The Legislative Yuan on Friday passed amendments to a bill that will allow the tariff-free importation of 46 different items from the Kingdom of Eswatini, including nuts and dried fruits, into Taiwan.
The Cabinet on Sept. 21 approved the amendments to the Customs Import Tariff proposed by the Ministry of Finance (MOF), and the Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee completed its review on Oct. 18.
Under the bill’s provisions, the tariff waiver is to take effect 30 days after the two countries have completed their respective internal legal procedures.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
The passage of the amendments was part of a commitment to enhance bilateral trade and ties under an economic cooperation agreement Taiwan and Eswatini, the nation’s only ally in Africa, signed in December 2018.
At a legislative committee hearing, Minister of Finance Chuang Tsui-yun (莊翠雲) said the 46 Eswatini products to receive tariff-free treatment include nuts, dried fruits, molasses, brewed drinks, dried onions, vegetable juices, and textile and garments.
In a report recently presented to the committee, the Ministry of Agriculture, which worked with the MOF in preparing the amendments, told lawmakers that the tariff waiver would not have a negative impact on Taiwan’s agricultural sector.
According to the latest statistics the International Trade Administration published in February, bilateral trade between Taiwan and Eswatini totaled US$16.16 million last year, a decrease of 9 percent from US$17.96 million in 2021.
Eswatini’s main exports to Taiwan include ethyl alcohol, sauces, grapefruit, machinery parts, cotton yarn and metal jewelry, while Taiwan’s main exports to Eswatini consist of rice, printing machinery, filament yarn, dyeing machines, slide fasteners and garments.
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