TN/AG/57  
TN/AG/SCC/22  
 
18 Decem ber 2023 
(23-8651) Page: 1/6 
Committee on Agriculture  
Special Session  
Sub-Committee on Cotton    
 
20TH DEDICATED DISCUSSION OF THE RELEVANT  
TRADE -RELATED DEVELOPMENTS FOR COTTON  
7 November  2023 
Report1 by the Chairperson  
1.  Pursuant to the Bali Ministerial Decision on Cotton of 7 December 20132 and the Nairobi 
Ministerial Decision on Cotton of 19 December 20153, the 20th Dedicated Discussion of the Relevant 
Trade -Related Developments for Cotton (the Dedicated Discussion) took place on 7 November  2023. 
The Dedicated Discussion was held back -to-back with the 40th Round of the Director -General's 
Consultative Framework Mechanism on Cotton (DGCFMC) dealing with the development assistance 
aspects of cotton . 
2.   I noted in my introductory remarks that a summary  of the status of agriculture negotiations  
could be found in the oral report4 by Mr Mustafa Tuzcu, Deputy Minister of Trade from Türkiye and 
Facilitator for agriculture and food security at the Senior Officials Meeting (SOM) held on 
23-24 October. While having constituted an  opportunity to take stock of the negotiations and 
exchange views with each other , the SOM  had not provide d clear consensual guidance on the 
substance .  
3.  I stressed that MC13 would not be the end of the road for agriculture negotiations including for 
cotton . Members would realistically not be in  a position to conclude negotiations in the limited time 
left till MC13 , and m y aim was therefore to initiate a process to be endorse d at MC13  to continue 
evidenced -based negotiations across the board  immediately afte r the Conference , underpinned by  
clear guiding principles and a  renewed level of engagement based on the work undertaken thus far.  
4.   I emphasized the need to adopt a comprehensive and balanced approach addressing all topics 
under negotiation s, taking into a ccount their level of maturity, Members' sensitivities and the priority 
assigned to them by Members. Cotton, in this context, should continue to  be addressed, pursuant 
to the commitments made by Members in 2004 and reaffirmed in 2005 at the Hong Kong Ministerial 
Conference, "ambitiously, expeditiously, and specifically  within the agriculture negotiations ".  
5.  Underscoring  that negotiation is a Membe rs' driven process, I encouraged  Members to table new 
submissions on each topic  and to engage with each other to find commonalities and progressively 
narrow the gaps in their negotiating positions. I looked forward in this regard to the upcoming new 
cotton  proposal by the Cotton -45 and Côte d'Ivoire  (C-4).6 I also acknowledged the three recent 
proposals put on the table on Domestic Support,  namely JOB/AG/242/Rev.1  by the African Group 
and Pakistan, JOB/AG/216/Rev.1  by India, and JOB/AG/243/Rev.1  by the C airns Group, all of which 
address ing cotton trade -distorting domestic support in one way  or the other . 
6.  Furthermore, I acknowledged the importance of the development track in the cotton negotiation 
which would be covered by DDG Paugam , as Chair of the DGCFMC , on behalf of the Director General. 
 
1 This report is circulated under the Chair's own responsibility.   
2 Document WT/MIN(13)/41  - WT/L/916 , dated 11 December 2013.  
3 Document WT/MIN(15)/46  - WT/L/981 , dated 21 December 2015.  
4 Annex to document JOB/GC/365  and WT/GC/259/Rev.1 . 
5 Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali . 
6 Subsequently circulated on 10 November 2023 as document TN/AG/GEN/53 -TN/AG/SCC/GEN/25 . TN/AG/57 • TN/AG/SCC/22  
 
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  I noted that a lthough an outcome on cotton at MC13 could not only be about developme nt, concrete 
results effectively support ing the development of the cotton sector in cotton producing LDCs  would 
significantly contribute to a success ful outcome at  MC13 .  
7.  Under the agenda item " General Statements by Members ", Chad, on behalf of the C -4 
underscored the considerable role cotton plays in both the social and economic functioning of their 
countries . Cotton account ed for 12% of their  GDP, 40% of total export revenues, 70% of agricultural 
revenues, and more than 80% of employment throughou t the production and processing value chain 
of cotton . Cotton trade was therefore critical for food security and poverty reduction for millions of 
people in Africa.  The C -4 request s for enhanced transparency on reforms applied in the cotton sector, 
proper  monit oring of engagements made regarding market access and removal of trade restrictive 
measures potentially impacting negatively the cotton sector  had to be considered in this context.  
8.  Drawing  attention to  the regretful ly slow progress in reaching consensus on cotton negotiations  
and recalling the mandate to address the cotton issue in an ambitious, expeditious, and specific 
manner , Chad urged Members  to find a solution to eliminate trade -distorting support to cotton. In 
this regard, Chad confirmed  the Group's intention to table  a draft MC13 decision on cotton  in the 
following days . The C -4 asked me to convene  a Quad Plus meeting at the earliest date possible to 
discuss th is proposal  before it is introduced at the next CoA Special Session meeting . 
9.  The C -4 appreciated other proposals on Domestic Support on the table, such as the ones 
presented by the Cairns Group and Costa Rica, as well as the recent Domestic Support notification 
by the United States (US) which in their view allowed the Membership to deepen their  reflections on 
the basis of factual elements and move towards a consensual result . On the development aspect of 
their proposal , the C -4 underlined that  Members should  reaffirm previous decisions on cotton and 
the need for an inclusive partnership  that places cooperation and negotiation as the preferred 
instrument s for finding an appropriate solution to the systemic and cyclical challenges faced by 
cotton producers and exporting LDCs .  
10.  The C -4 also highlighted the central role of the  DGCFMC  as a unique forum that brings together 
the different stakeholders of the world cotton community.  The C -4 reiterated  its availability and 
flexibility in seeking a balanced and mutually  beneficial  result for all.  
11.  Highlighting  that cotton is an existential matter  and acknowledging that MC13 would not be the 
end of the road,  Mali expressed the hope  that the next Ministerial Conference  could  deliver a 
meaningful outcome on  cotton confirming  the ability of the multilateral trading system to support 
the C -4 countries.  
12.  New Zealand and Australia expressed their support to  the urgent  call made by the C -4 to achieve 
an expeditated  outcome in the cotton negotiations, particularly  on trade-distorting domestic support. 
New Zealand underline d the harm of such subsidies to small producers in the most vulnerable 
countries . In this context, New Zealand and Australia highlighted the analytical contribution of the 
technical paper7 submitted by the  Cairns Group to the improved understanding of cotton trade -
distorting domestic support . The level of trade -distorting domestic support granted to cotton 
amounted to around USD 5 billion, with one Member's support amounting to around 50% of its value 
of production, and t he biggest providers  of trade -distorting domestic support for cotton  being 
significant world cotton producers and exporters (o ne representing  50% of world production,  another 
one 26% of the world production, and a third one account ing for 40 % of world exports ). 
13.  The paper also showed that trade -distorting domestic support granted to cotton was belonging 
to various WTO categories, aggregate measurement of support, Blue Box or de minimis  support, 
thus the need to address this question holistical ly, as suggested in the recent proposal by Costa Rica  
which the Cairns Group had just cosponsored.8 This proposal would in particular limit the extent to 
which major WTO Members could provide trade -distorting support to cotton while ensuring the 
necessary policy space for LDCs and developing country Members to support their own  cotton sector . 
Australia welcomed the possibility to discuss the C -4's contribution  and to engage on ways to identify 
convergences between the Cairns Group and C -4 proposals.  
 
7 JOB/AG/245 . 
8 JOB/AG/243 . The co -sponsored paper is resubmitted as JOB/AG/243/Rev.1 .   TN/AG/57 • TN/AG/SCC/22  
 
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  14.  The International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC)9 updated Members on the trend of 
world cotton producti on and trade  as well as government assistance to cotton production . ICAC also 
provided a n overview  of the  market situation in the  2022-2023 season . Regarding the next season, 
ICAC is projecting cotton production to slightly increase at around 25 million to nnes, with 
consumption stable at around 23.3 million tonnes . Trade in cotton is also expected rise from the 
previous season  above 9 million tonnes , with an increasing share of exports from West Africa. ICAC 
also anticipated that high price volatility would continue during the new season, due to uncertainty 
regarding the weather, the spread of pests and the global economic environment.  ICAC also 
confirmed in its presentation the inverse correlation between cotton prices and cotton subsidies , 
with the latter increasing when the former were depressed.  
15.  Members expressed their appreciation towards ICAC's presentation  and raised several follow -
up questions.  Mali sought information about the  impact of trade-distorting  domestic support  on 
trade. Chad asked for more indication on the differences between ICAC and WTO's definition s of 
cotton subsidies , including whether ICAC data capture d subsidie s such as US insurance programmes, 
China's seed and transport subsidies , or India's fertilizer and price supp ort. Chad also stressed the 
importan ce of developing cotton processing facilities in Africa and reducing the share of cotton 
exported in raw form. Finally, Chad  also asked whether there were any  new Asian customers of C -4's 
cotton in addition to China, Bangladesh and Viet  Nam. 
16.  Burkina Faso  and Mali  also sought ICAC's further explanation regarding its definition of cotton 
subsidies. Burkina Faso enquired about the subsidies' impact on yields and Mali asked about the 
mechanism used by ICAC to calculate the share of subsidies allocated to the cotton sector .  
17.  Australia noted that the increase of cotton production  in Australia  was not related to any cotton 
trade-distorting domestic support, as the only support was Green Box sup port to research and 
development to increase yields . The cotton sector employed over 12,000 people  with 90% of 
Australia's cotton businesses being  family farms in water -limited areas in the southern and north -
eastern parts of the country . 
18.  In response to th e questions raised, ICAC firstly made reference  to the annual "production and 
trade subsidies affecting the cotton industry" which could be share d with interested WTO Members. 
ICAC also acknowledged the differences between ICAC and WTO's definition s of sub sidies and noted 
that it was working directly  with individual  governments to acquire detailed information on subsidies. 
On markets for cotton export from the C -4, ICAC collects data on trade by country in Africa  and 
confirmed  that cotton  exports from the C -4 are concentrated in Asia, with a small amount directed 
towards Europe. More detailed breakdown could be provided to interested Members. Finally, more 
technical questions on yields could be forwarded to  the ICAC chief scientist.  
19.  The International Tr ade Centre (ITC)  delivered  a presentation10 on the Cotton Portal . 
Since its launch at the 2017 Buenos Aires Ministerial Conference, the Cotton Portal has been regularly 
updated, with continuous enhancements to improve the transparency  and accessibility of trade -
related information for  cotton produ cts. ITC summarized the main features of the Portal and 
presented some new functionalities. ITC also reported on the first French speaking webinar , 
organized jointly by the ITC and the WTO Secretariat just before the dedicated discussion meeting, 
following the request of several Members, in particular from Africa, at the May 2023 Dedicated 
Discussions. ITC also noted  that a  sequential webinar  in Eng lish would be organi zed upon request. 
ITC also underlined the need to undertake a technical upgrade of the Portal.  
20.  The presentation was welcomed by Members who attested to the importance of having 
accessible information to help inform decisions.  Mali, Beni n and Chad referred  to the Portal's  low 
level of use in their countries as well as in West and Central Africa  more broadly  and requested 
further insight into how to improve the Portal's usage. Mali also enquired about the reason for a 
surge of visitors on the Portal in October 2021.   
21.  Chad noted the lack of dissemination of information relating to the Portal in Africa as a possible 
factor to explain the low usage of the Portal on the continent. Similarly, African delegates that visit 
 
9 ICAC's presentation can be found  at 
https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/agric_e/icac_presentation_e.pdf . 
10 ITC's presentation can be found on 
https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/agric_e/itc_cotton_portal_e.pdf . TN/AG/57 • TN/AG/SCC/22  
 
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  the website may be cons idered as users from Switzerland rather than from Africa. In support of 
usage uptake, Chad suggested that the C-4, ITC and WTO, in collaboration,  establish an approach 
that seeks to disseminate information about the Portal to  Members' respective ministries  and various 
universities . Chad additionally  enquired as to how th e data published on the website is collected, 
and whether it is sourced  directly from the country itself or rather from the ITC or WTO.  
22.  The ITC noted that while the webinar made prior to the convening of this meeting sought to 
sensiti ze possible users in Geneva to use the Portal,  it was important to ensure contacts  with relevant 
authorities and stakeholders in Africa to disseminate more broadly the Portal to African producers 
and enterprises who may be interested in using this tool . Although ITC does not directly promote 
the tool to enterprises, there is significant value in p ersonali zing the training at the local level , 
identify ing institutions that can connect producers and enterprises , and work ing with those 
institutions through events like webinars  that the ITC can help facilitate . Regarding Mali's enquiry 
on the high numbe r of visitors in October 2021, ITC noted that the frequency of visits to the Portal 
usually ties with WTO activities , and the launch of the World Cotton Day in October 2021 may explain 
the peak of users . ITC finally noted that cotton trade data are directl y obtained  from customs 
authorities or statistical institutions in order to maintain the data's reliability.  
23.  The WTO Secretariat  briefly introduced the updates contained in the Revis ed background 
paper11 and addenda .12 The background paper compiles up-to-date inform ation and data from 
Members' notifications and other submissions on export subsidies, domestic support, and market 
access, including both tariff and non -tariff measures. The background paper also captures Members' 
latest responses to the q uestionnaire on cotton policy developments, as well as relevant information 
on cotton markets and policies included in Trade Policy Review reports.  
24.  I emphasized  that transparency both on trade evolution and trade policies  was key to ensure a 
well-function ing market and to usefully inform the negotiations on cotton . The background document  
including Members' responses to the cotton questionnaire constitute another important piece of 
information,  along with the ICAC reports and the Cotton Portal. 
25.  Following a question by Australia , the Secretariat clarified that  in the case of the European Union 
(EU), the background document showed the absence of cotton -specific Amber Box support  from 
2006 to 2019 , as well as  cotton -specific  Blue Box suppor t provide d by the EU since 2006 , as reported 
in their DS:1 notifications.  
26.  The EU drew Members' attention to the importance of the questionnaire on new or updated 
cotton -related policy developments . Regretting the limited number of replies to the questionnaire, 
the EU urged Members who have not replied to the questionnaire to do so in future. The EU stressed 
the need to improv e transparency and provide accurate notifications and replies to the questionnaire  
to move forward in negotiations on cotton .  
27.  Mali, on behalf of the C -4, further expressed the  Group's  regret that  several objectives had 
remained unmet  in the Nairobi Ministerial Decision, th at MC12 failed to deliver a concrete work plan 
on cotton and the recent CoA -SS and Senior Officials Meetings did not allow for major progress , 
despite the Hong Kong mandate to address cotton in an ambitious, expeditious and specific manner.  
Mali also noted that the work relating to duty -free and quota -free market access  for cotton and 
cotton -related  products remain s unfinished . The C -4 reiterated their call to  Members to demonstrate 
stronger  political will in continu ing their effort s and initiatives with a view to ensuring an effective 
implementation of the Nairobi M inisterial Decision , and agreeing to concrete modalit ies to decrease 
trade-distorting  domestic support on cotton at MC13.  
28.  Australia reiterated its willingness to engage  with the C -4 and the urgent need to get the political 
will to make progress in the cotton negotiations.  
 
11 The Secretariat's presentation can be found on 
https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/agric_e/wto_secretariat_presentation_of_GEN34R19.pdf . 
12 Documents TN/AG/GEN/34/Rev.19  - TN/AG/SCC/GEN/13/Rev.19 , TN/AG/GEN/34/Rev.19/Add.1  - 
TN/AG/SCC/GEN/13/Rev.19/Add.1 , TN/AG/GEN/34/Rev.19/Add.2  - TN/AG/SCC/GEN/13/R ev.19/Add.2 , dated 
27 October 2023 , and  TN/AG/GEN/34/Rev.19/Add.1/Suppl.1  - TN/AG/SCC/GEN/13/Rev.19/Add.1/Suppl.1  
dated 14 N ovember 2023.  TN/AG/57 • TN/AG/SCC/22  
 
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  29.  The EU stated that the Russian Federati on's unprovoked and illegal aggression against Ukraine , 
and the COVID -19 pandemic , had further disrupted trade and supply chains . The war in Ukraine in 
particular  was in its view  not only a humanitarian crisis for Ukraine but  had also increased food 
insecurity  in many developing countries , and aggravated uncertainty and price volatility , including  
for the cotton market . The EU reiterated in this context the need to address the trade -related aspects 
of global challenges,  including for the cotton file , in order to preserve the WTO's central role in the 
global trading system.  Reaffirming the view expressed by many  during the recent S enior Officials 
Meeting  that cotton , a long -delayed matter , should receive new attention , the EU noted that cotton 
should be  an element of a food security outcome at MC13.  
30.  In addition, the EU considered the work on the duty -free quota -free access for cotton products 
remained unfinished business. On trade -distorting policies, although the EU recognized the urgency 
of reforming such policies, it also viewed this issue as one of the stumbling blocks of the 
advancement of negotiations. The EU therefore suggested to address first the areas where progress 
could be envisaged in the short -term within a wider package on food security in cluding: 
(1) transparency improvements that would not create unnecessary administrative burdens; 
(2) development assistance, to complement the broader trade efforts.  
31.  The US acknowledged the importance of cotton towards the vitality of farmers livelihoods i n 
Africa and the developing countries. The US also recalled the relevance of market access negotiations 
on cotton, referencing an earlier presentation on the role of tariffs, which could equally apply to the 
cotton sector. Low or zero tariffs in destinatio n markets created predictable access, which in turn, 
provided producers and exporters the necessary confidence to take steps to improve the quality, 
efficiency, and to adopt innovative farming practices. The US also underlined the critical importance 
for cotton-producing Members to adopt science -driven regulatory regimes, coupled by open markets, 
both for cotton and cotton -related products and services. The US also condemned the Russian 
Federation's action in Ukraine and stressed that the war had significantly worsened global food 
security.  
32.  China emphasi zed its consistent efforts to improve trade facilitation and collaboration with 
African countries including through the establishment of a green chann el for imports of African 
agriculture products by China.  Additionally, China highlighted its increasing trend of cotton imports 
from the C -4 since 2016  despite the COVID -19 pandemic . On domestic support, China drew attention 
to some develop ed cotton export ing Members  providing Amber Box support exceed ing their de 
minimis  limit. Such subsidies artificially  increase d the global supply of cotton, exerted adverse impact 
on cotton prices in the world market , and harmed farmers  in many developing countries includ ing 
China . China also noted that as a significant cotton producer and the world's largest importer, its 
cotton cultivation area had declined sharply in recent years due to  low cotton prices  in the 
international market.  China therefore called  for fundamental reform to gradually reduce AMS above 
de minimis . Referring to the Export Competition pillar, China noted  that export subsidies were 
distort ing international cotton markets, and that China had never applied  any such policies . As with 
the EU,  China also considered  that in the build -up to MC13, transparency and development 
assistance could be areas where Members could find consensus . Moreover, China suggested that 
Members could also work on exploring ways to increas e imports of African products .  
33.  Under the "COVID -19 and Cotton " agenda item, Côte d'Ivoire, on behalf of the C -4, noted 
that the COVID -19 pandemic  had a  disproportionate impact on the C -4 countries as compared to 
the other major cotton -producing countries . Côte d'Ivoire  underlined the multifaceted consequences 
of the pandemic, including  the disruptions to the supply chain  of fertilisers and other inputs, as well 
as congestion in the logistics chain which in some cases resulted in a halt to exports and revenue 
losses for both producers and Governments . Accordingly, the C -4 faced the double burden of loss of 
income, coupled by higher input costs which require d their Governments to take additional loans to 
find the resources to support the sector. Whilst the WHO declared the end of the pandemic, the 
socio-economic impact of this pandemic continue d to be felt  including loss in the competitiveness of 
the sector, along with the freezing or abandonment of other projects that thus deprive d production 
of alternative outlets. Similarly, Côte d'Ivoire  highlighted the impacts of remaining high input costs, 
such as fertili sers for smallholder cotton farmers. Moreover, the impact of other recent cris es such 
as the Russian -Ukrainian conflict and the cotton j assid invasion during the 2022 -2023 planting 
season had highlighted the fragility of the cotton sector  in the C -4. It was therefore necessary  to 
build stronger resilience  and to limit the exposure of the sector to exogenous effects, including by 
developing an intra-African cotton val ue chain  from cotton production to textiles.  TN/AG/57 • TN/AG/SCC/22  
 
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  34.  Côte d'Ivoire noted that the African Continental Free Trade Area provided a framework for such 
an ambition but  would require  the support of all stakeholders and partners in Africa. While taking 
this opportunity to express the  C-4's gratitude to donors and development partners for their support 
and guidance,  Côte d'Ivoire stressed the importance of private investment into the cotton sector , 
along with the re -establishment of , and fairness in , cotton markets.   
35.  Chad underscored the importance to keep  the item on the impact of the COVID -19 pandemic  
on the agenda , and possibly widen it. Several new crises affect ed C-4 economies, such as the recent  
fertilisers  shortages . With this in mind, Chad suggested to expand the sc ope of this agenda item at 
the next dedicated discussions to other cris es affecting the  cotton  industry . 
__________