TPPA
what is TPPA?
THE Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA), an initiative to
establish a free trade agreement (FTA) between 12 countries - Australia,
Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru,
Singapore, the United States and Vietnam - will see a market of 800
million people and combined gross domestic product (GDP) of US$27.5
trillion (RM89.1 trillion).
The agreement covers new elements
such as competition, labour, environment, government procurement and
intellectual property rights. The International Trade and Industry
Ministry (Miti) has put together a Q&A (question and answer) to
address public concerns and fears about the ongoing talks.
Advantage:
Consultations with various stakeholders prior to joining TPPA
negotiations have revealed an increasing request from Malaysian
companies for more open markets and trade facilitative measures. There
are increasing numbers of Malaysian companies becoming global investors
and they require a level of predictability that can be guaranteed
effectively through binding agreements like FTAs.
Concurrently, there is also interest from foreign companies from
non-TPPA countries that are exploring Malaysia as a base for their
operations as the hope to enjoy the benefits of the TPPA. The
combination of greater market access for Malaysian products and services
under the TPPA and the continued inflow of foreign investments will
create a powerful catalyst in driving Malaysia's economic transformation
agenda.
With TPPA, Malaysia will become an integral part of the
greater economic integration within the Asia- Pacific region. It will
also significantly enhance Malaysia's engagement with important trading
partners such as the US, Canada, Mexico and Peru. As a member of TPPA,
Malaysia will also be able to increase it participation in the regional
supply and value chains and facilitate access for Malaysian products and
services into bigger markets.
challenges:
The government is aware of the many benefits and the challenges
involved. For instance, government procurement is one of the new
elements in TPP, which was never part of the FTAs that Malaysia has
signed. This is one strategic area the government is negotiating
cautiously, after taking into consideration feedback from stakeholders,
particularly on the concern of safeguarding the interest of local
enterprises and the Bumiputera commercial and industrial community.
Intellectual
Property Rights (IPR) is another difficult area. One of the main
concerns on IPR revolves around access to affordable medi-cine and
healthcare as well as longer protection term which might delay
manufacturing of generic drugs.
Malaysian negotiators will
continue to negotiate an outcome that will give Malaysians access to
affordable medicine and healthcare.
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