RESTRICTED
WORLD TRADE G/SCM/Q2/ZAF/2
13May 1997
ORGANIZATION(97-2006)
Original: English Committee onSubsidies andCountervailing Duties
SUBSIDIES
Response toRequest from theEUROPEAN COMMUNITY
toSOUTH AFRICA Pursuant toArticle 25.10 oftheAgreement
Thefollowingcommunication,dated2May1997,hasbeenreceivedfromthePermanentMission
ofSouth Africa.
_______________
Pursuant tothecross notification ofsubsidies contained indocument G/SCM/Q2/ZAF/1 which
theEuropean Community believes theSouth African Government isgranting, theSouth African
Government wishes torespond asfollows:
Request from theEC
TheCommunity requests thatthesubsidies described inthenon-exhaustive listbelow, plusall
other specific subsidies granted bySouth Africa, arenotified inaccordance with thestandard WTO
questionnaire onsubsidies, intime forthemeeting oftheWTO Subsidies Committee on
23-24 October 1996.
Response
Subsidy programmes
1. TheGeneral Export Incentive Scheme (GEIS)
Thescheme wasnotified totheCommittee onSubsidies andCountervailing Measures in1995
interms ofArticle 28oftheSubsidies Agreement. GEIS willbephased outbytheendof1997, at
thelatest.
2. Export Marketing Assistance Scheme (EMA)
This scheme isnotaspecific subsidy asdefined intheWTO Agreement onSubsidies and
Countervailing Measures andistherefore notnotifiable. Theprogramme isnotcontingent upon exports,
norisitaspecific subsidy.
./.G/SCM/Q2/ZAF/2
Page 2
3. Financing fortheexport ofcapital goods andservices
This programme isnotanotifiable subsidy forthepurposes oftheAgreement. Theinterest
rates oftheSouth African Credit Finance aremarket related andbased onOECD consensus rates such
astheInternational Reference Rates.
4. Assistance tothesteel product exporters intheform offinancing andaprice rebate scheme
There isnogovernment involvement inthisprogramme.
5. TheAgricultural Finance Assistance Programme
Theassistance given toagriculture isofademinimis nature andfalls within the"green box"
subsidies oftheAgreement onAgriculture. This programme was notified totheCommittee on
Agriculture.
6. Preferential electricity andfreight rates
This programme isofacommercial nature with nogovernment involvement.
TheotherprogrammesidentifiedbytheEuropeanCommunitywillbecontainedinSouthAfrica's
subsidy notification totheCommittee onSubsidies andCountervailing Measures which willbesubmitted
shortly.