What is the EBA?

The “Everything but Arms”(EBA) scheme is a permanent arrangement covering Least Developed Countries (LDC’s) as classified by the United Nations. This arrangement enables duty-free and quota-free access for all products (7200 products in total) originating in LDC’s except for arms and ammunition. Different from the Standard GSP and GSP+, LDC’s are not excluded from the scheme if they benefit from other preferential arrangements.

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11,31 K

Population

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Parliamentary Democracy under a Constitutional Monarchy

Government

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0.70%

GDP Growth

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3.80%

Inflation

money

$ 59,07 M

GDP

Facts about Tuvalu's economy

Island Economy

Tuvalu is an island economy located in the South Pacific and consists of in total nine coral atolls. Despite limited availability of arable land, about 75% of the population are involved in agriculture and subsistence farming.

Export Products

Tuvalu's exports are dominated by the fish industry. Main export products include frozen fish (tuna, skipjack, albacore, bonito, etc.).

Trade Partners

Tuvalu's most important trading partners are Tanzania, South Korea, and Singapore which mainly results from their relevance as importing markets. 28% of Tuvalu's products go to the European market, making it the most important export destination, followed by South Korea, and the USA.

Economic Structure

Subsistence farming secures the livelihood of the majority of Tuvalu's population. Only small fractions of agricultural surplus, mainly copra and fish, are being exported. The services sector, mainly driven by public services and revenues from the sale of fishing licenses, contributes the largest share to Tuvalu's GDP.

Usage of EBA Preferences

Despite about 12% of imports from Tuvalu are eligible for EBA preferences, the country does not make use of its preferential access to the EU market.

Trade with the EU

Total trade with the EU amounted to less than € 1 million in 2020. The EU only plays a minor role in Tuvalu's overall trade, ranking 11th with a share of 0.2%.

Tuvalu and the EU (2022)

Imports from Tuvalu by product section

Imports from Tuvalu over time (in € m)

TUVALU AND THE EU’s GSP

Economic Impact

1%

Only 1% of Tuvalu's exports to the European market are eligible for EBA preferences.

0%

Tuvalu currently does not make use of preferences granted under the EU's EBA.

Preference utilisation and export diversification

Tuvalu's imports to the EU

Preference Utilisation vs. total eligible imports

Overall EU imports from Tuvalu have been fluctuating considerably. Between 2017 and 2020 fluctuations can be mainly attributed to varying levels of coin exports, which form an important contribution to government revenues. Coins, however, already benefit from zero most-favoured-nation duties and are not traded under the EBA. In fact, Tuvalu has not made use of EBA preferences at all in recent years, despite almost half of its exports to the EU being eligible. However only products from three product sections could take advantage of the duty-free access to the EU market, namely machinery, metals, and instruments.

The largest product sections under EBA

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

As a beneficiary of the EBA, Tuvalu is not obligated to ratify any conventions to be able to benefit from preferential access to the European market. Tuvalu has ratified 2 of the 7 core UN conventions on the protection of human rights and one of the 8 fundamental ILO labour rights conventions. Additionally, Tuvalu has ratified 5 conventions on the protection of the environment and the UN Convention against Corruption.

Core international conventions on human rights and labour standards

Ratified

Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1981)
Convention on the Rights of the Child (1990)
Convention concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour, No 182 (1999)

Not Ratified

Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (1948)
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (1969)
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1976)
International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights (1976)
Convention Against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1987)
Convention concerning Forced or Compulsory Labour, No 29 (1930)
Convention concerning Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise, No 87 (1948)
Convention concerning the Application of the Principles of the Right to Organise and to Bargain Collectively, No 98 (1949)
Convention concerning Equal Remuneration of Men and Women Workers for Work of Equal Value, No 100 (1951)
Convention concerning the Abolition of Forced Labour, No 105 (1957)
Convention concerning Discrimination in Respect of Employment and Occupation, No 111 (1958)
Convention concerning Minimum Age for Admission to Employment, No 138 (1973)

Additional Conventions

Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (1987)
Convention on Biological Diversity (1992)
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992)
Stockholm Convention on persistent Organic Pollutants (2001)
Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1998)
United Nations Convention against Corruption (2004)

EU-Tuvalu Bilateral Development Assistance

DG INTPA

Access all info about EU-Pacific Islands Countries relations on the International Partnerships website: https://international-partnerships.ec.europa.eu/countries/pacific-islands-countries_en

Opportunities in Tuvalu

Most recent events

Date	Event

Contact points

Delegation of the European Union for the Pacific responsible for Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu as well as the four Overseas Countries and Territories in the Pacific

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