The government of Mauritius has accepted to adhere to the Declaration on the Expansion of Trade in Information Technology Products, also known as the Information Technology Agreement (ITA), of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
The Declaration provides for State Parties to eliminate customs and other duties and charges in respect of a range of IT products, including chemical preparation for photographic uses, copying machines, parts and accessories to word processing machines, sound recording, electrical circuits, medical instruments, and electrical measuring appliances.
The ITA expansion will help boost exports of ICT products by lowering their prices, thus facilitating the diffusion and adoption of affordable ICT products and services.
The Information Technology Agreement is a plurilateral trade agreement that requires participants to eliminate their tariffs on a specific list of information technology and telecommunications products.
The agreement covers approximately 97 percent of world trade in defined IT products, which is currently estimated to exceed $1 trillion.
Products covered under the ITA include computer hardware and peripherals, telecommunications equipment, computer software, semiconductor manufacturing equipment, analytical instruments, and semiconductors and other electronic components.
Originally signed in 1997 by 29 countries or customs territories, including the United States, the ITA now has 46 participants, covering 73 World Trade Organisation members and states or separate customs territories in the process of acceding to the WTO.
