WT/MIN(24)/ST/117  
26 February  2024 
(24-1673) Page: 1/2 
Ministerial Conference  
Thirteenth Session  
Abu Dhabi, 26 -29 February 2024  Original:  Spanish  
 
  
STATEMENT BY H.E. MR JORGE RIVERA STAFF  
MINISTER OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY  
PANAMA  
With each new Ministerial  Conference, the world watches us with increasing interest, expecting  
Ministers to deliver a small part o f the significant results we set out to achieve in the Agreements 
and in our statements and decisions at previous Ministerial Conferences. We have promised many 
times to ensur e the existence of  a dynamic and fair system of multilateral rules that promotes 
development, keeps pace with the times and is relevant to meet Members' current and future needs. 
Panama reiterates its commit ment to these objectives.  
Panama is a small country and a small market that relies on economic activities linked to services 
and international markets. We are concerned that Members have not met the negotiating objectives 
of the integrated  agenda on servic es and agriculture. Furthermore, we have not delivered on the 
development objectives agreed at the Doha  Ministerial  Conference, to which Panama remains 
committed.  
Regarding the services negotiations, Panama is focused on seeing substantial progress that go es 
beyond rules issues.  
With regard to agriculture, we call for the needs of small and vulnerable economies to be recognized 
and food security to be promoted, without backtracking on the progress achieved to date. We believe 
it is necessary to have more co mprehensive disciplines on subsidies that distort trade. We attach 
great importance to an effective special agricultural safeguard mechanism that protects developing 
countries like Panama in the event of price drops or a sudden increase in imports. For all  these 
reasons, we believe that we must reach a comprehensive decision on future modalities in agriculture 
at th e Thirteenth  Ministerial Conference, with a view to achieving concrete results at the 
Fourteenth  Conference.  
Panama hopes that this meeting wil l enable us to conclude the second wave of negotiations on 
fisheries subsidies. We would like to acknowledge the role of the Ambassador and Permanent 
Representative of Iceland, Mr  Einar Gunnarsson, who is chairing these important negotiations. Our 
commitme nt to the sustainable use of marine resources is clear, as we are one of the few countries 
that has achieved the UN's 30 by 30 target ahead of schedule. At present, Panama protects more 
than 54% of its exclusive economic zone.  
It is in this spirit that Pan ama has taken a proactive role in securing a fair, effective and transparent 
instrument that disciplines subsidies that are particularly harmful to the marine ecosystem. We must 
agree on ambitious disciplines that preserve special and differential treatmen t for developing 
countries in accordance with their needs. Panama has reiterated on multiple occasions that our focus 
should be on disciplining the subsidies of subsidizing Members, and not punish ing the open register 
that countries like mine maintain.  
We also stress the importance of other decisions that have to be taken at this Ministerial Conference, 
such as securing substantial progress in the work on e -commerce, and extending the moratorium 
on tariffs on electronic transmissions, as well as the decisio n that has to be taken on the Work 
Programme on Small Economies.  WT/MIN(24)/ST/117  
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  It is also essential that, as an Organization, we can develop a coherent response to address the 
grave socioeconomic consequences of future public health crises. We therefore urge Members to  
come together to decide on  the extension of the limited waiver of  TRIPS Agreement  requirements . 
Panama believes that it is crucial to ensur e that all Members fully implement and comply with 
WTO rules. While we also support the review of the functioning of  the WTO and the adoption of the 
necessary reforms, we must immediately prioritize restoring an independent, accessible and binding 
two-tiered dispute settlement system that provides certainty and predictability to the rules of the 
multilateral trading sys tem. We shall continue to support efforts by the Director -General and 
Members to this effect.  
Panama particularly welcomes programmes and initiatives designed to strengthen women's 
entrepreneurship as a necessary element in our socio -economic development, and to promote their 
integration into all areas of world trade. We will continue to participate in the discussions of the 
various joint initiatives on gender and trade, as well as in dialogues and initiatives on topics of global 
relevance such as environme ntal sustainability, investment facilitation for development and 
e‑commerce.  
In all WTO trade negotiations, in order to ensure a level playing field for trade relations, we call upon 
the original WTO Members to move towards the greater commitments undertaken by Article XII 
Members such as Panama. We will also support facilitating a nd accelerating the accession of new 
Members to the WTO, in particular from least developed countries.  
We reiterate our willingness and high expectations that we will deliver significant results at this 
Ministerial Conference, enabling us to have a positive and reinvigorating impact on world trade, to 
strengthen the multilateral system, and to ensure that its benefits foster sustainable and inclusive 
development for all our citizens around the world.  
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