UK to slash import duties for 65 countries

The UK will be extending its import tariff cuts to hundreds more products such as clothes and food from 65 developing nations, but South Africa does not qualify for the benefit.

The Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) comes to effect in January and replaces a previous scheme - the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP), Reuters reported. The new scheme will apply to existing beneficiaries of the GSP – these include 47 countries in the Least Developed Countries Framework, such as Angola, Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia. It will also apply to 18 additional countries – classified as low-income and lower-middle-income countries by the World Bank.

According to a policy paper issued by the State Secretary for the UK's Department of International Trade, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, the scheme will offer lower tariffs and simpler rules of origin requirements for products exported to the UK. This will make it easier for the world's poorest nations to export to the UK. BBC reported that the scheme will affect 99% of goods exports from Africa.

South Africa is classified as upper-middle income by the World Bank, which the scheme does not apply to. Nor does the scheme apply to low and lower-middle-income countries with a free trade agreement with the UK. If countries are considered least developed, they can choose to trade with the UK under the DCTS or on free trade agreement terms.

The British High Commission also highlighted that South Africa is part of the economic partnership agreement between the UK and the Southern African Customs Union and Mozambique (SACUM).-Fin24