PRESS RELEASE 
EMBARGO  
NOT FOR PUBLICATION, OR DISTRIBUTION BY NEWS AGENCIES UNTIL 
1500 GENEVA TIME ( 1300 GMT ) 30 SEPTEMBER 2004  
 
PRESS/TPRB/236 
30 September 2004 
 
(04-4094) 
TRADE POLICY REVIEW: RWANDA 
Continued reforms and technical as sistance should help Rwanda 
in its efforts to achi eve a dynamic economy 
The continuation of macroeconomic and structural reforms introduced by Rwanda since the end of 
the 1994 genocide are essential to provide its ec onomy with the competitiveness and dynamism it 
needs if it is to reap the full benefits of the country’s participation in the multilateral trading 
system and its recent accession to the COMESA (Common Market for Eastern and Southern 
Africa), according to a report on the trade polic ies and practices of Rwanda released by the WTO 
Secretariat. 
 
The report stresses that Rwanda needs considerable technical assistance from the international community to build capacity in trade negotiations, to integrate trade into its development strategy, 
to transcribe its pre-Uruguay Round tariff commitments into the Harmonized System, and to 
effectively implement the WTO Agreements, partic ularly in the areas of customs valuation, 
sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade and trade-related aspects of 
intellectual property rights. 
 The reforms, together with assistance from the international community, and enhancement of 
Rwanda’s multilateral commitments on both goods and services, should contribute to improving 
the transparency and predictability of the country ’s trade regime, and should attract the capital 
needed to diversify its economy, the present lack of diversification having left Rwanda vulnerable 
to external shocks, including international market fluctuations. 
 The WTO Secretariat report notes that in addition to providing technical assistance, the partner 
countries could help Rwanda in its unilateral reconstruction efforts, inter alia,  eliminating practices 
which affect the markets for products of intere st to Rwanda and by guaranteeing broader and 
more stable access to their markets. 
 
The WTO report, along with a policy statement by the Government of Rwanda, will be the basis for 
the first Trade Policy Review (TPR) of Rwanda by the Trade Policy Review Body of the WTO on 28 
and 30 September 2004. 
 The following documents are available in MS Wo rd format on the WTO web-site. They can be 
downloaded at http://www.wto.org/english/ tratop_e/tpr_e/tp231.htm  PRESS/TPRB/236 
Page 2 of 2 
 
 
 • Secretariat report 
> Contents and summary observations  
> Economic environment  > Trade and investment regimes  
> Trade policies and practices by measure  
> Trade policies by sector  > Appendix tables  
• Government report  
• Chairperson’s concluding remarks  
• Minutes of the meeting (available appr oximately six weeks after the meeting). 
Note 
Trade Policy Reviews are an exercise, mandated in the WTO agreements, in which member 
countries’ trade and related policies are examined and evaluated at regular intervals. Significant 
developments that may have an impact on the global trading system are also monitored. For each 
review, two documents are prepared: a policy stat ement by the government of the member under 
review, and a detailed report written independently by the WTO Secretariat. These two documents 
are then discussed by the WTO’s full membership in  the Trade Policy Review Body (TPRB). These 
documents and the proceedings of the TPRB’s meetings are published shortly afterwards.  
 
Print copies of the TPR publications are available for sale from the WTO Secretariat, Centre William 
Rappard, 154 rue de Lausanne, 1211 Genève 21 and through the on-line bookshop at https://secure.vtx.ch/shop/boutiques/wto_index_boutique.html  or follow this path :  
www.wto.org >resources > publications > trade policy reviews  
 The TPR publications are also available from our co-publisher Bernan Press , 4611-F Assembly 
Drive, Lanham, MD 20706-4391, United States 
Next reviews: 
Norway : 11 and 13 October 2004 
European Union : 25 and 27 October 2004 
Jamaica : 8 and 10 November 2004 
 
For a full list of previous trade policy reviews and the full programme of future reviews go to 
http://www.wto.org/english/trat op_e/tpr_e/tpr_ e.htm#reviews 
or follow this path : www.wto.org > trade topics > trade policy reviews 
 
  
END