Statement by Press Secretary Fitzwater on Beneficiary Trade Status for the Central African Republic, Chile, Namibia, and Paraguay

The President today designated four countries as beneficiaries under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP).

Namibia, which became an independent country on March 21, 1990, is being designated as a GSP beneficiary for the first time; the Central African Republic (CAR), Chile, and Paraguay are being reinstated as beneficiaries. The GSP grants duty-free access to the United States to certain goods from developing countries. The four beneficiary countries can now export more than 4,230 products to the United States duty-free. For the first 11 months of 1990, the CAR exported $70,519 in GSP eligible products to the United States; Chile, $131 million; Paraguay, $21 million; and Namibia, $903,160.

The CAR, Chile, and Paraguay had been suspended from the GSP program for their failure to provide internationally recognized worker rights, as required by the GSP statute. The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) conducted a review of changes in the countries' laws and practices and determined that the countries now meet the worker rights requirements. Other GSP eligibility criteria include whether countries provide "adequate and effective" protection of intellectual property. The USTR review determined that Chile was making progress in providing improved patent protection.