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WT/BFA/182  
 
6 December  2019 
(19-8224) Page: 1/7 
Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration    
 
REPORT OF THE MEETIN G HELD ON 21 OCTOBER  2019  
The Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration (CBFA) met on 21 October 2 019.  
 
His Excellency Ambassador Dagfinn Sørli (Permanent Representative of Norway to the WTO and 
EFTA), welcomed Members to the meeting. He then introduced the agenda for the day, bearing the 
reference  WTO/AIR/BFA/3 4 and the annotated agenda bearing the reference JOB/BFA/39.  
He asked if any Members had items to propose under "Other Business".  
The followi ng items were included under "Other Business": Update regarding the revision of Financial 
Regulations 23, 28 and 29.   
 
The agenda set out in WTO/AIR/BFA/34, with the item proposed for "Other Business" was adopted.  
 
1  BIENNIAL TECHNICAL A SSISTANCE AND TRAINI NG PLAN FOR 2020 -2021  – 
WT/COMTD /W/248 
1.1.  The Chairman introduced the agenda item by saying that the Committee on Trade and 
Development (CTD) is responsible for reviewing and elaborating on the policy  and programmatic 
aspects of the T echnical Assistance and Training Plan (TA Plan)  whilst the role of the CBFA is to 
review the financial aspects and making specific recommendations regarding the financial aspects 
to the General Council.  
1.2.  An Official from the Secretariat drew the CBFA's attention to the document with the reference 
WT/COMTD/W/248  and said that this is to be presented to the CTD on 22 November  2019. She 
highlighted some corrections that had been made to the document between the date it was circulated 
to CBFA  Members  and 21 October . Thes e mainly related to the Activity Matrix.  
1.3.  The Official from the Secretariat presented the four Key Results Areas and the allocation of 
funds to each in the proposed budget.  She said that the 2020 -21 TA Plan assumed the same level 
of activities as in 2018 a nd 2019. Therefore, the regular budget allocation to the TA Plan was 
proposed to stay the same , at CHF 4.548 million per year . The budgeted extra -budgetary 
contributions are CHF 15,032 million per year.  
1.4.  The Official from the Secretariat indicated that a c onsultative process with Donors and 
Beneficiaries of Technical Assistance had been conducted in order to arrive at the 2020 -2021 
TA Plan. She emphasized that the main purpose of Trade Related Technical Assistance is to enhance 
the human and institutional c apacities of beneficiaries to take full advantage of the rules -based 
Multilateral Trading System, deal with the emerging challenges and enforce their rights and 
obligations as Members . 
1.5.  Turning to the Doha Development Agenda Global Trust Fund, the Official of the Secretariat 
express ed the Secretariat's  gratitude to both past and present contributors . She called for additional 
support , as in the last three years contributions to this Trust F und were less than expenditure, the 
difference being funded out of the balance c arried forward. She invited Members to consider 
providing multi-year pledges and contributions as this would improve the predictability of resources 
for Technical Assistance . 
1.6.  The Chairman informed the CBFA of a timing challenge as the CTD is  scheduled to meet on 
22 November . In view of this, there would be insufficient time for the CBFA to meet thereafter as 
the deadline of submission of recommendations to the General Council would be too close. The WT/BFA/182  
 
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  Chairman requested the CBFA  to make an  "in pr inciple approval" of the recommendation on the 
financial aspects of the 2020 -2021 TA Plan. He said that the recommendation of the CBFA would  
only be formalized after the CTD had considered its policy and pro grammatic  aspects.  
1.7.  Several Member s asked for cla rification of the rationale for the suggestion that the CBFA make 
an "in principle" approval of the financial aspects and what this would mean for the CTD. 
1.8.  An Official of the Secretariat said that , on one hand, the Financial Regulations prescribe that 
the WTO Budget has to be presented to the CBFA at least eight weeks before the last meeting of the 
General Council for the year. On the other hand, the CTD meets quite late in the year. She said that 
in previous budget discussions,  there was a first submission of the budget to Members, which was 
later followed by another meeting to approve the budget after the CTD had agreed a 
recommendation for the substantive parts of the TA Plan for a given biennium.  However, time and 
other constr aints in 2019  made it difficult to have another meeting of the CBFA after the CTD's 
meeting scheduled for 22 November . 
1.9.  The Official of the Secretariat said that the CBFA is requested to approve the text "in principle" 
with the proviso that, if the CTD were to come up with any major changes that alter the financial 
aspects and the recommendations, then the CBFA will have a short meeting to review the financial 
aspects and its recommendations to the General Council.  
1.10.   The Chairman suggest ed that the proposed recommendations be looked at in detail as this 
would clarify the matter further. He said that the purpose of the CBFA , in this regard , is to make 
sure that the TA Plan is funded and has predictability in its funding. The Chairman highlighted that 
the second  paragraph of the recommendatio n relates to the extrabudgetary resources presumed to 
be available from the Global Trust Fund and the other Trust Funds . He said that another part of the 
recommendation was a statement of the timelines by which contributions ought to come in. The 
Chairman concluded by saying that if  the CTD does not change the numbers referred to under the 
second paragraph of the recommendation , then the "in principle" recommendation being sought 
from the CBFA  will be confirmed .  
1.11.   A Member expr essed his delegation's appreciation of the explanations provided and said that  
proceed ing along the suggested lines was acceptable as there was a possibility to come back to the 
CBFA, if need be, after the CTD.  
1.12.   Noting the importance of voluntary funds to Technical Assistance , a Member asked about  the 
relationship between the general work of the Division s and the work related to the Trust Funds. She 
said that from the presentation  it appeared that both the Regular Budget and Trust Funds serve the 
purpose of  the Organization in the form of Technical Assistance. She asked whether  Trust Fund 
activities  could  cause financial liability for Members who contributed to the regular budget but not 
to the specific Trust Funds. The Member said that the assessment of whe ther activities funded from 
the regular budget were in conflict with or complementary to those funded out of Trust Funds is 
fundamental as there were going to be further discussion s on the management of Trust Funds . 
1.13.   An Official of the Secretariat said that the questions are interrelated to those that were table d 
in the previous two CBFA meetings, regarding extra-budgetary funds . She said that the Secretariat 
requires adequate time to look into the issues raised and consult internally. T hereafter, the 
Secretariat will come with a paper that encapsulate s all the aspects raised .  
1.14.   Several Member s thanked the WTO, Donors  and cooperating partners for the Technical 
Assistance provided to their countries.  
1.15.   A Member noted that Trust Funds contrib uted more to the Technical Assistance activities than 
the regular budget  and said this is welcome and impressive. She made an  appeal to th e Donors to 
continue supporting the TA budget as the request for Technical Assistance from developing countries 
continue s to increase.  
1.16.   An Official of  the Secretariat responded to a question saying that the CHF 12 million regarding 
the funding of the TA Plan from the Doha Development Agenda Global Trust Funds was a rounded -
off number . She said that the oth er Trust Funds funding Technical Assistance activities are the WT/BFA/182  
 
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  French -Irish Internship Programme Trust Fund, the Netherlands Internship Programme Fund  and 
the China LDCs & Accessions Programme Fund, to a total of CHF  2.451  million .  
1.17.   A Member said his deleg ation appreciates the opportunity to review an d engage with the 
Secretariat on Technical Assistance , both at the CBFA and the CTD. The Member asked why a dual 
reference had not be included in the document, for the CBFA. He stated that it would be informati ve 
to have a global picture of  the technical assistance funds  and voluntary Trust Funds that are active 
in the WTO  as this would aid the assessment of the key results  areas.  
1.18.   The Member lauded the recognition , in the summary of the document, that the purpos e of 
WTO provided trade -related Technical Assistance is firmly anchored in supporting the 
implementation and utilization of WTO agreements. He cautioned against the WTO getting involved 
in particular activities, just because those activities might be perce ived as valuable or the product 
of the demand from a Member. He noted that there may be other  institution s that could or should 
provide  Technical  Assistance  in some  areas.  
1.19.   The Member said that his delegation had previously asked the T rade Facilitation  Secretariat 
why only the Trade Facilitation Agreement Trust Fund  has access to the T rade Facilitation Committee 
and had requested that ITTC be included. He asked if ITTC had pa rticipated in the dedicated annual 
session on the Trade Facilitation Agreement. His said that his delegation would like to know why  
some  voluntary Trust Funds do not coordinate with ITTC.   
1.20.   The Member asked when the 13 %  overhead charge applied to Trust Fun ds was established 
and if there have been any recent reviews to determine that th is rate  remain s adequate.  
1.21.   The Chairman observed that most of the questions would be taken up in the context of the 
CTD.  
1.22.   An Official f rom the Secretariat said that the role o f the ITTC is mainly to coordinate and 
manage technical assistance. She said that d elivery  of Technical Assistance is a shared responsibility 
across the Secretariat , depending on the topic and the skills not readily available in the ITTC .  
1.23.   The Chairman tur ned to the "in principle approval" of the recommendation of the financial 
aspects of the TA Plan and said that the recommendation would  be formalized through its 
incorporation in to the Report of the CBFA to the General Council relating to the CBFA's meetin g, 
provided that the CTD would have approved the policy and programmatic elements of the TA Plan.  
1.24.   The CBFA 's recommendation to the General Council reads as follows:  
Pursuant to paragraph 40[1] of the Ministerial Declaration adopted at the Fourth Session 
of the WTO Ministerial Conference, the Committee recommends to the General Council 
that:  
1. Secure and predictable financing be provided for the implementation of the 
2020 -2021 Biennial Technical Assistance and Training Plan, as a pproved  by the 
CTD;  
2. The target level of extra budgetary resources intended to fund the TA Plan 
include CHF 12,580,000 for 2020 and CHF 12,580,000 for 2021 to come from the 
Doha Development Agenda Global Trust Fund (DDAGTF) and CHF 2,451,000 for 
2020 and CHF 2,451,000 for 2021 from other Trust Funds;  
3. Members be reminded that, on 19 -20 December 2001, the General Council 
approved the following periodic benchmarks for contribution receipts to the 
DDAGTF: (i) by December of the year preceding the funds' revolving annual 
target perio d, 25 per cent of the annual total should be in the bank;  (ii) by 
31 March, another 50 per cent for an overall 75 per cent of the total;  (iii) by 
30 June, 100 per cent of the funds;  
4. In this context, Members be informed that the projected year -end balance  of the 
Fund is likely to be sufficient to cover the 25 per cent of the target amount; and  
5. Governments be urged to make financial contributions in a manner which would 
preserve the global nature of the programme and facilitate the management and 
reporting with a view to greater transparency (i.e. making un -earmarked 
contributions) and pledge multi -year contributions to create more predictability 
in terms of financing.  WT/BFA/182  
 
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  2  FOLLOW UP ON ITC 202 0-2021 BUDGET PROPOS AL – JOB/BFA/37  
2.1.  The Chairman introduced this agend a item by recalling that the item had been extensively 
discussed during the CBFA meeting that had taken place on 24 September. He continued by saying 
that, as Members had required time to consider this budget proposal, the consideration of the 
recommendati on had been deferred to the CBFA meeting on 21 October.  
2.2.  A Member suggested that,  for the budget cycle for 2022 -2023, the approval of the technical 
assistance components of the budget should be considered after the overall budget . 
2.3.  The Secretariat took note of this suggestion.  
2.4.  The Committee recommends to the General Council that the budget for 2020 -21 of 
the International Trade Centre UNCTAD/WTO be approved in the amount of 
CHF 36,486,250.   The amount to be provided by the WTO to the International Trade Cent re 
UNCTAD/WTO budget for 2020 and 2021, respectively, shall be CHF  18,243,125 . 
3  FOLLOW UP ON WTO 202 0-2021 BUDGET PROPOS AL – WT/BFA/W/492  
3.1.  The Chairman recalled that the CBFA had extensively discussed the WTO 2020 -2021 Budget 
Proposal during its meeting on 24 September  and that the Secretariat  had responded to most issues 
raised in the meeting, as reflected in the Report of that meeting.  
3.2.  The Chairman stated that his assessment, based on the previous CBFA  meeting and his 
consultations , is that Members are generally positive towards the budget proposal of the WTO.  
3.3.  The Chairman informed the CBFA that during his consultations he discerned that  the issues 
that had been raised , during the previous CBFA meetings, relating to e xtra budgetary funds were a 
major area to be further discussed by the CBFA in future. He said that a Member had submitted 
written questions to the Secretariat related to this  issue and that the  Secretariat would send 
responses . The Chairman invited any other Members who may have questions on this subject to 
arrange to speak with the Secretariat.  
3.4.  Turning back to the WTO 2020 -2021 Budget Proposal, the Chairman invite d delegatio ns to 
pose questions.  
3.5.  A Member asked what the nature of the element of Other Staff Expenditure , linked to 
unreimbursed US taxes for staff liable to US Taxes , was .  
3.6.  An Official of the Secretariat said that  staff of the Organization are supposed to have thei r 
compensation free of taxation . He said that the arrangement with the US is that staff members still 
have to file a tax return and then claim reimbursement back from the Organization for any taxes 
that they pay in relation to their WTO income. The Organiz ation subsequently submits a request for 
reimbursement to the US Authorities . There are, however, some discrepanc ies in the methodology 
that the US applie s compared to the one which the ILO Administrative Tribunal ruled should be 
applied in similar cases.  
3.7.  The Member noted that in the previous CBFA meeting a number of Members had asked whether 
the Secretariat could explore the use of Artificial Intelligence t ranslation  and that the Secretariat 
said that it deem ed this important . She asked whether there was scope for this to be taken into the 
2020-2021 budget.  
3.8.  The Member asserted that the Press Review is circulated to Secretariat staff members by email.  
She asked if circulating the Press Review through email  to Members would stil l imply copy right  
issues . She further said that since paper use was less , as of 1  October, only one copy was provided 
to each Member how would this cost reduction be reflected in the budget.  
3.9.  An Official of the Secretariat requested Members to send an emai l to the Budget Committee 
email address to indicate how many copies of the Press Review their delegation requests. She asked 
that this be done by the following week.  WT/BFA/182  
 
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  3.10.   A Member expressed his delegation's appreciat ion for the responses that they had received  
from the Secretariat . 
3.11.   Referring to Table 2 of the budget, a Member asked for more information on cost saving 
measures that had been taken by the Secretariat. The Member also asked questions related to the 
presentation of the budget by Output Chapter.  
3.12.   An Official fr om the Secretariat presented a slide showing the details regarding the 
reallocation between budget lines from 2019 to 2020 and 2021.  She showed that savings under 
General Services were approximated CHF 781 ,000; Under Travel and Hospitality CHF 2 ,000; and 
approximately CHF 480 ,000 under Capital Expenditures. Therefore, the total savings were 
CHF 1.263  million.  
3.13.   Regarding the question on Output Chapters, the Official of the Secretariat said that the 
relevant time to assess this would be  at the time that the Mid -term Review Report is prepared and 
subsequently presented to the CBFA.  
3.14.   A Member said that his delegation, while noting the questions posed by other delegations, 
supports the budget proposal . He cautioned Members against attempting to compel  the Secretariat 
to look into specific areas as the Secretariat was operating with a Zero Nominal Growth budget.   
3.15.    A Member said that enhanced technology could improve the precision of technical terms in 
translation and interpretation.  
3.16.   An Official from the  Secretariat said that a  presentation on the use of  Artificial Intelligence by 
the WTO Secretariat would be made  during the next CBFA meeting. She said that the tool from WIPO 
was at a nascent stage and  has to be trained to  use learn technical and legal terms of the WTO.  
3.17.   A Member said that, during the previous CBFA meeting, her delegation had made a proposal 
regarding the use of Artificial Intelligence. She said that she had stepped out of the meeting and 
upon returning she had  the impression that the discussions pertaining to this subject were a decade 
behind the times. She said that her delegation had highlighted the cost savings that were done by 
WIPO in this regard . She said that, like with any innovation, there needs to be an investment that 
needs to be done at some point, especially in this case where cost savings can take place. She said 
that her delegation was  happy to hear from the Secretariat that a presentation wi ll be made soon.   
3.18.   The Member expressed concerns at the a mount of CHF 600 ,000 budgeted per year for each 
year of the upcoming biennium. She asked the Secretariat for ideas on how this could be address ed.  
3.19.   An Official of the Secretariat said that the Secretariat had taken various measures to contain 
negative inte rest. She said that the Secretariat has regular contact with its main banks and re -
negotiate s rates on a regular basi s. She said that the Working Group on the Management of the 
Working Capital Fund was in the process of finalizing its work. Thereafter, the Secretariat will be 
able t o invest  the funds . This will likely reduce the amount of  the negative interest.  
3.20.   Another Official of the Secretariat called on  Members to have realistic expectations on what 
is possible given that the WTO is only located in Swit zerland and that its bank accounts and most 
transactions are in Swiss Francs . He said that long -term bonds with a maturity of 20 and 30 years, 
in Switzerland, levy negative interest .  
3.21.   Another Official of the Secretariat said that aiming to reduce the negat ive interest  by investing 
in other currencies or some asset classes would introduce risks that could result in loss of capital . 
3.22.   The Chairman said that the CBFA should strive to conclude the discussion s on the budget in 
its next me eting, 12 November , so that the recommendation to the General Council can be  adopted 
at that meeting.  WT/BFA/182  
 
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  4  STATUS OF IMPLEMENTA TION OF THE EXTERNAL A UDIT RECOMMENDATIONS  – 
WT/BFA/W/498  
4.1.  An Official of the Secretariat presented the current implementation status of recommendations  
received from External Auditors . He showed that the WTO had a total of 75 recommendations since 
2015, of which 20 were newly issued in June 2019.  He added  that the Secretariat has accepted all 
the new recommendations from the Auditors and is working hard to achieve results that could satisfy 
the Auditors.   
4.2.  The Official of the Secretariat said that 73% of the total 75 recommendations ha d been 
implemented and can be considered as closed.  He pointed out that the E xternal Auditors will be 
coming for an ad interim  audit in the first week of November to check the status of pending 
recommendations.  
4.3.  The CBFA took note of the report . 
5  UPDATE FROM THE CHAIRWOMAN OF THE WORKING GROUP  FOR THE SELECTION O F 
AN EXTERNAL AUDITOR – ORAL UPDATE  
5.1.  The Chairwoman of the Working Grou p for the Selection of an External Auditor gave a brief 
update on the selection process for the new External Auditor for the period 2020 -2025.  
5.2.  The Chairwoman said that the Working Group had met on 7 and 17 October to continue the 
evaluation of the offers. She said that the Working Group foresaw the need for one or two additional 
meetings before reaching a position and submitting  a report for consideration by the CBFA.  
5.3.  The Chairwoman of the Working Group remind ed the CBFA that the Selected External Auditor 
would  be notified of the outcome by the end of 2019 and will take up duties in the Fall of 2020 , after 
having received the required handover from the current External Auditor.  
5.4.  The CBFA took note of the update.  
6  UPDATE FROM THE CHAIRWOMAN OF THE WORKING GROUP  FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF 
THE WORKING CAPITAL FUND  – ORAL UPDATE  
6.1.  The Chairwoman of the Working Group for the Management of the Working Capital Fund 
informed the CBFA that consultations had been ongoing with several Memb ers who ha d particular 
comments and suggestions on the draft report of the Working Group.  
6.2.  She said that the Working Group had met on 18 October to further consider the draft report 
and that additional constructive comments had been  received.  
6.3.  The Chairwoma n said that the Working Group would be meeting on 24 October with the 
objective of agreeing a final version of the document that would be submitted for consideration .  
6.4.  The CBFA took note of the report . 
7  LETTER  FROM THE STAFF COUNC IL OF THE WTO – WT/B FA/W/48 7/REV.1 AND 
WT/BFA/W/497  
7.1.  The Chairman said that this agenda item was deferred to today's meeting in order to allow for 
consultations with Members. He said that , during the consultations, some Members were open to 
the idea whilst others were not. As a resul t, no consensus was reached as to whether or not to 
respond favourably to the request from the Staff Council.  
7.2.  There were no questions or comments from Members.  
7.3.  The Chairman concluded by saying that he would inform the Staff Council of this outcome.  WT/BFA/182  
 
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  8  OTHER BUSINESS  
8.1.  The Chairman informed  the CBFA that he had been told that the consultations regarding 
Financial Regulations 23, 28 and 29, between interested Members and the Secretariat , were fruitful . 
He said that this was good news as a  consensus c ould be achieved on an amended text that w ould 
be tabled for discussion at the CBFA meeting scheduled to take place on 12  November.  
8.2.  The Chairman request ed the Secretariat to circulate the related documents as soon as possible 
to give Members sufficient time t o consult with their capitals ahead of 12 November. Furthermore, 
he request ed any Members who had questions and comments to discuss them with the Secretariat 
as soon as possible.  
8.3.  The Chairman said that the CBFA's aim in the meeting should be to arrive at c onsensus on 
these three Financial Regulations so that the review process could be  conclude d and a complete 
recommendation for adoption submitted to the General Council , before its meeting in  
December  2019.  
8.4.  The CBFA took note of this update.  
8.5.  In his conclud ing remarks for the meeting, the Chairman thanked Members for their active 
participation . He noted that the CBFA had  made some significant headway on the budget discussions. 
He expressed trust that Members would have firm confirmations from their respectiv e capitals , 
regarding the WTO  2020-2021 Budget , within the next few days so that the CBFA could  approve the 
recommendation on the budget at its meeting on 12 November.  
8.6.  The Chairman further stated that the updates regarding the Working Group on the Selecti on of 
an External Auditors and the Working Group on the Management of the Working Capital Fund had 
made significant progress . He said that both Working Groups would be tabling their reports and 
recommendations at the next C BFA meeting. He proposed that, th is being the case and if the CBFA 
gets agreement on the recommendations to be made to the General  Council on these two subject s, 
then the CBFA could conclude its work for 2019 on 1 2 November .  
8.7.  Whilst bearing in mind that another meeting may be necessary before the end of November, 
the Chairman  asked the CBFA to have the common ambition  of concluding its work on 12 November . 
8.8.  The next formal meeting of the CBFA will take place on 12 November 2019.  
 
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