Health
1. The Parties agree to encourage mutual cooperation and information exchange in the fields of health and the effective management of cross-border health problems.
2. The Parties shall seek to promote information exchange and mutual cooperation, inter alia, as follows:
(a)
information exchange on the surveillance of infectious diseases, including pandemic influenza, and on the early warning and countermeasures;
(b)
information exchange on the health strategies and the public health plans;
(c)
information exchange on health promotion policies, such as anti-smoking campaigns, obesity prevention and disease control;
(d)
information exchange to the extent possible in the field of pharmaceutical safety and approval;
(e)
information exchange to the extent possible, as well as joint research in the field of food safety such as food laws and regulations, emergency alert, etc.;
(f)
cooperation in R&D related aspects, such as advanced treatment and innovative, orphan drugs;
(g)
information exchange and cooperation regarding e-health policy.
3. The Parties shall endeavour to promote implementation of international health agreements such as the International Health Regulations and the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.
Employment and social affairs
1. The Parties agree to enhance cooperation in the field of employment and social affairs, including in the context of globalisation and demographic change. Efforts shall be made in promoting cooperation and exchanges of information and experiences regarding the employment and labour matters. Areas of cooperation may include regional and social cohesion, social integration, social security systems, lifelong skills development, health and safety at the workplace, gender equality and decent work.
2. The Parties reaffirm the need to support a process of globalisation which is beneficial to all and to promote full and productive employment and decent work as a key element of sustainable development and poverty reduction.
3. The Parties reaffirm their commitments to respect, promote and realise internationally recognised labour and social standards, as laid down in particular in the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Rights and Principles at Work.
4. The forms of cooperation may include, inter alia, specific programmes and projects, as mutually agreed, as well as dialogue, cooperation and initiatives on topics of common interest at bilateral or multilateral level.
Environment and natural resources
1. The Parties agree on the need to conserve, and manage in a sustainable manner, natural resources and biological diversity as a basis for the development of current and future generations.
2. The Parties shall endeavour to continue and to strengthen their cooperation on protection of the environment, including in a regional context, specifically as regards:
(a)
climate change and energy efficiency;
(b)
environmental awareness;
(c)
participating in and implementing multilateral environmental agreements, including biodiversity, biosafety and the Convention on International Trade in endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora;
(d)
promoting environmental technologies, products and services, including environmental management systems and environmental labelling;
(e)
prevention of illegal transboundary movement of hazardous substances, hazardous wastes and other forms of waste;
(f)
coastal and marine environment, conservation, pollution, and degradation control;
(g)
local participation in environmental protection as a key element of sustainable development;
(h)
soils and land management;
(i)
the exchange of information, expertise and practices.
3. The outcome of the World Summit on Sustainable Development and the implementation of relevant multilateral environmental agreements shall be taken into account, as relevant.
Climate change
1. The Parties recognise the common global threat of climate change and the need to take action to cut emissions in order to stabilise greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. Within the scope of their respective competences, and without prejudice to discussions on climate change in other fora, such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Parties shall enhance cooperation in this field. Such cooperation shall aim at:
(a)
combating climate change, with the overall goal of a rapid transition to low-carbon societies, through nationally appropriate mitigation and adaptation actions;
(b)
advocating the efficient use of resources, inter alia through widespread use of best available and economically viable low carbon technologies and standards for mitigations and adaptation;
(c)
exchanging expertise and information regarding benefits and architecture of trading schemes;
(d)
enhancing public and private sector financing instruments, including market mechanisms and public private partnerships which could effectively support action to combat climate change;
(e)
collaborating on low-carbon technology research, development, diffusion, deployment and transfer in order to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions while maintaining economic growth;
(f)
exchanging experience and expertise, where appropriate, in monitoring and analysing greenhouse gases’ effects and developing mitigation and adaptation programmes;
(g)
supporting, where appropriate, mitigation and adaptation action of developing countries, including through the Flexible Mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol.
2. To these ends, the Parties agree to intensify dialogue and cooperation at political, policy and technical levels.
Agriculture, rural development and forestry
The Parties agree to encourage cooperation in agriculture, rural development and forestry. The Parties will exchange information and develop cooperation in particular on:
(a)
agricultural and forestry policy and international agricultural and forestry outlook in general;
(b)
the registration and protection of Geographical Indications;
(c)
organic production;
(d)
research in the field of agriculture and forestry;
(e)
development policy for rural areas and in particular diversification and restructuring of agricultural sectors;
(f)
sustainable agriculture, forestry and integration of environmental requirements into agricultural policy;
(g)
the links between agriculture, forestry and environment and the development policy for rural areas;
(h)
promotion activities for agricultural food products;
(i)
sustainable forest management to prevent deforestation and encourage the creation of new woodland, including due regard to interests of developing countries where timber is sourced.
Marine and fisheries
The Parties shall encourage marine and fisheries cooperation, at bilateral and multilateral level, particularly with a view to promoting sustainable and responsible marine and fisheries development and management. Areas of cooperation may include:
(a)
the exchange of information;
(b)
supporting sustainable and responsible long term marine and fisheries policy including conservation and management of coastal and marine resources; and
(c)
promoting efforts to prevent and combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing practices.
Development assistance
1. The Parties agree to exchange information on their development assistance policies with a view to establishing a regular dialogue on the objectives of these policies and their respective development aid programmes in third countries. They will study to what extent more substantial cooperation is feasible, in accordance with their respective legislations and the conditions applicable to the implementation of these programmes.
2. The Parties reaffirm their commitment to the Paris Declaration of 2005 on Aid Effectiveness and agree to strengthen cooperation with a view to further improving development performance.
Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.
