Skopje, 27 June 2022 (MIA) – Cooperation in different service sectors contributed to progress in the field of electronic commerce, in particular on removing unjustified geo-blocking and making parcel delivery easier in CEFTA, the CEFTA Subcommittee on Trade in Services said in a press release on Monday. “CEFTA experts are unanimous in their belief that the pandemic challenges brought new opportunities for trade, which is why one of the key priorities of CEFTA this year is to work on making e-commerce easier. A package of three CEFTA Joint Committee decisions has been made, aimed at making online business in CEFTA easier, but also strengthening consumers’ trust. All of CEFTA’s activities are based on EU acquis and best practices which help the CEFTA members in their EU accession,” according to the CEFTA Secretariat. The Subcommittee of Trade in Services also discussed other initiatives in the area of tourism, professional qualifications, financial services, work permit and statistics. One of the objectives is to make movement easier for people who travel to provide services, by removing excessive administrations mostly related to work permits and licences. “We have completed the technical work, which is the most challenging part. We are very close to have these documents for adoption. I believe this is good news for businesses who hope to expand their consumer base to other CEFTA markets.” said Emir Djikic, Director of the CEFTA Secretariat. The Subcommittee on Trade in Services approved the upgraded CEFTA Services Regulatory Database and announced it will be launched soon. The Regulatory Database will ensure that the domestic rules are transparent, non-discriminatory, proportionate, and justified by public interest objectives, with the aim of preventing barriers for intra-CEFTA services trade. CEFTA Additional Protocol 6 (AP6) on Trade in Services was adopted in 2019 and entered into force on 11 January 2021. This document extended the principle of free trade within CEFTA to the service sector. AP6 provides a framework for the spurring growth of trade in services, in addition to the previously abolished restrictions on trade in industrial and agricultural products. The protocol focuses in particular on commitments on market access and those related to discrimination of companies on the market.