G/TBT/W/789  
 
16 February 2024  
(24-1420) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade  Original: English  
 
THEMATIC SESSION TO COMBAT MISINFORMATION AND  
DISINFORMATION ACROSS VARIOUS SECTORS   
TENTH TRIENNIAL REVIEW  
Proposal from the United States  
The following submiss ion, dated 16 February  2024, is being circulated at the request of the  
delegation of the United States . 
 
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1  BACKGROUND  
1.1.  A key objective of the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT Agreement) is to ensure 
that technical regulations, standards, and conformity assessment procedures do not create 
unnecessary  obstacles to international trade, as well as encouraging transparency in the 
development of technical regulations. Article 2.2 of the TBT Agreement  provides that technical 
regulations  shall not be more trade -restrictive than necessary to fulfill a legitim ate objective. 
Members are also encouraged to create measures based on technical and scientific information  to 
meet those legitimate objectives and manage risk.  
1.2.  The consumption and circulation of accurate information is a core element of how WTO 
Members i mplement and monitor TBT Agreement obligations. Therefore, access to accurate 
information and the ability to discern and discard mis and disinformation should be a priority for this 
Committee. Economies rely on regulations that are created through the eval uation of accurate 
information. We may not notice when information is accurate and systems run smoothly, but mis 
and disinformation can wreak havoc on society, economy, and the multilateral trading system.  
1.3.  In its Global Risks Report 20241, the World Economic Forum has identified mis and 
disinformation as one of the top two threats across all sectors over the next two to ten years. 
Increasingly, many Members are pressured by their constituency to adopt standards that are not 
risk-based or s cience -based, but rather based on unsubstantiated fears driven by mis and 
disinformation or contain elements of questionable origin.  
1.4.  This is a topical, relevant theme for discussion by the TBT Committee, as regulators around 
the world are increasingly exposed to information from a multitude of sources, some of which may 
have specific biases or objectives that are not risk -based  or science -based and do not contribute to 
the development of justified TBT measures.  
2  WHAT ARE MIS - AND DISINFORMAT ION, AND WHY IS IT A GROWING THREAT?  
2.1.  According to leading authorities, including the United Nations2, misinformation is defined as 
false or inaccurate information. D isinformation is the deliberate promotion of false, misleading, or 
mis-attributed informat ion with the goal of deception. Regardless of whether false information is 
 
1"Global Risks Report ", World Economic Forum, https://www.weforum.org/publications/global -risks-
report -2024/ , 10 January  2024. 
2 United Nations ( https://www.unhcr.org/innovation/wp -content/uploads/2022/02/Factsheet -4.pdf) G/TBT/W/789  
 
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  spread with malintent, both types of inaccurate information are harmful to the public if used by 
regulators as a source of fact or basis for a measure.  
2.2.  Unfortunately, m is and disinformation have proliferated in part by a growing reliance of the 
cyber domain, artificial intelligence, and social media, which allow for the instantaneous transmission 
of disinformation. Although enabled by technology, disinformation is not a problem that  can be 
solved by technology alone.  
3  PROPOSAL  
3.1.  The WTO TBT Committee should hold an informal thematic session on mis and disinformation 
for Members. The session should explore the evolution of mis and disinformation, its effect on policy 
decisions, how it is  being deployed, and how Members can identify and combat it at early stages.  
3.2.  Thematic sessions could explore the concepts surrounding information manipulation and their 
relevance within the context and implementation of the TBT Agreement. Speakers could fo cus on 
the evolution of mis and disinformation, including its possible effect on policy decisions and how 
Members can identify and address it at early stages . 
3.3.  For a robust discussion that includes a diversity of perspectives  and solutions , speakers should 
be invited from a variety of fields , including government regulators, the private sector, cybersecurity 
experts, academia, and international organizations.  
 
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