RD/COMTD/AFT/21* 
21 November 2023  
 Page: 1/2 
Committee on Trade and Development  
(Aid for Trade)  Original:  English/anglais/inglés  
 
  
UNOFFICIAL ROOM DOCUMENT1 
COMMITTEE ON TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT – 59TH SESSION ON AID FOR TRADE  
STATEMENT BY THE UNITED STATES  
14 November 2023  
 
 
Comité du commerce et du développement (Aide pour le commerce)  
 
DOCUMENT DE S ÉANCE NON OFFICIEL1 
COMMITTEE ON TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT – 59TH SESSION ON AID FOR TRADE  
STATEMENT BY THE UNITED STATES  
14 November 2023  
 
 
 
Comité de Comercio y Desarrollo (Ayuda para el Comercio)  
 
DOCUMENTO DE SALA NO OF ICIAL1 
 
COMMITTEE ON TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT – 59TH SESSION ON AID FOR TRADE  
STATEMENT BY THE UNITED STATES  
14 November 2023  
 
_______________   
 
* In Original language only/En langue originale seulement/En el idioma original solamente.  
1 Documents issued in the RD series are not official WTO documents. They usually appear in their 
language of submission and will not be translated systematically into the working languages of the WTO. They 
are intended for use in WTO meeting rooms and are a ttributed an unofficial symbol for archiving purposes only.  
Les documents de la série RD ne sont pas des documents officiels de l 'OMC. Ils ne paraissent 
généralement que dans la langue dans laquelle ils ont été communiqués et ne seront pas systématiquemen t 
traduits dans les langues de travail de l'OMC. Ils sont destinés aux salles de réunion de l'OMC et une cote non 
officielle leur est attribuée à des fins d'archivage.  
Los documentos de la serie RD no son documentos oficiales de la OMC. Por lo general se d istribuyen en 
el idioma en que han sido presentados y no se traduce n sistemáticamente a los idiomas de trabajo de la 
Organización. Se distribuyen para su uso en las salas de reunión de la OMC y se les asigna una signatura no 
oficial a efectos de archivo únicamente.  RD/COMTD/AFT/21  
 
- 2 - 
 
  STATEMENT BY THE UNITED STATES  
 
• Thank you, Chair.   The United States supports a “learning culture” where we can learn from 
and share knowledge and lessons with other Members – from discussing innovation through 
applied solutions (like the Hello Tractor  initiative captured in WT/COMTD/W/2 47), to 
showcasing developing countries as TBT and SPS leaders, and bringing more stories from 
the field to the floor of the Aid for Trade dedicated session.  
 
• Today, I’d like to flag our latest CTD communication (WT/COMTD/W/285), which is part of 
a broader  dialogue on highlighting developing country -led best practices across Committees 
like the CTD, SPS and TBT Committees.  
 
• In early November, in collaboration with the SPS and TBT Committees, we circulated a paper 
entitled Highlights of Activities on Better Integration of Developing Countries in the 
Agreement on the Application on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures and the Ag reement 
on Technical Barriers to Trade .  
 
• This paper addresses (i) some of the challenges and opportunities of using digital tools like 
the ePing SPS&TBT platform;   (ii) the collaborative role that a worldwide network of national 
(SPS and TBT) Enquiry Poin t offices play in facilitating comments on notifications, and 
providing responses to Members on their inquiries; and (iii) the progress developing 
countries are making toward a "building block" approach to implementation and 
operation of competent Enquiry Points that are responsive to stakeholders, where 
countries showcase progress to becoming TBT and SPS leaders in the activities and 
discussions of their Committees.  
 
• The United States will continue to work with WTO Members to bring diverse and insightful 
perspectives to the WTO.  
 
• We are open to build on the work started in the CTD with thematic sessions this past year, 
and we invite everyone to take a look at our paper. We look forward to engaging with 
Members on the ideas that build on our submission, and  we hope to generate a productive 
discussion.  
 
 
 
__________