The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative reports that at the recent first meeting of the trade and investment council under the U.S.-Paraguay Trade and Investment Framework Agreement that took effect in March 2021 the two sides discussed and planned technical work throughout the next year on the following issues.
Trade facilitation – reviewing customs fees and procedures with the aim of reducing the time and cost of compliance for traders and operators; and trade facilitation for agricultural goods, including the Trade-Facilitating Agricultural Systems and Technology (T-FAST) program and its work to modernize trade facilitation processes in Paraguay
GSP – the process of renewing the Generalized System of Preferences and Paraguay’s interest in its inclusion as a GSP beneficiary
IPR – a new intellectual property work plan that will serve as a roadmap to address issues on the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights in Paraguay
Agriculture – the current process to authorize imports of raw beef products from Paraguay into the U.S., Paraguay’s work to comply with U.S. requirements, and the possibility of completing the necessary processes as soon as possible in 2023; also the potential for expanding agricultural trade in non-traditional products from Paraguay
Transparency – planned changes to Paraguay’s procurement law to enhance transparency and encourage greater participation in its procurement regime
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