(NAR) VOL. 7 NO. 2 / APRIL-JUNE 1996; 92 OG No. 22, 3415 (May 27, 1996)
WHEREAS, the Medium-Term Philippine
Development Plan (MTPDP) 1993-1998 focuses on global competitiveness and
people empowerment as the twin strategies towards achieving sustainable
economic and human development;
WHEREAS, in order to
achieve global competitiveness, the said Plan stipulates that the
government should continue to undertake the import liberalization and
tariff reform programs which will result in uniform levels of trade and
industrial protection across various sectors of the
economy;
WHEREAS, during the Economic Caucus held on
22 July 1993 and the People's Economic Summit on 8 September 1993, it
was agreed to further liberalize trade policy through tariff reform and
import liberalization;
WHEREAS, the liberalization of
import restrictions on agricultural products also forms part of the
Government's commitment as member of the World Trade
Organization;
WHEREAS, the lifting of import
restrictions on agricultural products, mandated under Republic Act 8179
entitled, "An Act Replacing Quantitative Import Restrictions (QRs) on
Agricultural Products, Except Rice, with Tariffs, Creating the
Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund and Providing Funds
Therefor," may create initial difficulties for the producers as they
adjust to a more open trade regime;
WHEREAS, the
government needs to provide interim tariff adjustments in lieu of the
import restrictions to help the agricultural sector to be efficient and
globally competitive;
WHEREAS, Section 401 of the
Tariff and Customs Code of 1978 (Presidential Decree No. 1464), as
amended, empowers the President to increase, reduce or remove existing
protective rates of import duty, including any necessary changes in
classification, as well as to modify the form of duty upon the
recommendation of the National Economic and Development
Authority;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, FIDEL V. RAMOS,
President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by
law, do hereby order:
SECTION 1. The articles
specifically listed in Annex "A"
* hereof, as classified under Section 104 of the
Tariff and Customs Code of 1978, as amended, shall pay the rates of
import duty in accordance with the schedule indicated opposite each
article as listed in the aforementioned
Annex.
SECTION 2. For certain articles, two rates of
import duty are provided. For these articles, a Minimum Access Volume
(MAV) is provided. The MAV refers to the volume of a specific
agricultural product that is allowed to be imported with a lower rate of
duty. The In-Quota rate of duty shall apply for importations that are
within the MAV provided for an agricultural product. The Out-Quota rate
of duty shall apply when the importation is in excess of the MAV
specified for an agricultural product.
SECTION 3.
Upon the effectivity of this Executive Order, the articles specifically
listed in the aforesaid Annex "A"
* which are entered into or withdrawn from
warehouses in the Philippines for consumption shall be levied the rates
of duty herein prescribed.
SECTION 4. All
Presidential issuances, administrative rules and regulations, or parts
thereof, which are inconsistent with this Executive Order are hereby
revoked or modified accordingly.
SECTION 5. The
Executive Order shall take effect 30 days following its complete
publication in two (2) newspapers of general circulation in the
Philippines.
Adopted: 29 March
1996
(SGD.)
FIDEL V. RAMOS
President of the
Philippines
By the
President:
(SGD.) RUBEN D.
TORRES
Executive
Secretary
* Text available at Office of the National
Administrative Register, U.P. Law Complex, Diliman, Quezon
City