Glossary

The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) is a Regional Economic Community with 21 African member States. 16 out of the 21 COMESA Member States are participating in the COMESA FTA: Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Kenya, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Rwanda, Seychelles, Tunisia, Sudan, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is a Regional Economic Community comprising 16 Member States; Angola, Botswana, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, United Republic Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.  13 out of the 16 Member States are participating in the SADC FTA : Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe

The Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System, also known as the Harmonized System (HS), is a method developed by the World Customs Organization to classify goods in international trade. It uses code numbers to define products, with the first two numbers indicating the chapter, the second two numbers indicating the heading within the chapter and the third two numbers indicating the sub-heading within the heading. HS codes are common between countries at the six-digit level. Countries add more digits after the six-digit HS number, to achieve greater classification precision.

A Free Trade Agreement or FTA is an agreement between two or more countries that covers trade in goods and/or services and where the countries agree to facilitate trade by removing tariffs on goods and remove trade barriers among themselves, and facilitate the movement of people and businesses. FTAs help businesses to become competitive in these markets.

For trade in goods, MFN, or Most-Favoured-Nation tariff, is the normal non-discriminatory tariff charged on imports of such goods. It excludes preferential tariffs under free trade agreements and other schemes or tariffs charged inside quotas. For trade in services, an MFN guarantee means a country will treat the service suppler of another country no less favorably than it does the service suppliers of any other country.

The Rules of Origin are the criteria used to define the economic nationality of a good i.e. where a product has been made and are important for implementing other trade policy measures, including trade preferences. Preferential Rules of Origin under a Free Trade Agreement will determine whether a product can be considered as originating in an FTA party and therefore eligible for preferential tariff treatment under the FTA.

A good that meets the rules of origin of a free trade agreement and is therefore eligible for preferential tariff treatment.

Generally, components of a good/product which have not been produced in an FTA party.

Wholly obtained goods are products which are exclusively from the territory of the parties to the FTA. They typically include agricultural products and natural resources

A specific rule of origin, or specific set of rules, that applies to a product to determine whether it can be considered originating in an FTA party and therefore eligible to receive preferential treatment under the agreement.

This is a product specific rule which requires a product to have undergone a specific amount of value added in either or both of the FTA partners.

When quantities within a specified quota are charged lower import duty rates than those above the quota.

The tariff rate applicable to a good/product imported within a specified tariff quota.

The tariff rate applicable to a good/product which is subject to a tariff quota and imported when that quota is already filled.

When a country lists a sector in its schedule and makes a specific commitment in it, this means that the country agrees to allow foreign service suppliers to enter its market to provide a service (market access) and agrees to treat foreign suppliers under the same terms and conditions as it treats its domestic suppliers (national treatment). There are four modes of supply for trade in services.

This concerns the supply of a service across the border by a service supplier to a consumer in another country. Only the service crosses the border, the consumer does not move to consume the service and the service supplier does not establish himself abroad to provide the service. The delivery of the service can take place, for example, through telecommunications (telephone, fax, television, Internet, etc.), or the sending of documents, disks, tapes, etc.

This occurs when consumers consume services while outside their country. In this mode, the consumer moves to consume a service abroad. For example a Mauritian going to China to study.

This is the case of a service supplier who establishes, operates, or expands a business to provide its services in another country, through a branch, agency, or wholly-owned subsidiary. For example a Mauritian bank opening and operating a subsidiary in Seychelles.

This occurs when an individual moves temporarily into another country, whether as a self - employed or as an employee of a supplier, to provide services to consumers there. For example a Mauritian accountant employed by an accounting firm established in Luxembourg.