. /.WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/MIN(03)/ST/16
10 September 2003
(03-4750)
MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
Fifth Session
Cancún, 10 - 14 September 2003Original:  English
THAILAND
Statement by H.E. Dr Adisai Bodharamik
Minister of Commerce
First, let me thank His Excellency, Dr. Luis Derbez Bautista and the Government of Mexico
for the warm hospitality and this excellent arrangem ent.  I also would like to thank the Chair of the
General Council and the Director-General of the WT O for their efforts in coming up with the draft
Ministerial Declaration.
The reason that we are here in Cancún is to set the path for further negotiations under the
Doha Development Agenda, leading to its successful conclusion by 1 January 2005, as we agreed in
Doha.  It is clear that our actions and the results of our meeting this week are being closely watched
by the world community.  Therefore, it is vital that we increase our cooperation and work togetherwith a sense of mutual understanding and flexibil ity in order to make this Conference a success.
To do so, we must, first and foremost, admit to the simple reality that the WTO Members do
not have the same economic constructs.  While the developed Members are evidently more advanced
in the manufacturing and services sectors, it is clear that most developing Members are still heavily
reliant on the agriculture sector for trade and development.
Accordingly, as a developing Member with half of our population dependent on the
agriculture sector for their livelihood, Thailand places the utmost emphasis on the agriculturenegotiation and is fully committed to the high level of ambition as mandated in the Doha Declaration.
We want a significant reform on all fronts in world agriculture trade.
On market access, high tariffs and tariff peaks must be capped before the application of tariff
reduction formula and tariff rate quota volume should be expanded to ensure real market access for
agriculture products.  There must also be substantial reduction commitment in all trade-distortingdomestic support and an end date must also be set for the elimination of all forms of export subsidies.
In this respect, Thailand believes that the modali ty for the agriculture negotiations that will emerge
from this Conference should reflect the interests and concerns of all participants.  It should also be
clear and concise so that there will not be any am biguities left for interpretation in the negotiations
that will follow.
Greater market access in world agriculture trade will expand consumers' choice and elevate
consumers' wellbeing in both the developed and developing world.  More importantly, substantial
reform in agriculture trade will contribute to a fr eer and fairer global trading environment, which will
help to generate higher incomes for developing countries and enhance their efforts to combat poverty.
Thailand, for instance, has set the goal to eradicate poverty by 2008, after which no one will
be living below the poverty line.  Consequently, we believe that an open and free global trading
environment is the essential ingredient to achieve this  goal and that agriculture trade is the key to lift
income and to sustainable development.WT/MIN(03)/ST/16
Page 2
On the Singapore Issues this time around, it needs to be admitted that not all Members are
ready for negotiations due to their diverse characteri stics.  Some may be ready in some areas, such as
trade facilitation and transparency in government pr ocurement, but not in others, such as investment
and competition policy.  This being the case, more time might be needed to ensure full and active
participation by all Members.  I believe that by linking all of these issues together we are furthercomplicating the negotiations and impeding any decisive actions.
In order to ensure that we will all achieve what we had set out to do at Doha, it is vital that we
ensure that everyone here will have a say and a part in the outcome of our deliberations.  I do not
believe that we can call the WTO the global trade organization if only some members dictate the
negotiations, while others are left on the sideline and forced to accept the outcome.  We need to work
together so that the outcome of our efforts will repr esent the needs and interests of all Members, large
and small, rich and poor.
Finally, let me take this opportunity to welcome the Kingdoms of Cambodia and Nepal to the
WTO.  Thailand looks forward to working closel y with both countries in the near future.
__________