% 10.4% 10.7% 11.3% 10.5% 10.7%

Budget Expenditure (% GDP) 29.2% 17.0% 15.3% 16.3% 17.7% 17.5% 15.7%

Current Public Deficit (% GDP) -3.8% -12.7% 1.4% 1.1% 1.1% 0.4% 1.6%

Overall Public Deficit (% GDP) -9.5% -13.7% -4.9% -5.7% -6.5% -7.0% -5.0%

Export of Goods (% GDP) 13.2% 7.9% 38.3% 41.8% 41.6% 48.1% 50.9%

Import of Goods (% GDP) 19.8% 18.3% 48.5% 53.2% 55.1% 59.8% 64.2%

Trade Balance (% GDP) -6.6% -10.4% -10.2% -11.4% -13.4% -11.7% -13.3%

Current Account Balance (% GDP) -7.9% -10.6% -7.2% -8.6% -10.5% -9.6% -10.7%

Net Foreign Reserves (million US$) 57 0 411 467 567 635 677

Money - M1 (% GDP) 12.5% 5.7% 3.5% 4.2% 4.9% 5.4% 6.1%

Money - M2 (% GDP) 23.6% 1.9% 9.6% 11.2% 13.5% 14.5% 17.5%

Population (million) 5.5 9.5 12.8 13.1 13.4 13.8 14.1

Labour Force (% Population) 43.9% 41.7% 42.5% 43.0% 43.4% 43.9% 44.4%

Source: EIC, compiled from government and international organization primary data

Cambodia is an agricultural country. This sector employs more than 70 percent of

Cambodias workers. The contribution of agriculture to GDP has a declining trend but its
value in terms of US dollars has a slight up-down change. It contributed about 26 percent to
GDP in 2004 down from about 30 percent in 2003 and 40 percent in 1995. The contribution
of the industrial sector has an increasing trend while services seem to be stable. The
industrial sector contributed about 16 percent in 1995 but, due to the quota system for the
garment industry, this figure rose to about 27 percent in 2003 and 30 percent in 2004 and
garments dominate more than 80 percent of industrial production. The service sector
contributes about 45 percent since 1995, but its value increased dramatically by about 60
percent.

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Table 2: GDP by Industry Origin at Constant 2000 Price (Million US$)
1960 1990 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
Agriculture 833 814 1,120 1,149 1,139 1,235 1,186
Paddy 179 179 300 314 286 363 310
Other Crops 289 166 220 238 258 281 284
Livestock 64 155 202 199 202 213 214
Fishery 219 237 327 343 353 340 342
Rubber & Forestry 82 76 70 56 39 38 37
Industry 549 275 840 934 1,031 1,130 1,291
Garment 104 32 364 471 539 611 759
Food, Beverage & Tobacco 121 78 105 108 111 114 117
Other Manufacturing 99 103 128 123 126 129 131
Electricity, Gas & Water 39 9 28 32 36 41 47
Construction & Mining 186 54 217 199 218 235 238
Services 1,528 612 1,631 1,714 1,838 1,857 2,019
Transport & Communication 125 122 216 228 242 257 272
Trade 468 554 588 609 638 634 676
Hotel & Restaurants 187 12 285 321 356 336 413
Other Private Services 153 -123 410 431 458 481 510
Public Administration 596 47 133 126 145 148 148
Total GDP 2,910 1,701 3,591 3,797 4,008 4,222 4,497
Source: EIC, compiled from government and international organization primary data

III. Overview of Cambodian Trade

The overall trade balance of goods has been in deficit. In 2004, this deficit accounted
for about 14 percent of GDP. The trade balance of textiles and garments is positive at 14.2
percent of GDP while import deficits of oil & gas and other goods account for about 13
percent and 18 percent respectively. However, the tourist industry contributed a surplus of
about 10.5 percent of GDP. This surplus is decreased by deficits of other services, mainly
transportation, by about 5.5 percent. As a result, the balance of services has remained in
surplus by about 5 percent.

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Table 3: Cambodia's Balance of Payments (% GDP)
2002 2003e 2004e
Exports of Goods 43.9% 50.8% 53.7%
Imports of Goods 58.1% 63.1% 67.7%
Trade Balance -14.2% -12.4% -14.0%
Agriculture 1.2% 3.4% 1.6%
Textiles & Garments 10.6% 12.3% 14.2%
Oil & Gas -10.1% -11.3% -13.1%
Other Goods -15.9% -16.7% -16.8%
Balance of Services 5.5% 3.7% 5.1%
Transportation -3.1% -2.8% -3.6%
Travel (Tourism) 10.4% 7.9% 10.5%
Others -1.8% -1.5% -1.8%
Balance of Incomes -4.2% -3.9% -4.4%
Current Transfers (net) 11.2% 10.7% 9.7%
Private Transfers1 4.9% 4.9% 4.5%
Government Transfers2 6.3% 5.8% 5.2%
Current Accounts -1.6% -1.9% -3.7%
Capital & Financial Accounts 6.4% 7.0% 7.1%
Official Loans3 3.9% 3.6% 3.3%
Foreign Direct Investment 1.3% 2.4% 2.7%
Others (net) 1.2% 1.1% 1.0%
Change in Foreign Reserves4 4.8% 5.1% 3.4%
At the National Bank 2.9% 1.8% 0.9%
Outside the National Bank 1.9% 3.3% 2.5%

Source: IMF Balance of Payments Statistics for 2002, EIC model projection for 2003-2004
1
Money transferred by Cambodians overseas
2
Grants provided by donors to the government
3
Net of debt amortization
4
Overall balance reflects change in country's foreign reserves. As Cambodia is a dollarised economy, and private
individuals and institutions can hold foreign currencies, the overall change of the balance of payments not only affects the
foreign reserves of the National Bank, but also other economic agencies, such as private financial institutions, businesses
and households.

1. Exports

The total export of goods reaches about US$ 2.5 Billion, up from US$ 1.6 billion in
2001. Cambodian exports are limited in terms of products and destinations. The main export
is garment industry products, accounting for about 90 percent of total merchandise exports
(excluding service exports) in 2004. There are 238 garment factories operating in Cambodia..
The dominant exports of garments are due to the quota system granted by the US and quota

10
free access to EU and Canadian apparel markets. The elimination of the world wide quota
system as of January 2005 is worrying for this industry but the export statistics from the
Custom and Excise Department (CED) of Cambodia confirm that garment exports have
been dominant for first three months of 2005 and account for about 90 percent of total
merchandise exports. After garments, the main exports are agricultural products including
rubber, fish and fish products, rice and paddy. These items represent about 6 percent of total
goods exported. The main destination for Cambodian exports is the US, the primary
customer for garments, followed by the EU, especially Germany, the UK, France and the
Netherlands. Some products are exported to ASEAN countries and China.

2. Imports

Total imports of goods reached about US$ 3.1 billion in 2004 up from about US$ 2
billion in 2001. Oil, gas, materials and garment accessories are the main imports to
Cambodia, accounting for about 40 percent of total goods imported. Other main imports
include vehicles, construction materials, pharmaceutical products, food products and
cigarettes and all of these items represent about another 40 percent. Cambodias imports
come mainly from East Asian countries, accounting for about 57 percent and China
(including Hong Kong and Macau) dominates at 36 percent. The main imports from China
are materials (fibres and fabrics) and accessories for the garment industry. In this region,
Taiwan follows China. After East Asian countries, ASEAN countries are the second main
suppliers at about 34 percent of total merchandise exports to Cambodia, of which Thailand,
Singapore and Vietnam are dominant.

3. Informal Trade

Informal imports and exports with neighbouring countries are still significant
activities especially with Vietnam and Thailand. Traditionally, trade was mainly carried out
between peoples within neighbouring nations as neighbours and friends rather than as
citizens of separate nations with a strong sense of national identity. In the decade of civil
war, Cambodias infrastructure such as roads, telecommunication, and transportation were
almost fully destroyed. It took about 2 days to travel from the capital to a border district
while currently it takes only 6 hours by car. In this regard, farmers and middlemen along
borders spent more on transportation costs to sell their crops to other provinces than to sell
to Thailand. Likewise, it was easier to buy products and equipment from Thailand than other
Cambodian provinces. This circumstance plus time-consuming bureaucratic procedures at
check points created a de facto informal trade. Border agencies still benefit from these
activities in terms of informal fees. It occurs in the same way with Vietnam. Middlemen
benefit from these long time experiences and know very well how to proceed through the
many different channels. These traditional activities result in the current informal trade.
Moreover, there are some goods being currently smuggled in large amounts (but difficult to
quantify) such as petroleum, from Thailand and Vietnam, which are subject to high import
duties. Petroleum smugglers still gain a moderate profit after paying unofficial fees.
Agricultural products are also unofficially traded openly. It is estimated that about million
tons of paddy were smuggled to Thailand and Vietnam. Fish are smuggled to both countries
in unprocessed form. This huge unofficial trade hurts Cambodian traders by making it
difficult for them to obtain fair market prices, due to a lack of bargaining power and market
information.
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IV. Common Non-Tariff Barriers to Cambodian Exports
Cambodian exporters face both internal and external barriers. Internally, exporters
meet a wide range of obstacles from the factory base to the exit points of the country. The
integration of the country into regional and global trading systems such as ASEAN and the
World Trade Organisation, along with technical barriers from some specific importing
countries, increases costs. It means increased effort to meet those additional requirements
inside their own factories- for instance technological development- and to comply with
requirements of other agencies. Those external requirements may encourage corruption.

1. Internal Barriers

There are a number of main internal constraints facing exporters and are as follows:

The high cost of transport from factory gate to exit point: Exporters pay relatively higher transport
costs due to inadequate infrastructure and high fuel costs.

Long delays for clearance procedures5: Export processing involves a multiplicity of steps,
introducing substantial delays, uncertainty, and confusion into the process of trading
goods. Among the major hurdles reported by trading firms are customs clearance,
Ministry of Transportation border authorization or border police, veterinary and
phytosanitary inspection, and CamControl (Cambodia Import Export Inspection and
Fraud Repression Department) under the Ministry of Commerce. Each step involves
delays, formal costs and informal payments. Custom regulations and tax administration
were cited as the most serious constraints to exporters. Custom clearance imposes
substantial delays and great uncertainty and hence unpredictability. It takes 4.5 days on
average for exporters to clear customs. Documentation accounts for 41 percent of
problems for exporters.

Relatively higher cost of shipment: Shipping costs out from the port of Sihanoukville are
higher than similar costs from other countries such as Vietnam. The number of shipping
companies is still limited which prevents competition and keeps prices high. It is also
one of the most expensive in the region when unofficial charges for container handling
are included.6

Unofficial fees and inefficient bureaucracy: Corruption is the largest constraint to business in
Cambodia.7 Exporters pay unofficial fees to all relevant agencies involved in inspection
of export consignments. Export procedures involve overlapping responsibilities and
duplications of activities among agencies involved in export clearance. This generates
much confusion.

5
Source: World Bank, Seizing Global Opportunity: Investment Climate Assessment and Reform Strategy
for Cambodia, August 2004. Available at:
http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTCAMBODIA/Resources/Global-opportunity.pdf
6
Ibid
7
Source: survey with 100 companies conducted by EIC and Global Economic Forum, 2005.

12
 Weak governmental capacity to respond to new trade regulations: The lack of expertise and
funding leaves the government incapable of responding to new requirements from
trading partners. Institutional mechanisms are still weak and underdeveloped and have
problems harmonising and disseminating standard relevant information.

Lack of test laboratory investments: A number of new trade regulations, mainly related to
TBT and SPS, require internationally recognised test laboratories. Cambodia is very
limited in this respect. Some laboratories are out-of-date and do not comply with the
requisite standards. Noticeably, there are no significant investments in this area. In
Cambodia, representative offices will take samples and send these samples out for
laboratory testing in their head offices in Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia etc.

2. External Barriers

The three main non-tariff barriers which exporters face are:

Standards: Standards and technical regulations are essential for trade, commerce and
diffusion of technology. Standards contribute to the efficient development,
manufacturing and supply of products and services. However, it is very costly for
Cambodia where local and international standards are often incompatible. Often,
standards vary when importing countries have higher requirements than local
Cambodian standards. Some countries which have stringent standards already ban
imports of several products from Cambodia such as the fish product import ban to the
EU.

Conformity assessment: It is crucial to have export goods accepted by importing countries.

Cambodia has to prove that its exported products are compliant with the standards of
importing countries. Those countries should have full confidence that test data and
inspections from Cambodia are reliable and any certification of safety made in Cambodia
can be trusted. Acceptance of Cambodias assessments by importing countries is most
important. The accrediting laboratories and inspection bodies, the Mutual Recognition
Agreement (MRA) and a network of established testing laboratories can gain this
acceptance by demonstrating technical competence, reliability and honesty. However,
Cambodia lacks some of the means to attain these standards and some products are
suffering such as the price discount of rubber.

Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) measures: Sanitary (human and animal health) and
phytosanitary measures are increasingly used to ensure food safety and to prevent the
spread of pests and diseases. Products can be required to come from disease free areas,
be inspected, and undergo specific treatment to set maximum allowable levels of
pesticide residues or additives in foods. Cambodia has problems complying with these
measures due to lack of expertise, laboratories and an adequate system in place. An
unfortunate result is the rice export ban from Cambodia to China.

13
V. Specific Non-Tariff Barriers by Products

In this section, five products are selected for analysis of non-tariff barriers imposed
by importing countries. These products comprise more than 90 percent of total recorded
merchandise exports. Other products and barriers, including potential export products
emerging from informal research of the relevant literature and consultations with
stakeholders, are also discussed.

1. Garments

Garments are the major export. All garments are sold for export and account for
US$ 1.6 billion in 2004, about 80 percent of the countrys merchandise exports. The garment
sector employs about one-quarter million Cambodians, which also leads to many jobs in
supporting sectors. Workers are mainly women from rural areas and their remittances back
home support directly and indirectly about one million people. Among garment exports, the
US absorbs about 75 percent due to quota free access and the EU absorbs another 20
percent also through duty free access. The elimination of the worldwide quota system greatly
concerns this sector as it is still less competitive compared to China, Thailand, and Vietnam.
What could beneficiaries do if the garment sector were to die? It would cause great
economic and social problems. The garment industry is internally constrained. Besides
general internal barriers mentioned above, the sector is lacking a supporting industry. The
textile industry is nearly absent and the sector is strongly dependent on imported materials
from competitive countries. Cambodia is unable to build this supporting industry in the
short term. Thus, it is most advantageous to seek Generalized System of Preference (GSP)
for duty free market access while the Cambodia is still regarded as a least developed country
(LDC) and highly compliant with labour law.
Actually, Cambodia has been granted GSP status by Australia, Belarus, Canada,
Japan, New Zealand, Norway, the Russian Federation, Switzerland and Turkey. But the
benefit from GSP of those countries is very little. More recently, Cambodian exports to the
EU have been covered by the Everything But Arms initiative which provides duty-free
and quota free access to almost all imports of least developed countries. This preference
boosts garment exports significantly. But this benefit is conditional upon the rule of origin.
Exporters have to request a certificate of Rule of Origin from the Ministry of Commerce as
evidence to prove garments originated in Cambodia. Certificates of Origin take two forms
(Form A and Form N). Form A means the exporter enjoys duty - free to access to the EU
markets while Form N requires exporters to pay an import duty of 20-30 percent8. Two ways
are possible for garment exports to be classified form A. A garment can be completely
originated and locally produced starting from yarn or, at least 40 percent of the cumulative
value added must come from within ASEAN. These requirements place Cambodia at a
disadvantage as the Cambodian textile industry is nearly absent. The country has limited
production of fabrics and accessories and it is fully dependent on imported inputs for
garment exports. Moreover, buyers dictate the specifications and sourcing of fabrics. Most
of required fabric supplies are imported from China, Taiwan, Korea and Hong Kong, which
are not in the regions qualified by the EU as pertaining to Cambodia. The imports of fabrics

8
Based on interview with government official in Trade Preferences Department, MOC

14
and accessories from four countries account for about 88 percent and 96 percent
respectively of total imports.9 In this regard, Cambodia would have a large advantage if the
EU were to change its origin rule criterion or if Cambodian itself could increase the
cumulative value added from ASEAN. Currently, Cambodia is in the process of GSP
negotiation to get duty-free and quota-free access to the US markets. This preference would
probably be conditional upon several requirements such as rule of origin. Cambodia will not
benefit if the US rule of origin restricts regions sourcing most of garment inputs.

2. Rubber

The rubber sector currently amounts to 4 percent of agricultural sector and is about
3 percent of total exports in dollar terms and was about 45, 000 tons in 2004. If the export
value of clothing and shoes is not counted, that figure should increase to 20 percent. The
sector comprises three categories: state companies and associated categories, industrial
plantations, and small holders and private plantations. The state companies occupy about 60
percent of surface areas planted and production per year, while small holders and private
plantations account for about 30 percent of surface areas planted and 26 percent of
production per year and the rest is occupied by industrial plantations. State owned
companies are undergoing privatisation as promised during WTO accession negotiations and
would leave public ownership by 2006; being either closed, sold to private parties, or turned
into joint ventures with majority private ownership.
Most rubber plants and their factories are situated in Kampong Cham province
bordering Vietnam and 124 kilometres from Phnom Penh. This is due to the historically
geographic focus by French colonial rubber companies in 1920s. This specific location
enables easy Cambodian rubber exports into Vietnam. There are also other potentially arable
areas along the border with Vietnam such as the provinces of Ratanakiri, Kratie and
Mondulkiri.
It is crucial now to reduce all barriers and to access all potential markets since
Cambodian rubber production is on an increasing trend. In traditional areas (Kampong
Cham), the small holders and private plantations are currently expanding at the rate about
1,000 to 1,500 hectares per year. The new growing areas could be expanded at the rate of
about 1,500 hectares per year after 2010.
Unfortunately, Cambodian rubber is suffering a 20 percent discount price compared
with global prices due to several factors. These factors include hidden margins and costs
linked to the trade channel through Vietnam, irregularity of shipments and lack of technical
standards of exported products.10 The lack of certification by an internationally recognized
accredited laboratory prevents Cambodian rubber from broad market access. Cambodia can
not sell directly to end users and can find export markets only in Vietnam. The limited
markets decrease bargaining power and force producers to sell below international prices.
Cambodian companies receives an average of $US 1,150 per ton for rubber at the
Vietnamese border compared to $US 1,343 per ton producers get in Malaysia.11 It is the

9 Based on survey by EIC, Werner International and AIRD with 70 garment factories in February 2005
available at: http://www.eicambodia.org/seminar/Cambodia_Garment_Sector_Main_Report_Nathan.pdf
10
SOFRECO & CEDAC: Study on the evolution of the Cambodian Rubber Sector, Draft report, 2005.
11
The Cambodia Daily, 24 June 2005 p.18, based on interview with French Development Agency rubber
expert.

15
major obstacle cited by all consulted rubber stakeholders. The certificate is an attestation that
a product conforms to pre-established standards and specifications. Specification is the
definition of essential characteristics including threshold values by which natural rubber
must be processed before it can be employed in accordance with the needs of users. This
situation requires the creation of an internationally recognised certification body to guarantee
the rubber quality for all buyers. To achieve this, Cambodia needs to be a member of the
International Rubber Association (IRA) which requires a number of conditions. These are:
the formation of a Cambodian Rubber Trade Association representing all stakeholders in the
commodity chain, a laboratory equipped with qualified personnel and requisite equipment,
and test participation in compliance with international standards. It is necessary for
Cambodia to define its own specification scheme which generally is quite similar to the ISO
2000 specification guide.

3. Rice

Rice is a major agricultural product of Cambodia. More than 70 percent of the

population is employed in the agricultural sector and among them about 80 percent are
farmers. The destinations for Cambodian rice exports include EU, China, USA and
Australia. There are also unofficial exports of paddy rice to neighbouring countries.
Generally Cambodian exporters do not have representative sales offices in importing
countries and they do not intend to set up offices there as low sales do not justify the high
cost of setting up. They do not understand clearly the procedures and how to distribute their
products in those countries. Normally, they connect to brokers in the importing countries
and sell their products on an f.o.b or c.i.f. basis through shipping companies. Thus, brokers
and importers facilitate some procedures and requirements. After identifying markets,
brokers and importers deal with the remaining requirements of their respective importing
countries. Those requirements include phytosanitary certificates from MAFF and
Cambodian custom export documents. Before issuing phytosanitary certificates, MAFF must
send their skilled staff to inspect and test products to ensure they are free from the pests
specified by the importing contracting party and to conform with current phytosanitary
standards of the importing contracting party including those for regulated non-quarantined
pests. For initial exports, buyers send their representatives to Cambodia to inspect fields,
processing and to take samples for testing to ensure quality standards. With good results, this
measure would be no longer taken for further exports and importers can test products when
cargo arrives in their countries.

In December 2004, China added additional requirements for several plants, including
rice, imported from Cambodia. With the new regulations, Cambodia has to provide the
required documents to the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and
Quarantine of China (AQSIQ) for risk analysis and assessment. China has also required the
right to request further documents and to dispatch a group of experts to conduct field
inspections in Cambodia. Cambodia agreed to provide the information required for
facilitating any risk assessment concerning plants from Cambodia. Prior to this notification,
Cambodian rice exports to China were based on agreements between buyers and sellers. This
new measure is difficult for Cambodia and official rice exports to China have been
suspended. This complicated procedure places a burden on exporters and importers and will
be time consuming and increase costs.

16
 Box 1: New regulation for imports of plant products from Cambodia to China

In December 2004, China notified Cambodia that all plant products including rice and
paddy imported from Cambodia shall be tested according to Chinese inspection and
quarantine requirements. The concern was possible pests and diseases to be introduced
into China. The new regulations require the official Quarantine Department of
Cambodia to present a formal application and supply required documents to the
General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of China
(AQSIQ) for risk analysis and assessment. The documents required are:
1. Information about the plant and/or the product being tested including general
name, scientific name, variety and class.
2. Information about the producing area of the product indicating the province, city
and area, showing the product location on the national map with associated
acreage.
3. Information about field management, growing and harvest times.
4. Information about pests and diseases involved including the general and
scientific names, distribution, plants with parasites, harm-stricken parts of the
plant, harm season, the supervision and inspection system, an impact statement
on economy and biology.
5. Information of plant protection such as the method and effect of protection
adopted, the description and frequency of chemicals used for protection.
6. Risk management measures for harmful plants including import & export
inspection and quarantine law, processes and standards.
7. Information of the organization system of Inspection and Quarantine Bureau
from central administration to local government, as well as its responsibility; the
institution which is used as the inspection and quarantine lab is included.
8. Information of ongoing procedures, organisation relating to the Issuance of
Certificate of Inspection and Quarantine, and a copy of the Certificate.
Moreover, the AQSIQ, if necessary, can request the official Quarantine Department of
Cambodia to complement the other documents needed, or will dispatch an expert
group to conduct field inspections in Cambodia. According to the result of the analysis
and assessment mentioned above, the AQSIQ will determine if it is desirable to sign a
bilateral Inspection & Quarantine agreement with Cambodia for market access.
Source: authors, compiled from government sources and interviews

The global and regional rice market is protected and subsidised. Even in ASEAN, rice is
covered by stringent product AFTA terms. This concerns Cambodian rice, particularly while
informal trade is significant with Vietnam and Thailand which use subsidies and government
purchases to support prices of their rice farmers. Rice stakeholders stated that it is
impossible to formally export rice to Thailand and Vietnam owing to unclear constraints
including tariffs, subsidies and government purchases while the Cambodian government
does not supply the last two. However, paddy can be informally sold into neighbouring
countries; about million tones of paddy rice were smuggled into Thailand and Vietnam in
2002. The transactions occur through buyers coming from these countries who have been
seeking increasingly large quantities. These buyers collect products, transport them and pay
all informal costs necessary to get the products into their countries.

17
 These measures are major obstacles for the Cambodian rice sector based on the
following analysis. In the harvest season there are rice surpluses in these three countries and
the price decreases. The governments of Thailand and Vietnam apply subsidies and
government purchases to keep prices stable and stockpile paddy and rice in their countries.
The Vietnamese government through the Export Assistance Fund applies low interest rates
to encourage Vietnamese traders to buy and hold paddy and rice for certain months to
export later in the high price season. These measures give competitive advantages and affect
Cambodia. Vietnamese and Thai traders compete with local traders and informally buy
paddy from Cambodian farmers at the peak harvest time, especially areas along borders. It is
hard for local traders to compete with them while Cambodia does not have this kind of
benefit. Thus paddy stocks are less handled in the country while some paddy is smuggled to
neighbouring countries. Fewer paddy stocks in the country mean less rice production, thus
less rice for exports. It leads also to the reduction of value added in the rice sector while
Vietnam and Thailand buy paddy from Cambodia for processing then export it to the third
countries.

4. Fish and Fish Products

Fisheries are one of the most important sectors in generating food and contributing
to the national economy. The country is rich in fishery resources, especially freshwater fish
due to the presence of the Tonle Sap Lake which is a natural aquatic system in Southeast
Asia. The fish and fishery products are exported to a number of countries including
Australia, Malaysia, Hong Kong, the US, Singapore, Taiwan. Many inland and marine fishes
are legally and illegally exported into Thailand and Vietnam. In 2003, fish products exported
included fresh fish and processed products and were calculated at about 54,160 tons.12
However, Cambodian fish and fish products are not allowed to be imported into EU
markets. In 1997, the European Community (EC) Council Directives on fish products and
live shellfish established required sanitary conditions and procedures to be followed by both
EC member states and third countries, which aim at protecting the health of European
consumers. Since then, all third countries intending to export fish products to the EC must
be authorised by the European Commission and be included in two lists of commission
decision 97/296/EC. Countries are included in list I when their results of evaluation by
European Commission service are satisfactory and they are allowed to export fish products
to EC. List II is a temporary list and countries on this list had provisional authorisation to
export solely to those EC member states which accepted their products. However, list II
expired as of 31 December 2000 and only list I exporters have been allowed to export to
EC. Cambodia has not been included in either list and its fish and fish products have been
banned since 1997. A number of conditions must been met to obtain approval. They include
compliance with EC legislation; sanitary conditions in the production of fish products/live
shellfish, hygienic conditions in production areas and in product handling, and controls such
as physical inspection, inspection of HACCP systems and laboratory checks carried out by
competent authorities.13 For Cambodia, these conditions require establishing and amending
legislation according to EC requirements. Moreover, existing laboratory capacity does not
meet EU requirements. Thus, these measures would be prohibitive. Additionally, since 2004,

12
According to statistics of MAFF.
13
Extracted from Europa: http://europa.eu.int/comm/development/body/publications/fish/099904.pdf

18
the EU has banned the import of tuna and swordfish from a number of countries including
Cambodia.14The reason is Cambodia often failed to respect international conservation rules.
However, this situation does not have a large impact because imports of fish products into
the EU had already been banned since 1997. But it is an additional barrier.

5. Pharmaceutical Products

There were 100 pharmaceutical companies operating in Cambodia in early 2005.

Only 7 companies have their own factories and the others import from abroad. French
pharmaceutical products are the most satisfying to Cambodian people. This is based on
historical French colonial ties and older generation perceptions of the more effectiveness of
French medicines. However, there are also imports from other sources such as India,
Singapore, Vietnam and Thailand. Currently, there is only one company that both
manufactures and exports pharmaceutical products namely Pharma Product Manufacturing
(PPM). PPM exports account for 30 percent of its activities and are destined for a number of
countries in Africa: Mali, Togo, Guinea, Burkina-Faso, Mauritania, Gabon, Benin, and
Cameroon. The company offers a wide range of specialties and generics. Almost all raw
materials are imported from France and Europe. It uses the Origin Europe label even for
domestic sales of medications. Some pharmaceutical manufacturers are planning exports and
are negotiating with their trading partners such as Cambodian Pharmaceutical Enterprise
(CPE).
The current trade of pharmaceutical products is fundamentally based on negotiations
between buyers and sellers. Cambodian pharmaceutical products could access markets of
other LDCs and developing countries whose requirements are not high. Those countries
want the benefits of relatively lower prices. Cambodian pharmaceutical products are not yet
able to move into international markets and to join in international bidding since capacities
of both company level and public level do not meet the standard requirements. The two
most difficult requirements for traders are GMP (Good Manufacturing Practises), standards
compliant with WHO requirements and bioequivalence studies for pharmaceutical products.
Producers are currently operating their businesses with local GMP standards certified by the
Ministry of Health whose requirements are lower than that of WHO. The lack of expertise
and lack of modern laboratories and equipment are the serious obstacles to satisfying
international standards. Moreover, producers have to make a huge investment in the
bioequivalence study compliance for admission to international markets.15 Cambodian
pharmaceutical products can be exported to countries which have low or no requirements.
These conditions are also subject to Cambodias commitments to ASEANs standards by
end 2008. Given the current situation, Cambodia will fail to implement these measures and
market access to ASEAN will still be restrictive to Cambodian pharmaceuticals. Thus it is
clear that this country needs both financial and technical assistances in this area.

14
Available at : http://www.europaworld.org/week175/eutakes30404.htm
15
According to interview with exporter, bioequivalent study of a pharmaceutical product costs up to US$
30,000 in China.

19
6. Other Products and Measures Imposed by Importing countries

During literature research and consultation with stakeholders, a few products were
found to have obstacles namely Confirel products and black pepper. Neither products are
important in terms of exports yet, but they are potential exports as Cambodia is looking for
new sources of growth in the agricultural sector.

Confirel Products: Confirel represents a whole rang of products made from the unique
Cambodian sugar palm. It includes different kinds of palm drinks and palm vinegars and
other crystallized products made from the sugar palm. These products are currently exported
to the European Union mainly France. Exporters who intend to export food, drinks and
wines to China must have the Certificate of Approved Labels for Food to get an import
licence. The requirements for this certificate are as follows16:

i. Certificate of origin
ii. Certificate of free sales
iii. Production process (description and diagram)
iv. Composition of formula
v. Certificate of registered trade mark
vi. Certificate of free use of trade mark
vii. Certificate of Analysis
viii. Example of labels in Chinese

These requirements prevent market access from Cambodian Confirel exports to

China. It is too time-consuming to access this market. Also, exporters need to pay for
producing another label customized to Chinese markets. The excessive requirements create
administrative hassles. Exporters need to involve themselves in many government agencies
to get the required certificates. Exporters also express concerns about intellectual properties
and hesitate to provide documents on production processes and formula composition.

Black peppers: To export black peppers to Japan, documents describing black pepper
manufacturing processes, raw materials and additives used in manufacturing processes, and
certificates of sterilisation are required.17 Exporters complain mainly about the conditions to
get a certificate of sterilisation. It means that they need to buy expensive technology for
sterilizing black pepper. However, private investment in sterilisation equipment is still
unforeseeable since black pepper is not yet an important export product. This barrier
inhibits black pepper exports to Japan.

Giant Africa Snail (GAS) preventive measure in Australia: The Australian

government has been taking action against GAS and recently issued a draft action list of
countries. The draft action list has named countries where GAS are known to exist and
which are targeted for inspection. The draft list includes Cambodia and the final list will be
issued in August 2005. If Cambodia does not succeed in appealing this inclusion, additional
conditions will be required for containers from Cambodia to Australia. Those additional

16
Source: Interviews with exporter based on his correspondents with brokers.
17
Source: Interview with exporters based on their correspondents and negotiation with buyers.

20
requirements can be mandatory external and internal inspection or treatment and a
certificate from an approved authority stating the container interior and content are free of
GAS. There would be an Australia Quarantine Inspection Service (AQIS) fee-for-service
charge applying to containers from Cambodia. This preventive measure is a major barrier for
Cambodian imports to Australia. It introduces more complicated and lengthy procedures
and delay times to reach markets and an extra burden on importers.

Organic certification system: Demand for organic agricultural products ranging from
cereals to fruits, from fish to meat and to drinks is expanding. World sales of organic
products are projected to rise to some US$ 100 billion in 2008 while sales were recorded at
17.5 billion in 2000. Major importers would be Western Europe and North America. The
growing demand in ASEAN countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and other
countries such as China, South Korea and India are also noteworthy. This represents a
potential source of export growth for Cambodia and a huge opportunity for organic
agricultural production (with international acceptable certification). However, it requires an
organic certification system to be in place in the exporting country for importing countries
acceptance, another constraint. A number of requirements and procedures needed for
organic market access include certificates, standards, regulations, labelling and consumer
acceptance etc.

VI. Potential Exports if Barriers Removed

There are a lot of benefits if the mentioned barriers are removed. The removal of
those obstacles will help Cambodia to diversify export thus boost economic growth and
poverty reduction. The following is the analysis of potential exports respected to each
product mentioned:

Garment: Cambodia garment exporters do not benefit fully from the EUs EBA
initiative which is restrictive to rule of origin criteria. However, the EU markets absorb
currently about 20 percent of garment exports among which some exports are subject to
duty pays. Cambodia would have a hug advantage from this initiative but it requires the
EU to change the rule of origin criteria or alternatively the development of garment
input industry at country and regional level. However the second alternative is
unforeseeable in the short term. If the criteria are less demanding, the EU would be the
first garment export destination, given that fact that the worldwide quotas system is just
eliminated and Cambodia does not yet receive another trade preference system from the
US. Moreover, if Cambodia can benefit fully from all countries granted GSP scheme it
can maintain the current number of operating garment factories and eventually may
attract more investment in this industry.

Rubber: with the current annual exports from 45,000 tons, Cambodia expects to earn
more about $US 10 million/year if the barrier of quality certificate were removed. It
allows Cambodian rubber to enter broadly the international markets and producers have
more bargaining power on price. The increasing price will boost revenue of small holders
and private companies befitting more investment in new growing areas in other
provinces Ratanakiri, Kratie and Mondulkiri whose soils are potentially arable for rubber

21
 plantations. It would open the world market door while those plants can be
commercialized in few years.

Rice: it is important to recall that Cambodia still has an opportunity to increase paddy
production through increasing productivity and expansion of arable land left from
forestry overexploitation. Current productivity of Cambodian rice is lower compared to
Thailand and Vietnam due to lack of irrigation system and technology uses. If Chinese
markets reopen for Cambodia rice imports, demand for rice exports increase, which
leads to demand rise of paddy. Traders have alternative markets and bargaining power
on price. The raise paddy demand and its price would attract private investment in this
industry resulting in better irrigation system and technology which finally increase
production. Moreover, exporters may be interested in trading other items of plants such
as beans, corns. Any actions to eliminate the effects of government purchases and
subsidies on Cambodia would be a possibility for Cambodian exporter to increase their
margins.

Fish and Fishing products: the removal of the EU barrier allows Cambodia to
diversify the external markets and more bargaining for price.18 It would allow the
exporters to seek increasingly buying fishery products from local traders with better price
and reduce informal exports of raw fishes to neighbouring countries.

Pharmaceutical products: if Cambodian pharmaceutical companies can meet the

standard requirement to move freely into international commerce, Cambodia could
generate income through export promotion of generic products. The current limited
destinations prove that quality of generic products is already acceptable.

Other products and Measures imposed by importing countries: the removal of

those barriers allows Cambodian to diversify exported products and destinations.
Accessibility of Confirel products and black peppers to Chinese and Japanese markets
respectively leads to export enhancements and generating additional revenue for the
country. Confirel products are already supplied to the EU but company still has large
supply capacity and is seeking for new market accesses. Peppers are also exported but at
very small quantity. Accessibility to Japanese markets is helpful for its exports
promotion.
The GAS preventive measure does not currently yet affect exports to Australia, but it
do if Cambodia will fail to appear inclusion. It is difficult to estimate how potential
export to Australia is if Cambodia will be not included in the action list, but conversely
this barrier, if included, would affect current exports. Merchandises exports to Australia
account about 3.2 million in 2004, about 0.1 percent of total exports, up from about 1.3
million in 2001.19
The fact that Cambodia products are qualified to be accessible to organic markets is
the daunting challenge. Some private companies are already undertaking organic farming

18 An exporter who experienced in exporting of fishery products to the EU before 1997 cited that if the barrier

is removed, he can increase about 50 percent of its current export sales and price in the EU market is relatively
higher about 10 percent.
19 Source: Export Office of Foreign Trade Department, Technical General Directorate, MOC

22
 initiatives. If organic certification system is put in place now, Cambodia will be able to
move into world organic market in few years and in the longer time will have a share in
accelerated demand for organic markets.

V. Conclusion
In conclusion, most of non-tariff obstacles facing Cambodian exporters are
concerned with Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) measures. The study also found barriers in
other NTM inventory such as government aids, customs and administrative procedures and
Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT). The effect of these barriers results in some import bans
from importing countries.
The compliance with development and harmonisation of standards is particularly
hampered by lack of both expertise and internationally recognized laboratories. There are
some points emerging from consultations with stakeholders and include the fact that the
technical assistance (TA) on trade facilitation seems more focused on easing imports into the
country rather than smoothing exports. Exporters also commented on how Cambodia can
gain more market access from its membership in World Trade Organization (WTO), whose
requirements are stringent.

23
 Bibliography

Bijit Bora, Aki Kuwahara & Sam laird (2002), Quantification of Non Tariff Barrier
Measures, Policy Issues in International Trade and Commodities, Study Series 18, UNTAD,
New York and Geneva.

MAFF (2004), Annual Conference on Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Unofficial

Transletion, April 2004, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

MOC & MPDF (2005), Cambodia and WTO: A Guide for Business, Phnom Penh,
Cambodia.

SOFRECO & CEDAC (2005), Study on the Evolution of the Cambodian Rubber Sector,
Draft executive summary, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
.
UNCTAD (2002), Generalised System of Preferences: Handbook on the Scheme of the
European Community, New York and Geneva.

UNIDO (2002), Enabling Market Access, Cambodia, Market Access Support for
Cambodia through the Strengthening of Capacities Related to Metrology, Testing and
Conformity, Ministry of Industry, Mine and Energy, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

USAID (2005), Measuring Competitiveness and Labour Productivity in Cambodias

Garment Industry, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

World Bank (2004), Seizing Global Opportunity: Investment Climate Assessment and
Reform Strategy for Cambodia, Report No. 27925-KH, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

WTO (2004), G/SPS/GEN/204/Rev.4 (2 March 2004), Work of the Committee on

Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures.

WTO (2004), Secretariat Compilation of Barriers Notified in TN/MA/W/46 (2 December

2004), Work on NTMs in the Negotiating Group on Market Access (NAMA).

WTO (2005), G/TBT/W/250 (16 February, 2005), Technical Barriers to Trade notified
by WTO Members to the WTO Secretariat.

24
Appendix 1: Matrix of Non Tariff Measure Facing Cambodian Exporters
Maintain Products Nature of the barrier Trade effects of the Inventory
ing affected by barrier category
participa the barrier
nt

Australia Generic Giant Africa Snail (GAS): Australian - Extra cost for Part IV B
government is taking an action against inspection and
GAS and issued a draft action list of treatment fees.
countries in which GAS are known to - More complicated
exist. The draft action list includes and lengthy
Cambodia and the final list will be procedures, delay time
issued in August 2005. to reach markets.
- It would be a major
obstacle.
China All terms of China notified that Cambodia has to - Inhibit formal import Part IV B
plant products present a number of complicated from Cambodia since
including rice documents and procedures for the issuance of
and paddy imports of plant products from notification.
Cambodia. Those are: 1) Information - It is a prohibitive
of plant and/or the product being obstacle.
tested including general name,
scientific name, variety and class.
2) Information of producing area of
product indicating the province, city
and area, showing of distributing part
on the national map with making
acreage.
3) Information of field management,
growing and harvest time.
4) Information of any pest or diseases
involved including general and
scientific name, distribution, plant
with parasite, harm-stricken part of
the plant, harm season, supervision
and inspection system, an impact on
economy and biology.
5) Information of plant protection
such as method and effect of
protection adopted, the description
and frequency of chemicals used for
protection.
6) Risk management measures for
harmful plant including import
&Export Inspection and Quarantine
Law, Process and Standard.
7) Information of the organization
system of Inspection and Quarantine
Bureau from central administration to
local government, as well as its
responsibility; the institution which is
used as the inspection and quarantine
lab is included.
8) Information of ongoing procedure,

25
 organization relating to the Issuance
of Certificate of Inspection and
Quarantine, and specimen of the
Certificate.

China Confirel High and many requirements - Complicated Part IV C

products made compose of 1) Certificate of origin 2) procedures increase
from Certificate of free sales 3) Production cost and prevent
Cambodia process (description and diagram) 4) Confirel products
sugar palm Composition of formula 5) Certificate exports from Chinese
tress of registered trade mark 6) Certificate markets.
of free use of trade mark 7) -Now Confirel
Certificate of Analysis 8) Example of products are not yet
labels in Chinese accessible to her
markets.
- It is a major obstacle.
Japan Black Peppers High import requirements: to exports - Increase cost and Part IV C
black peppers to Japan, complicated place burden on
documents are required including importers.
certificate of sterilisation. -Exporters are not yet
able to develop
technology to sterilize
black peppers and this
kind of certificate is
not yet in place in
Cambodia.
- Black peppers are not
yet accessible to
Japanese market.
- It is a major obstacle.
The EU Fishery The EU approval list: to be able to - Cambodia can not Part IV C
products export fishery products to the EU, an export fishing products
exporting country must to be since 1997 due to lack
included in the approval list which are of those conditions.
attached to a number of conditions: - As LDC, Cambodia
1) the comparison of applying is lacking of expertise
country with EC legislation, 2) and international
sanitary conditions in the production standard laboratory
of fishery products/live shellfish, 3) and fails to apply for
hygienic conditions in the production inclusion in the
areas and in establishment handling approval list.
these products, 4) control such as - It is a prohibitive
physical inspection, inspection of obstacle.
HACCP systems or laboratory checks
carried out by the competent
authority.
The EU Garments Restrictive Rule of Origin criteria: - Cambodia can not Part II F
Most of imported fabrics and benefit fully from the
accessories for garment industry come tariff preference.
from countries which are not - It is a major obstacle.
qualified as pertaining to Cambodia.
Thailand Rice Government purchase and Export - Damage profits of Part I A
subsidies. Cambodian rice
exporters.
-Profit lost due to
informal paddy exports
to Thailand. During

26
 peak harvesting time,
with benefits of export
subsidies and
government purchases
Thai traders come to
buy informally paddy
from Cambodian
farmers, especially
areas along the
borders, and hold
stocks for certain
months. Local traders
can not compete with
them and hold few
quantities of paddy
stock while Cambodia
does not have this kind
of benefits. Less paddy
stocks mean less rice
production, thus less
rice exports.
- It is a major obstacle.
Vietnam Rice Government purchase and Exports - Damage profits of Part I A
Subsidies ( Under Export Assistant Cambodian rice
Fund, Vietnamese government apply exporters.
low interest rate at peak harvesting -Profit lost due to
time to encourage their traders to informal paddy exports
hold paddy and rice stocks for certain to Vietnam. During
months). peak harvesting time,
with benefits of export
subsidies and
government purchases
Vietnamese traders
come to buy informally
paddy from
Cambodian farmers,
especially areas along
the borders, and hold
stocks for certain
months. Local traders
can not compete with
them and hold few
quantities of paddy
stock while Cambodia
does not have this kind
of benefits. Less paddy
stocks mean less rice
production, thus less
rice exports.
- It is a major obstacle.
World Rubber Quality certificate: Cambodian rubber - Price discount about Part III B
Market exports are not yet certified by 20% to international
internationally recognized body. price and Cambodia
lose about $US 10
millions each year.
- Market Access
restriction

27
 - It is a major obstacle

World Pharmaceutical High requirements qualified for - Cambodian Part III B

Market products moving in international commerce pharmaceutical
and joining international bids: products are unable to
including GMP standard and bio- move into international
equivalent study: Cambodian commerce and unable
pharmaceutical companies are unable to join international
to satisfy GMP standard of WHO bidding
and unable to conduct bioequivalence - Market restriction
studies. - It is a prohibitive
obstacle
World Agricultural Organic certificate system Required - Organic Market Part IV C
Market products for access to organic market: A Restriction
number of requirements and - It is a major obstacle.
procedures needed for organic
market accession include certificate,
standard, regulations, labelling and
consumer recognition etc.

Source: authors, compiled from literature reviews and interviews

28
Appendix 2: Table of NTM Inventories
PARTS AND DESCRIPTION
SECTIONS
Part I Government Participation in Trade and Restrictive Practices Tolerated by
Governments

A Government aids, including subsidies and tax benefits

B Countervailing duties
C Government procurement
D Restrictive practices tolerated by governments
E State trading, government monopoly practices, etc.

Part II Customs and Administrative Entry Procedures

A Anti-dumping duties
B Customs valuation
C Customs classification
D Consular formalities and documentation
E Samples
F Rules of origin
G Customs formalities
H Import licensing
I Preshipment inspection

Part III Technical Barriers to Trade

A General
B Technical regulations and standards
C Testing and certification arrangements

Part IV Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures

A General
B SPS measures including chemical residue limits, disease freedom, specified
product treatment, etc.
C Testing, certification and other conformity assessment

Source: Extended Terms of Reference, Non tariff Measures Facing Asia Pacific exporters

29
Appendix 3: Questionnaire for exporters

Economic Institute of Cambodia-EIC

In co-operation with
World Trade Organization, the World Bank
and Trade Forum of Pacific Economic Cooperation

QUESTIONNAIRE OF NON TARIFF MESURES

The purpose of this survey is to identify and understand major constraints that hinder the
ability of businesses to increase cross-border sales, with the ultimate goal of providing trade
policymakers and negotiators with up-to-date information on obstacles to international
trade. Answers will be treated as strictly confidential and will not be attributed to your
company.

If you wish to discuss any questions about the survey, please contact:

Dourng Kakada
Researcher
Economic Institute Of Cambodia
Tel: (855)-12 759 857
Phone: (855)-23 987 941
Fax: (855)-23 224 626
Email: kakada.dourng@eicambodia.org

Once you have completed the survey, please return it to the above address before end of
June 2005. Thank you very much for your collaboration.

BASIC INFORMATION

Respondent Name ______________________________________________________________

Respondent Job Title ______________________________________________________________

Company Name
_____________________________________________________________

Telephone Number _____________________________________________________________

Fax Number ___________________________________________________________________

E-mail Address __________________________________________________________________

Number of year operating your business______________________________________________

Annual export sale (f.o.b)___________________________________________________________

30
Please indicate whether your would like a copy of the summary report that will arise from this
project:
Yes. If yes, please indicate your address:
____________________________________
No

Part I

1. Which products your company is exporting?

A. Clothing and Textile products

B. Shoe
C. Rubber
D. Rice
E. Fish and Fishing products
F. Pharmaceutical products
G. Others

Please specify if any______________________________________________________________________

2. Which Countries to which your company is exporting?

A. USA
B. EU
C. Japan
D. ASEAN
E. Africa
F. Others

Please specify if any______________________________________________________________________

3. What Non Tariff Barriers (NTB) imposed by importing countries you are facing? (Refer to Annex
of obstacles to trade in Part III)

Product 1________________________________

A. Country 1 ________________________________

Barrier 1________________________________________________________________

1. How to affect your

exports__________________________________________________

2. Severity of this barriers

a) Not an Obstacle b) Minor c) Moderate d) Major e)
Prohibitive

3. Frequency of Occurrence
a) Rarely b) Occasionally c) Often d)
Always

31
 4. If this barrier removed how do you increase your existing product export or other
potential products

Existing
products:____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__
Other potential
products:______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__

Additional Comments_____________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________

Barrier 2________________________________________________________________

1. How to affect your

exports__________________________________________________

2. Severity of this barriers

a) Not an Obstacle b) Minor c) Moderate d) Major
e) Prohibitive

3. Frequency of Occurrence
a) Rarely b) Occasionally c) Often d) Always

4. If this barrier removed how do you increase your existing product export or other
potential products

Existing
products:____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__
Other potential
products:______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__

Additional Comments_____________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________

32
 B. Country 2 ________________________________

Barrier 1________________________________________________________________

1. How to affect your

exports__________________________________________________

2. Severity of this barriers

a) Not an Obstacle b) Minor c) Moderate d) Major
e) Prohibitive

3. Frequency of Occurrence
a) Rarely b) Occasionally c) Often d) Always

4. If this barrier removed how do you increase your existing product export or other
potential products

Existing
products:____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__
Other potential
products:______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__

Additional Comments_____________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________

Barrier 2________________________________________________________________

1. How to affect your

exports__________________________________________________

2. Severity of this barriers

a) Not an Obstacle b) Minor c) Moderate d) Major
e) Prohibitive

3. Frequency of Occurrence
a) Rarely b) Occasionally c) Often d)
Always

4. If this barrier removed how do you increase your existing product export or other
potential products

Existing
products:____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__

33
 ____________________________________________________________________
__
Other potential
products:______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__

Additional Comments_____________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________

Product 2________________________________

A. Country 1 ________________________________

Barrier 1________________________________________________________________

1. How to affect your

exports__________________________________________________

2. Severity of this barriers

a) Not an Obstacle b) Minor c) Moderate d) Major
e) Prohibitive

3. Frequency of Occurrence
a) Rarely b) Occasionally c) Often d)
Always

4. If this barrier removed how do you increase your existing product export or other
potential products

Existing
products:____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__
Other potential
products:______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__

Additional Comments_____________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________

Barrier 2________________________________________________________________

34
 1. How to affect your
exports__________________________________________________

2. Severity of this barriers

a) Not an Obstacle b) Minor c) Moderate d) Major
e) Prohibitive

3. Frequency of Occurrence
a) Rarely b) Occasionally c) Often d)
Always

4. If this barrier removed how do you increase your existing product export or other
potential products

Existing
products:____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__
Other potential
products:______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__

Additional Comments_____________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________

B. Country 2 ________________________________

Barrier 1________________________________________________________________

1. How to affect your

exports__________________________________________________

2. Severity of this barriers

a) Not an Obstacle b) Minor c) Moderate d) Major
e) Prohibitive

3. Frequency of Occurrence
a) Rarely b) Occasionally c) Often d)
Always

4. If this barrier removed how do you increase your existing product export or other
potential products

Existing
products:____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__

35
 ____________________________________________________________________
__
Other potential
products:______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__

Additional Comments_____________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________

Barrier 2________________________________________________________________

1. How to affect your

exports__________________________________________________

2. Severity of this barriers

a) Not an Obstacle b) Minor c) Moderate d) Major
e) Prohibitive

3. Frequency of Occurrence
a) Rarely b) Occasionally c) Often d)
Always

4. If this barrier removed how do you increase your existing product export or other
potential products

Existing
products:____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__
Other potential
products:______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__

Additional Comments_____________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________

(Please use Additional sheet if you have more barriers, more countries or more products to mention)

4. Do you plan to export to other countries? If yes have you thought of some NTBs from those
countries?

______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________

36
 5. What are internal NTB you are facing in your exports?

Barrier 1________________________________________________________________

1. How to affect your exports__________________________________________________

2. Severity of this barriers

a) Not an Obstacle b) Minor c) Moderate d) Major
e) Prohibitive

3. Frequency of Occurrence
a) Rarely b) Occasionally c) Often d)
Always

4. If this barrier removed how you do increase your existing product export or other potential
products

Existing
products:____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__
Other potential
products:______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__

Additional Comments_____________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________

Barrier 2________________________________________________________________

1. How to affect your exports__________________________________________________

2. Severity of this barrier

a) Not an Obstacle b) Minor c) Moderate d) Major e)
Prohibitive

3. Frequency of Occurrence
a) Rarely b) Occasionally c) Often d)
Always

4. If this barrier removed how do you increase your existing product export or other potential
products

Existing
products:____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__

37
 ____________________________________________________________________
__
Other potential
products:______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__

Additional Comments_____________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________

Barrier 3________________________________________________________________

1. How to affect your exports__________________________________________________

2. Severity of this barriers a) High b) Medium 3) low

3. Frequency of Occurrence
a) Rarely b) Occasionally c) Often d) Always

4. If this barrier removed how you do increase your existing product export or other potential
products

Existing
products:____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__
Other potential
products:______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
__
____________________________________________________________________
__

Additional Comments_____________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________

(Please use additional sheets if you have more berries to mention)

6. In general Among NTBs below please tick which you think the most important for Cambodian
exporters and put in order? (Refer to Annex of obstacles to trade in Part III)

I. Government Participation in Trade and Restrictive Practices Tolerated by Governments

A. Government aids, including subsidies and tax benefits

B. Countervailing duties
C. Government procurement
D. Restrictive practices tolerated by governments

38
 E. State trading, government monopoly practices, etc

II. Customs and Administrative Entry Procedures

A. Anti-dumping duties
B. Customs valuation
C. Customs classification
D. Consular formalities and documentation
E. Samples
F. Rules of origin
G. Customs formalities
H. Import licensing
I. Preshipment inspection

III. Technical Barriers to Trade

A. General
B. Technical regulations and standards
C. Testing and certification arrangements

IV. Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures

A. General
B. SPS measures including chemical residue limits, disease freedom, specified product treatment,
etc.
C. Testing, certification and other conformity assessment

V. Other
Please specify:____________________________________________________________

Please provide reasons:

A.____________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
B.____________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________

(You may use additional sheet as necessary)

Part II. Additional Information on Obstacles to Trade and Their Cost to Your Business (Optional)

Please provide any additional comments or detail on trade barriers and their cost to your business
(optional). If you desire, you may provide additional information or clarifications. You may wish to reference
specific survey questions. You may wish to identify which specific regulations or procedures are the most
problematic. You may attach additional sheets as necessary.

39
Part III. Annex of Obstacle to Trade

Guidelines for Responses to Sections I and II

This survey asks you to assess the impact of different policies and procedures that affect your business' ability to export or import
using a scale from 0 to 4:

0= Not an Obstacle or Not Applicable

1= Minor Obstacle
2= Moderate Obstacle
3= Major Obstacle
4= Prohibitive Obstacle

Section I. General Obstacles to Trade

Please circle the number that shows the extent to which these areas pose trade obstacles to your business.

Degree of Obstacle: Key Countries With

Type of Obstacle:

Exporters only:
ly
pp

Please list key countries where

e
itiv

't A
ate

Do or

obstacles are major or prohibitive.

der

hib

esn
r

jor
no

ne
Mo

Pro
Ma

No
Mi

A. Product Control, Assessment and

Approval Process

B. Government Procurement
Procedures

C. Import Licensing Covered under Section II

in detail
D. Customs Procedures

E. Distribution System in Importing

Country

F. Import Quotas or Import

Prohibitions

G. Cargo handling and port

1 2 3 4 0
procedures or requirements ____________________________________

H. State-trading or state monopoly

1 2 3 4 0
control of imports ____________________________________

I. Adequacy of intellectual property

1 2 3 4 0
protection ____________________________________

J. Adequacy of legal system

1 2 3 4 0
(including enforcement) ____________________________________

K. Irregular "additional payments"

1 2 3 4 0
required to effect import ____________________________________

40
L. Subsidies or tax benefits given to
competing domestic firms in 1 2 3 4 0
importing country ____________________________________

M High internal taxes or charges 1 2 3 4 0 ____________________________________

Domestic price controls or

N. 1 2 3 4 0
administered pricing ____________________________________

O. Restrictive foreign exchange

1 2 3 4 0
allocations to importers ____________________________________
____________________________________
Anti-import campaigns by
P. 1 2 3 4 0
importing-country government ____________________________________
Q Investment approval procedures 1 2 3 4 0 ____________________________________
R Restriction on share ownership
1 2 3 4 0
by foreigners ____________________________________
S Limitation on remittance of
1 2 3 4 0
profit or earned surplus ____________________________________
T Restriction on the visa issuance
1 2 3 4 0
related to investment ____________________________________
U Other (specify):
1 2 3 4 0
__________________________ ____________________________________
V Other (specify):
1 2 3 4 0
__________________________ ___________________________________
W
Other (specify):
1 2 3 4 0
__________________________ ___________________________________

41
 Section II. Specific Obstacles to Trade

A. PRODUCT CONTROL, ASSESSMENT AND PRODUCT APPROVAL PROCEDURES

Question 1: Requirements for product control (including quarantine), assessment and product approval.
Please circle the number that shows the extent to which these areas pose trade obstacles to your business.

Degree of Obstacle: Key Countries With

Type of Obstacle:

Exporters only:
ly
pp

Please list key countries where

e
itiv

't A
ate

Do or

obstacles are major or prohibitive.

der

hib

esn
r

jor
no

ne
Mo

Pro
Ma

No
Mi

a. Expenditures to attain approval

(excluding "irregular" additional 1 2 3 4 0
payments) ____________________________________

b. Delays to attain approval 1 2 3 4 0 ____________________________________

c. Non-recognition of foreign test

1 2 3 4 0
results ____________________________________

d. Non-use of international
1 2 3 4 0
standards ____________________________________

e. Non-scientific basis to
1 2 3 4 0
requirements ____________________________________

f. Design or prescriptive
requirements 1 2 3 4 0
(non-performance based) ____________________________________

g. Data, certification or testing

1 2 3 4 0
requirements ____________________________________

h. Labelling, marking or packaging

1 2 3 4 0
requirements ____________________________________

i. Grading requirements 1 2 3 4 0 ____________________________________

j. Approval required from multiple

1 2 3 4 0
authorities ____________________________________

k. Other (specify):
1 2 3 4 0
__________________ ____________________________________

42
Question 2. Process of product control (including quarantine), assessment and product approval. Please circle
the number that shows the extent to which these areas pose trade obstacles to your business.

Degree of Obstacle: Key Countries With

Type of Obstacle:

Exporters only:

ly
pp
Please list key countries where
e
itiv

't A
ate

Do or
obstacles are major or prohibitive.
der

hib

esn
r

jor
no

ne
Mo

Pro
Ma

No
Mi

a. Lack of publication of rules and

1 2 3 4 0
regulations ____________________________________

b. Sufficiency of information about

requirements provided in
1 2 3 4 0
published and available rules and
regulations ____________________________________

c. Timeliness of information about

1 2 3 4 0
requirements ____________________________________

d. Arbitrary enforcement of
1 2 3 4 0
requirements or procedures ____________________________________

e. Control, assessment, or product

approval practices or
1 2 3 4 0
enforcement discriminate against
imports ____________________________________

f. Legal appeal or other arbitration

procedures discriminate against 1 2 3 4 0
imports ____________________________________

g. Irregular "additional payments"

required to obtain product 1 2 3 4 0
approval ____________________________________

h. Other (specify):
1 2 3 4 0
_________________________ ____________________________________

i. OVERALL ASSESSMENT of
product control, assessment and 1 2 3 4 0
product approval ____________________________________

43
B. GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT PROCEDURES AND REQUIREMENTS

Please circle the number that shows the extent to which these areas pose trade obstacles to your business.

Degree of Obstacle: Key Countries With

Type of Obstacle:

Exporters only:

ly
pp
Please list key countries where
e
itiv

't A
ate

Do or
obstacles are major or prohibitive.
der

hib

esn
r

jor
no

ne
Mo

Pro
Ma

No
Mi

a. Lack of publication of tenders,

1 2 3 4 0
rules and regulations ____________________________________

b. Sufficiency of information about

requirements provided in
1 2 3 4 0
published tenders, rules and
regulations ____________________________________

c. Design or prescription (non-

1 2 3 4 0
performance based) requirements ____________________________________

d. Arbitrary requirements for

1 2 3 4 0
qualifying to bid ____________________________________

e. Arbitrary enforcement of
1 2 3 4 0
requirements or procedures ____________________________________

f. Sole-source procurements 1 2 3 4 0 ____________________________________

g. Bid margin preferences 1 2 3 4 0 ____________________________________

h. Use of local labor, inputs, R&D,

1 2 3 4 0
offsets, or countertrade required ____________________________________

i. Timeliness of information about

1 2 3 4 0
tender requirements ____________________________________

j. Irregular "additional payments"

1 2 3 4 0
required to obtain tender ____________________________________

k. Lack of independent appeals

1 2 3 4 0
procedures ____________________________________

l. Legal or other arbitration

procedures discriminate against 1 2 3 4 0
imports ____________________________________
m. Whether to use official languages
including French and English
1 2 3 4 0

44
n. Whether to standardize documen
ts and procedures, such as registr
ation forms by place (organizatio 1 2 3 4 0
n or region) from which purchas
e order has been placed.
o. Unfavourable Bidding Condition
s for foreign companies (such as
conditions for forming a consort
1 2 3 4 0
ium composed of foreign and do
mestic companies)

p. Other (specify):

__________________ 1 2 3 4 0

____________________________________
. OVERALL ASSESSMENT of
government procurement 1 2 3 4 0
procedures and requirements ____________________________________

C. IMPORT LICENSING REQUIREMENTS AND PROCEDURES

Please circle the number that shows the extent to which these areas pose trade obstacles to your business.

Degree of Obstacle: Key Countries With

Type of Obstacle:

Exporters only:
ly
pp

Please list key countries where

e
itiv

't A
ate

Do or

obstacles are major or prohibitive.

der

hib

esn
r

jor
no

ne
Mo

Pro
Ma

No
Mi

a. Lack of publication of rules and

1 2 3 4 0
regulations ____________________________________

b. Sufficiency of information about

requirements provided in
1 2 3 4 0
published and available rules and
regulations ____________________________________

c. Timeliness of information about

1 2 3 4 0
requirements ____________________________________

d. Arbitrary enforcement of rules or

1 2 3 4 0
regulations ____________________________________

e. Delays to attain license 1 2 3 4 0 ____________________________________

f. Expenditures for license (excluding

1 2 3 4 0
"irregular" additional payments) ____________________________________

g. Irregular "additional payments"

1 2 3 4 0
required to obtain license ____________________________________

h. Lack of independent appeals

1 2 3 4 0
procedures ____________________________________

45
i. Period of license validity too
1 2 3 4 0
short ____________________________________

j. Use of local labor, inputs, R&D,

1 2 3 4 0
offsets, or countertrade required ____________________________________

k. Other (specify):
1 2 3 4 0
__________________ ____________________________________

l. OVERALL ASSESSMENT of
import licensing requirements 1 2 3 4 0
and procedures ____________________________________

D. CUSTOMS CLASSIFICATION AND CLEARANCE REQUIREMENTS AND PROCEDURES

Question 1. Customs Procedures. Please circle the number that shows the extent to which these areas pose
trade obstacles to your business.

Degree of Obstacle: Key Countries With

Type of Obstacle:

Exporters only:
ly
pp

Please list key countries where

e
itiv

't A
ate

Do or

obstacles are major or prohibitive.

der

hib

esn
r

jor
no

ne
Mo

Pro
Ma

No
Mi

a. Misclassification of goods or
1 2 3 4 0
origin of goods ____________________________________

b. Minimum values or other

arbitrary practices used to inflate 1 2 3 4 0
prices ____________________________________

c. Lack of publication of rules and

1 2 3 4 0
regulations ____________________________________

d. Sufficiency of information about

requirements provided in
1 2 3 4 0
published and available rules and
regulations ____________________________________

e. Timeliness of information about

1 2 3 4 0
requirements ____________________________________

f. Arbitrary enforcement of
1 2 3 4 0
customs rules or regulations ____________________________________

g. Delays related to lack of

1 2 3 4 0
automated customs clearance ____________________________________

h. Delays related to short operating

1 2 3 4 0
hours of customs services ____________________________________

46
i. Other delays besides g and h to
1 2 3 4 0
obtain release of goods ____________________________________

j. Irregular "additional payments"

required to obtain customs 1 2 3 4 0
clearance ____________________________________

k. Lack of independent appeals

1 2 3 4 0
procedures ____________________________________
l. Size of penalties for minor errors
1 2 3 4 0
such as typing mistakes ____________________________________
m. Transparency in Quarantine
1 2 3 4 0
Procedures (related to sanitation) ____________________________________
n. Delay of Quarantine Procedures
1 2 3 4 0
(Arbitrarily) ____________________________________

Question 2. Customs Requirements. Please circle the number that shows the extent to which these areas
pose trade obstacles to your business.

Degree of Obstacle: Key Countries With

Type of Obstacle:

Exporters only:
ly
pp

Please list key countries where

e
itiv

't A
ate

Do or

obstacles are major or prohibitive.

der

hib

esn
r

jor
no

ne
Mo

Pro
Ma

No
Mi

a. Data or documentation
1 2 3 4 0
requirements ____________________________________

b. Customs Users Fees 1 2 3 4 0 ____________________________________

c. Other (specify):
1 2 3 4 0
__________________________ ____________________________________

d. OVERALL ASSESSMENT of
customs requirements and 1 2 3 4 0
procedures ____________________________________

47
E. DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM IN IMPORTING COUNTRY

Question 1. Restrictions on imports ability to enter foreign distribution systems. Please circle the number that
shows the extent to which these areas pose trade obstacles to your business.

Degree of Obstacle: Key Countries with

Type of Obstacle:

Exporters only:

ly
pp
Please list key countries where
e
itiv

't A
ate

Do or

obstacles are major or prohibitive.

der

hib

esn
r

jor
no

ne
Mo

Pro
Ma

No
Mi

a. Monopoly or cartel by importing-

country firms allowed to control 1 2 3 4 0
distribution ____________________________________

b. Market-sharing by domestic firms

1 2 3 4 0
condoned by importing country ____________________________________

c. Predatory pricing by domestic

firms condoned by importing 1 2 3 4 0
country ____________________________________

d. Land and ownership restrictions

1 2 3 4 0
on distributor ____________________________________

e. Use of local labor, inputs, R&D,

1 2 3 4 0
offsets, or countertrade required ____________________________________
f. Retail price restrictions 1 2 3 4 0 ____________________________________
g. Tendency of the distribution
industry in importing countries to 1 2 3 4 0
avoid handling foreign items ____________________________________
h. Improper conducts of large scale
distributors in importing
countries (such as returning
1 2 3 4 0
goods and the demand for
rebates and sponsor fee)
____________________________________
i. Restrictions on imported items
by business organizations in 1 2 3 4 0
importing countries ____________________________________

j. Other (specify):
1 2 3 4 0
__________________________ ___________________________________

48
Question 2. Process related to access to foreign distribution systems. Please circle the number that shows the
extent to which these areas pose trade obstacles to your business.

Degree of Obstacle: Key Countries With

Type of Obstacle:

Exporters only:

ly
pp
Please list key countries where
e
itiv

't A
ate

Do or
obstacles are major or prohibitive.
der

hib

esn
r

jor
no

ne
Mo

Pro
Ma

No
Mi

a. Lack of published information

1 2 3 4 0
about requirements ____________________________________

b. Sufficiency of information about

requirements provided in
1 2 3 4 0
published and available rules and
regulations ____________________________________

c. Expenditures to obtain
distribution approval or license
1 2 3 4 0
(excluding "irregular" additional
payments) ____________________________________

d. Irregular "additional payments"

1 2 3 4 0
required to obtain approval ____________________________________

e. Arbitrary approval procedures 1 2 3 4 0

____________________________________

f. Delays to obtain approval to

1 2 3 4 0
distribute ____________________________________

g. Lack of independent appeals

1 2 3 4 0
procedures ____________________________________

h. Other (specify):
1 2 3 4 0
__________________________ ____________________________________

OVERALL ASSESSMENT of
i. distribution system requirements 1 2 3 4 0
and process ____________________________________

49
F. IMPORT QUOTAS OR PROHIBITIONS

Please circle the number that shows the extent to which these areas pose trade obstacles to your business.

Degree of Obstacle: Key Countries With

Type of Obstacle:

Exporters only:

ly
pp
itiv
e Please list key countries where

't A
ate

Do or
obstacles are major or prohibitive.
der

hib

esn
r

jor
no

ne
Mo

Pro
Ma

No
Mi

a. Tariff-rate quotas 1 2 3 4 0 ____________________________________

b. "Voluntary" export restraint

1 2 3 4 0
agreements ____________________________________

c. Other import quotas or

1 2 3 4 0
prohibitions ____________________________________

d. Discriminatory administration 1 2 3 4 0 ____________________________________

e. Lack of independent appeals

1 2 3 4 0
procedures ____________________________________

f. Other (specify):
1 2 3 4 0
__________________________ ____________________________________

OVERALL ASSESSMENT of
g. 1 2 3 4 0
of import quotas or prohibitions
____________________________________

End of Questionnaire -- thank you! We appreciate your help.

50