WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/MIN(03)/6
29 August 2003
(03-4556)
MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
Fifth Session
Cancún, 10 - 14 September 2003Original:  English
CARIBBEAN DECLARATION ON THE FIFTH MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
OF THE WTO
Communication from Jamaica
The following communication, dated 28 August 2003, has been received from the Permanent
Mission of Jamaica.
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I have the honour to submit on behalf of Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Dominica,
Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines,Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago, the Caribbean Declaration on the 5
th Ministerial Conference of
the WTO, dated 6 August 2003, for circulation to WTO Members as an official working document of
the 5th Ministerial Conference.
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We, the Ministers responsible for Trade of the Caribbean Region, having assessed the state of
the negotiations in the World Trade Organisation based on the mandates of the Fourth Ministerial
Conference held at Doha, Qatar, in finalizing our position for the Fifth Ministerial Conference to be
held at Cancún, Mexico, from 10-14 September 2003;
Reaffirming  the principles and objectives set out in the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing
the World Trade Organization, as well as the Ministerial Declaration and the other decisions reached
at Doha, in particular those relating to Special and Differential Treatment for Developing Countries;
Recalling  in particular the commitment of the Doha Ministerial Declaration to place the
needs and interests of developing countries at the centre of the Doha Work Programme;
Reiterating  the importance of the objective of the Doha Work Programme on Small
Economies, which is to frame responses to the trade-re lated issues identified for the fuller integration
of small, vulnerable economies into the multilateral trading system;
Further recalling  that in the WTO 1996 Singapore Declaration, Members committed
themselves to addressing the marginalization of Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and the risk of
marginalisation of certain developing countries and, in the 1998 Geneva Declaration, Members
expressed their deep concern about the marginalization of LDCs and certain small economies and
recognised the urgent need to address this issue;WT/MIN(03)/6
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Affirming that trade liberalization can benefit small developing countries only if it serves as a
vehicle for promoting growth, structural transfor mation and economic diversification, which can be
achieved in a rules based multilateral trading system that effectively takes account of differences in
size and development through a decision making process that is democratic and transparent;
Concerned  about the continued erosion of market access preferences for our exports,
inadequate adjustment periods and the lack of compensation for the attendant losses in earnings;
Also concerned  that the draft modalities on market access do not take sufficiently into
account the lack of economies of scale and limited flexibility of small industries and small suppliers
to be internationally competitive and make trade adjustments;
Particularly concerned  about the major fiscal impact that trade liberalisation entails for
small developing economies, with particular reference to SIDS, for in these economies the
dependence on trade taxes is excessive;
Aware  that the producers of several agricultural commodities have been suffering a severe
deterioration in prices and the lack of any assured mechanisms at the multilateral level for addressing
these developments;
Disappointed  by the lack of appreciation by some powerful countries for the acute
vulnerability of small Caribbean economies and the harmful implications of their actions as theypursue their claims through WTO dispute settlement; and the insensitive manner in which rulings
have been implemented disregarding their damaging effects on the livelihoods of thousands of
farmers, agricultural employees and their dependents, as the ruling on bananas illustrates.  The current
dispute over sugar portends extremely damaging economic and social consequences for Caribbean
economies;
Disturbed  about the current lack of progress in the negotiations mandated at Doha on
subjects of interest to developing countries, such as implementation issues and concerns, special and
differential treatment, TRIPS and Public Health, and modalities for market access and agricultural
reform;
Welcome  the renewal of the Memorandum of U nderstanding between CARICOM and the
World Trade Organization and expressing appreciation for the assistance given to the Region by a
number of organizations and countries to help meet the Region’s technical assistance and capacity
building needs, bearing in mind that the capacity- building and technical assistance needs of small,
vulnerable Caribbean economies are still to be addressed;
Reiterating  the need to ensure that the process of consultation and decision-making in the
WTO is inclusive and transparent, and the need to accommodate the smaller developing Members of
the organisation, in particular those without missions in Geneva;
Insisting  that the staffing of the WTO Secretariat with more nationals of developing countries
will both provide balance to the work of the Secretariat and demonstrate the Organization’s
commitment to addressing the interests and concerns of developing countries;
Emphasizing  the importance of increased coherence of policies pursued by multilateral
institutions on matters of trade while avoiding cross-conditionality;
Call on all Members of the WTO to agree that:WT/MIN(03)/6
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Doha Work Programme
1. The development dimension of the Doha Work Programme must be accorded higher priority
and greater urgency without attempting to re-interpret what was intended, in order to reach agreement
on key subjects of interest to developing countries.
Special and Differential Treatment
2. Immediate action must be taken to adopt effective measures with substantive economic
content and operationalize commitments on Special and Differential Treatment and Implementation-
Related Issues and Concerns, which are fundamental for an equitable multilateral trading system and
essential requirements for the integration of developing countries into the multilateral trading system
in a manner which promotes their development.
Implementation Issues
3. Despite the mandate from the Doha Ministerial that implementation issues were of the
“utmost importance” there has been little progress.  The resolution of these issues is urgent and will
require the concerted effort of all countries, especially the developed countries.  It is onerous fordeveloping countries, particularly the least developed and smallest ones, to assume additional
responsibilities before long overdue implementation issues are addressed.
Trade Preferences
4. Trade preferences remain vital to the economies of many developing countries and especially
to small developing economies that suffer scale and other deficiencies.  Given the vital importance of
some key long-standing trade preferences for Caribbean States in offsetting the lack of
competitiveness, the maintenance and security of such preferences, through flexible rules and
modalities that allow for exemptions based on spec ial development needs, are now a necessity in the
WTO.  In addition any erosion of preference margins must be addressed by devising appropriatecompensatory and other mechanisms.
Poverty and Vulnerability
5. Exemptions from tariff reduction obligations and binding commitments on duty-free and
quota-free market access for all products from LDCs are required in order to provide a secure,
predictable basis for increasing supply and export, while ensuring that the interests of other
developing countries, particularly the smallest among them, are not jeopardized.
Small Developing Economies
6. The particular structural disadvantages and vulnerabilities of small developing economies, in
particular small island developing states (SIDS), must be taken into account in the formulation and
application of multilateral trade rules as well as in the liberalization undertakings required of thesecountries, in order to avoid their further loss of market share and possible de-industrialization.
7. The multilateral financial and developmental institutions must co-ordinate more closely their
efforts at addressing peculiar adjustment problems and difficulties confronting small economies in
this age of globalization and liberalization.
8. The exports of small developing economies, should be exempt from anti-dumping,
countervailing and safeguard measures.WT/MIN(03)/6
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9. In the dismantling of tariffs, tariff escalation, non-tariff barriers and subsidies maintained by
developed countries, the highest priority should be accorded to products of export interest to small
developing countries and LDCs, so as to avoid the unintended effects that such reforms can have on
the export earnings of these countries.  Adequate compensation mechanisms for these countries to
respond to consequential losses, as well as measures to assist them in their diversification effortsshould be devised.
Work Programme on Small Economies
10. The Work Programme on Small Economies should now move beyond the exhaustive
clarification of particular difficulties facing sma ll, vulnerable economies in the international trading
environment that has been taking place, to proposing and adopting specific recommendations and
measures to ensure their beneficial participation in the WTO and the multilateral trading system.
Fiscal Fallout of Tariff Liberalization
11. Modalities on market access for non-agricultural products must take full account of the export
interests of developing countries, the revenue implications of further liberalization, and the need for
asymmetry in reduction commitments, especially in the case of small, developing economies, andshould also address the erosion of preferences.
Regional Trade Agreements
12. Where developing countries enter into regional trade agreements (RTAs) with developed
countries, the WTO rules on RTAs should allow for maximum flexibility bearing in mind differencesin size and development. Any improvement and clarification of disciplines and procedures on RTAs
should take account of differing levels of development and should address the definition of
“substantially all trade”, transitional timeframes and reciprocity in a manner that responds to the needs
and interests of developing countries, particularly small developing economies.
Agriculture
13. Agriculture modalities must take into account the rural development and food security
objectives and concerns of developing countries by ensuring that small developing economies are
afforded the opportunity to adequately insulate their domestic sectors from import surges and
depressed import prices (which are often the result of subsidization policies in the developed
countries);  by exempting certain products from further tariff reduction (pending the complete reform
of global agricultural markets);  and by applying tariff reduction formulas that are no more onerous
than those that obtained during the Uruguay Round.
14. In any converging agreement in the three pillars of market access, domestic support and
export subsidies, the special needs of the Net F ood Importing Developing C ountries (NFIDCS) should
not be overlooked, especially in view of the failure in the past to respond positively to their requests
for adequate mechanisms to deal with possible higher food import costs.
15. The WTO must take full and urgent account of the severe depression of global prices for
several agricultural commodities on which many small and vulnerable economies depend for their
export earnings and undertake to develop mechanis ms aimed at addressing the long-term problem of
high price instability and inadequate remuneration from the sale of those products.
Services
16. Trade in services is of critical importance and major potential to Caribbean economies.  The
assessment of trade in services should be conducted as mandated in the General Agreement on TradeWT/MIN(03)/6
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in Services (GATS).  In order to ensure the effective implementation of Article 4 of the GATS
Agreement, developed countries should liberalize thos e sectors and modes of supply of export interest
to developing countries, in particular Mode IV (the movement of natural persons).  The negotiations
shall take into account the principle of progressive liberalization to allow developing countries to
open fewer sectors and fewer modes of supply.
TRIPS and Public Health
17. The Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health seeks to provide a much-needed solution
to the serious health problems in developing countries.  It must be implemented without restricting the
intended flexibility of the TRIPS Agreement, particularly the coverage of diseases or the eligibility of
developing countries.  It is of particular importance to the Caribbean which has a high incidence of
HIV-AIDS and for which a regional solution to the production and/or acquisition of drugs could offerbenefits.  This would be an unprecedented demonstration of how the WTO can accommodate human
development and trade objectives.
Geographical Indications
18. With regard to the establishment of a multilateral registry for geographical indications, only
those Members participating in the system should be obliged to protect those GI’s that are registered
and participation should be voluntary.
Singapore Issues
19. The Singapore Issues have far-reaching implications for national economies, including the
constriction of policy space, the irreversibility of negotiation outcomes and implementation costs.  It
is imperative that the process of clarification of these issues should continue before contemplating
negotiations on these subjects.
Trade, Debt and Finance/Transfer of Technology20. The work on Trade, Debt and Finance and Trade and Transfer of Technology is of particular
importance to small, highly open, developing countries and are comparable to other trade-related
issues that have been proposed for negotiation.  We would like to see recommendations emerge from
the Working Groups as to concrete actions that could be taken within and outside the WTO to assist
developing countries to remedy their problems in these areas.
Trade and Environment21. Work on Trade and the Environment should continue and aim to ensure that the specific trade
obligations of Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) and WTO rules are mutually
supportive and that the definition of and improved market access for environmental goods and
services are consistent with the trade interests of developing countries.  However, Caribbean countries
are equally concerned that MEAs should not be used as non-tariff barriers, which could cause seriousdifficulties for their economies.
Trade Facilitation
22. The WTO, international organizations and developed countries must enhance the availability
of technical assistance to facilitate the attainment of best practices.  The needs of small developingcountries with limited institutional capacity should be a priority.WT/MIN(03)/6
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Dispute Settlement
23. Work should be concluded in the shortest possible time on improving and clarifying the
Dispute Settlement Understanding in order to ensure  that the multilateral system can benefit from an
effective, equitable and impartial dispute settlement mechanism that is capable of responding to theneeds of small developing countries, whose ability to use the dispute settlement mechanism is
severely constrained.
Technical Assistance
24. WTO technical assistance and capacity building programmes should be expanded in order to
strengthen and improve human and institutional capacity and to include not only seminars, workshops
and technical missions but also attachments to the WTO.  The WTO should expand its cooperationwith international development institutions, nota bly the World Bank and specialized organizations
such as UNCTAD, UNIDO and WIPO, to increase the human and financial resources available to
enable developing countries to participate more  effectively in negotiations, implementation and
adjustment.
25. Much more has to be done to improve the flow of timely information and enhance the
involvement of countries, which do not have representation in Geneva.
Transparency
26. Measures should be taken to improve the transparency and inclusiveness of the WTO
negotiating and decision-making processes, in order to ensure the effective participation of developingcountries in the deliberations leading to the Fifth Ministerial Conference and at Cancún itself, bearing
in mind also that many Members, including all Caribbean Members, have limited or no representation
in Geneva.  A clear structure and methods of work which adhere to multilateral norms and practices
should also be agreed beforehand for the Cancún meeting, in order to minimise the uncertainty for
smaller participants and to address the perennial problem whereby momentous decisions are taken inthe context of ad-hoc processes and variable procedures to the detriment of many developing
countries.
Dated 6 August 2003
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