WORLD TRADE WT/MIN(96)/ST/38
10December 1996
ORGANIZATION(96-5163)
Original: Spanish MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
Singapore, 9-13December 1996
BOLIVIA
Statement byMr.Victor RicoFrontaura
Minister ofInternational Economic Relations
Ishould likefirstofall,onbehalf ofmydelegation, toexpress ourappreciation andthanks
totheGovernment ofSingapore fortheirwarm welcome andtheexcellent organization andrunning
ofthisMinisterial Conference.
Ishould alsoliketohighlight thehardwork done bytheDirector-General andstaffofthe
Secretariat oftheWorld Trade Organization inpreparing soefficiently forthisimportant meeting.
Inthelightoftheaccelerated process ofglobalization ofproduction andliberalization oftrade,
theinternationalcommunityhasreactedpositivelybyagreeingtoestablishtheWorldTradeOrganization,
thuscompleting thestructure oftheworld economic system.
Bolivia believes thateconomic liberalization isofcrucial importance toevery country 's
development. Itwasamong thefirstcountries intheLatin American region toimplement, inthelast
decade, aneconomic policy based onthefreemarket andopenness. Itistoday reaping therewards
ofdecisions taken over10years ago.Bolivia alsofirmly believes thatequitable participation intrade
flows andtheresulting benefits arenecessary toavoid themarginalization ofsmall countries andless-
advanced regions.
Wearetherefore convinced thatglobalization should notonlypromote theexpansion and
diversification oftradebut,above all,should contribute toraising thestandard ofliving ofourpeoples.
Accordingly, wehaveresolutely supported theAgreements resulting fromtheUruguay Round,
whose commitments mustbefullyrespected inaccordance withthetime-frames andprocedures laid
down atMarrakesh.
Weattach special importance tothegenuine andeffective liberalization ofthemarkets forfarm
produce andtextiles. Asaproducer andexporter ofthese products, webelieve thatanywrong signal
indicating abreach ofthecommitments assumed under theAgreement onAgriculture andtheAgreement
onTextiles andClothing would mean asetback inthesearch foranequitable system ofmultilateral
trade.
Asregards environmental norms andstandards, webelieve thatthese should bebased onthe
principles ofnon-discrimination, transparency, credibility andnational treatment. These areprinciples
thatshould besetwithin thebroader framework ofshared responsibility, anotion thatisfinding ever-
greater acceptance intheinternational community.
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Boliviaisperhapsoneofthecountrieswhichinrecentyearshavedonemosttofurtherintegration
andtradeliberalization ontheAmerican continent. Withtherecent signing oftheFreeTrade Agreement
withMERCOSUR, webecame thefirstcountry intheLatin American Integration Association (LAIA)
tohavefree-trade areas withnineoftheother 10countries making upthatAssociation. Justaswe
arepromoting economic integration, withequal conviction wearealsofostering freetradeattheworld
level. Therefore, weoppose anyinterpretation thatsetsregionalism against multilateralism. Both
converge onthesame objective andaremutually supportive.
Ishould alsoliketounderscore theefforts ofthedeveloping countries tocomply withthe
commitments assumed intheUruguay Round, which inmany cases havemeant substantial changes
intheirlegal, economic andsocial structures. Nevertheless, thiseffort needs tobematched witha
highlevelofcooperation andtechnical assistance.
Oftheso-called newissues, Ishould liketodealfirstofallwithinvestment. Together with
other countries intheWTO, wearebacking aproposal tocreate aworking group tostudy useful inputs
thatwould afford usacomprehensive viewofthecomplexity andimportance ofthissubject andits
links withtrade. Wewilltakeanactive partinallinitiatives tothatend.
Withregard tolabour standards, weconsider itcrucial fortheinternational community tofurther
promote workers 'rights andminimum standards forworkers 'protection. Labour legislation inBolivia
isamong themost advanced intheregion. Nevertheless, wedonotbelieve thattheWTO isthe
appropriate forum fordiscussing these topics. Thisdoesnotmean thatweareunaware ofthelinkage
between labour andtrading systems andother variables intheeconomy.
Before concluding, Ishould liketocongratulate youMr.Chairman, onyourexpert guidance
ofourdeliberations, which Iamsurewillarrive atasuccessful conclusion.