G/C/65  
 
18 July 2019 
(19-4794) Page: 1/1 
Council for Trade in Goods    
 
WORK PROGRAMME ON EL ECTRONIC COMMERCE  
REPORT BY THE CHAIRP ERSON OF THE COUNCIL  FOR TRADE IN GOODS  
TO THE GENERAL COUNC IL 
As agreed by the Council for Trade in Goods (CTG or the Goods Council)  at its meeting of 8 and 
9 July 2019, I hereby make, under my own responsibility as Chairperson, the following factual report 
to the General Council.  
 
Pursuant to the 2017  Ministerial Decision1 instructing the General Council, inter alia , to hold periodic 
reviews of the Work Programme on Electronic Commerce (WPEC or WP) in its sessions of July and 
December  2018 and July  2019, based on the reports submitted by the WTO  bodies entrusted with 
the implementation of the Work Programme, the Council for Trade in Goods  placed the issue of the 
Work Programme on Electronic Comme rce on the agenda of its meetings held on 23 and 26  March, 
3 and 4  July, and 12 and 13  November  2018, and 11 and 12  April and 8 and 9  July 2019. At these 
meetings, the Chair invited delegations to express their opinions and to make suggestions as to how 
to work on the preparation of the periodic review to be held in the General Council at its sessions of 
July and December  2018 and July  2019. 
 
This report concerns the CTG  meeting s that took place on 11 and 12 April and 8 and 9 July 2019.2 
 
At the CTG's  meeti ng of 11 and 12  April 2019, the LDC  Group  invited the four  WTO bodies entrusted 
with the implementation of the WPEC to intensify their work, prior to the expiration of the Ministerial 
Decision on the WPEC by end-2019, by considering the benefits and costs of E-Commerce for LDCs . 
The issues highlighted by the LDCs that made it difficult for them to engage in and benefit from 
E-Commerce included the following : limited knowledge of the digital market and E -Commerce 
platforms; difficulties in creating an approp riate institutional and regulatory framework; absence of 
enterprise development mechanisms to encourage the creation and growth of E -Commerce -based 
businesses; difficulty in identifying and resolving the challenges and possible negative impact of 
E-Commerc e; lack of infrastructure and technology, with limited access to relevant information and 
technology equipment; limited use of credit cards that could be used for e -payments; logistics 
constraints when delivering goods; and consumer protection. To consider  how best to address these 
challenges the LDC  Group intended to hold a dedicated internal workshop . 
At the CTG's meeting of 8 and 9  July 2019, one  delegation shared several examples of  E-Commerce 
that, in its view, demonstrated how E -Commerce could help to  promote industrial development and 
international trade in goods.  Another delegation , while recognizing the potential advantages and 
benefits of E -Commerce, indicated that it was also important to take account  of the varying 
capacities of WTO  Members ; in a ddition,  this delegation indicated that  WTO work of importance to 
developing countries and LDCs should be completed before Members turned their attention to 
E-Commerce negotiations. A third  delegation highlighted the importance of ongoing  E-Commerce 
discussions , which demonstrat ed the WTO 's ability to respond to contemporary trading realities.  
 
Given that MC12 would take place in June  2020, Members also considered it useful for the CTG to 
report to the General Council at its December  2019 meeting . 
 
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1 Document  WT/L/1032.  
2 The factual report to the General Council concerning the discussions on E -Commerce that took place at 
the CTG's 12 and 13 November  2018 meetings is contained in document  G/C/6 4.