Jakarta, Aug 12 (Antara) - The United States is one of Indonesia's main fish export destination nations, as since 2015, the country has exempted its fish import duties through the Generalized System of Preference (GSP) mechanism.
However, Indonesia's fish exports to the United States might drop as the latter will, in the near future, impose a stringent rule on its fish imports through a seafood import monitoring program (SIMP) plan.
The US government is drafting a bill that will impose stricter conditions, such as the obligation of the fishermen of exporting countries to explain the location of fish catch and the types of fishing vessels and nets they used to catch the fish. Moreover, the fishermen will be required to provide details on their fish processing mechanism.
Based on the data from the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry, as quoted by the Tribun-Medan.com on March 14, the value of Indonesia's fish exports to the United States dropped by 37.5 percent from US$1.84 billion in 2014 to $1.15 billion in 2015.
The exports could drop further if the SIMP is imposed in the near future. Moreover, the government has yet to take serious, significant, and anticipatory steps. So far, the Indonesian government has not made efforts to lobby the US government or to launch a protest or raised an objection against the latter with regard to the new regulation.
According to Kontan.co.id online media, the Indonesian government has so far only ordered its embassy in the United States to follow the developments related to the plan. This is because the new ruling is still in the planning phase.
"As long as the US government has not yet taken real actions, it will be difficult for us to lodge a protest," Iman Pambagyo, director general of international trade negotiations of the Ministry of Trade, was quoted on Wednesday (Aug. 8) as saying by Kontan.co.id.
Imam said the Indonesian government will respect the plan of a country to set new standards or to improve the quality standards of the products it will import.
He said that the Indonesian government had adopted a tolerant approach on the new ruling by export destination countries based on regulations put in place with the World Trade Organization, the first being that Indonesia would not discriminate between imported and local products.
The second is that it would not take unnecessary actions that would hinder trade, particularly if there are other steps that could be taken jointly to reach a common goal.
In the meantime, fishery businesses continue to make every effort to increase their exports to the United States as one of Indonesia's largest markets. However, the exports have decreased in line with the strict standards.
The United States is a potential market for Indonesia as it has exempted duties on these products. However, the US government is also drafting a law that necessitates fishermen to explain the location of the fish catch as well as the types of vessels and fishing nets used.
Chairman of the Indonesian Fishery Businesses Herwindo Suwondo acknowledged that the requirements set for goods exported to the United States have been increasingly tightened.
"Many of our tuna products are rejected as they had failed to meet the required standards set by the United States," he informed Kontan.co.id on March 13.
However, Herwindo noted that the drop in Indonesian fish exports was not entirely due to the stringent quality standards but also the result of a moratorium imposed by Indonesia at home on ex-foreign fishing vessels. Moreover, certain types of fish, such as tuna, can only be caught by long-line vessels, most of which are built overseas.
"This harms the country's interests in terms of its fish exports as tuna is the mainstay of Indonesian fish exports," noted Herwindo.
Being one of the backbones of Indonesian fishery exports, the production and export volumes of tuna fish should be increased and maintained to contribute to the country's foreign exchange earnings.
Until the first quarter of 2015, based on data provided by the Central Bureau of Statistics, Indonesia's trade balance in fishery exports had recorded a surplus. Tuna exports contributed significantly after shrimps, at $89.42 million.
Herwindo believes that the only way to boost Indonesia's fish exports is to improve the country's fishery standards, including of the fishery products exported to Japan and the European Union.
Chairman of the Association of Indonesian Fisheries Processing and Product Marketing Budhi Wiboso acknowledged that importers from the United States were becoming increasingly stringent. Some demand an international certification on food and environment-related safety.
Earlier, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti had affirmed that Indonesia should prioritize the governance of its fishery industry. The Indonesian fishery industry should become more accountable for its products as required by the global market.
***3***(A014/INE)EDITED BY INE(T.A014/A/BESSR/A. Abdussalam) 12-08-2016 19:26:3 |
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar