JOB/GC/232  
 
2 June 2020  
(20-3893) Page: 1/2 
General Council    
 
AGENDA ITEM 2: IMPLEMENTATION OF TH E BALI, NAIROBI AND BUENOS AIRES 
OUTCOMES – STATEMENT  BY THE CHAIR MAN 
FRIDAY, 29 MAY 2020  
1.1.  This item has been on the agenda since 2014, for the General Council to continue to follow up 
on the Ministerial decisions adopted in Bali, Nairobi and Buenos Aires in a transparent manner. Due 
to the lockdown and the suspension of physical meetings in mid -March, most WTO bodies have not 
yet met since the last regular General Council meeting. My report today will be very brief and only 
focus on a few matters where there have been some developments to report.   
1.2.  On the Work Programme on Electronic Commerce , pursuant to the December General Council 
Decision and following the March General Council meeting, two submissions have been circulated: 
WT/GC/W/798 on the "Scope and Impact of the e -commerce moratorium " from two Members1; and 
WT/GC/W/799 on "Broadening and  Deepening the Discussion on the Moratorium on Imposing 
Customs Duties on Electronic Transmissions" from a number of Members2.  
1.3.  Due to the suspension of meetings, the informal open -ended meeting planned for 16 March to 
consider these submissions was postpo ned. A virtual informal open -ended meeting is tentatively 
scheduled for mid -July, to give delegations the opportunity to discuss the two submissions and any 
other submission Members may wish to put forward by then. Further information about the meeting 
will be provided in due course. In line with the Member -driven nature of our work, and given the 
importance of e -commerce as highlighted by the COVID -19 pandemic  as a number of delegations 
have just mentioned under the previous item , let me also take this opp ortunity to encourage 
delegations to contribute to discussions in the four mandated bodies, by putting forward views and 
concrete ideas on how we can move forward with our e -commerce work under the work programme.  
1.4.  Regarding TRIPS non -violation and situatio n complaints , I understand that the Chair -designate 
of the TRIPS Council has held some virtual consultations to discuss which topics on the TRIPS 
Council's agenda could be taken forward in virtual meetings or through alternative/written 
procedures. In part icular, as regards non -violation complaints, I understand that delegations saw no 
urgency to resume discussions at this stage in light of the postponement of MC12. Some delegations 
have however suggested that the time could be used to discuss the matter in formally to prepare for 
when physical meetings can be resumed. The Chair has indicated that she will continue to engage 
with Members on this issue.  
1.5.  Concerning the Ministerial outcomes on Agriculture , the only development to report is a first 
recourse to th e Bali Ministerial Decision on Public Stockholding for Food Security Purposes. One 
Member notified the Committee on Agriculture on 31 March that it had exceeded the de minimis  
level for rice for the marketing year 2018 -2019 and that this was covered by the  Interim Solution 
set out in the Bali Decision3 and in the subsequent General Council Decision of November 20144. 
The information submitted under the Decision will be considered by the Committee on Agriculture.  
1.6.   A brief update also on Preferential Rules of  Origin for LDCs , as the Committee on Rules of 
Origin met on 5 March. At that meeting, the LDC Group asked for a "stocktaking exercise", to assess 
how the Decision had been implemented and what the gaps were. The intention was to transmit that 
 
1 India and South Africa . 
2 Australia ; Canada ; Chile; Colombia ; Hong Kong,  China; Iceland ; Republic of Korea ; New Zealand ; 
Norway; Singapore;  Switzerland and Uruguay . 
3 WT/MIN(13)/38 . 
4 WT/L/939.  JOB/GC/232  
 
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  assessment t o MC12 for further work on the simplification of Rules of Origin. At that meeting, there 
was a general understanding that an assessment could be undertaken.  
1.7.   And on Aid for Trade , I understand that  on 27 May, the CTD Chair held an information webinar 
for W TO Members on the actions being taken by international financial institutions to support 
COVID -19 response and recovery.  
1.8.  Before I conclude, I would also take this opportunity to note that I held a virtual meeting with 
the Chairs of regular bodies on Wednes day this week, and that we had a useful discussion on a 
range of matters, including the issues that I have just reported on, but also more broadly on key 
issues for our collective work this year – including   working methods in WTO bodies in the current 
circumstances, and discussions taking place in regular bodies on COVID -19 related matters. I look 
forward to continuing to engage with the Chairs of all regular bodies to explore synergies and 
possibilities to enhance coordination, in particular in these chal lenging times. This concludes my 
report.  
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