./.WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/GC/W/98
22 September 1998
(98-3644)
Original:  English
TRANSPARENCY AND DERESTRICTION
Communication from Canada
The following communication, dated 16 September 1998, received from the delegation of
Canada is circulated to Members.
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As Canada's Minister for International Trade, Sergio Marchi, made clear in his statement at
the May Ministerial Conference, greater transparency of WTO activities is central to building and
reinforcing public support for the multilateral trading system.
As part of the preparatory process for the Third Ministerial Conference, WTO Members will
all, as national governments, have the responsibility to develop national positions in close consultation
with our national stakeholders.  Members thus need to have the necessary tools at our disposal to
facilitate this task of developing national positions. Greater transparency, while preserving thecontractual intergovernmental nature of the WTO, is one.
Public concerns in many of our countries can reflect a lack of understanding of the nature of
the WTO.  As a way of rebuilding confidence in the objectives of the preamble of the Marrakesh
Agreement establishing the World Trade Organization, Members need to demonstrate that we,
working within the context of the WTO, have no secrets to hide.  As governments, Members
increasingly need to engage in open and well-informed public debates at the national level as a meansof rebuilding such confidence.
Canada thinks it helpful to distinguish among th ree separate elements to transparency as a
way to taking immediate, practical steps towards the shared goal of greater public support for trade
liberalization in general and the WTO in particular.  The three elements are: document derestrictionpolicy, outreach to civil society, and transparency issues related to the Dispute Settlement
Understanding.  In Canada's view, the WTO should move quickly on both document derestriction
policy and outreach.  Issues related to the Dispute Settlement Understanding are different and should
thus be considered in the context of the DSU review, with the exception of circulation of Panel reports
which is a document circulation issue only.  Canada supports the circulation of panel reports to theParties once the "Finding and Conclusions" portion has been translated into all three official WTO
languages, the factual portion being in any one of the three official WTO languages.
With respect to document policy, Canada is of the view that, once available in all three
official WTO languages, the following WTO documents should be issued as unrestricted:
(a) Draft agendas (airgrams);
(b) Official minutes (“M” series);
(c) Secretariat working documents (“W” series);WT/GC/W/98
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(d) Member’s formal contributions or working documents (“W” series) unless the Member in
question specifies otherwise.
With respect to Secretariat outreach to civil society, Canada would welcome further
Secretariat efforts.  Canada takes for granted that outreach should be aimed at the full range of public
interests rather than only those groups which have expressed particular concerns.  Canada would
support more regular outreach in the form of symposia and workshops as a means to improve
understanding regarding the WTO and trade liberalization. However, these cost money.  While
Canada has been pleased to provide some funds in this regard, and there may well be a role for grant
funding for special outreach activities by the Secretariat, it would be preferable for the Secretariat to
concentrate its efforts on the substance of symposia rather than being tasked with fundraising.Regular budget funded outreach would not only en sure best use of Secretariat resources, but more
importantly, would preclude undue influence by donors, or perceptions thereof, in terms of the
specific activity or event funded.  Regular budg et funding would provide the confidence among all
Members that the Secretariat’s outreach program reflects the views of the full spectrum of Members.
The outreach program should not, of course, be developed at the expense of ongoing work but shouldbe funded either from the current WTO budget or through an increase in the WTO’ budget.  In the
medium-term, Members will need to consider building funding of outreach into the regular WTO
budget.
Canada would stress that it is the very success of the GATT and WTO over the past 50 years
that has led to the public awareness of the linkag es between trade policy and domestic interests.  As
Members prepare for the Third Ministerial Conference and further negotiations, informed debate is
central. Enhanced transparency through more liberal document policy and outreach are key elements
in informed debate and are essential to the development and reflection of public policy.
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