WT/MIN(22)/ST/113  
12 June 2022 
(22-4553) Page: 1/2 
Ministerial Conference  
Twelfth Session  
Geneva, 12 -15 June 2022  Original: English  
 
 
STATEMENT BY H.E. MR ANTHONY SEVERIN  
AMBASSADOR AND PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE  
SAINT LUCIA 
It is a privilege to greet you on behalf of the government and people of Saint Lucia. At the outset, 
allow me to associate myself with the statements made on behalf of the Organisation of Eastern 
Caribbean States (OECS), the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Organisation of African 
Caribbean and Pacific States (OACP).   
 
It has been five years since Ministers last met in this format. In th is short space of time, the world 
has become a much different place.  
 
We have had to endure assaults on multilateralism; unilateralism is once again being seen by some 
as their preferred modality for global engagement; and we are still battling the worst global public 
health pandemic in years, an occurrence which has further exposed the extent of the vulnerabilities 
facing small island developing states (SIDS).  
 
Then, of course, there is the climate crisis with the associated natural disasters and environ mental 
emergencies which continue to impact us. Saint Lucia and other SIDS are not contributors to the 
climate crisis, but we are the most impacted, and we continue to call for action, especially on the 
part of the major polluters, to restore some balance to our planet. Like many SIDS, we rely on 
climate sensitive sectors for trade and livelihoods such as tourism, agriculture and fisheries, and in 
this regard, our very existence is on the line.  
 
When the WTO was created over 25 years ago, Saint Lucia' s trade and economic development were 
buttressed by access to trade preferences and development support from the international 
community. This was out of a shared recognition that we are not all equals, and that this inequality 
required approaches to treatment which were differentiated.  
 
Unfortunately, this understanding of our reality is no longer held by some of the most influential and 
powerful among us, and as a result, we are now denied much of the support which we once enjoyed. 
Areas of economic activity such as banana production and export, and offshore financial services 
have either collapsed as a result of the loss of preferences, or systematically savaged by the extra -
territorial application of standards imposed upon us, which we had no opportunity to influence.  
 
We cannot see MC12 as divorced from these realities. I have a responsibility to the people of Saint 
Lucia to call for fairness, equity and justice in the workings of the World Trade Organization (WTO).  
 
As a small open economy with a heavy reliance on int ernational trade and broader participation in 
the global economy to meet its development objectives, Saint Lucia needs a WTO and a multilateral 
trading system (MTS) which is responsive to its economic development needs as enshrined in the 
Marrakesh Agreeme nt. 
 
Unfortunately, too many developing countries, including SIDS, find many of the tangible benefits 
from our participation in the MTS to be too elusive. It is against this backdrop that I call for WTO 
Members, especially the developed Members, to recommi t, to allow for sufficient policy space for 
developing and least -developed Members to achieve their development objectives.  
 WT/MIN( 22)/ST/ 113 
 
- 2 - 
 
  Like many other Members, Saint Lucia also recognizes that after a quarter -century of existence, the 
WTO needs reform and modernizi ng to better meet the challenges of the 21st century. This reform 
must be open, transparent, inclusive and indeed comprehensive in order to bring about the 
much -needed improvement in the operations, and the negotiating and rule -making functions of the 
WTO.   
 
An element of inertia has certainly crept into the organization. The fact that we have had a fisheries 
subsidies negotiation going on for twenty years; that we find it difficult, or take an inordinate amount 
of time, to agree on many things, including p ressing global problems such as an appropriate trade 
policy response to the Covid -19 pandemic; and that for many years, we have been far apart on 
important issues in agriculture trade policy - all of this provide evidence of lethargy, and point to 
the nece ssity for urgent reform of the way that we do business.   
 
If I may speak briefly to fisheries subsidies and agriculture, regarding the former, Saint Lucia is 
pleased that we have made appreciable progress since Ministers met in July of last year. We look 
forward to a substantive outcome in fisheries subsidies which is consistent with our mandate, that 
is, to reduce and/ or eliminate harmful fisheries subsidies, and provide appropriate and effective 
special and differential treatment to developing and least -developed countries.  
 
On agriculture, we appreciate that this is a difficult area, especially since it involves issues of 
importance to vulnerable populations in our jurisdictions. Nonetheless, we have to take action to 
address distortions to agricultural  markets, including those arising from subsidies, export restrictions 
and lack of transparency which negatively impact on farmers in countries like Saint Lucia. We have 
to also accord even more policy space to developing and least -developed countries in ar eas such as 
domestic support and public stockholding, both of which are vital to food security.  
 
Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, as I close, let me renew Saint Lucia' s commitment to a successful 
Conference.   
 
__________