RESTRICTED  
  
S/CSC/M/92  
 
25 July 2023 
(23-5064) Page: 1/12 
Committee on Specific Commitments    
 
 
REPORT OF THE MEETING HELD ON 15 JUNE  2023 
NOTE BY THE SECRETARIAT1 
The Committee on Specific Commitments (CSC) held a meeting on 15 June 2023 chaired by  
Mr. Danang Prasta from Indonesia  (out-going Chair) and Mr.  Parasram Gopaul from Mauritius  
(incoming Chair) . The Chairperson  added that under the agenda item Other Business, h is successor 
would say a few words about initiating a discussion on the functioning of the Committee in the 
context of WTO reform at the next meeting.  
 
The agenda for the meeting, contained in document WTO/AIR/CSC/ 21, was adopted  as modified .  
 
Before moving on to the substance of the meeting, the Chairperson drew Delegations' attention to 
the hybrid mode  meeting format , asking those attending on -line to allow a few seconds of streaming 
to ensure that the statement be heard in full. He also urged delegates, for the benefit of the 
interpreters, to speak at a reasonable and moderate pace and to provide a copy of their writ ten 
statement to help ensure that interventions were properly conveyed and understood in the three 
languages.   
 
1  ITEM A - APPOINTMENT OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE COMMITTEE   
1.1.  The Chairperson  reminded that the Chairperson of the Council for Trade in Services ha d 
recently concluded his consultations on the slate of names for the Chairpersons of the subsidiary 
bodies. Accordingly, he propose d that the Committee elect Mr. Parasram Gopaul from Mauritius as 
its new Chairperson by acclamation .  
1.2.  It was so agreed .  
1.3.  He thanked Members for their trust and support during his brief chairpersonship , as well as the 
Secretariat for its precious help.  
1.4.  The Committee then elected Mr. Parasram Gopaul from Mauritius as its new Chairperson by 
acclamation. The meeting was thereafter chaired by Mr . Gopaul, who started by  thanking his 
predecessor  for keeping  the Committee's work alive , despite the difficult task . He congratulate d him 
for the good work he had been doing with the support of delegations. He also thanked all Memb ers 
for the trust placed in Mauritius. He looked forward to working with Members individually and 
collectively, in order to move ahead the agenda and bring some new impetus to the work of the 
Committee.  
2  ITEM B - IMPLEMENTATION OF SPECIFIC COMMITMENTS  
2.1.  The Chairperson  recall ed that at the previous meetings, the Committee had continued to 
consider  the proposal from the delegation of Türkiye ( S/CSC/W/73 ) on implementation issues related 
to specific commitments and Article II (MFN) on cross -border supply of road transport services under 
the GATS. The proposal had raised three main questions for discussion: 1) t he compatibility of 
imposing truck quotas with full market access commitments in Mode 1 on road transport services; 
2) the understanding of "Unbound" in market access and "None" in national treatment with respect 
to cross -border supply of road transport; a nd 3) the MFN obligation with respect to all measures 
 
1 This document has been prepared under the Secretariat's own responsibility and is without prejudice 
to the positions of Members or to their rights and obligations under the WTO.  S/CSC/M/92  
 
- 2 - 
 
  affecting international road transport including truck quotas, passage fees, customs measures, etc. 
He also recall ed that the Turkish delegation had also made a detailed presentation which provided 
more clarity on its proposal and helped Members better understand the issues raised.  He further 
noted that d elegations appreciated the Turkish proposal which was an important contribution to the 
Committee work. Nevertheless, the discussions had remained prelim inary without addressing the 
substance of the issues raised. This could be due to the complexity of cross -border road transport.  
2.2.  He recalled that a t the last meeting, upon request, the Secretariat had informed the Committee 
of the relevant studies on road  transport undertaken by other international organizations. It was 
agreed that these studies would be presented at this meeting to facilitate further discussions on the 
Turkish proposal.  As agreed, the representatives of the UNESCAP, the World Bank , and th e 
International Transport Forum of OECD were invited to present their work on cross -border road 
transport with focus on the quota system, the core issue raised in the Turkish proposal. The Chair 
hoped that these presentations would help Members have a bett er understanding of cross -border 
road transport and related quota system so that the Committee could engage in a substantive 
discussion on the Turkish proposal .  
2.3.  He first invite d the representative of UNESCAP , Mr. Fedor Kormilitsyn , to make the 
presentation.  
2.4.  The representative of UNESCAP  stated that his institution , namely  the Economic and Social 
Commission of the United Nations for Asia and the Pacific , located in Bangkok , covered a  huge region 
consisting of more than 50 countries.  In terms of road transportation , there were certain specifics 
in Asia as compared to other parts of the world, for example, Europe : it was less liberali zed, and 
historically there existed  more restrictions. The UN ESCAP  studies on road transport had been 
undertaken  between 2011 and 2016.  The situation had not  changed significantly  since then. He 
inform ed the Committee  of four products  developed by UNESCAP : 1) Study Report: M onograph 
Series on Facilitation of International R oad Transport in Asia and th e Pacific, released in 2011; 
2) Regional Framework on the Facilitation of International R oad Transport in  Asia and  the Pacific , 
which was  based  on the recommendations of th e Study Report and  adopted by the APEC Ministerial 
Conference o n Transport in 2012 ; 3) Model Bilateral Agreement on International Road Transport, 
published in 2016, which aimed  to help countries move towards harmonising provisions of 
agreements on international road transport ; 4) D atabase of Agreements , developed in 2016, which 
was a r eference tool covering mostly bilateral agreements on road transport, but also some 
multilateral agreements.  
2.5.  The Monograph Series in Facilitation of International R oad Transport  in Asia and the Pacific , 
was available at https://www.unescap.org/resources/monograph -series -facilitation -international -
road-transport -asia-and-pacific . This Study Report  described the prevailing arrangements on 
international road transport based on the system of permits in bilateral and multilateral agreements 
between the countries of Asia and the Pacific , provided clarification on existing typ es of road 
transport permits , and made a set of recommendations on work towards more liberalized regimes 
in international road transport . The main types of road transport permits identified by the Study 
included: permits with or without quota s; bilateral permits or multilateral permits ; permits valid for 
all routes or one specific route ; permits valid for multiple entries or single entry ; same or different 
permits for passenger and goods transport ; permits issued for a single vehicle or exchangeab le 
among vehicles in a carrier’s fleet . In terms of recommendation s, the Study concluded that free 
market access without permit s or quota s was an ideal arrangement for international road transport . 
It had been partly used in transport among several countri es. But s uch an arrangement require d a 
close relationship between countries . Most member countries w ould continue to use transport 
permits with quota s in the near and medium -term future . Countries were encouraged to  strive 
towards a more liberal system of international road transportation where possible by abolishing 
permits or if there was a quota, by abolishing such quotas.  
2.6.  On the basis of the recommendations of the above  Study, a regional guideline  had been 
adopted in 2012 , called the Regional Strategic Framework on the Facilitation of International Road 
Transport , available at https://www.unescap.org/resources/regional -strategic -framework -
facilitation -international -road-transport . The description of the issue was the following : "Across the 
Asian region international movement by road is largely confined to border areas and a limited 
number of roads. Most transport permits are issued for only a single trip along a designated route 
by a specified individual vehicle. The other constraint to international road transport is the restriction 
of transit operations. As a result, goods carried by road often ha ve to be transhipped  at border areas S/CSC/M/92  
 
- 3 - 
 
  or loading points along a designated route adding cost and delay to the transport process ." The 
target was set as: " Wider application of multiple -entry transport permits valid for one year and 
multiple rout es or road networks, issued to a carrier for any compliant vehicle in its fleet, which 
could be used both for inter -state and transit transport operations.  In addition, multilateral transport 
permits should be promoted for wider applications in parallel w ith bilateral transport permits. " The 
proposed process was: " When member countries formulate or renew their bilateral and multilateral 
agreements on international road transport or hold consultations on the implementation of the 
agreements, they may consid er adopting transport permits valid for multiple entries with one year 
validity and/or on multiple routes or road networks and allow their competent authorities to issue 
the permits to their carriers instead of particular vehicles. " Multilateral  road transport permit  system s 
included  the ECMT system  under the ITF -OECD and the permit system under the Black Sea Economic 
Cooperation Organization . 
2.7.  The UNESCAP  Secretariat undertook a comparative study on bilateral agreements on 
international road transport in the region with a view to facilitating the formulation of new bilateral 
agreements and harmonization of their provisions. The Model Bilateral Agreement on International 
Road Transport was available a t https://www.unescap.org/resources/model -bilateral -agreement -
international -road-transport . It provide d three options  for road transport permit provisions (based 
on practicalities in Asia and the Pacific Region) . The first option of the model agreement was 
addressed to the countries which currently were not prepared to grant general access to their 
territories for intern ational road transport operations and still prefer red limiting their scope to 
designated routes and border crossings. This option of the model agreement also provide d for 
permits for most types of transport operations . The second option of the model agreem ent ha d no 
reference to designated routes and border crossings but provide d for permits with quotas in respect 
of most types of international transport operations. This approach was also very common in the 
region . The third option of the model agreement pr ovide d for a permit -free legal regime for 
occasional transport of passengers and for bilateral and transit transport of goods. The permits were 
kept only for regular transport of passengers and for third -country transport of goods. A number of 
countries in the region currently follow ed a similar approach in their bilateral agreements on 
international road transport . 
2.8.  The UNESCAP  Secretariat  had also developed a reference tool for the online database of 
bilateral and multilateral agreements , available at https://tadb.unescap.org/ . This e asy-to-access 
online database  containin g more than 200 bilateral and multilateral road transport agreements  was 
designed to assess the existing legal environment of UNESCAP Member States in the area of 
international road transport . It served as an informational tool for reporting on legal devel opments 
towards harmonization of regulatory frameworks and strengthening the capacities of UNESCAP 
Member States for the effective enforcement of national legislation on road transport . It also served 
as a source of research information includ ing official websites of Government agencies (Ministries of 
Transport, Chambers of Commerce, etc.), legal databases of Member States and Non -Member 
States, ESCAP agreement repository .  
2.9.  The Chairperson  thanked the representative of UNESCAP , for his informative presentation. He 
then invite d the representative of the World Bank, Mr. Charles Kunaka, to make his presentation.  
2.10.   The representative of the World Bank  stated that his presentation was structured around four 
key messages: bilateral agreements were the instrument of choice to regulate international road 
transport services – with a few exceptions ; the agreements were difficult to administer in a 
transparent manner and complicate d the operating environment for regulators and operators ; 
quantity con trols distort ed supply of services and fed inefficient practices ; regions that ha d removed 
quantity controls ha d realized significant benefits . 
2.11.   He noted that t he World Bank  invest ed billions of dollars each  year to improve  road transport 
infrastructure across countries . The logic behind this was straightforward : improved road condition s 
would reduce vehicle operating costs, reduce transport prices and contribute  to growth, trade and 
poverty reduction. However, inefficiencies  had been observed  in this transmission mechanism from 
investments in infrastructure to reduction in prices. Part of the explanation for that, which was why 
the World Bank  had been investing in analytical work in this area, was in the way transport service s 
were regulated . Evidence suggest ed that in regions where there were strict regulatory controls , the 
prices for the  supply of services  tended to be higher. Therefore , the magnitude of the impacts of the 
investments in infrastructure  was diminished . There were many  bilateral road transport agreements . 
The ECMT  (European Conference of Ministers of Transport) in 2002 had found 1400 such S/CSC/M/92  
 
- 4 - 
 
  agreements, for instance, just between European countries and other countries in the 
neighbourhood. For operators , keeping t rack of all these agreements could  be a significant regulatory 
burden, and it also tend ed to distort operating patterns.  
2.12.   Bilateral road transport agreements as the favoured instrument of regulatory control was 
largely a post -Second World War phenomenon originally intended to protect railway traffic and 
incumbent operators. There were some broad objectives , some  of which were  good objectiv es, 
includ ing: facilitating trade provision of transport services for the movement of goods and people 
across borders, promoting  economic growth , enhancing  regional integration,  improving  transport 
efficiency , ensuring safety and security, and managing env ironmental impacts . But there were also 
transport -specific aims behind this regulat ory control , for instance, to ensure equity between the 
partners connected by road transport , to give signals to the market , and to justify infrastructure . 
But there were some agreements reached for purely political reasons , either  as a starting point  to 
improve the relations  between countries  or as an economic solution to political problems. One of the 
ironies  was that the agreements between countries with very little volume s of trade tend ed to be 
much more open  than those between  countries having  much more significant volumes of trade 
between them.  
2.13.   Bilateral road transport agreements were not successful in providing required capacity, 
namely they ignored potential supply re sponse. B ilateral agreements ha d failed to prevent the 
erosion of rail transport . In addition, they were  poorly enforced , perpetuate d unsustainable 
practi ces, and encouraged fraud and waste.  The consequences included  market distortions , namely 
mismatch bet ween demand and supply of services , fragmented supply chains , high costs, long 
transit time, uncertainty in cargo flows, and complicating operating environment. This meant that a 
company's efficient operations in one country might not create positive spill over effects in another 
country .  
2.14.   The World Bank in  collaboration with the WTO Secretariat and the IRU undertook a 
quantitative analysis of bilateral road transport agreements (QuARTA) a few years previously by 
using a consistent framework so as to  compare agreements in different regions between different 
sets of countries. Such quantitative assessment had been used successfully by the WTO Secretariat 
to analyse bilateral air transport service agreements . A four-step approach  was utilized for the review 
of bilateral agreements on road freight transport : 1) developing an analytical template to eventually 
generate an index of openness of cross -border road transport markets ; 2) benchmarking the relative 
openness of each agreement; 3) selecting agreements to review ; 4) conducting a statistical analysis. 
Eventually , the study  selected  77 bilateral agreements , and seven  multilateral agreements.  The 
analysis was structured across 11 variables consistent with the content of all the agreements , 
including limitations on the scope of the agreement, transport authorization  requirements , types of 
traffic  exempted from permit requirements , types of traffic exempted from quota requirements , 
cabotage  traffic limitations , transit  quota limitations , third country traffic  limitations , prescribed 
routes, tax ation related limitations , facilitation  measures in place , and transparency  requirements .  
2.15.   The following were some of the main findings of QuARTA . More than 80% of these agr eements 
contained authorization requirements for bilateral transport  and transit  transport . Less than half of 
the agreements included authorization requirements for  triangular traffic. The majority of the 
agreements completely prohibit ed cabotage. Over hal f of the  agreements containing  provision s for 
transit traffic had quota limitations. About two -thirds of the agreements  provided for t he modalities 
for agreeing on the number of permits  which  tended to be determined on an annual basis . Some 
agreements had provisions on t he modalities for exchang e of permits  (by post, diplomatic channels, 
etc), or on the conditions of permit validity  (individually or bilaterally). In terms of the final 
provisions , most agreements did not provide for the right  to appeal against  the decisions of the 
competent authorit y; most agreements had no transparency provisions; less than half of the 
agreements provided for tax exemption conditions; most agreements had no provisions on non-
discrimination .  
2.16.   Out of a maximum scor e of 100  in QuARTA , some of the more recent agreements tend ed to 
be relatively more open  than the old er ones. However, a lot of old er agreements were still being 
used across the world. In terms of geographical relations, the agreements in South America ten ded 
to be much more open than those in other regions of the world, for instance, the agreements 
between African countries, between Africa and Europe, or between Asia and Europe. One of the 
approaches that ha d been adopted across the world was to use model agreements  as the basis for 
countries to negotiate bilateral agreements . The intention was to lead to convergence in terms of S/CSC/M/92  
 
- 5 - 
 
  provisions  over time. But some of the model agreements themselves m ight not be ideal as they 
might  be even more restrictive than b ilateral agreements that had been negotiated by countries 
themselves. There was  evidence that where quotas or quantit ative restrictions on the provision of 
road transport services were removed, the volume of traffic increased, the networks expanded and 
become much more complex , and transport costs went down 12 to 35% , namely  up to  over 1/3 
reduction in transport costs. Reliability, quality of services as well as productivity also  tended to 
improve with the removal of quantity control s. In conclusion, evidence suggest ed that countries that 
had removed quantity controls ha d realized significant benefits . Scarcity of bilateral authorizations 
at national level le d to distortion of competitio n and even fraud . Thus, the key questions were 
whether  the bilateral agreements protect ed local carriers , whether they were worth  it, whether they 
could justify the objectives individual countries aimed to achieve, whether there was a need for the 
complica ted operating environment , whether  the regimes were conducive to the decarbonization of 
transport . 
2.17.   The Chairperson  thanked the representative of the World Bank  for his informative 
presentation. He then invite d Ms. Elene S hatberashvili  from the International Transport Forum ( ITF) 
to give her presentation .  
2.18.   The representative of the ITF noted that after the Second World War , the European 
Conference of Ministers of Transport (ECMT) decided to establish a multilateral system to 
complement and try to improve the regulation of road transport  which was based on bilateral 
agreements. O n 1 January 1974 , the ECMT Council of Minister s introduced the ECMT Multilateral 
Quota System.  At that time the ECMT had been  compris ed of 17 member countries ; it currently had 
43 member countries . Today, under the ECMT Multilateral Quota System, freight Transport licences 
allowed mutual access to the  markets of 43 European member countries . The System was aimed to 
gradual ly liberali ze road freight transport , rationali ze the use of vehicles, reduce empty running , 
harmoni ze the terms of competition , promote the u se of environmentally friendly and safe vehicles .  
2.19.   The ECMT Quota System was of a multilateral character  which implied  the possibility of using 
the licence for runs between member countries . The ECMT licence  was a permit valid for a specific 
period of time for an unlimited number of journey s between member countries (subject to a certain 
limitation from 2005) . The quota  was the number of licences made available to an ECMT member 
country , determined by the ECMT Council of Ministers/ ITF Group on Road Transport . It was 
estimated  that the ECMT licen ces accounted for only  4% of total international road freight in Europe 
(2017) . The ECMT Quota System had evolved over the past decades, for example, the introduction 
of "Green" lorries (EURO I) in 1991 -1993, the " Greener and Safe” (EURO II) lorr ies in 1995 – 1997, 
the “EURO III safe” lorries in 2000 -2002,  the “EURO IV safe” lorries in 2005 -2007, the “EURO V safe” 
lorries in 2007-2009, and the  “EURO VI safe” lorries in 2012 -2014. When a member  country appli ed 
the best technology, it would have  a bigger number of licences.  The number of ECMT licen ces were 
increasing as the quality of the fleet was improved. For instance, in 2000 there were about 20 '000 
licences, and today there were 70 '075 licenses. Old categories of licen ces would be abandoned and 
from 2024, there would be only “EURO V " and  "EURO VI " licen ces in the system.  
2.20.   The core elements of the ECMT Quota System included: Resolutions and Recommendations 
adopted by Ministers ; a Guide on the use of the ECMT Multilateral Quota 2022, which set operational 
rules for the system (https://www.itf -oecd.org/user -guide -certificates ); Quality Charter for 
International Road Haulage Operations under the ECMT Multilateral Quota System , which, adopted 
by Transport Ministers in May 2015 , introduce d the highest possible quality of international road 
transport at pan -European level (https://www.itf -oecd.org/quality -charter , 42 member countries 
had implemented the Quality Charter in their national legislation s); a digital platform for licen ce 
management in place (EDI) , aimed at full digitalization of the quota system . More information on 
the ECMT Quota System was available at https://www.itf -oecd.org/ecmt -road-transport -platfo rm. 
Phase 1 of the digital platform for licen ce management  started on 1 January 2019  with Electronic 
Data Interchange (EDI) system fully replac ing the previous manual reporting and monitoring 
procedures on the use of ECMT  licences (https://www.itf -oecd.org/country -licences ). Phase 2 would 
be the full digitalization of ECMT Quota system : the paper licence w ould be substituted by a dig ital 
licence , and a ll the actors (issuing Authorities, control Authorities, hauliers, drivers) would be 
involved digitally in licence issuing, operating and control process . 
2.21.   There were  a lot of interesting questions  for discussion. One of them was why the market 
share of the ECMT licence was only 4%. In other words, why did  countries prefer bilateral 
agreements? What were the policy and political reasons for countries to keep their bilateral S/CSC/M/92  
 
- 6 - 
 
  agreements ? Was it really  to protect their markets  and their own hauliers , or to help  them regulate 
markets better?  
2.22.   The Chair person  thanked the representative of the ITF  for her informative presentation. He 
stated that the three presentations had shed some light on the issues rais ed under th is agenda item .  
2.23.   The representative of Türkiye  started by congratulating the new Chair and stressed that her 
delegation valued this Committee 's work and hoped to work with the Chair more closely in the near 
future . She thank ed the Secretariat  for their efforts in inviting  the international organisations  as well 
as the  representatives of the international organisation s for their highly relevant presentation s. She 
recalled that her delegation had benefited enormously  from the World Ban k Study QuARTA. It was 
useful to review the results of this important study again. The presentation on the ECMT Multilateral 
Quota System was enlightening. The ECMT was a good platform to liberalize international road 
transport. While the well-designed ECMT Multilateral Quota System seemed a viable way to facilitat e 
road transport, its current coverage of 4% of overall road freight transport  services  among the 
member  countries  was obviously too low. Noting that the ECMT had difficulty  getting information 
from its member  countrie s about their international road transport , she referred to GATS Article III 
which required members (ECMT member countries were all WTO Members) to publish international 
agreements , including those on road transport. She drew Members'  attention to the fact that air 
transport services were carved out from the GATS, while road transport services were included 
therein. This was a clear indication of the intention of the GATS negotiators to progressively liberalize 
road transport services.   
2.24.   Referring to the issues raised in Türkiye’s proposal ( S/CSC/W/73 ), she noted that several 
Members (e.g. Canada, China, Georgia, Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, Ukraine and the U nited States) 
had full commitments in road freight transport services. Yet, some  of the Members applied numerical 
restrictions on the number of servi ces and service providers in road freight transport, in the form of 
quotas and other forms. In Türkiye 's view, having a full market access commitment  on cross -border 
road transport services mean t that the Member concerned was not to apply quotas  in the sec tor. 
Bilateral agreements with quotas were not compatible with full market access commitments under 
the GATS. Many Members ha d no MFN exemption s for international road transport. This mean t that  
if they appl ied quota s, those had to be applied  equally to al l WTO Members. But in practi ce the 
Members concerned (e.g. United Arab Emirates, Argentina, China, India, Qatar and Pakistan ) had  
negotiate d different bilateral agreements with different Members. With its proposal, Türkiye  wanted 
to discuss  the question of  how to understand specific commitments in cross-border road transport . 
It was Türkiye 's view  that the application of quotas and other restrictions in cross -border road 
transport  should not undermine Members'  market access and national treatment obligations under 
the GATS  and that the bilateral quota system in this sector could sometimes be incompatible with 
GATS commitments .  
2.25.   The representative  of India extend ed his compliments and congratulations to  both the  
incoming and outgoing Chairs. Referring to an item India had raised at the previous meeting, he 
stated that the WTO was a multilateral Member -driven organisation . While observer international 
organisations could speak in the Committee in their capacity as  observers , this was not the case for 
the private sector 's participation . He then raised some questions on the presentations.  
2.26.   Regarding the presentation by the UNESCAP, the representative of India  asked  how many 
Members ha d adopted the model  bilateral agre ement the UNESCAP had designed . Referring to the 
point made in the World Bank's presentation that  bilateral agreements ha d a lot of problems, 
including the lack of  an appeal mechanism, he asked whether  the model designed by UNESCAP  had 
cover ed all or some of the issues mentioned in the World Bank's presentation . Regarding the issue 
of the lack of an appeal mechanism, he wondered whether multilateral agreements included an 
appeal m echanism. He noted from the World Bank's presentation that bilate ral agreements had not 
created a conducive environment for road transport and that removing quotas in bilateral 
agreements would effectively reduce transport costs. He however noted from the ITF's presentation 
that quotas existed in multilateral agreements  as well. Then the question was how multilateral 
agreements would in any way work better than bilateral agreements if the quotas continue d to exist . 
Referring to the point made in the World Bank's presentation that bilateral agreements on road 
transport ha d not prevented the erosion of rail transport, he ask ed what had eroded rail transport.  
2.27.   In responding to India's question  on how many countries  had follow ed the model  bilateral 
agreement , the representative of the UNESCAP  said that he was not able to  provide the  exact  figure. S/CSC/M/92  
 
- 7 - 
 
  He stated that  when  the model  was developed, his institution  focused on the way countries 
formulate d their agreements , at least in terms of terminology  and the schemes appli ed. A step-by-
step approach had been suggested to allow countries to use some clauses from the model if they 
chose to modify agreements . This would harmonize bilateral agreements and make them easier to 
interpret. On the strengths and weaknesses of  bilateral agreements as opposed to multilateral 
agreements , he stated that this was not the focus of  the study undertaken by UNESCAP.  But from 
the practi ce in the region , UNESCAP  tried to address the question of why bilateral agreements were 
still popular among  countries. It was understood that bilateral agreements  were easier to manage 
for countries. While there existed  a number of ambitious multilateral agreements on transport, their 
implementation was very slow. This was the case for the multilateral agreement on road transport 
in ASEAN which had been concluded over 15 years  previously . Governments wanted tools that 
worked right away. Th at was what bilateral agreements could provide. A nother example,  the 
Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Member States Agreement on Facilitation of In ternational 
Road Transport  was an attempt to establish a multilateral permit  system , which had been signed in 
2014 and entered into force in 2017. Nevertheless, it had hardly been implemented in practice and 
multilateral permits were not in place. The m ultilateral permit system was an advanced system and 
the ECMT  Multilateral Quota System was a good example of how a multilateral  system could  work 
for a big number of countries . But in Asia , not many countries were ready for such a system . 
2.28.   The representative of the World Bank  appreciate d the feedback from Türkiye  and India. He 
acknowledge d that while  bilateral agreements  result ed in inefficiencies, at the same time they were 
important  to the proper regulat ion of  road transport  services.  Referring to the question from India, 
he noted that some of the multilateral agreements tend ed to go for the lowest common denominators  
and thus might  not be aspiring to change the game  in a fundamental manner . He pointed to the fact 
that in QuARTA some mu ltilateral agreements had lower scores than bilateral agreements. He 
thought the question from India pertinent:  how would the multilateral system work if they continue d 
to have quantit ative restrictions? He noted  that multilateral agreements introduce d some flexibility 
in the operation  which addressed  the capacity constraints on a bilateral basis, especially through the 
triangular qu otas which enable d operators based in other countries to fill in gaps in the provision of 
services. This was  a progressive mov e in that regard. Regarding the question on the erosion of rail 
traffic, he said that  the erosion of rail traffic had not been just due to the inefficiencies or 
ineffectiveness of the bilateral road transport agreements, but also  due to  inefficiencies in h ow the 
rail transport systems ha d evolved in some parts of the world. The  rail transport system  had not 
been well suited to modern supply chains . But this picture was changing : a lot of  investment s were 
made in rail systems ; and rail systems become an impo rtant part of the response to the urgent need 
to decarbonize freight transport and logistics.  
2.29.   The representative of the ITF appreciated the  interesting exchange . She shared some of the 
views but disagreed with some others . Referring to the question from India on why there were still 
quotas in multilateral systems, she noted that  the idea of developing the multilateral quota system 
was that the system  should eventually terminate itself. The multilateral system was  expected to  
expand in a way to cover the whole market , achieve  the best quality , the best environmental 
performance and then liberalise everything. That was the fundamental idea of the multilateral 
system  when ministers had established it in 1974. Quota  was the trial ground for establishing t he 
common market of the European Union  which today had been fully liberalized. When countries had 
similar development levels, the system worked out. She recalled that in establishing the common 
market in the European Union , it had taken a court decision in the Hague to oblige Member States 
to liberali ze their road transport  markets. There were different reasoning and explanations on why 
countries still preferred bilateral road transport agreements. She did not think  that bilateral 
agreements were necessaril y easier to manage. It was not easy to have multiple bilateral permits 
for a lorry to cross countries. It would be  easier to have one annual licence to perform the transport 
freely and without any interruption. The main reason  for the preference of bilateral agreements was 
that in dealing with bilateral agreements, countries felt more secure and more in control of the 
market  situation . On the other hand, multilateral systems were managed by rules, not by countries 
at their disc retion. This was  an issue more politic al and more policy -oriented , not necessarily 
quantitative , and merit ed good reflection.  Regarding  the question on the model bilateral agreement , 
she recalled that the model bilateral agreement had been  established firs t in the ECMT. From 2002 , 
many ECMT member countries  had used that model  in new agreements . 
2.30.   The Chair person  addressed  a question to the representative of the World Bank . He noted that 
the African countries had recently operationalized the African Continent al Free Trade Area (AfcFTA).  
The intra-regional trade in Africa was  lower than trade in other region s. One of the constraint s S/CSC/M/92  
 
- 8 - 
 
  concerned  connectivity, be it air connectivity or road connectivity , which needed to be  quantif ied. 
He asked whether the World Bank  had done any  analytical work on how the trend in cross -border 
road transport in Africa had evolved  with improvements  so as to help achieve trade liberalization 
and increase traffic in the context of A fcFTA.  
2.31.   The representative of the World Bank  stated that the Bank had been involved  in assessing 
the benefits of AfcFTA. From the rigorous analysis that ha d been carried out so far, trade facilitation 
and connectivity  were where most of the benefits of the AfcFTA would  derive . Some encouraging 
signs in road transport in Africa were being observed . For instance, in East Africa , which was  a more 
dynamic transport environment, transport prices had fallen  significantly, especially from the ports 
of Tanzania  and Kenya to the landlocked c ountries in the middle of the continent. Relatively similar 
patterns had been observed  in Southern Africa . However, in  West Africa , some practi ces were found 
to have fed into higher transport prices and general inefficiencies. The landscape  in Africa was 
evolving. There was  increased use of rail transport and some countries had made significant 
investments in rail systems in recent years ; there was also  increased  competi tion in freight transport  
and logistics. The differences in prices and productivity of r oad transport seem ed to be influenced 
primarily by market  access, the issue at a fundamental level  that was being discussed here . In Africa,  
the majority of transport services provided tend ed to be of the informal parts of the market, although 
formalised operations existed in some parts of East Africa  and Southern Af rica and were now nascent 
in parts of West Africa. Overall, road transport in Africa  was a complex picture and difficult to 
generali ze. 
2.32.   The Chairperson  reiterated th at the three presentations were excellent and very informative. 
They, as well as the exchange which had followed,  allowed  Members  to understand better the 
complexities of cross -border road transport. On behalf of the whole Committee , he thanked the three 
presenters and express ed appreciation for the ir time and the opportunity to exchange with them. 
He also thanked  the delegation of T ürkiye for  their important contribution to the work of th e 
Committee and all delegations for their engagement on th at issue.  
2.33.   In light of  the discussion s held at th e meeting, he  stated that he would hold  consultations on 
how to proceed next under this agenda item. He then suggest ed that the committee take note of 
the statements made and revert to th at item at the next meeting.  
2.34.   It was so agreed.   
3  ITEM C – CLASSIFICATION ISSUES  
3.1.  The Chairperson  recalled that the WTO Secretariat would present the second edition of the 
Handbook on Measuring Digital Trade, highlighting the latest developments in the measurement of 
digital  trade by the international statistical community, with a focus on the concept ual framework, 
trade in services and related classification challenges.  
3.2.  A representative of the Secretariat  presented the new version of the Handbook on Measuring 
Digital Trade. She started the presentation by recalling that this was a statistical handboo k, originally 
produced by the IMF, OECD, and WTO Secretariat, which were joined by UNCTAD for this second 
edition. The handbook was the result of efforts to better statistically define and measure digital 
trade. It was built on extensive consultations with  a wide range of national statistical compilers and 
other stakeholders in the domain of trade statistics and policy analysis. The Handbook would be 
released in July 2023, with joint copyrights of the four partner organizations. The Secretariat was 
also res ponsible for the editing and design of the publication (Information and External Relations 
Division). She explained that the Handbook provided a statistical definition of digital trade and its 
components; a conceptual framework on how to measure digital tr ade; a reporting template to 
record digital trade transactions; specific and extensive compilation guidance; and best practices 
and case studies.  
3.3.  She outlined the need for well -defined and precise definitions to be able to identify what needs 
to be measur ed. In the Handbook, digital trade was defined as "all international trade that is digitally 
ordered and/or digitally delivered". The definition was based on the nature of the transaction, the 
"how", and not on the nature of traded products. In other words , it was not about digital goods or 
digital services, but how the transactions were conducted. Payments could be made online or offline ; 
an offline payment would not exclud e digital trade . She presented the conceptual framework, which S/CSC/M/92  
 
- 9 - 
 
  identified how the tr ansactions were conducted (i.e. , digitally ordered, digitally ordered and 
delivered, or digitally delivered), what products could be traded and who was trading. Digital trade 
transactions were seen as a subset of existing trade transactions, albeit difficu lt to identify 
separately. These were covered in international merchandise trade statistics (customs -based) and 
international trade in services statistics (balance of payments based). Digital trade could also be 
enabled by digital intermediation platforms (DIPs).    
3.4.  Regarding products that were traded through digital trade, the framework covered goods and 
services that were traded internationally. The Handbook took the convention that only services could 
be digitally delivered, which was fully consistent wi th existing trade statistical concepts in the balance 
of payments. All economic actors , i.e., businesses, households, governments , and non -profit 
institutions serving households , could engage in digital trade as importers or exporters. Within 
businesses, some specific actors were specifically highlighted, such as:  
a. DIPs, defined as "online interfaces that facilitate, for a fee, the direct interaction between 
multiple buyers and mul tiple sellers, without taking economic ownership of the goods or 
rendering the services that are being sold (intermediated)". Their revenue was drawn from 
the intermediation services they provided;  
b. E-tailers which could be described as “retail and wholesa le businesses engaged in 
purchasing and reselling goods, which receive a majority of their orders digitally”. E -tailers 
owned the goods being sold, and therefore provided margin -based distribution services, 
as opposed to digital intermediation services, as  defined above. It should be noted that 
DIPs and e -tailing business models could co -exist within the same enterprise; and  
c. Other producers only operating digitally, which were basically providing subscription -
based digitally delivered services, such as stre aming platforms, cable television , or radio 
subscription services. These producers were deemed to assume economic ownership of 
the intellectual property products that they distributed. Transactions undertaken by these 
businesses were digitally ordered and digitally delivered, but did not involve the provision 
of digital intermediation services. Again, the distinction between DIPs and these producers 
could be challenging since the same firm may be providing electronic content through both 
business models.  
3.5.  The representative of the Secretariat clarified that within the conceptual framework, digital 
flows, which did not entail a direct monetary transaction but supported one (for instance, services 
paid for by advertisers), were outside the scope of digital trad e. These covered data flows such as 
in the context of the Internet -of-Things (cars, etc.) or personal information shared through social 
media or search engines. In economic statistics, these non -monetary digital flows were not 
considered as the output of a  production process and were therefore outside the production 
boundary, and not measured in national accounts and international goods and services trade 
statistics.  
3.6.  Digitally ordered trade was defined as "the international sale or purchase of a good or ser vice, 
conducted over computer networks by methods specifically designed for the purpose of receiving or 
placing orders." Both goods and services could be digitally ordered, but what mattered was the 
ordering method. Computer networks covered the Internet o r other networks, whether accessed 
through computers, mobile phones, tablets , or other devices. Ordering methods included Electronic 
Data Interchange systems (EDI), own websites, third -party websites or apps, online bidding 
platforms , and DIPs. Orders made  by phone, fax , or manually typed email and offline transactions 
formalised using digital signatures were excluded. Services could be digitally ordered but not 
necessarily digitally delivered.  
3.7.  Digitally delivered trade was characterised through a new harmo nized definition as "All 
international trade transactions that are delivered remotely over computer networks." The Handbook 
followed the statistical convention that only services could  be digitally delivered. It was comparable 
with the UNCTAD definition of  ICT-enabled services trade and in practice equivalent to cross border 
supply, mode 1, for all services that can be digitally delivered (i.e., excluding transport or postal and 
courier services). Services could also be delivered digitally when traveling ab road, i.e., through 
consumption abroad, mode 2 (e.g., digital SIM cards, e -tour guides). But this was considered 
negligible compared to cross -border supply. Services delivered by phone, fax, video calls, or emails S/CSC/M/92  
 
- 10 - 
 
  were included. Digitally delivered trade  was a broader concept than digitally ordered trade. The list 
of digitally deliverable services was included in the Handbook (annex C) and was based on the 
Extended Balance of Payments Services Classification 2010 version, but one would need to carve 
out from digitally deliverable services  those  services transactions that were actually digitally 
delivered .  
3.8.  The representative of the Secretariat recalled the estimates that were released by the 
Secretariat in April 2023. She emphasized that overall, digital ser vices exports had grown rapidly 
between 2005 and 2022 at a rate of 8.1 %, outpacing exports of goods (5.6 %) and other services 
not digitally delivered (4.2 %).  The bulk of these exports in 2022 were in business, professional , 
and technical services accounti ng for 40 % of the total digitally delivered services, followed by 
computer services, financial services , and intellectual property -related services. She added that each 
country or region would display different breakdowns of digitally delivered services tr ade, and the 
growth rates w ould depend on the sector composition with some sectors being more dynamic than 
others.  
3.9.  The representative of the Secretariat emphasized that the definition of digital trade used in the 
Handbook was fully compatible with the WTO definition in the Work Programme on Electronic 
Commerce. The Handbook included a diagram illustrating the relationship between those definitions, 
and those used elsewhere such as in OECD, UNCTAD , or IMF.  
3.10.   She described the specific emphasis brought to digit al intermediation platforms in the 
Handbook. These platforms had been key drivers in digital transformation and had a key impact on 
the economy. They eased the access of many producers, in particular micro, small and medium -
sized enterprises (MSMEs), to th e global marketplace and brought  buyers numerous benefits, 
including access to a wider variety of products and the ability to compare prices more easily. DIPs 
enabled new activities and business models such as peer -to-peer transactions and sharing of 
resou rces between households. DIPs included services such as marketplace platforms, platforms 
facilitating short -term accommodation, ride -hailing, sharing of assets, or intermediating electronic 
content without taking economic ownership of the intellectual prop erty products they distributed 
(e.g. app stores). They posed specific challenges for statistical compilers, as they were difficult to 
identify, in particular from the perspective of importers of such intermediation services, and even 
more so when household s were involved in transactions. Unpacking a DIP transaction was difficult 
when actors were resident in different economies, and the fact that the intermediation fee m ight not 
be directly identified by the producer or the consumer of the service (or good) being intermediated. 
She added that the classification of DIPs had also been reviewed in the context of the revisions of 
the International Standard Industrial Classificati on of All Economic Activities (ISIC), the Central 
Product Classification , or the Balance of Payments Manual. In ISIC revision 5, DIPs would be treated 
in the same way as enterprises provid ing similar intermediation services via other means, and over 
twenty  categories were added for intermediation activities, but with no distinction of digital 
intermediation. The definition and classification of digital intermediation services was under 
discussion in the context of the revision of the Central Product Classif ication, but not as advanced 
as for ISIC Rev.5.  
3.11.   The representative of the Secretariat concluded her presentation by stating that the Handbook 
provided the foundation for a technical assistance program and statistical capacity building by the 
four partner o rganisations to assist statistical compilers around the world to develop digital trade 
statistics. The first joint activity would take place in Abu Dhabi at the end of 2023 in cooperation 
with UNESCWA and UNSD, targeting Arab countries and financed by the WTO and the Arab Monetary 
Fund. A Geneva -based WTO course on measuring digital trade was planned for 2024. She invited 
delegates to contact the Secretariat if they needed more information or were interested in national 
technical assistance activities on th is topic.  
3.12.   The Chairperson  thanked the representative of the Secretariat for the interesting presentation 
which highlighted how digital technologies had transformed trade and congratulated all colleagues 
involved. He acknowledged the effort to produce such a handbook on a relatively new and evolving 
topic. He reiterated the suggestion in  the annotated agenda for delegations to consider classification 
issues in relation to digital services.  
3.13.   The representative of China  thanked the Secretariat for the thought -provoking presentation. 
He asked whether the Handbook addressed the measurement of non -monetary digital flows and if 
that was the case, would it be possible to provide an indication of the scale of such flows. He also S/CSC/M/92  
 
- 11 - 
 
  sought  further clarifications regarding  the type of digitally delivered trade that was not digitally 
ordered, as it was likely that most of it was in fact ordered through electronic means.  
3.14.   The representative of the Russian Federation  requested a clarification regarding the statement 
made that d igitally delivered trade only covered services. How would electronic transmissions be 
classified in this case, such as in the case of digitally delivered electronic content in tariff schedules.  
3.15.   The representative of the United States  congratulated the team  for all the work done. He 
asked whether the Handbook considered that there was no digitally delivered trade through 
commercial presence and if so, why.  
3.16.   The representative of the Secretariat  indicated that international trade and national accounts 
statisti cs did not cover non -monetary digital flows. Consequently, no estimates were available. She 
further clarified that in the case where datasets were built on the basis of data collected by platforms 
or search portals for example, and then sold to third parti es, there would be a transaction  that would 
be covered in digital trade. However, the actual data on consumers, such as those underlying the 
supply of services, which  was collected by those platforms or portals , was not the output of a 
production process, and therefore could not be measured in economic statistics. She added that in 
the context of the revision of the System of National Accounts Manual, there were discussions on 
how to treat the databases, built on  the basis of the data collected, as an econo mic asset. She 
however  recalled that contrary to non -monetary flows, monetary digital flows were covered by 
digitally delivered trade.  
3.17.   Regarding the question on digitally delivered trade that was not digitally ordered trade, she 
confirmed that this existed , such as a corporate course ordered abroad by phone or via a manually 
typed email (which are not methods specifically designed to place orders), which is then delivered 
on-line by the foreign service supplier (i.e. , digitally delivered). On the point that  only services could 
be digitally delivered, the representative of the Secretariat clarified that the rationale was to be 
found in the sixth edition of the IMF Balance of Payments Manual, which stated that whatever was 
transmitted through digital means was  considered to be a service. This approach would remain in 
the forthcoming 7th edition of the Manual. Finally, she clarified the scope of digital trade as defined 
in the 2nd edition  of the Handbook on Measuring Digital Trade. This had already been establis hed in 
the first edition  of the Handbook, aligned with the statistical concept of trade as defined in the 
balance of payments, which only refer red to international goods and services transactions between 
residents and non -residents, hence not covering digital delivery of services through commercial 
presence (i.e., transactions between residents of the same economy).  
3.18.   The Chairperson  thanked the Secr etariat. The presentation demonstrated again that as 
services trade was evolving fast, new classification issues were emerging. Members needed an 
updated classification to collect data to support informed decision -making on trade in services. In 
addition t o digital services, climate -related services including renewable energy services were 
another area worth the Committee's attention in terms of classification. He encouraged Members to 
consider contributions to the Committee in areas of interest. For exampl e, Members could share 
experience s on how digital services, climate -related services or renewable energy services were 
dealt with domestically in terms of data reporting and collection. He suggested to hold consultations 
on how to move the work forward und er this agenda item.  
3.19.   The Chairperson then suggested that the Committee take note of the statements made and 
revert to th at agenda item at its next meeting.  
3.20.   It was so agreed .  
4  ITEM D – SCHEDULING ISSUES   
4.1.  The Chairperson  recalled that there ha d been no discussion under th at item for some time , 
which did not  mean that Members ha d no interest in scheduling related issues. Recently, the APEC 
Group on Services had adopted a Model Schedule of Commitments for Environmental and 
Environmentally Related Services. The purpose of the Model Schedule was to assist APEC member 
economies which were also WTO Members , to develop a schedule of commitments on environmental 
and environmentally related services based on the APEC Reference List of Environmental and 
Environmentally Related Services , which had been  adopted in 2021. This was an important initiative S/CSC/M/92  
 
- 12 - 
 
  to make commitments on environmental services up to date as the entire world was gearing up for 
the environmental and sustainability cause. He suggest ed that the Committee invite the APEC to 
present its Model Schedule of Commitments for Environmental and Environmentally Related Services 
at the next meeting .  
4.2.  The representative  of Australia  stated that the Chair's proposal was an intriguing idea . This 
was his initial reaction ahead of his capital's consideration. B ringing those APEC products into the 
WTO was the purpose behind their creation . In addition to the APEC Environmental Services L ist, he 
referred to another list recently drafted by Australia and S ingapore , built upon the APEC approach. 
Inviting APEC for a presentation could be a valuable way to take the agenda forward . 
4.3.  The representative  of the United States  thanked the Chair for the proposal. Noting the  need to 
consult with his capital , he suggest ed that the proposal be part of the Chair's consultations . He 
added that probably the best way would be for an interested Member to make the proposal, given 
the past practice in the CTS and its subsidiary bodies . 
4.4.  The Chairperson  stated that he was happy to see some interest in his proposal and would hold 
consultations on how to move forward the work under th at agenda item.  He then  suggest ed that the 
Committee take note of the statements made and revert to th at item at the next mee ting. 
4.5.  It was so agreed .  
5  ITEM E - OTHER BUSINESS  
5.1.  The Chairperson  reminded  delegations that Members were engaging in the debate on WTO 
reform in the General Council and various WTO bodies. Such debate was about how the WTO could 
be improved and respond more  effectively to the challenges facing the multilateral trading system. 
One issue under discussion that was particularly relevant to this Committee was how to strengthen 
the work of WTO regular bodies, improve transparency under the existing agreements, and  enhance 
WTO's monitoring and deliberation functions. The primary function of this Committee was to 
"oversee the implementation of specific commitments". Nevertheless, th at function ha d not been as 
well fulfilled as it should be. As a matter of fact, the l ast few years ha d seen the Committee become 
less active and Members' engagement largely declining. He also recall ed that at the last CTS meeting 
Members discussed the possible improvements in the CTS and its subsidiary bodies, in particular the 
CSC. Believing Members still s aw the value of th at Committee, he intend ed to initiate a discussion 
on the functioning of the Committee in the context of WTO reform. To this effect, he encourage d 
Members to make contribution s to the discussion. The Chair would hold consultations with Members 
shortly after th at meeting. He informed delegations that the next meeting of the committee would 
be scheduled for October  and that  the exact date w ould be communicated in due time.  
5.2.  The meeting was adjourned . 
__________