WORLD TRADE WT/MIN(96)/ST/111
12December 1996
ORGANIZATION(96-5289)
Original: English MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
Singapore, 9-13December 1996
NIGERIA
Statement byTheHonourable RearAdmiral Jubrila Ayinla
Minister ofCommerce andTourism
Onbehalf ofthedelegation oftheFederal Republic ofNigeria, letmebegin byexpressing
ourgratitude totheGovernment andpeople ofSingapore fortheirwarm reception, hospitality, and
theexcellent facilities provided forthisConference. Wealsoseize thisopportunity toexpress our
thankstoMr.RenatoRuggiero,Director-General,WorldTradeOrganizationforhisveryableleadership
oftheWTO, andfortheexcellent preparations thatheandmembers ofhisstaffhavemade forthis
Conference.
ThisFirst Ministerial Review Conference oftheWorld Trade Organization (WTO) isof
exceptional significance. WetaketheviewthatthisConference presents uswiththeunique opportunity
toassess theimplementation oftheOrganization 'sAgreements, toaddress theproblems andissues
thathavearisen from implementation, tosettheagenda fortheforeseeable future, andtobegin the
difficult search forcommon ground inthose areasandonthose issues where consensus remains elusive.
ForNigeria asacountry, ourpurpose atthismeeting isthreefold. First, toclearly reaffirm
ourcommitment tothemultilateral trading system, toitsrulesanddisciplines andtotradeliberalization.
Second, toemphasize oureconomic andtrade priorities. Third, torestate thechallenges thatweface
asadeveloping nation, andindoing so,toseektheconcrete andtechnical support oftheinternational
community forthefuller andmore beneficial integration ofoureconomy intotheglobal trading system.
Ourprincipal challenge asadeveloping nation isthechallenge ofdevelopment. Weurgently
needtocreate morewealth, andthentoallocate thatwealth efficiently, rationally, andequitably amongst
ourpeoples. Toachieve this,wehavecommitted ourselves totradeliberalization foreconomic growth;
and,havealsobeeninvolved intheconsistent application ofsound macroeconomic policies which have
begun toyieldpositive dividends. Tothisend,ourexpectation isthat,although theWTO isaforum
forthepermanent negotiations ofbinding contractual trade relations, itshould bemore. Different
fromtheGATT before it,itisafull-fledged international organization thatrepresents notonlyavital
partofthestructure oftheinternational economic system, butalsoanindispensable mechanism for
thecoherent global management ofthesystem. Itshould enter intoapartnership withdeveloping
countries, andplayanactivist roleinassisting them toachieve theirfulldevelopment potential. In
thisregard also,there should beincreased market access intheproduct sectors ofparticular interest
todeveloping countries.
TheSecretariat should scrupulously study thegoods schedule ofmembers tohighlight instances
oftariff escalation which should beeliminated inorder tomake possible theincrease inexport trade
andgrowth ofdeveloping countries, particularly inthesectors oftextiles, agriculture, andtropical
products. Members areproposing further liberalization. Such proposals areindeed welcome.
Nonetheless, inconsidering suchproposals, there ought tobebalance. Equal consideration shouldWT/MIN(96)/ST/111
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beaccorded tofurther liberalization andincreased market access, andtotheelimination oftariff and
non-tariff barriers, inareas ofexport interest todeveloping countries.
OurvisionoftheWTOencompassesseveralelements.TheWTOasaninternationalorganization
initsconduct andoperations should contribute notonlytostable international economic relations, but
alsototheprosperity ofcountries, andthereby, also,topeace andsecurity intheinternational system.
There istherefore aneed fortheuniversality ofitsmembership. Inthisconnection, accession
negotiations forcountries undergoing thisexercise should beaccelerated.
Theformulation ofrules should beonthebasis ofinternational cooperation andconsensus.
Members oftheOrganization should declare abinding commitment against theuseofunilateralism
andunilateralactionsineconomicandtraderelations,particularlyofthetypethathaveextrajurisdictional
consequences. Such actions potentially haveadistorting anddestabilizing effect onglobal trading
relations. Nigeria callsonthisFirstMinisterial Conference todraftandconsider adeclaration against
theuseofunilateral actions withextraterritorial effects, inthemultilateral trading system.
Furthermore, itisimportant toemphasize thatWTO rules andreview ofsome agreements
which areforeseen should beundertaken onthebasisofequity. Thefullmembership oftheOrganization
iscommitted totradeliberalization. Atthesametime, inpursuing thisgoal,andinorder tostrengthen
itself, theOrganization needs toencourage theequitable distribution ofglobal income andprosperity
through trade, technology, andcapital flows.
Globalization hashadandcontinues tohavesuchaprofound effect onthetrading system.
Concern hasbeenexpressed thatthisbusiness-driven integration oftheglobal economy reduces the
sovereign ability ofgovernments totakedecisions. Thefearhasalsobeenexpressed thatmarginalization
maybeaconsequence ofglobalization. While theseconcerns mustbeborne inmind, Nigeria, however,
welcomes thepotential opportunities presented bythetrend ofglobalization. Itisourexpectation that
thistrend willaccelerate theglobal flowofscience andtechnology, promote easier access tofinancial
markets andcapital, andpromote thepositive flowofforeign direct investment (FDI). Multi-country
processing ofgoods isalsoaconsequence ofglobalization. Thisiswhythecurrent negotiations on
theharmonization ofnon-preferential rulesoforigin isimportant. Inthisconnection, mydelegation
notes withsatisfaction andwelcomes theongoing work inboththeCommittee onRules ofOrigin,
which Nigeria hasthehonour toserve asChairman, andintheTechnical Committee onRules ofOrigin
inBrussels. Mydelegation expresses theposition thatnecessary steps shallbetaken bytheWTO to
ensure thattheharmonization negotiations adheres tothedeadline.
Nigeria 'sviews ontheso-called "new issues" areclear. Werecognize thelinksbetween trade
andinvestments. Atthesame time, wealsorecognize thattheformulation ofrules fortrade and
investment isacomplicated exercise. Itistherefore, worthwhile toundergo aneducational process,
including theexchange ofinformation andanalysis inorder tofullygrasp thecomplex interlinkages.
Thisprocess canbefruitful bydrawing onthesynergies ofboththeWTO andtheUNCTAD. The
educationalprocessinbothorganizationscanbemutuallyreinforcingandcomplementary.Furthermore,
thisprocess should beunbiased andnon-prejudicial. Theproposal ontransparency ingovernment
procurement practices would alsobenefit from apreliminary examination byaworking party atthe
WTO.
Nigeria welcomes theattention thathasbeenaccorded thesubject oftrade andenvironment
bytheWTO since 1995. Nigeria isstrongly andequally committed totrade liberalization and
environmental protection. Wealsorecognize theneedtointegrate environmental concerns intotrade
andeconomic policy. However, inseeking higher levels ofenvironmental protection, itneeds tobe
underscored thatforusinAfrica, poverty isthemostsignificant cause ofenvironmental degradation.
Itisforthisreason thatwetakethestrong viewthatincreased tradeliberalization, particularly inproductWT/MIN(96)/ST/111
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areas ofcritical importance forourcountries, willyield environmental dividends. Thisiswhywe
arealsofirmly resolved tooppose coercive measures andtrade restrictions forthepurpose of
environmental protection, butrather topursue environmental protection through positive measures.
These would include, increased access tomarkets, increased capital flows, transfer of
environmentally-friendly technology onmutually agreed andfavourable terms, andwithrespect for
intellectual property rights. Wealsocannot support unilateral extraterritorial measures byindividual
countries foraddressing environmental problems.
Ishould alsoaddthatNigeria willcontinue thesearch forconsensus onitsproposal on
domestically prohibited goods (DPGS) because inourview, andintheviewofother co-sponsors, it
represents animportant contribution inthecommon search forcomprehensive solutions toglobal
environmental problems.
Inthepastfewyears, regional trade agreements haveincreased innumber, aswellasintheir
scope, andcoverage. Wehope thatthese regional agreements willnotbecome inward-looking
protectionist blocs orpromote inefficiencies. Rather, itisourexpectation thattheywillbeconsistent
withandcomplementarytoWTOrulesanddisciplines,andpromotetradeliberalization,notonlyamongst
theirMembers, butalsoglobally. Nigeria seizes theopportunity offered bythishistoric Conference
toexpress satisfaction withtheworkoftheNewCommittee onRegional Trade Agreements. Werestate
ourfirmconviction ontheprimacy ofthemultilateral trading system overandabove regional trading
arrangements.
TheDispute Settlement System oftheWTO contained intheDispute Settlement Understanding
(DSU) isthefoundation ofthenewMultilateral Trading System. Ifaffords allcountries, great and
small,protectionandcompensationfromarbitraryorunjustifiablediscrimination.Weexpresssatisfaction
attheoperation oftheDispute Settlement Body (DSB) initsfirsttwoyears. Weexpress thehope
thatitwillmaintain impartiality andtransparency inorder toensure itseffectiveness andcredibility
intheyears tocome.
Services represent animportant andthefastest growing sector oftheglobal economy. Nigeria
deeply regrets thedifficulty inthenegotiations intheareas mandated atMarrakesh which include
financial services, movement ofnatural persons, maritime services, andbasic telecommunications.
Itisacause forserious concern thatdifficulties haveprolonged thenegotiations beyond theiroriginal
deadlines. Welookforward totheearly resumption ofnegotiations onservices. Insodoing, all
Members must recommit themselves tothefundamental principles ofmost-favoured-nation (MFN)
national treatment, andnon-discrimination. AstheWTO pursues significantly improved MFN-based
commitments onmarket access andnational treatment intheservices negotiations, Nigeria alsosupports
thework programme oftheWTO constituted bythebuilt-in agenda andtheconclusions and
recommendations contained inthereports ofthevarious WTO bodies.
Inclosing, wewould liketoreiterate thatthisisanimportant Conference thatwillclearly define
theroleoftheWTO foryears tocome, including itsmission, anditseffectiveness inimplementing
thevarious agreements. However, thetestofitssuccess willdepend onhowwellitcontributes in
meeting thechallenge ofdevelopment, andacting toalleviate poverty andmarginalization. IftheWTO
through itsoperations increases tradeliberalization, butatthesametimemorecountries aremarginalized
andpoverty increases, doubts andcriticisms willarise, andquestions willberaised. FortheWTO
tobedeemed successful, thebenefits oftrade liberalization should beglobally andequitable spread.
Iwishusallafruitful andmost rewarding Conference.