Participating in consultations on changes to EU agri-food and fisheries legislation: feedback from the webinars held on 28 and 30 May 2024

Participating in consultations on changes to EU agri-food and fisheries legislation: feedback from the webinars held on 28 and 30 May 2024

As part of the FFM+ and AGRINFO programmes, COLEAD, through its Regulations & Standards and Technical Assistance departments, organised an informative webinar on the procedures for monitoring and participating in consultations on future changes to the European Union’s agri-food and fisheries regulations.

The webinar, which attracted a total of 273 participants (mainly from BMOs and Competent authorities in member countries of the OACPS), was held in two sessions: in English on 28 May and in French on 30 May.

The discussions focused on a number of key issues:

• the challenges faced by the EU’s partner countries, particularly in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific (ACP), in monitoring changes to EU rules.
• how the EU is addressing these challenges and the opportunities for participation in consultations;
• mechanisms for being informed about and making effective use of consultations;
• the potential impacts of certain changes;
• the investments required to meet new safety, social and environmental standards and who will bear the costs;
• the ability of ACP producers to adapt within the timeframe set by the EU.

The EU’s ‘Have Your Say’ consultation system and WTO consultations offer opportunities for influence. The results of these consultations are essential for informing EU policy decisions, and the participation of ACP stakeholders is crucial, but currently too limited.

To keep abreast of the consultations, participants were encouraged to subscribe to AGRINFO’s  newsletter, which is sent out every 2-3 weeks. To subscribe, click here.

The AGRINFO website (https://agrinfo.eu) also provides links to EU SPS/TBT notifications and WTO draft texts, with clear explanations of forthcoming changes, their implications and recommended actions.

During the webinar, COLEAD outlined the benefits available to ACP countries under the Fit For Market Plus programme:

• support for the establishment of a monitoring and data collection system
• facilitation of public-private dialogue
• facilitating regional/intercontinental exchanges to share experiences
• research and innovation (e.g. trials) to feed indicators and data

A survey conducted during the webinar showed that the majority of participants were not aware of the EU and WTO consultation systems or their national contact point for submitting comments via WTO/ePing. This encourages us to implement and multiply this type of initiative.

This activity is supported by the Fit For Market+ programme, implemented by COLEAD in the framework of the development cooperation between the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) and the European Union; and AGRINFO, is a programme funded by the European Union and implemented by COLEAD. This publication receives financial support from the European Union and the OACPS. The content of this publication is the sole responsibility of COLEAD and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union or the OACPS.