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Reviewing Agricultural Trade Policies

To Promote Intra-OIC Agricultural Trade

46

3.3.1. Measures directly affecting imports

According to Table 3.1, the Arab group countries apply the lowest average tariff protection in all

three categories both to the OIC and to the non-OIC countries with the exception of agricultural

rawmaterials for which Asian group countries have lower weighted average tariffs. Considering

the low export volume of this category for the Arab group compared to their exports in

agricultural food products, this can be considered to be controversial since the lowering or total

removal of tariffs applied to the raw materials will increase the competitiveness of the food

sector. The highest protection is applied by the African group and in all three categories.

The three groups’ weighted average tariff rates are higher for non-OIC countries except in the

agricultural food products for which the African group’s average tariff rate on imports fromnon-

OIC countries is slightly lower than OIC countries. This should be resulting from preferential

trade agreements and particularly from the ones established with the European Union with

which the continent has historic economic ties. Similarly, the weighted average tariff rate for

agricultural raw materials are lower for non-OIC countries in the Asian and Arab groups.

Table 3. 1 Weighted Average Applied Tariff Rates, Ad Valorem Equivalent, %

Agri-Food

Fish

Agri-Raw

Importer

From OIC

From

non-OIC

From OIC

From

non-OIC

From OIC

From non-

OIC

African group

13.8

12.4

10.7

12.0

4.9

5.0

Asian group

10.2

12.5

4.7

6.6

1.0

0.8

Arab group

4.9

9.5

3.2

5.8

2.3

2.1

Source: ITC Macmap, CEPII BACI, Eurostat RAMON, UN Comtrade, UN Trade Statistics, and authors’

calculations

Table 3. 1 also shows that, among all three groups, the group which positively discriminates the

most intra-OIC trade is the Arab group with a weighted average tariff rate relatively much higher

for non-OIC countries for agricultural food and fish categories.

Table 3. 2 shows the last three years’ average tariff rates applied by the groups to their top 5

import products. The African group’s tariff protection is 3.1% for the imports from the same

group, 18.9% from the Asian group and 17.0% from the Arab group. However, the African

group’s average tariff rate is only 10.9% for the non-OIC countries, almost two folds of the one

applied to the Asian group.

Table 3. 2 Groups’ Average Tariff Rates for Their Top 5 Import Products, %

Importer

From African

group

From Asian

group

From Arab

group

From non-OIC

countries

African group

3.1

18.9

17.0

10.9

Asian group

1.3

7.8

13.3

11.9

Arab group

8.6

16.3

0.8

11.2

Source: ITC Macmap, CEPII BACI, Eurostat RAMON, UN Comtrade, UN Trade Statistics, and authors’

calculations. Note: Top 5 products in 3-year average between 2014 and 2016, applied tariff rates, ad

valorem equivalent.

Although using the weighted average for a group of countries covers too many details and it is

difficult to deduce concrete policy proposals, it is however certain that the existing preferential

trade agreements and Free Trade Areas (FTAs) between some African countries with non-OIC