. /.RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/GC/W/468
12 February 2002
(02-0697)
Original:  English
WORK PROGRAMME ON SMALL ECONOMIES - PROPOSED FRAMEWORK
Communication from Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, El Salvador,
Fiji, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Mauritius, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea,
Saint Lucia, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago
The following communication has been received from the delegations of Barbados, Belize,
Bolivia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Fiji, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Mauritius,
Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Saint Lucia, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago.
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1. Paragraph 35 of the Doha Ministerial Declaration (WT(MIN(01)/DEC/l) states the following:
"We agree to a work programme, under the auspices of the General Council, to
examine issues relating to the trade of small economies.  The objective of this work is to
frame responses to the trade-related issues identified for the fuller integration of small,
vulnerable economies into the multilateral trading system, and not to create a sub-category of
WTO Members.  The General Council shall review the work programme and make
recommendations for action to the Fifth Session of the Ministerial Conference".
2. In pursuance of this mandate, our delegations propose that the Work Programme be
undertaken in accordance with the following procedures and modalities:
(a) The Work Programme shall remain under the overall responsibility of the General
Council.
(b) The General Council shall have the Work Programme on Small Economies (WPSE)
as a standing item on its agenda.
(c) The General Council shall instruct the CTD to have a focussed programme of work
for small economies which will be conducted in dedicated sessions of the CTD.
(d) The CTD shall report regularly to the General Council on the progress of work in the
dedicated sessions.
(e) The Chairperson of the regular CTD shall also be the Chair for the dedicated sessions
of the CTD.
(f) The dedicated sessions of the CTD shall have an agreed calendar of meetings to
complete the work under its mandate.WT/GC/W/468
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(g) The CTD will hold as many informal meetings as necessary with a view to assisting
the formal process in the dedicated sessions of the CTD.
(h) Following focussed discussions and recommendations of the CTD, the General
Council, as appropriate, shall direct relevant subsidiary bodies to frame responses and
take action, in the areas of concern dealt within the CTD or otherwise proposed bydelegations.
(i) As and when necessary, the dedicated sessions of the CTD will work in collaboration
with relevant subsidiary bodies.
(j) The General Council shall instruct the WTO Secretariat to provide necessary
information and analysis, inter alia ,
(i) on the impact of WTO rules on Small Economies;
(ii) of the constraints faced by Small Economies as well as their shortfalls in
institutional and administrative capacities, including in the area of human
resources;
(iii) of the effects of Trade Liberalization on Small Economies.
The CTD will also seek information and analysis from other agencies and bodies that
carry out work on small economies.
(k) The General Council takes note of the modalities and procedures.  Accordingly, the
substantive work on the WPSE will begin in the dedicated sessions of the CTD as
soon as possible.
3. As instructed by our Ministers in Doha, the overall objective of the Work Programme shall be
the timely completion of their mandate, as contained in paragraph 35 of the Doha Declaration.
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