EU officials to arrive in Sri Lanka next month to review fisheries ban
Sat, Oct 10, 2015, 10:59 pm SL Time, ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.
Oct 10, Colombo: A technical evaluation team of European Union is scheduled to arrive in Sri Lanka to review the ban on Sri Lankan fish exports to the European Union, a Fisheries Department official said.
Director General of the Fisheries Department Christy Perera said that several officials of the European Union are scheduled to arrive in Sri Lanka on the 7th of November.
Currently an official of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission is in the island to study the relevant facts regarding the withdrawal of the EU fish export ban imposed against the country.
It is expected that the European Union would adopt a proposal to remove the fish export ban imposed on Sri Lanka after the representatives submitted their investigation reports to the European Parliament.
The Department said that out of the 57 conditions laid to Sri Lanka 35 of them have been fulfilled. These 35 conditions falls under the 36 essential conditions. The time period stipulated by the European Union for fulfilling these conditions ends on 31st of October.
The Director General expresses hopes that the fish export ban will be withdrawn by next year.
According to the Foreign Affairs Ministry, Sri Lanka's estimated loss of revenue since the European Union imposed the ban on the export of fishery products from the island nation since January exceeds US$ 75 million.
The European Commission October 2014 proposed to ban imports of fisheries products from Sri Lanka, the second biggest exporter to the bloc, due to Sri Lanka's failure to demonstrate that it sufficiently addressed illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. The ban went into effect from 14 January 2015.
Guys how much would TESS AGRO move if the fish ban is removed? The European Union is their main export region.
It seems SL has fulfilled 35 of the 36 essential conditions already so the likelihood of the ban lifting is very high.