RESTRICTED  
  
WT/COMTD/LDC/M/71  
 
23 June 2014  
(14-3639)  Page: 1/11  
Sub-Committee on Least-Developed Countries 
Seventy First Session    
 
 NOTE ON THE MEETING OF 4 APRIL 2014 
Chairperson: Ambassador Roderick Van Schreven (Netherlands) 
A. ADOPTION OF TH E AGENDA .................................................................................... 1  
B. ACCESSION OF LEAST-DE VELOPED COUN TRIES ...................................................... 1  
-  State of Play in the Accession Working Parties of the Least-Developed Countries: 
Oral Report by th e Secretariat ............................................................................................ 1  
C. MARKET ACCESS FOR LEAST- DEVELOPED CO UNTRIES ............................................ 6  
-  Market Access for Products and Services of Export Interest to Least-Developed 
Countries (WT/COMTD/LDC/W/58): Oral Update by the Secretariat on Recent Trends in 
LDC Trade ..................................................................................................................... .. 6 
D. WORKSHOP ON MC9 OUTCOMES AND PREPARATION FOR A POST-BALI 
WORK PROGRAMME, HELD AT UNCTAD, FROM 4 TO 5 MARCH 2014: REPORT BY 
THE COORDINATOR OF THE LDC GR OUP ........................................................................ 10  
E. OTHER BUSINESS .................................................................................................. 11  
 
 A. ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA 
1. Opening the meeting, the Chairman thanked Members for electing him as the Chairperson of 
the Sub-Committee on LDCs. He paid tribute to his predecessor Ambassador Steffen Smidt for his 
leadership in the work of the LDCs in the WTO.   
2. The Chairman said that the draft agenda of the meeting had been circulated as 
WTO/AIR/4271/Rev.1. He informed Members that, under "other business", UNCTAD had requested to make an announcement relating to a Workshop on preferential rules of origin being organized 
on 9 April 2014.  
 3. The Sub-Committee adopted the draft agenda contained in WTO/AIR/4271/Rev.1. 
 
B. ACCESSION OF LEAST-DEVELOPED COUNTRIES 
- State of Play in the Accession Working Parties of the Least-Developed Countries: Oral 
Report by the Secretariat 
4. The Chairman said that accession was one of the core elements in the WTO Work 
Programme for the LDCs. The Sub-Committee attached high importance to the accession of LDCs. 
It was the forum in which Members negotiated guidelines to facilitate accession of LDCs to the 
WTO. He invited the Secretariat to provide the meeting with a state of play in the accession 
working parties of LDCs.   5. The representative of the Secretariat (Direc tor, Accessions Division) congratulated the 
Chairman on his election. He expressed particular appreciation for his work as the Chairperson of 
the Working Party on the accession of Afghanista n. He then elaborated on the rationale and 
purpose of WTO accessions, the results achieved and trade performance of acceded LDCs through WT/COMTD/LDC/M/71 
 
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  Article XII of the Marrakesh Agreement process, as well as on some systemic efforts made to 
enhance transparency and outreach.  6. He said that LDC accessions were a strategic priority for the Director-General in light of his 
objectives of trade universality, and for providing a framework for LDCs to derive development 
dividends from trade integration. He underscored that the WTO accession process was an instrument for development via necessary domestic reforms, to prepare an acceding country to 
beneficially integrate into a rules-based multilateral trading system and to enhance 
competitiveness and business environment in the applicant countries.   7. He recalled the LDC accession guidelines, which provided for appropriate flexibilities for the 
acceding LDCs. Each accession was unique, and those guidelines were not intended to support 
protectionism in the applicant countries. Rather they were intended to facilitate the process of negotiations, and not a means to modify the rules of the WTO. 
 
8. He went on to give an account of the state of  play of eight LDC accessions, one-by-one. He 
informed Members that the draft accession packag e of Afghanistan had been stabilized and that 
the Government of Afghanistan would revert to conc lude the process after its Presidential election. 
He noted that the accession of Comoros had been advancing. Comoros had submitted its memorandum of foreign trade regime and was working towards submitting its offers.   
9. He pointed out that some of the accessions we re inactive for various reasons. The inactive 
accessions included applicants such as Bhutan, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia and Sao Tome and Principe. The accession of Sudan had become complex, as the country had split into two with the 
creation of South Sudan in July 2011 - with consequent changes to its constitution and customs 
territories. He noted that the Chairman of the Accession Working Party for Liberia, Ambassador Joakim Reiter of Sweden, had been active in adva ncing the accession of Liberia, and that Liberia 
was in the process of building its capacity to effectively engage in the accession process. 
 10. He went on to say that six LDCs had acceded to the WTO since 1995, pursuant to the 
provisions of Article XII of the Marrakesh Agre ement establishing the WTO. In addition, the 
accession package of Yemen was adopted by Members in December 2013; Yemen would soon 
become a full Member following its domestic ratification.
1 The results achieved by these LDCs had 
been encouraging. He elaborated on some of the concessions and commitments undertaken by 
these LDCs through their accessions. For instance, the average bound rate was 18.8% for Lao PDR 
(lowest among these seven accessions) while it was 39.7% for Vanuatu (highest among these seven accessions) which represented a fairly good outcome compared to the commitments 
undertaken by the original LDC Members of the WTO.  He said that most of the acceded LDCs had a 
binding coverage of 100%. High levels of specific commitments were also undertaken in the area of services; all these commitments had contributed to the further strengthening of the multilateral trading system. He added that all these Article X II LDCs had grown faster than many of the LDCs 
that had joined the Organization in 1995, and ha d shown greater resilience during the economic 
crisis; the year-on-year percentage change of merchandise trade of the Article XII LDCs had been higher than of the original WTO LDC Members.  
 
11. He noted that Cabo Verde and Samoa had graduated from LDC status in 2007 and 2013, 
respectively, while Vanuatu was in the process of graduation from LDC status, which would take 
effect in 2017; their graduation was an indication of overall economic progress in these countries. 
The Trade Policy Reviews conducted by Members of  some Article XII LDCs such as Cambodia and 
Nepal had indicated that they had made strong economic progress since their accession to the 
WTO.  
 
12. He highlighted some of the transparency and outreach activities relating to LDC accessions. 
He noted that accession of LDCs had been a standing agenda item under the WTO Work 
Programme for the LDCs, and that the Sub-Committee had been monitoring the LDC accessions on 
a regular basis. Informal dialogues with acceding  LDCs and Members were held under the aegis of 
the Sub-Committee in 2009 and 2010. The Secretariat ha d prepared reports on the state of play of 
LDC accessions as well as notes containing information on the implementation of measures to 
facilitate and streamline the accession processes of LDCs, including information on technical 
                                               
1 Yemen deposited the "Instrument of Acceptance" with the WTO Director-General on 27 May 2014. The 
WTO membership of Yemen will become effective on 26 June 2014. WT/COMTD/LDC/M/71 
 
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  assistance provided to the acceding LDCs. He said that all such notes had been superseded by the 
Director-General's annual report on accessions which contained a dedicated section on LDC accessions. The latest annual report was containe d in document WT/ACC/21. He also recognized 
the need to pay special attention to the recently acceded LDCs, and recalled the proposal made by 
the LDC Group in 2011 (WT/COMTD/LDC/W/50) concerning the establishment of a work 
programme on post-accession for recently acceded LDCs.   
13. In conclusion, he expressed appreciation to Memb ers, in particular Australia, Brazil, China, 
the European Union, India, Japan, New Zealand, Pakistan and the United States for their accession-specific technical assistance to help the accession process of LDCs as well as other acceding governments.  
 
14. The representative of Uganda, on behalf of the LDC Group, expressed appreciation for the 
comprehensive report made by the Director of the Accessions Division. He said that the acceding 
LDCs, like WTO LDC Members, had been seeking the common goal of fully integrating into the 
multilateral trading system. The provisions in the Marrakesh Agreement establishing the WTO had 
been a source of encouragement for the accedi ng LDCs, as there had been recognition that 
positive efforts were needed to help LDCs secure a share in the growth in international trade 
commensurate with the needs of their economic development. It was for these reasons that the accession of LDCs should remain a priority for the WTO Membership.  
15. He recalled paragraph 42 of the Doha Ministerial Declaration, which gave the mandate to 
facilitate and accelerate negotiations with acce ding LDCs. He regretted the fact that some LDC 
accession processes had not been advancing for several years. He urged Members to refrain from 
imposing onerous and burdensome requirements on acceding LDCs. At the same time, he urged 
them to accord the acceding LDCs special and differential treatment commensurate with their level of development. He underlined the importance of facilitating and accelerating the LDC accessions 
through simplified and streamlined procedures, with a view to concluding their accession process 
as quickly as possible.  16. He went on to say that the LDC Accession guidelines of 2012, which further strengthened 
the 2002 Guidelines, had brought about a new impetus in LDC accessions. Members should 
capitalize on the momentum generated by the im proved guidelines of 2012, and work towards a 
speedy conclusion of the remaining LDC accession s. He emphasized the need for monitoring the 
faithful implementation of these guidelines to en able LDCs benefit from the flexibilities envisaged 
therein; in this regard, he suggested that the Sub-Committee regularly review the accession of the 
LDCs. He made an appeal to Members to exercise restraint while seeking commitments from 
acceding LDCs, in particular seeking commitments in excess of what was required of the existing 
LDC Members. He added that the acceding LDCs should be allowed sufficient policy space to 
gradually and meaningfully integrate into the multilateral trading system.   
17. He continued by saying that accession to the WTO remained a complex undertaking 
requiring substantial human and institutional capacity in the applicant countries. He called upon Members as well as international organizations to strengthen technical assistance and capacity 
building for acceding and recently acceded LDCs. He welcomed the conclusion of Yemen's 
accession process at the Ninth WTO Ministerial Conf erence (MC9). He looked forward to an early 
conclusion of Afghanistan's accession process as well. He suggested that an LDC accession priority 
list be established for 2014.   
 18. In conclusion, he invited Members' attention to the fact that the LDCs, in the process of 
accession to the WTO, were not clear with regard  to the applicability and implementation of the 
Trade Facilitation Agreement for them. He urged Me mbers to extend the same kind of assistance 
and support for capacity building to acceding LDCs as had been envisaged for LDCs under the Trade Facilitation Agreement. He stressed that the acceding LDCs would not be able to afford 
implementation of the Agreement upon its entry into force without acquiring reasonable 
implementation capacity. He also underlined that these acceding LDCs should also be able to benefit from the various flexibilities enshrined in Section II of the Trade Facilitation Agreement.  
 
19. The representative of Zambia noted that the accession process of Ethiopia had remained 
somewhat dormant over the past few years, though the Ethiopian Government had been keeping 
regular contact with the Secretariat. In this regard, she sought more information on the nature of WT/COMTD/LDC/M/71 
 
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  engagement between Ethiopia and the Secretariat. She looked forward to a speedy conclusion of 
all LDC accessions.    20. The representative of Colombia put three questi ons to the Secretariat. First, she wondered 
whether the benchmarks for market access negoti ations adopted through the 2012 LDC accession 
guidelines were being applied in the bilateral negotiations taking place with acceding LDCs. She drew Members' attention to the Secretariat's presentation which had shown that the average 
binding commitments undertaken by the recently acceded LDCs were much higher than those 
stipulated in the benchmarks in the 2012 accession guidelines. She called upon Members to adhere to those guidelines in the negotiations with acceding LDCs. Second, she noted that acceding governments were required to undertake some necessary domestic reforms to accede to the WTO 
which had the ultimate aim of accelerating overall development in the acceding countries. She 
noted that some LDCs had graduated from LDC status  as a result of their overall development. In 
this regard, she wondered whether any study was available which examined the positive linkages 
between accession and graduation from LDC status, including LDCs like Samoa which graduated 
recently, and Vanuatu which was in the transition process of graduating from LDC status. Third, she enquired as to when Yemen would become a full Member of the WTO.  
 
21. The representative of the United States said that the WTO accession process was a tool for 
economic development, providing a framework fo r the acceding LDCs to implement necessary 
economic reforms, scheduling technical assistan ce and building trade capacity. The progress on 
each accession depended largely on the engagement  of the LDC applicant and its efforts to make 
its trade regime WTO compliant.   
22. He said that the LDC accession guidelines provided a number of flexibilities to acceding LDCs 
with a view to easing the burden of negotiations, and allowing transition periods for full implementation of WTO provisions. Most of the LDC applicants did no t require the full scope of the 
flexibilities laid out in the guidelines which ha d been developed to address the unique challenges 
and vulnerabilities faced by them in their accession processes. He took note of the specific status 
of each LDC accession, and also the fact that some  of the LDC applicants had remained dormant or 
inactive for some years. He wondered whether th e Secretariat could reach out to these acceding 
LDCs to ascertain the reasons for their inactiveness or reluctance to activate their accession 
process at this point in time. He urged these LDCs to work with the Secretariat, as well as with technical-assistance providers to resume their efforts to join the WTO. 
 
23. He went on to suggest that Members reflect on the possibility of an LDC accession 
Roundtable, under the aegis of the Sub-Committee, to engage and make progress on the current 
LDC accessions as well as to facilitate the application of LDCs that were yet to apply to join the 
WTO. With regard to the call from the LDC Group for an LDC priority list for this year, he said that 
such an idea was not helpful for the accession of any government. The progress on accession was very much in the hands of the acceding party. The idea of a priority list might also get in the way 
of actual hard work that was needed to advance any accession process. A priority list would also 
mean that those acceding governments that were no t included in the priority list were not being 
accorded due priorities by WTO Members. Due to all these reasons and considerations, his 
delegation was not supportive of creating a priority list for accessions. 
 24. In conclusion, he sought some elaboration from the Coordinator of the LDCs on the idea of 
monitoring the faithful implementation of LDC a ccession guidelines. His delegation would approach 
such a monitoring request with caution, though he would appreciate receiving more information on what had been envisaged with such monitoring.   
25. The representative of China endorsed the stat ement made by the representative of Uganda, 
on behalf of the LDC Group. He hoped that the accession process of Afghanistan would be 
concluded as soon as possible. He encouraged all stakeholders involved with accessions to 
expedite the ongoing LDC accessions.  
 26. He drew the attention of Members to Chin a's "LDCs and Accession Programme" which was 
established in July 2011. The programme aimed at strengthening LDCs' participation in WTO 
activities and helping those not yet Members to jo in the WTO. It consisted of three components, 
which included: (i) financing the internships for LDC candidates in the WTO's Accessions Division; (ii) funding WTO Accession Roundtable meetings; and (iii) financing the participation of LDC 
delegates in selected WTO meetings of priority to them. He said that with joint collaboration WT/COMTD/LDC/M/71 
 
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  between the Secretariat and relevant parties, the programme had been working smoothly. As a 
result, the Government of China, on the margin of MC9, had renewed its contribution to the programme so as to extend its duration for anothe r year. He hoped that China's efforts, including 
through this programme, would contribute to better integrate the LDCs into the multilateral 
trading system. In conclusion, he said that under the framework of this programme, two 
roundtable meetings had been held. Another roundtable meeting for this year was being contemplated, for which necessary consultations were being undertaken with the Secretariat and 
relevant parties. 
 27. The representative of Ethiopia associated hi mself with the statement made by Uganda, on 
behalf of the LDC Group. As one of the acceding governments to the WTO, he expressed 
appreciation to the Chairman for including the item  on accession on the agenda of the meeting. He 
thanked the Secretariat for its thorough update of the status of each LDC accession. His authorities were in the process of preparing necessary documentation with a view to its submission to the 
Secretariat shortly, which could facilitate the conv ening of the fourth meeting of the Working Party 
on the Accession of Ethiopia.   
28. The representative of the European Union reiterated her delegation's strong commitment 
and support to all countries seeking accession to the WTO, in particular the LDCs. She welcomed 
the draft accession package of Afghanistan, and looked forward to its early approval on an 
ad referendum  basis. She also hoped to see Afghanistan joining the WTO as a full Member as soon 
as possible.  
 29. She said that the Secretariat's presentation, as well as the accession process of Afghanistan, 
had shown that the LDC accession guidelines had be en functioning well. She was of the view that a 
good mix of necessary domestic reforms on the si de of the acceding LDCs, along with appropriate 
flexibilities by Members as envisaged in the LDC accession guidelines, could potentially deliver for 
all the LDC applicants in the WTO.  
 30. Responding to the questions/comments raised, the representative of the Secretariat said 
that accession negotiations had been complex, since they required legislation-based domestic 
reforms with a view to implementing WTO rules and disciplines and to pursuing growth in a 
sustainable manner. WTO Membership entailed some costs, specifically in view of the establishment of soft infrastructure (legislation and implementing regulations) as well as hard 
infrastructure (e.g., enquiry points, standards-related facilities). Overall, the purpose of accession 
was to make it gainful and meaningful for the candidate countries to pursue their development objectives.  
 
31. He said that the concessions and commitment s undertaken by Yemen and Lao PDR had been 
consolidated before the adoption of the 2012 gu idelines, and hence those commitments might not 
reflect the benchmarks established in the 2012 guidelines. In this regard, he underlined a few 
points. The LDC accession guidelines were intended to facilitate the negotiating process and to 
minimize the burdens of acceding governments. Me mbers were also required to exercise restraint 
in seeking concessions and commitments from acceding LDCs; however, the market access 
negotiations remained subject to negotiations and therefore the application of benchmarks was 
subject to both bilateral as well as multilateral negotiations. He said that the WTO remained committed to facilitating LDC accession negotiations which could promote development prospects 
for acceding LDCs and which, at the same time, did not encourage rent-seeking or protectionism 
on the part of the acceding LDCs.   32. He went on to point out that accession negotiations could not be fast-tracked nor prioritized 
in the absence of substance (i.e. appropriate in puts and market access offers from acceding 
governments). Sustained engagements from acceding governments had also been an important factor in making steady progress on accessions. Little could be done in situations of either 
dormancy or inactivity such as the case at present with Bhutan, Sudan and Equatorial Guinea; or if 
the acceding government was under administrative measures such as Sao Tome and Principe. The pace at which an accession process could move, depended very much on the willingness of 
acceding governments and the predictable environmen t that they could invoke. He added that in a 
period of dormancy or inactivity, some acceding  LDCs continued to build capacity and undertake 
necessary consultations and guidance from agencies, with a view to effectively participating in their accession processes. This process helped ownership for their respective accessions. 
 WT/COMTD/LDC/M/71 
 
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  33. In conclusion, he said that the Secretariat had been making efforts to reach out to the 
acceding LDCs, including the ones whose accession process remained inactive/dormant. A number of activities sought to enhance outreach. In this regard, China's LDCs and Accession Programme had been useful; the roundtable meetings, one of the components of this programme, were 
organized with the aim of sharing experiences an d best practices in the WTO accession process. 
The Informal Group on Accessions, chaired by th e Director of the Accessions Division, had been 
meeting on a periodic basis. The Accession Newsletter was published on a regular basis and 
contained relevant information on accession negotiations; it was sent to the wider WTO 
Membership as well as to the acceding governments. Finally, he drew the attention of Members to the annual reports on WTO Accessions by the Director-General containing information on all relevant aspects of accessions which also acted as an outreach for the acceding governments. In 
the preparation of this report, the Secretariat ha d been meeting the WTO regional groups including 
with a view to supporting and advancing the access ion process of applicant countries. Finally, he 
welcomed suggestions from Members to further improve outreach activities on accessions. 
 
34. The Chairman thanked Members for their contributi ons. He said that progress on the issue of 
accession of LDCs was important for the preservation of confidence in the multilateral trading 
system. He noted that LDCs accounted for one-third of acceding governments in the WTO. He 
urged all Members to intensify efforts to conclude the ongoing LDC accession negotiations as early as possible. He also urged Members to adhere to the LDC accession guidelines in their negotiations with acceding LDCs. He suggested that the Sub-Committee take note of the presentation made by 
the Secretariat as well as the statements made. 
 35. It was so agreed. 
 
C. MARKET ACCESS FOR LEAST-DEVELOPED COUNTRIES 
- Market Access for Products and Services of Export Interest to Least-Developed 
Countries (WT/COMTD/LDC/W/58): Oral Update by the Secretariat on Recent Trends 
in LDC Trade 
36. The Chairman recalled that a substantive discu ssion had taken place at the last meeting of 
the Sub-Committee on the market access review study by the Secretariat contained in document 
WT/COMTD/LDC/W/58. He noted that the Secretar iat would provide the meeting with an update 
on recent trends in LDC trade. He underlined th at in the context of the role of trade in the 
post-2015 sustainable development agenda, one might think about possible indicators to monitor 
progress. In this regard, WTO data on developmen ts in LDC trade could be vital. He invited the 
Secretariat to make its presentation.  
37. The representative of the Secretariat (Chief Statistician) updated Members on some of the 
recent trends in LDC trade, building on the information and statistics provided in the Note 
contained in document WT/COMTD/LDC/W/58. He noted that compilation of trade statistics for 
LDCs was challenging; nevertheless, the Secret ariat would make efforts to cover LDC trade 
especially in services in the next edition of the Note, to the extent possible, based on available 
statistics.  
38. He went on to explain the quarterly evolution of LDCs' merchandise exports during the 
period 2008-2013. He said that despite fears of a "double dip recession" in the wake of the global economic crisis in 2008-2009, the LDC exports had recovered from the slump registered after the 
second quarter of 2008. However, recovery from the peak registered in the third quarter of 2011 
had been slow. One of the positive trends ov er this period was that the manufactures and 
agricultural exports from LDCs, which were mostly labour intensive, had continued to grow, despite the crisis and their prices had been less volatile than for fuel and mineral products.  
 
39. He noted that the trends in LDC trade in co mmodities had been mainly driven by prices. 
During 2000-2008, prices of fuels and mineral prod ucts, on average, increased by 25% per year. 
In 2009, prices of these products plunged by 35 %, though the decline was short lived. In 2010, 
fuel and mineral prices rebounded by 48%, surpassing their pre-crisis level. In most recent times, oil and mineral prices were below their long-term trends, though it was too early to claim – as 
some economists had done – that the "super cycl e" of high commodity prices was over. He said 
that the evolution of international prices had a direct impact on the balance-of-payments (BoP) WT/COMTD/LDC/M/71 
 
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  situation of LDCs. The oil exporting LDCs had managed to maintain a BoP surplus while others, 
especially those that exported agricultural products, continued to face a vulnerable BoP situation.   40. With regard to tariffs faced by LDC merchandis e exports, he pointed out that an examination 
of the evolution of average tariffs  on selected products exported by LDCs to developed markets 
showed that the margin of preference for LDCs had been higher for agricultural products as 
compared to developing countries. He noted that  the share of total duty-free access of LDC 
exports to developed country markets fluctuated around 80% over the last few years, reaching 
84% in 2012. At the same time, developing countries' share of duty-free exports to developed country markets had come closer to the LDC share, reaching 80% in 2012; though such exports to a large extent had occurred on lines where duties had been eliminated on an MFN basis. In 
contrast, most of the LDCs had enjoyed true pr eferential duty-free access in developed markets 
(percentage of exports entered duty free under the GSP-LDC and other preferential schemes, as 
compared to products entered duty free on an MF N basis); the share of true preferences in the 
overall 84% of their duty-free entry in deve loped markets in 2012 was more than 50%.   
 41. He presented some data on non-tariff measures (NTMs) faced by LDC exports, which had 
been compiled on the basis of notifications made in  the Integrated Trade Intelligence Portal (I-TIP) 
database. He noted that the landscape of NTMs ha d been conditioned by the quantity as well as 
quality of notifications. Based on the data availa ble to the Secretariat, the overall picture did not 
indicate that the LDCs had been the targets of NTMs. However, during 2009-2012, there had been 
an increase in sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures faced by LDC exports; in fact, six new 
SPS measures had been taken by Members over this period. While no new trade defence measures (anti-dumping or countervailing duties) had been recorded against LDCs since 2008, earlier 
measures had not been lifted (i.e. no notification of their withdrawal receiv ed by the Secretariat). 
In conclusion, he said that the Secretariat had started to monitor NTMs faced by LDC exports, through the I-TIP database, and would seek to update Members from time-to-time in this regard. 
 
42. The representative of Uganda, on behalf of the LDC Group, recalled paragraph 42 of the 
Doha Ministerial Declaration where Members recognized that integration of LDCs into the 
multilateral trading system would require meaningful market access, support for the diversification 
of their production and export base, and trade-re lated technical assistance and capacity building. 
He called upon all WTO Members to come forward to help LDCs beneficially integrate into the multilateral trading system.  
 
43. He noted that LDCs' exports of goods and commercial services totalled US$232.7 billion in 
2012, while imports reached US$278.4 billion. In the same year, the LDCs registered a 
merchandise trade deficit of US$18 billion. This situation was a cause of concern. Despite LDCs 
being home to 15% of the world’s population, their contribution to world trade in goods was 1.14% in 2012; while their share in commercial services was 1.16%.   
44. He said that the LDC exports had been charac terized by their concentration on a limited 
range of products. There had been a general decline in the share of all agricultural and manufactured products in the composition of LDC exports, while the share of fuels and mining 
products had increased significantly. During the pa st twelve years, the average annual growth rate 
of LDC exports of fuels and mining products had been much higher (18.9%) than that of manufactured (12%) and agricultural (11%) produc ts. Against this background, he urged Members 
to focus on the implementation of the LDC-specific Bali decisions. He was of the view that 
Members should effectively implement those decisions which were far below the levels of ambition articulated in the proposals that the LDCs had submi tted to form part of the Bali outcome. In this 
regard, he recalled paragraph 1.11 of the Bali Ministerial Declaration which stated that issues in 
the Bali Package where legally binding outcomes could not be achieved would be prioritized.   
 45. With regard to LDC trade in services, he note d that the value of LDCs' commercial services 
exports had reached an estimated US$27 billion in 2012. Despite a 6% rise of LDC services 
exports in 2012 over the previous year, it account ed for only 11.6% of total goods and services 
exports of LDCs in 2012. The participation of LDCs in world exports of commercial services 
remained marginal, at 0.6%, and, in world imports, at 1.7%. While tourism and transport services 
remained the dominant sectors, overall the LDCs were unable to penetrate the higher segments of services trade. He called upon Members to implement the Decision taken at MC9 on the operationalization of the LDC Services Waiver. He stressed that Members should not restrain 
themselves in taking voluntary and proactive steps in implementing that Decision, including by WT/COMTD/LDC/M/71 
 
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  extending preferences to LDCs' services and servic e suppliers that had commercial value and could 
promote economic benefits in the LDCs.  46. He recalled the Marrakesh Agreement establishing the WTO which recognized the need for 
positive efforts designed to ensure that developing countries, and especially the LDCs among 
them, secure a share in the growth in the international trade which was commensurate with the needs of their economic development. LDCs shou ld not be expected to compete on an equal 
footing. It was for the same reason that special and differential treatment (S&D) provisions were 
constructed and imbedded in almost every fibre of the WTO Agreements. In this regard, he was of the view that the work on S&D provisions shou ld proceed along the mandate of paragraph 44 of 
the Doha Ministerial Declaration. 
 
47. He noted that market access conditions for LDCs had been improving over the years. In this 
context, the Bali Decision on Duty-free and Quota-free (DFQF) Market Access for LDCs was a step in the right direction towards the implementation of the Decision on DFQF adopted at the 
Hong Kong Ministerial Conference in 2005. He ca lled upon Members to implement that Decision. 
He added that the LDCs would continue to pursue the fulfilment of that Decision as enunciated in Annex F of the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration, with a view to providing DFQF market access for 
all products originating from LDCs in a manner that ensured stability, security and predictability, 
whilst ensuring that no LDC was left worse off.  He welcomed the DFQF schemes undertaken by a 
number of developing countries.   
48. He pointed out that in addition to improved market access opportunities, an urgent need 
existed to address supply-side constraints in the LDCs in order to improve their productive capacity. The Enhanced Integrated Framework (E IF) and Aid-for-Trade Initiative could play a 
fundamental role in assisting LDCs strengthen th eir productive capacity. He called upon Members 
to reduce, and to the extent possible remove, no n-tariff barriers on LDC products including the 
stringent provisions of SPS standards. Members should also facilitate existing market access 
opportunities for LDCs, including through simplified and more transparent rules of origin. He drew 
the attention of Members to the Decision on Prefer ential Rules of Origin taken by Members at MC9, 
and said that the guidelines contained in that Decision should be implemented with a view to 
making the rules of origin simple, objective and transparent so as to facilitate LDC exports. 
 
49. The representative of Australia welcomed the pr esentation by the Secretariat. His delegation 
had a long-standing interest on the issue of export diversification of LDCs. He noted the trends in 
LDC trade in commodities which was largely influenced by their international prices. He was 
encouraged by the fact that the exports of LDC manufactured and agricultural products had witnessed a positive trend over the past years, and that their exports registered in recent years 
had been higher than the pre-crisis level. That indicated the collective positive efforts of Members 
as well as the LDCs themselves in advancing LDC trade. He wondered whether the Secretariat could elaborate on some of the reasons behind the recent trends of LDC trade and whether there was any lesson for Members to draw from that trend. 
 
50. The representative of China drew the attentio n of the Secretariat to Table 21 of the Note 
where China had been shown as granting DFQF acce ss to the LDCs for 60% of its tariff lines. In 
this regard, he informed the Sub-Committee that  China's DFQF coverage for LDCs had been 
comprehensive; last year his Government had exte nded the DFQF coverage for LDCs to 95% of its 
tariff lines which would soon be further expanded to 97%. His authorities were working on updated 
notifications which would soon be submitted to the CTD as well as other relevant bodies of the 
WTO.  51. The representative of Nepal associated himself with the statement made by Uganda on 
behalf of the LDC Group. He was disappointed to note that LDCs' share had been hovering around 
1% of the global trade. This reflected on how p oorly LDCs were integrated into the world trading 
system, and the LDCs' inability to take due economic advantage from liberalized trade. He was of 
the view that the adoption as well as implementa tion of sound policy measures by the international 
community at both multilateral as well as bilateral level could reverse this situation.   
52. He went on to say that enhancing market access opportunities for LDC products was critical 
to increase the share of LDCs in world trade. At  the same time, eliminating tariffs alone would not 
be sufficient to increase the export share of LDCs  in world market. A meaningful increase of the 
LDCs' share in world exports would require addressing of NTMs faced by LDC exports in an WT/COMTD/LDC/M/71 
 
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  effective manner. NTMs taken by Members includ ing some stringent SPS and TBT measures often 
had created huge impediments to LDC trade. He equally underlined the need for effective implementation of S&D treatment provisions enshrined for LDCs in WTO Agreements. He called for effective implementation of the Bali decisions, including the decisions relating to DFQF market 
access, preferential rules of origin, LDC services waiver and cotton. He expressed appreciation to 
Members that had undertaken DFQF schemes for LDCs and encouraged the remaining Members to follow suit. 
 
53. The representative of Colombia considered Annex Table 6 of the Note relating to multilateral 
non-reciprocal LDC preference schemes useful. Th at Table contained information on preferences 
being granted to the LDCs, though it fell short of  presenting the total DFQF coverage as well as 
preference margins enjoyed by the LDCs in those markets in a uniform manner. She wondered 
whether the Secretariat could provide information on preferences granted by all WTO Members to 
the LDCs in a coherent manner.  
 
54. She noted that the participation of LDCs in world trade had been marginal. The share of 
LDCs in total world trade in goods and commercial services was 1.14% in 2012. The share of LDC 
exports in services trade was even smaller, with 0.62% of world share in 2012. She recognized the 
responsibility of all Members to help LDCs improve their participation in world trade. The operationalization of the LDC services waiver could contribute to increasing the participation of LDCs in world services trade. In this regard, she recalled that the Bali Decision on the 
operationalization of the LDC services waiver had envisaged particular tasks, including the 
submission of a collective request by the LDCs . She encouraged the LDCs to carry out their 
necessary background work in this regard as soon as possible. In conclusion, she said that the 
Sub-Committee could monitor such work to promote the issues of interest to LDCs in the WTO. 
 55. The representative of the United States said that the Note did not fully capture the market 
access provided by the US to the LDCs. The US provided 97.5% DFQF access for LDC beneficiaries 
of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). He said that his delegation had always taken seriously the commitments undertaken by Members under WTO including the Bali decisions. His authorities were considering as to how to be responsive to the Bali Ministerial Decision on DFQF 
prior to the next Ministerial Conference as specified in the Decision. His delegation would require 
time to engage in consultations to that end.   
56. He sought one clarification on the presentation  made by the Secretariat at the meeting. He 
noted that the statistics provided in the area of NTMs faced by LDC exports were based on existing 
notifications by Members. It was therefore underst ood that the data was limited by the quantity 
and quality of notifications that Members had made to the WTO. He wondered as to how complete 
those notifications were compared to what the Secr etariat would expect to be the universe of such 
measures. That would be helpful for his delegation in terms of contextualizing the data provided at the meeting. 
 
57. The representative of the Secretariat responded to the questions and comments made at the 
meeting. With regard to the reasons behind the tr end of the "super cycle" of commodity prices, he 
said that sustained demand for primary commodities from emerging countries such as China had 
contributed to sustaining the price of commodities at a high level. These countries had a high energy coefficient in their GDP and had been inve sting heavily in their domestic infrastructure 
which needed oil and metals, including non-ferrous metals. The emergence of a new middle class 
in these economies had put an upward pressure on consumption with a subsequent inflationary pressure on the price of foods. He recalled th at the Sub-Committee had considered the issue of 
agricultural commodities and food prices back in  2008, where some of the causes for the rise in 
the prices of agriculture commodities and thei r impact on LDCs had been examined. Another 
recent phenomenon that might have an impact on LDCs was the fact that the US – one of the big importers of oil from the LDCs – was increasingly self-sufficient in oil. He took note of the 
comments made by the representative of China, Colombia and the US on the DFQF coverage for 
LDC products and said that he would seek to appropriately include that information into the next edition of the Note. Finally, in response to the clarifications sought on the scope of notifications in 
the I-TIP database which was used to present some data on NTMs faced by LDC exports, he said 
that two different data sets had been used to prepare the charts presented at the meeting; the 
landscape of trade defence measures (i.e. noti fication of anti-dumping measures) had been 
comprehensive, whereas notification of SPS measures had not been robust. 
 WT/COMTD/LDC/M/71 
 
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  58. The representative of the United States thanked the Secretariat for its response. He said 
that the promise of the I-TIP database and the an alysis from it would depend very much on the 
quantity and the quality of notifications from Members. He expressed concern over the current 
status of notifications which had been a hindranc e in enhancing transparency of Members' trade 
policies and practices. He called upon Members to fulfil their notification obligations in a timely 
manner and make them up to date, as this could further improve the functioning of the multilateral trading system.  
 
59. The Chairman thanked Members for their contributions. He said that market access issues 
were important elements of the Work Programme fo r the LDCs. He looked forward to this year's 
edition of the market access review study by the Secretariat. He suggested that the 
Sub-Committee take note of the presentation made by the Secretariat as well as the statements 
made.  
60. It was so agreed. 
 
D. WORKSHOP ON MC9 OUTCOMES AND PREPARATION FOR A POST-BALI WORK 
PROGRAMME, HELD AT UNCTAD, FROM 4 TO 5 MARCH 2014: REPORT BY THE 
COORDINATOR OF THE LDC GROUP 
61. The Chairman recalled that MC9 had adopted a number of decisions, including an LDC 
package. Work had begun on the implementation of these decisions, as well as to prepare a 
post-Bali work programme. In this regard, a Wo r k s h o p  h a d  b e e n  h e l d  a t  U N C T A D  f r o m  4  t o  
5 March 2014. He invited the Coordinator of the LD Cs to brief the meeting on the outcome of the 
Workshop. 
 
62. The representative of Uganda, on behalf of th e LDC Group, said that the Workshop on the 
outcome of MC9 was organized by the LDC Group in cooperation with UNCTAD. It focused on the 
mandate arising from MC9, including the work needed on the Trade Facilitation Agreement, to 
develop the proposals for a post-Bali work programme and to prioritize all those issues in the Bali 
package where legally binding outcomes could no t be achieved. The Workshop had provided an 
opportunity to take stock of the results from MC9 and what those entailed for the LDCs as well as 
to identify issues most beneficial  in terms of development for LDCs. 
 63. He said that the Workshop was opened by the Secretary General of UNCTAD, 
Dr. Mukhisa Kituyi, who in his address had pledge d continued cooperation with the LDC Group in 
addressing the issues of priority concern to th e LDCs. The Workshop was also addressed by the 
Deputy Director-General of the WTO, Yonov Fred erick Agah, who gave an overview of the LDC 
priorities in the context of the DDA.  
 64. He went to say that the Workshop had underlined the importance of effective 
implementation of all Bali outcomes, including the im plementation of LDC-specific decisions. It had 
invited the cooperation from LDC partners in facilitating the post-Bali work as well as to build on to 
the momentum generated at Bali last year. He then highlighted some of the substantive issues taken up at the Workshop. As regards the Trade Facilitation Agreement, discussion had centred on 
the mandate of the Trade Facilitation Preparatory Committee, including the legal review of the 
Agreement, the Protocol of Amendment to insert the Trade Facilitation Agreement into Annex 1A of the WTO Agreement and the notification of Category A commitments. The relationship between the 
Trade Facilitation Agreement and Paragraph 47 of the Doha Ministerial Declaration was examined. 
The Workshop had underlined the importance of preserving development as a central pillar in the discussions, as well as the principle of the single undertaking. LDC participants at the Workshop had also discussed the question of the notification arising from provisions of the Trade Facilitation 
Agreement that were best endeavour in nature, an d the relationship of such notifications with 
those arising from mandatory ones.   
65. He continued by saying that the Bali Ministerial Decision concerning the Operationalization of 
the LDC Services Waiver had been welcomed at  the Workshop. It had encouraged preference 
granting countries to come forward in extend ing preferences to LDCs' services and service 
suppliers, which had commercial value and promoted economic benefits in the LDCs. He informed 
Members that the LDC Group was working to put to gether the collective request. The consultants 
helping the Group were undertaking country visits as part of their methodology for data collection. Some of the country visits had been completed, while others were ongoing. A process of data WT/COMTD/LDC/M/71 
 
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  analysis and distillation was thus underway. On the basis of this work, he hoped that the Group 
would be able to begin bilateral consultations with Members in the coming days.    66. He said that the Workshop had taken note of the Bali decision on cotton, though it was felt 
by the participants that the decision had fallen short of the mandate given by Ministers at the 
Hong Kong Ministerial Conference to address cotto n ambitiously, expeditiously and specifically. The 
LDCs also agreed to explore mechanisms with UNCTAD, including through the Pan-African Cotton 
Roadmap, in identifying projects that would address productivity, increase value addition in the 
cotton sector and improve marketing of cotton.   67. In conclusion, he drew the attention of Me mbers on the future work of the LDC Group 
discussed at the Workshop. It was agreed at th e Workshop that the LDC Group, along with 
UNCTAD, would develop a joint work plan identifyin g the next steps. He added that the LDCs, with 
the support of UNCTAD, had begun working on elem ents that could form part of the remaining 
issues in the DDA. He sought support and cooperation from Members with a view to ensuring the 
inclusion of specific issues of interest to LDCs in the post-Bali work programme. Finally, he extended appreciation to UNCTAD for partnering with the LDC Group in organizing the Workshop. 
He looked forward to continuing cooperation with UNCTAD. 
 68. The Chairman proposed that the Sub-Committ ee take note of the statement made by 
Uganda, on behalf of the LDC Group.  
 
69. It was so agreed. 
 
E. OTHER BUSINESS 
70. The representative of UNCTAD said that UNCTAD would be organizing a Workshop on 9 April 
2014 on the "Way forward on the WTO Ministerial De cision on preferential rules of origin". The 
objectives of the Workshop were threefold: (i) to  brainstorm on the next steps in advancing the 
Bali decision on preferential rules of origin; (ii)  to review the guidelines contained in the Bali 
decision; and (iii) to explore possible actions that  could be taken by the international community. 
The invitation letter as well as the programme of  the event had been sent to Permanent Missions 
in Geneva. The programme was also available on the UNCTAD website. He invited all Members to 
participate in the event. He expressed apprecia tion to the Government of the Netherlands for 
sponsoring the event. 
 
71. The Chairman proposed that the Sub-Committee take note of the statement made by the 
representative of UNCTAD.  
 
72. It was so agreed. 
 
73. The Chairman said that the next meeting of  the Sub-Committee was tentatively scheduled 
for the end of June 2014. The exact date of the meeting would be communicated in due course.  
 74. The meeting was adjourned. 
 
  
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