WORLD TRADE WT/COMTD/W/40
17April 1998
ORGANIZATION(98-1549)
Committee onTrade andDevelopment
REPORT OFTHE DIRECTOR-GENERAL TOWTO MINISTERS ON
THE HIGH-LEVEL MEETING ONINTEGRATED INITIATIVES FOR
LEAST-DEVELOPED COUNTRIES 'TRADE DEVELOPMENT
Note bytheSecretariat
The High-Level Meeting onIntegrated Initiatives forLeast-Developed Countries 'Trade
Development recommended thatafullreport ontheoutcome andfollow-up oftheMeeting and
announcements ofimplementation ofautonomous market access measures andcommitments infavour
oftheleast-developed countries beprepared bytheDirector-General andsubmitted totheWTO
Ministerial Conference inMay 1998.
TheDirector-General 'sReport, which willbeissued asaWT/MIN(98)/- document, isattached
fortheinformation ofdelegations.WT/COMTD/W/40
Page 2
THE HIGH-LEVEL MEETING ONINTEGRATED INITIATIVES FOR
LEAST-DEVELOPED COUNTRIES 'TRADE DEVELOPMENT
Outcome andFollow-up
Report oftheDirector-General
Introduction
1. Pursuant tothemandate contained intheSingapore Ministerial Declaration1,theHigh-Level
Meeting onIntegrated Initiatives forLeast-Developed Countries 'Trade Development washeld inthe
WTO on27-28 October 1997. Inaletter dated 10December 1997, Itransmitted theReport ofthe
Meeting toallWTO Ministers. Iampleased toprovide fortheinformation ofMinisters myreport
onthesteps thathave been taken since thentobuild ontheresults oftheHigh-Level Meeting insupport
ofthetrade andtrade-related activities oftheleast-developed countries.
2. Now thatfollow-up tothework initiated attheHigh-Level Meeting hasbecome thepriority,
there areanumber ofissues arising outofthereport thatIwould liketocomment on.
3. Thefirstconcerns theprogramme oftechnical assistance andcooperation activities thatisbeing
undertaken within theIntegrated Framework. Theinterest thatisbeing shown bysuch alarge number
oftheleast-developed countries inparticipating inthisexercise hasbeen very encouraging, andIam
convinced thatbydeveloping ourpartnership with them further weshall beabletomake ameaningful
contribution todeepening their integration intothemultilateral trading system. Iattach thehighest
importance tofullandsuccessful implementation ofthismuch intensified areaofactivity intheWTO,
andIhave been assured ofsimilar levels ofsupport andcommitment bytheexecutive heads ofthe
fiveother intergovernmental agencies thatparticipated with theWTO inlaunching theendeavour at
theHigh-Level Meeting: theIMF, ITC, UNCTAD, UNDP andtheWorld Bank.
4. Iwish topaytribute totheexcellent cooperation thathastaken place among thestaff ofthe
sixagencies involved. This laidthebasis forthesuccess oftheHigh-Level Meeting, andithascontinued
since then inthepreparation ofadditional integrated programmes oftechnical assistance forleast-
1Ministers stated intheSingapore Ministerial Declaration that:
"We remain concerned bytheproblems oftheleast-developed countries andhave agreed to:
• aPlanofAction,includingprovisionfortakingpositivemeasures,forexampleduty-freeacces s,
onanautonomousbasis,aimedatimprovingtheiroverallcapacitytorespondtotheopportunities
offered bythetrading system;
• seek togive operational content tothePlan ofAction, forexample, byenhancing conditions
forinvestment andproviding predictable andfavourable market access conditions forLLDCs '
products, tofoster theexpansion anddiversification oftheir exports tothemarkets ofall
developedcountries;andinthecaseofrelevantdevelopingcountriesinthecontextoftheGlobal
System ofTrade Preferences;
• organize ameeting with UNCTAD andtheInternational Trade Centre assoon aspossible
in1997, with theparticipation ofaidagencies, multilateral financial institutions andleast-
developed countries tofoster anintegrated approach toassisting these countries inenhancing
their trading opportunities."WT/COMTD/W/40
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developed countries thathave requested them. Todate, programmes have been agreed onwith thirty-
four least-developed countries andsteps arebeing taken toimplement andoperationalize them, and
where necessary tosecure financing forthem; fivemore arebeing prepared. Ithasbeen agreed among
thesixagencies thattheir cooperation willcontinue inanInter-Agency Working Group, which will
assume responsibility formanaging theprogramme ofactivities thatiscalled forunder theIntegrated
Framework. This isacollaborative exercise inwhich alltheagencies willcontinue toparticipate as
fullpartners,andIshallensurethattheWTOSecretariatwillcontinuetocontributenotonlyitsparticular
technical expertise totheendeavour butalsothecommitment andleadership thatithasdemonstrated
intheprocess sofar.Tothatend, Ihave decided tocreate intheTechnical Cooperation andTraining
Division oftheWTO Secretariat aprofessional postdedicated tothetechnical assistance needs ofthe
least-developed countries, with primary responsibility forcoordination oftheWTO 'scontribution to
theIntegrated Framework.
5. Ithasbeen agreed also among thesixagencies thatasmall administrative unitshould be
established, located inITC, tohandle theday-to-day work ofandtoservice themeetings oftheInter-
Agency Working Group. Iwish tothank Mr.D.Bélisle, Executive Director ofITC, forhaving agreed
totakeontheresponsibility ofthisunit. Details ofthestaffing oftheadministrative unitarecurrently
under discussion between Mr.Ricupero, Mr.Bélisle andmyself. Once wehave agreed onasuitable
formulation, weshall approach ourrespective governing bodies withaproposal onappropriate financial
arrangements tostaff theunit. Iwould liketoexpress myhope thatWTO Members willconsider
ourproposal positively.
6. Theintroduction oftheIntegrated Framework hasincreased significantly thedemands onthe
WTO tostaffandfinance theadditional technical assistance activities which arebeing supplied toleast-
developed countries. Atpresent, more than 80percent ofthetechnical assistance activities ofthe
WTO Secretariat isfinanced byextra-budgetary resources, through dedicated Trust Funds thathave
been established byanumber ofMembers forthispurpose. Iwish topaytribute tothese Members,
without whose generosity WTO technical assistance activities would have tobescaled back very
considerably. Idonotbelieve, however, thatcontinuing thiscurrent financing arrangement isdesirable
orsustainable over themedium-term. Consultations aretaking place intheWTO Committees onTrade
andDevelopment andonBudget, Finance andAdministration toidentify thebestmeans ofplacing
onamore sustainable basis thefinancing ofWTO technical assistance, including technical assistance
delivered bytheWTO under theIntegrated Framework forleast-developed countries. Iwould like
toexpress myhope thatWTO Members willconsider theproposals thatderive from these consultations
positively. Without astrong commitment byWTO Members tofinance inthebudget thegrowing
needs oftechnical assistance inanappropriate way, theessential objective ofimplementation of
commitments made intheUruguay Round, especially bythedeveloping andleast-developed countries,
could beinserious jeopardy.
7. Thenext issue towhich Iwould liketodraw Ministers 'attention istheobjective ofsecuring
improved market access forproducts ofparticular export interest toleast-developed countries, which
wasincluded intheUruguay Round Decision onMeasures inFavour ofLeast-Developed Countries
andtheWTO Plan ofAction fortheLeast-Developed Countries thatwasadopted inDecember 1996
attheSingapore Ministerial Conference. InJuly 1997, Iwrote toallWTO Ministers urging them
topresent theresults oftheir reflections onthisissue attheHigh-Level Meeting inOctober 1997.
Inmystatement atthatMeeting Imade apoint ofdrawing attention tothefactthattheleast-developed
countries, collectively, account foronly 0.4percentoftotal world exports, afigure which points both
totheproblem ofmarginalization ofthese countries intheworld economy andtotheinsignificance
ofthecompetitive threat which itcanbeclaimed they pose toestablished producer interests inmost
WTO Members. Theresponse wereceived attheHigh-Level Meeting wasnotdiscouraging, butI
continue tofeelthatmuch more canbedone inthisarea. Icongratulate those Members thatannounced
formally attheHigh-Level Meeting their intention ofimproving onanautonomous basis market accessWT/COMTD/W/40
Page 4
infavour ofexports from least-developed countries, andIwould liketoencourage them tofollow-up
assoon aspossible withnotifications totheWTO ofthespecific measures theyhave taken inthisregard.
Iwould likealsotorenew myrequest toother WTO Members toreview their position onthisissue
andtore-examine whether they toomight beinaposition tomake acontribution. Ifirmly believe
thatthemultilateral system willemerge strengthened from more widespread action inthisregard.
Ibelieve itwould beappropriate toconsider, inthepreparation ofthethird Ministerial Conference,
including theobjective ofeliminating alltariff barriers infavour oftheleast-developed countries as
amatter forimplementing onapriority basis inthenegotiations which willstart intheyear 2000.
Itwould beimportant notjustforalltheadvanced economies, butalsoforthemost dynamic developing
countries, tosubscribe tothisobjective andtotheprinciple ofbinding theliberalization under theWTO.
8. Finally, Iwish tostress theimportance Iattach totheactivities which theWTO isundertaking
tobring thebenefits ofmodern information technology totheleast-developed countries. Theglobal
economy hasentered anewageinwhich information andinformation technology arenolonger luxuries
thatonly thewealthy canaspire tohave attheir fingertips, butkeyfactors ofproduction forallWTO
Members. Weareliving through aperiod inwhich thebenefits ofuniversal dissemination ofanew
technology have never been sogreat, butequally sothecosts ofexclusion. Participating inthe
"information age" offers theleast-developed countries anextremely important opportunity toparticipate
inamore informed way, onamore active andcosteffective basis, andwith agreater sense ofinclusion
intheactivities oftheWTO, through their access toWTO databases, totheWTO Secretariat, and
directly toother WTO Members. Ihave made acommitment toensure thattheministries oftrade
oftheleast-developed countries, bytheendofthisyear, areproperly equipped totake advantage of
thisnew opportunity, andthattheWTO Secretariat isfully capable ofresponding totheir needs in
thisarea; acentralized e-mail help desk (referencecentre@wto.org) hasbeen established intheWTO
Secretariat torespond torequests from least-developed countries. Iurge allother WTO Members
tofollow suit, andlend assistance toensure thattheleast-developed countries benefit fully from this
exciting new technological revolution, andarenotleftonthefringes ofit.
9. Itismypleasure topresent below fulldetails ontheoutcome andthefollow-up totheHigh-Level
Meeting fortheLeast-Developed Countries.
**********
Outcome oftheHigh-Level Meeting
10. TheReport oftheHigh-Level Meeting onIntegrated Initiatives forLeast-Developed Countries '
Trade Development iscontained indocument WT/LDC/HL/23. Notes ontheproceedings oftheHigh-
Level Meeting arecontained indocuments WT/LDC/HL/M/1 andAdd.1.
TheIntegrated Framework forTrade-Related Technical Assistance
11. The High-Level Meeting endorsed theIntegrated Framework forTrade-Related Technical
Assistance, Including forHuman andInstitutional Capacity-Building, tosupport Least-Developed
Countries inTheir Trade andTrade-Related Activities (WT/LDC/HL/1/Rev.1). TheChairman ofthe
Meeting, Minister JanPronk oftheNetherlands, suggested theHigh-Level Meeting recommend that
thefiveother intergovernmental agencies involved with theWTO intheIntegrated Framework (IMF,
ITC, UNCTAD, UNDP andtheWorld Bank) seek approval fortheir participation andcontribution
intheIntegrated Framework from their respective governing bodies according totheir respective
procedures andmandates. Thefollowing information hasbeen supplied totheWTO inthisregard.
TheExecutive Board ofUNDP/UNFPA endorsed theIntegrated Framework atitssession held fromWT/COMTD/W/40
Page 5
19-26 January 1998. The Trade andDevelopment Board ofUNCTAD endorsed theIntegrated
Framework atitssession on16February 1998. ITC'sparticipation intheprogramme isensured
ipso facto since itisajoint subsidiary organ ofWTO andtheUN, thelatter acting through UNCTAD.
Staff oftheIMF andtheWorld Bank have informed their respective Executive Boards oftheresults
oftheHigh-Level Meeting andoftheir intention toparticipate intheapplication oftheIntegrated
Framework. Thestaff oftheWorld Bank provided atechnical briefing ontheIntegrated Framework
foritsExecutive Board on23March 1998. TheExecutive Board hasscheduled adiscussion onthe
Integrated Framework for5May, atwhich itwillconsider thequestion offormal endorsement ofthe
Bank 'sparticipation init.
12. Sofar,thirty-nine least-developed countries areparticipating intheexercise thatisbeing carried
outunder theIntegrated Framework. They are: Angola, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso,
Burundi, Cambodia, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic
ofCongo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, theGambia, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Haiti, Laos,
Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, Rwanda,
Samoa,Sao-TomeandPrincipe,SolomonIslands,Sudan,Tanzania,Togo,Uganda,VanuatuandZambia.
13. Thefirststage oftheIntegrated Framework involves thepreparation byeach least-developed
country ofanassessment ofitsneeds intheareaoftrade-related technical assistance. Upon request,
thesixintergovernmental agencies involved assist least-developed countries toprepare their needs
assessments. WTO staff have participated ineight such missions, several ofthem jointly with staff
oftheother agencies. Upon submission ofacompleted needs assessment, thesixagencies cooperate
inthepreparation ofaprovisional programme oftrade-related technical assistance thatresponds to
theneeds identified. This isdiscussed andagreed onwith theleast-developed country concerned.
Todate, thisexercise hasbeen completed forthirty-four oftheleast-developed countries listed above.
Theresults have been published inthedocument series WT/COM/IF/-. Thenextinter-agency meeting
toreview theneeds assessments submitted byleast-developed countries forwhich theexercise hasnot
yetbeen completed willtake place inJune atUNDP headquarters inNew York.
14. Bywayoftheimplementation oftheWTO Secretariat 'scommitments under thisstage ofthe
Integrated Framework, athree-week Trade Policy Course forparticipants from English-speaking least-
developed countries isbeing conducted inGeneva; asimilar course forFrench-speaking countries will
beorganized inTorino, Italy inSeptember/October 1998. These courses areintended tofamiliarize
participants with theWTO system anditsrules andtotrain them intechniques ofmultilateral trade
negotiations. Eight specialized regional seminars willalsohave been held, three ofthem undertaken
jointly withtheWorld Bank, focusing indepth ontheWTO Agreements. Thirteen seminars/workshops
inindividual least-developed countries have orwillhave been undertaken during thefirst semester
of1998, four ofthem with theparticipation oftheITC andUNDP. Inaddition, several technical
missions were held during thisperiod, oneonfinancial services andfour toassist least-developed
countries infulfilling their implementation obligations under theWTO Agreements.
15. Thenext stage istobroaden theexercise sothatleast-developed countries canseek support
thatgoes beyond what thesixagencies canmake available tomeet their needs fortrade-related technical
assistance andcooperation. Itinvolves eachleast-developed country, along withitsmultilateral, regional
andbilateral development partners, reviewing itsassessment ofitsneeds fortrade-related technical
assistance andpreparing aconcrete programme oftechnical assistance tomeet those needs. Thisexercise
culminates intheleast-developed country scheduling atrade-sector Roundtable meeting, typically in
thecontext ofaWorld Bank Consultative Group meeting oraUNDP Roundtable meeting. The
Roundtable meeting willprovide anopportunity fortheleast-developed country 'sdevelopment partners
toendorse amulti-year programme oftrade-related technical assistance activities, todesignateWT/COMTD/W/40
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implementing/executing agencies, andtoannounce interest infinancing and/or providing technical
assistance andexpertise tosupport elements oftheprogramme. UNDP andtheWorld Bank arewell-
suited toplayacentral roleinassisting least-developed countries atthisstage oftheexercise, byvirtue
oftheir extensive experience inorganizing Roundtable andConsultative Group Meetings andtheir
resident missions inmost oftheleast-developed countries. Todate, seven least-developed countries
have informed theagencies oftheir interest inscheduling trade-sector Roundtables under theIntegrated
Framework, andinsome cases UNDP ortheWorld Bank have been asked already toassist intheir
preparation.
16. Inorder toensure successful implementation over themedium-term ofactivities carried out
under theIntegrated Framework, agreement hasbeen reached toconsolidate theexisting coordination
process among thesixagencies intoanInter-Agency Working Group, comprising staff from each of
thesixagencies involved, designated bytheir agency asbeing responsible forthecoordination ofits
contribution under theIntegrated Framework. TheWorking Group willcontinue tomeet regularly
tomaintaininter-agencycollaboration,toassumeresponsibilityformanagingtheprogrammeofactivities
thatiscalled forunder theIntegrated Framework, tocarry outtheevaluation oftheoperation ofthe
Integrated Framework thatisforeseen twoyears after itsendorsement, andtoidentify andcarry out
anyother work resulting from itsoperation. With thesupport oftheother fiveagencies, theWTO
Secretariat willcontinue tochair meetings ofthisWorking Group. Based onthework oftheWorking
Group, each ofthesixagencies willreport, asappropriate, toitsgoverning body onprogress in
implementing theIntegrated Framework.
17. Todate, alladministration oftheinter-agency coordination process hasbeen carried outby
theWTOSecretariat.Toreplacethisadhocarrangement,asmalladministrativeunitwillbeestablished,
located inITC, tohandle theday-to-day work ofandtoservice meetings oftheInter-Agency Working
Group. Under theguidance oftheWorking Group, theadministrative unitwillundertake such tasks
astheInter-Agency Working Group may direct, inorder toensure thatallactivities andobjectives
reflected intheIntegrated Framework areaddressed effectively. Thetasks involved willinclude for
example, operating adatabase oftrade-related technical assistance forleast-developed countries and
disseminating information ontheimplementation oftheIntegrated Framework.
18. Anumber ofother intergovernmental organisations have expressed interest inworking with
thesixcore agencies andleast-developed countries under theIntegrated Framework, notably the
Commonwealth Secretariat, theCommon Fund forCommodities, theUNEconomic Commission for
Africa, theUNEconomic andSocial Commission forAsia andthePacific, theForum Secretariat,
FAO, theIslamic Development Bank, UNIDO andtheWorld Customs Organisation. Opportunities
forcloser collaboration withthese organisations willarise inthepreparation oftheconcrete programmes
oftrade-related technical assistance forindividual least-developed countries.
Market Access
19. AttheHigh-Level Meeting, WTO Members were invited toannounce steps they would be
taking onanautonomous basis toenhance market access forimports from least-developed countries,
andtonotify thedetails tothesecretariats ofWTO andUNCTAD assoon aspossible. Thestatements
made bydelegations inresponse tothis invitation are recorded inthe Note onthe
Meeting (WT/LDC/HL/M/1).
20. Since theHigh-Level Meeting, theWTO Secretariat hasreceived twocommunications. One
isfrom theGovernment ofTurkey stating that, pursuant totheannouncement Turkey made attheHigh-
Level Meeting, additional preferential tariff rates arebeing applied, effective 1January 1998, tosomeWT/COMTD/W/40
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250products at the 12-digit tariff line basis originating from least-developed
countries (WT/COMTD/W/39). Thesecond isfrom theCommission oftheEuropean Communities
stating that, pursuant tothecommitments theECundertook attheHigh-Level Meeting, non-ACP least-
developedcountriesarebenefiting,asof1January1998,fromzerodutiesonalargenumberofindustrial
products thatwere previously excluded from theGSP scheme aswell asfrom tariff reductions on
agricultural products inlinewith ACP preferences thatwere also previously excluded from GSP
(WT/COMTD/W/41). Ninety-nine percentofleast-developed countries 'exports now enter theEU
market duty-free.
Thematic Roundtable Recommendations
21. Following arequest made bytheChairman oftheHigh-Level Meeting, theDirector-General
conveyed therecommendations emanating from thetwoThematic Roundtable discussions attheMeeting
forconsideration totheappropriate intergovernmental organisations aswell astothegovernments of
theleast-developed countries andtheir development andtrading partners.
22. Two recommendations oftheThematic Roundtables related directly tothework oftheWTO.
(a) Develop efforts toassist least-developed countries intheprocess ofaccession
Since theHigh-Level Meeting, Laos hasrequested accession totheWTO, bringing tofive
thenumber ofleast-developed countries currently intheprocess ofaccession (Cambodia, Nepal, Sudan
andVanuatu). Inaddition, theGeneral Council hasgranted observer status toEthiopia (October 1997)
andCapVerde (February 1998). Itwillexamine arequest forobserver status from Bhutan atitsApril
meeting. Bearing inmind thatWTO accession involves aserious process ofnegotiation between the
acceding country andWTO Members, efforts arebeing made toassist least-developed countries in
theprocess ofaccession. TheSecretariat hasbeen taking initiatives, with thecooperation ofWTO
Members, tostreamline theaccession processes ofthese countries totheextent possible. One key
objective istoensure thatthemaximum amount ofwork iscompleted inbetween working party meetings
sothatthenumber ofmeetings iskepttoanabsolute minimum. Toachieve this, ithasbeen necessary
toensure thatthedocumentation required isuptostandard toenable agreement onterms ofentry as
soon aspossible. Simultaneously, special attention hasbeen given toexpediting thebilateral market
access negotiations through anearly submission andnegotiation ofoffers from these governments.
Onboth these fronts, theSecretariat hasbeen providing focused technical assistance tothese countries
from theearliest stages oftheir accession process.
Going beyond thespecific needs oftheaccession process, theSecretariat isincreasingly assisting
these countries inareas such ashelping draft WTO-related legislation andhelping establish thetrade
policy infrastructure necessary topursue their trade interests intheWTO after accession.
(b) Accommodate onapriority basis requests from least-developed countries forTrade
Policy Reviews andassist least-developed countries inpreparing fortheir Reviews
Under theAgreement ontheTrade Policy Review Mechanism, least-developed countries are
subject toreview atintervals ofsixyears ormore. Trade Policy Reviews have been completed, or
areunderway inthe1998 review programme, fortenofthetwenty-nine least-developed countries that
areWTO Members: Bangladesh, Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Lesotho, Mali, Solomon Islands, Togo,
Uganda andZambia. During 1998, thereviews ofBurkina Faso andMali, andofGuinea andTogo,
willbegrouped together inthemeetings oftheTrade Policy Review Body; thereview ofLesotho
wasconducted inApril 1998 together with other members oftheSouthern African Customs Union.WT/COMTD/W/40
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TheReport oftheTrade Policy Review Body for1997 totheGeneral Council noted thatnewrequests
forreviews byleast-developed countries have already resulted from theHigh-Level Meeting andmore
arebound tofollow.
WTO Information Technology forDevelopment Projects inLeast-Developed Countries
23. TheDirector-General informed theHigh-Level Meeting about thenewinformation technologies
thattheWTO isexploiting inpartnership with theWorld Bank, andmade acommitment thattheWTO
wouldprovidegovernmentofficialsinleast-developedcountryWTOMemberswithcomputers,equipment
andtheknow-how toaccess theinformation provided ontheWTO Internet web-site before theend
of1998. This commitment was made inthecontext oftheWTO Information Technology for
Development Project, which aims tosupport theintegration ofleast-developed andother developing
countries intothemultilateral trading system. Some ofthese activities aredeployed inthecapitals
ofthecountries involved, where theWTO assists intheestablishment andoperation ofWTO Reference
Centres intrade ministries. Other activities areaimed atdeveloping information about theWTO and
themultilateral trading system thatcanbeaccessed bytrade officials through theInternet andonCD-
ROMs. TheWTO hasalsoputinplace ane-mail (referencecentre@wto.org) helpdesk thatwillchannel
andensure responses toquestions addressed totheWTO from least-developed country trade ministries.
Theuseofthise-mail capacity isbeing introduced intotraining activities conducted bytheTechnical
Cooperation andTraining Division, including theinclusion ofamodule onsubmitting notifications
viae-mail intheregular Notification Seminar being organized fortheendof1998.
24. TheseactivitiesarebeingundertakenaspartoftheWTO'sresponsetoleast-developedcountries'
needs assessments andarebeing carried outunder theIntegrated Framework fortrade-related technical
assistance. Theprogramme began in1997. BytheendofApril 1998, theWTO willhave assisted
intheestablishment ofWTO Reference Centres intwenty-two least-developed countries. Theneeds
ofallleast-developed country WTO Members andObservers inthisarea willhave been metbythe
endof1998.
25. TheInformation Technologies forDevelopment Project (ITD) isacompanion initiative which
isfocused ondeveloping trade information andtraining resources which canbeaccessed byleast-
developedcountryWTOMembersviatheInternetandonotherelectronicplatforms,includingCD-ROMs
anddiskettes. TheITDproject isbeing carried outjointly bytheWTO andtheWorld Bank ’sEconomic
Development Institute.
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