INF/MSME/R/27  
 
11 August  2021 
(21-6167) Page: 1/2 
  Original: English  
 
INFORMAL WORKING GROUP ON MSME  
OPEN -ENDED MEETING OF 26 JULY 2021 
Summary of discussions  
The following communication, dated 11 August  2021, is being circulated at the request of the 
Coordinator of the Informal Working Group on MSMEs.  
 
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The MSME Informal Working Group (MSME Group) met for its fourth  open-ended meeting of 2021 
on 26 July. A total of 67 delegations1 attended the meeting, including 16 non-working Group 
members ( Angola; Cabo Verde; Cambodia; Cameroon; Centr al African Republic; Chad; Congo; 
Egypt; The Gambia,  Jamaica; Nepal; Saint Lucia; Seychelles; Suriname; Togo; and the United States 
of America ). 
 
1  SUMMARY OF DISCUSSIONS  
1.1.  Work focused on the Group's MC12 Declaration  (INF/MSME/W/33/Rev. 2). Most of the 
document was cleaned, leaving only a few square brackets in the text. In order to complete the 
Ministerial Declaration,  the Coordinator invited the MSME Group members  concerned to consult with 
one another over the summer and to submit agreed language by 1 September . 
1.2.  Members reported on i mplementation of the December 2020 package. Côte d'Ivoire noted it 
will provide an updated roadmap to support MSME access to trade fin ance to the Working Group on 
Trade Debt and Finance in September. Separately, Brazil and Uruguay are in discussions to set up 
automatic transmission of tariff and trade data to the WTO's Integrated Data Base (IDB) as 
recommended by Annex 5 of the Group's D ecember 2020 package. MSME Group members also 
expressed general support for the revised format of the overview document to track implementation 
of the package by annex as prepared by the Secretariat.  
1.3.  The Group received five presentations, including one by  WIPO's Director General Daren Tang.  
DG Tang noted that MSMEs in Europe that make use of intellectual property ( IP) have 70 % more 
revenue than those that do not, however only 9 % of European MSMEs use IP as part of their strategy. 
Given that MSMEs are less likely to make use of IP,  DG Tang briefed the Group on WIPO's work to 
develop  intellectual property tools to support MSME Growth and innovation, such as the IP Diagnostic 
Tool and Inventor Assistance Program  to match developing economy inventors and MSMEs with 
patent attorneys . WIPO also continues to look into IP as a form of collateral to increase MSME access 
to finance  and it was suggested this could be somethi ng for the MSME Group to consider in relation 
to Annex 6 of the December 2020 MSME Package  on access to trade -related finance . DG Tang also 
 
1 Afghanistan; Angola ; Argentina; Australia; Bahrain, Kingdom of; Brazil; Cabo Verde ; Cambodia ; 
Cameroon ; Canada; Central  African Republic ; Chad; Chile; China; Colombia; Congo ; Costa Rica; C ôte d'Ivoire; 
Czech Republic; Dominican Republic; Ecuador; Egypt ; European Union; The G ambia ; Guyana; Honduras; Hong 
Kong, China; Hungary; Ireland; Israel; Jamaica ; Japan; Kazakhstan; Korea,  Republic of; Latvia; Malaysia; 
Mexico; Moldova, Republic of; Mongolia; Myanmar; Nepal ; Netherlands; New  Zealand; Nicaragua; Nigeria; 
Paraguay; Peru; Philippines; Poland; Romania; Russian Federation; Saint Lucia ; Saudi  Arabia, Kingdom of; 
Seychelles ; Singapore; Slovenia; Spain; Suriname ; Switzerland; Chinese Taipei; Togo; Turkey; Ukraine;  
United Kingdom; United States of America ; Uruguay ; Viet Nam (non -MSME Group members are in italics ). INF/MSME/R/27  
 
- 2 - 
 
  suggested the group consider adding a point on IP in the "checklist of MSME -related information to 
voluntarily  include in WTO Trade Policy Reviews" appended to Annex 1 on the collection of MSME -
related information in TPRs of the December 2020 package. Lastly, h e also invited members of the 
Group to share information on WIPO's tools with their constituents.  
1.4.  Related to su pport of MSME IP, the WTO Secretariat updated the Group on discussions at the 
TRIPS Council. Over the past seven years 116 interventions on the issue of MSMEs and innovation 
have been made to the Council, touching on issues from national strategies to tech nical assistance.  
At its foundation, the IP system is about innovation and the availability of technology to promote 
social and economic welfare. Members have reported on a range of initiatives to increase MSME 
understanding and use of IP, including worksh ops, dedicated portals and practical support  while 
others have implemented innovation policies like tax incentives or incubation centers . Still, there are 
a wide range of challenges to MSMEs for using the IP system, including cost, enforcement, and a 
high reliance on informal IP or "knowhow". Members of the Group expressed interest in working 
more closely with the TRIPS Council and with WIPO to explore ways to address these challenges.  
1.5.  The Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF), briefed the Group on its ASYCUD A-CDS 
Communication Platform Project in Vanuatu, developed in partnership with the United Nations 
Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the Universal Postal Union (UPU). As  e-
commerce exploded  the volume of  small packages being sent across borders, it was recognized that 
national postal services and customs administrations needed new methods to facilitate this trade, 
which is often conducted by MSMEs. With this in mind, the cooperation  launched a project in Vanuatu 
to facilitate clearance by exchanging pre -arrival/pre -departure information among agencies and 
automate customs clearance processes. The UPU and UNCTAD have identified 23 LDCs2 where an 
interface between the UPU's customs declaration system (CDS) and UNCTAD's ASYCUDA could also 
be established and interested MSME Group members were invited to reach out to learn more.  
1.6.  The WTO Secretariat introduced the new Vietnamese version of the e -Ping platform, an online 
alert system that helps companies follow n ew developments on standards and regulations for traded 
goods. ePing's services allow for private sector stakeholders, in particular MSMEs, to filter through 
the large amount of information to stay informed on regulatory developments. Given that language 
barriers were identified as a main obstacle to access regulatory updates, ePing was translated and 
additional sectors were included, allowing MSMEs in Viet Nam to directly follow and react to measures 
that affect them. Given the positive results from this p roject, there is a hope to find similar 
opportunities in the future.  
1.7.  Ecuador also shared its national experience regarding the importance of rural MSMEs and their 
various projects to support innovation by these businesses.  Support has been focused in parti cular 
on re-forestation and the flower and agri -business sectors.  
2  NEXT STEPS  
2.1.  The next MSME open -ended meeting will be held on 24 September  2021.  
 
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2 Afghanistan; Angola; Bangladesh; Burundi; Cambodia; Central African Republic; Chad; The Comoros; 
Democratic Republic of the Congo; Djibouti; Guinea; Haiti; Lao PDR; Lesotho; Liberia; Malawi; Mali; 
Mauritania; Niger; Rwanda; Sierra Leone; Solomon Island; Vanuatu.