WT/GC/191  
 
4 December 2017  
(17-6648) Page: 1/20 
   
 
 GENERAL COUNCIL  
ANNUAL REPORT (2017 ) 
The present report has been prepared in pursuance of the Procedures for an Annual Overview of 
WTO Activities and for Reporting under the WTO (WT/L/105).  
 
Since its previous annual report1, the General Council ha s held five meetings, on 27 -28 February 
and reconvened on 7 April, 10 and 18  May, 26  July, 26 October , and 30 November  2017. The 
minutes of these meetings, which remain in the record of the General Council's work, are 
contained in documents WT/GC/M/166, WT/GC/M/1 67, WT/GC/M/168 , WT/GC/M/ 169 and 
WT/GC/M/1702. 
 
The following subjects are included in the report:  
 
1   REPORTS BY THE CHAIR MAN OF THE TRADE NEG OTIATIONS COMMITTEE 
AND REPORTS BY THE D IRECTOR -GENERA L ................................ ................................ ..... 3 
2   PROTOCOL AMENDING TH E MARRAKESH AGREEMEN T ESTABLISHING THE 
WORLD TRADE ORGANIZA TION – AGREEMENT ON TRADE F ACILITATION  .......................  5 
3   AMENDMENT OF THE TRA DE POLICY REVIEW MEC HANISM  ................................ .........  5 
4   IMPLEMENTATION OF TH E BALI AND NAIROBI O UTCOMES – STATEMENTS BY 
THE CHAIRMAN  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................  6 
5   WORK PROGRAMME ON EL ECTRONIC COMMERCE  ................................ .......................  6 
5.1   Review of Progress  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...... 6 
5.2   Communications from Japan, the Russian Fede ration, Australia, Canada, Colombia, 
Qatar and Singapore  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...........  6 
6   WORK PROGRAMME ON SM ALL ECONOMIES – REPORTS  ................................ .............  7 
7   AID FOR TRADE – REPORT  ................................ ................................ ..........................  7 
8   THE DEVELOPMENT ASSI STANCE ASPECTS OF CO TTON - PERIODIC REPORT 
BY THE DIRECTOR -GENERAL  ................................ ................................ ............................  8 
9   TRIPS COUNCIL MATTER S ................................ ................................ ...........................  8 
9.1   Annual Review of the Special Compulsory Licensing System – Paragraph 7 of the 
Annex to the Amended TRIPS Agreement and Paragraph 8 of the Decision on the 
Implementation of Paragraph 6  of the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and 
Public Health – Report of the Council for TRIPS; and,  ................................ ..............................  8 
9.2   Proposal for a Decision on an Extension of the Period for the Acceptance by 
Members of the Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement  ................................ ........................  8 
10   ACCESSION MATTERS  ................................ ................................ ................................  9 
10.1   Chairmanship of Accession Working Parties   ................................ ................................ .. 9 
10.2   2017 Annual Report by the Director -General  ................................ ................................ . 9 
                                                
1 The annual report  of the General Council for 2016 was circulated in WT/GC/182 . 
2 To be issued.  WT/GC/191  
 
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  11   REVIEW OF THE EXEMPT ION PROVIDED UNDER P ARAGRAPH 3 OF THE GA TT 
1994  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................  9 
12   WAIVERS ................................ ................................ ................................ .................  10 
12.1   Introduction of Harmonized System 2002, 2007, 2012 and 2017 Changes into 
WTO Schedules of Tariff Concess ions – Draft Decision  ................................ ............................ 10 
12.2   Review of Waivers Pursuant to Article IX:4 of the WTO Agreement  ................................ .10 
13   DERESTRICTION OF ADD ITIO NAL NEGOTIATING MATE RIALS – DRAFT 
DECISION  ................................ ................................ ................................ ......................  11 
14   ELEVENTH SESSION OF THE MINISTERIAL CONF ERENCE  ................................ ........  11 
14.1   Statement by the Cha irman  ................................ ................................ ....................... 11 
14.2   Election of officers  ................................ ................................ ................................ ....12 
14.3   Attendance of observers from governments and international intergovernmental 
organizations  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..................... 12 
14.4   Attendance of non -governmental organizations  ................................ ............................ 12 
14.5   Launch of the logo of the Eleventh Session of the Min isterial Conference  ......................... 12 
14.6   Trust fund in support of LDC Participation in MC11  ................................ ........................ 13 
14.7   Request for Observer Status by Palest ine ................................ ................................ .....13 
14.8   Request for Observer Status by the Republic of South Sudan  ................................ ......... 13 
15   MSMES – STATEMENT BY THE PHI LIPPINES  ................................ ............................  13 
16   INFORMAL DIALOGUE ON  MICRO, SMALL AND MED IUM ENTERPRISES 
(MSMES) – STATEMENT BY ARGENTI NA, BRAZIL, BRUNEI D ARUSSALAM, CHILE, 
COLOMBIA, MALAYSIA, PARAGUAY, THE PHILIP PINES, SWITZERLAND, 
URUGUAY A ND VIET NAM  ................................ ................................ ...............................  13 
17   WORKSHOP ON MSMES – STATEMENT BY CHILE  ................................ .....................  13 
18   MIKTA WORKSHOP ON TR ADE AND INVESTMENT – STATEMENT BY 
AUSTRAL IA ................................ ................................ ................................ ....................  13 
19   COMMUNICATIONS ON MI KTA WORKSHOP AND INF ORMAL DIALOGUE ON 
INVESTMENT FACILITAT ION – COMMUNICATION FROM M EXICO, INDONESIA, 
KOREA, TURKEY AND AU STRALIA – JOINT COMMUNICATION FROM THE 
FRIENDS OF INVESTMEN T FACILITATION FOR D EVELOPMENT – 
COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE RUSSIAN FEDERATI ON, CHINA, ARGENTINA  AND 
BRAZIL  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...........................  14 
20   REPORT ON THE 'HIGH -LEVEL POLICY AND PRI VATE SECTOR TRADE A ND 
INVESTMENT FACILITAT ION PARTNERSHIP FORU M FOR DEVELOPMENT', HELD 
IN ABUJA, NIGERIA, F ROM 2 -3 NOVEMBER 2017 – STATEMENT BY NIGERIA .................  14 
21   TRADE AND WOMEN'S EC ONOMIC EMPOWERMENT – STATEMENT BY 
ICELAND  ................................ ................................ ................................ ........................  14 
22   MIKTA AND SYRIA – STATEMENTS BY TURKEY  ................................ ........................  14 
23   TRADE RESTRICTIVE ME ASURES BY CERTAIN ME MBERS – STATEMENT BY 
QATAR  ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................  15 
24   TRADE RESTRICTIVE ME ASURES ON THE BORDER S IMPOSED BY 
KAZAKHSTAN – STATEMENT BY THE KYR GYZ REPUBLIC  ................................ ................  15 
25   COMMITTE E ON BUDGET, FINANCE  AND ADMINISTRATION  ................................ .... 15 
25.1   Reports and Recommendations ................................ ................................ ................... 15 
26   COMMITTEE ON BALANCE  OF PAYMENTS RESTRICT IONS ................................ ........  15 
26.1   Consultations with Ecuador  ................................ ................................ ........................ 15 
27   WTO PENSION PLAN  ................................ ................................ ...............................  15 WT/GC/191  
 
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  27.1   Reports  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................... 15 
27.2   Alignment of the WTO Pension Plan Regulations with the WTO's Policies Regarding 
the Definition of Spouse to Include Domestic Partnership  ................................ ........................ 16 
27.3   Election of Chairperson, Members, and Alternates to the Management Board  ................... 16 
28   ADMINISTRATIVE MEASU RES FOR MEMBERS IN A RREARS  ................................ ..... 16 
29   WTO YOUNG PROFESSION ALS PROGRAMME – STATEMENT BY THE 
DIRECTOR -GENERAL  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...... 16 
30   INTERNATIONAL TRADE CENTRE UNCTAD/WTO  ................................ .....................  16 
31   REVIEW OF WTO ACTIVI TIES  ................................ ................................ ..................  17 
32   APPOINTMENT OF DIREC TOR-GENERAL  ................................ ................................ .. 17 
33   APPOINTMENT OF OFFICER S TO WTO BODIES  ................................ ........................  18 
34   ELECTION OF CHAIRPER SON ................................ ................................ ...................  20 
 
1  REPORTS BY THE CHAIR MAN OF THE TRADE NEG OTIATIONS COMMITTEE AND 
REPORTS BY THE DIREC TOR-GENERAL  (WT/GC/ M/166; WT/GC/M/167; WT/GC/M/168 ; 
WT/GC/M/169  AND WT/GC/M/170 ) 
1.1.  Ministers at Doha established a Trade Negotiations Committee under the authority of the 
General Council to supervise the overall conduct of the negotiations (WT/MIN(01)/DEC/1). In  
accordance with the Principles and Practices endorsed by the Trade Negotiations Committee at its 
first meeting in 2002 (TN/C/M/1), the TNC reports to each regular meeting of the General Council.  
1.2.  At the General Council meetings in February , May, July, October, and November , the 
Director -General reported on each occasion on relevant activities since his previous report to the 
General Council including on Formal and Informal TNC Meetings and Informal Heads of Delegation 
Meetings he convened on the matter.3  
1.3.  At the February  meeting, the General Council took note of the Director -General's report and 
of the statements4 as delivered at the Informal M eeting  at the level of Heads of Delegation  on 
23 February . 
1.4.  At the May meeting, the representatives of Cameroon and U ganda spoke . The General 
Council took note of the Director -General's and the Negotiating Group Chairs' Reports, of the 
statements5 as delivered at the Informal Meeting at the level of Heads of Delegation  on 8 May and 
of the other statements . 
                                                
3 The Director -General's reports at the General Council meeting and at the releva nt Informal TNC and 
Informal HODs Meetings were subsequently circulated as JOB/GC/118 (February Informal Meeting), 
JOB/TNC/61 (July Informal TNC Meeting), JOB/GC/135 (July Informal HODs Meeting) and JOB/GC/145 
(October Informal TNC and Informal HODs Meetin gs). The Director -General's report at the May Informal 
Meeting can be found in the minutes of the May GC meeting in WT/GC/M/167. The Director -General's report at 
the November Formal TNC and Informal HODs Meetings was subsequently circulated as JOB/TNC/66 a nd can 
also be found in the minutes of the November Formal TNC Meeting in TN/C/M/38 (to be issued).   
4 The statements delivered at the 23 February Informal Meeting at the level of Heads of Delegation by 
the following delegations were incorporated in the mi nutes of the February  meeting  in WT/GC/M/166: 
Switzerland; Cambodia; Morocco (African Group); Ecuador; Paraguay; Uganda; Mexico; Argentina; Japan; 
Chile; Turkey; China; Brazil; Zimbabwe; Costa Rica; South Africa; Guyana (ACP); Nicaragua; Plurinational 
State of Bolivia; Gabon; Fiji (Pacific Group); Chinese Taipei (Article XII Members); Israel; Nepal; Kingdom of 
Saudi Arabia (Arab Group); United States; Republic of Korea; Cuba; Indonesia (G -33); Pakistan; Bolivarian 
Republic of Venezuela; Iceland; Colombia; M ontenegro; Mali (C -4); Russian Federation; Senegal; European 
Union; Ghana; Benin; India; Jamaica; Cameroon; Republic of Moldova; Nigeria; Sri Lanka; Cote d'Ivoire; 
Mozambique; Dominican Republic and Zambia.  
5 The statements delivered at the 8  May Informal Meeting at the level of Heads of Delegatio n by the 
following delegations we re inc orporated in the minutes of the May meeting in WT/GC/M/167 : Cambodia 
(LDCs); Rwanda (African Group); Guyana (ACP); Nepal; Philippines (ASEAN); India; Costa Rica (FEDs  – 
Friend s of E -Commerce for Development); Japan; Ecuador; China; New Zealand; Cuba; European Union; 
Plurinational State of Bolivia; Montenegro; Chile; Uganda; Brazil; Republic of Korea; Mexico; Russian 
Federation; Hong Kong, China; Pakistan; Switzerland; Indonesia  (G-33); Mali (C -4); Bangladesh; Bolivarian WT/GC/191  
 
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  1.5.  At the July meeting, under the item on the "Report by the Chairman of the Trade 
Negotiations Co mmittee ", the General Council took note of the Director -General's Report (including 
the reports of the Negotiating Group Chairs) and of the statements6 (including the MC11 Cha ir's 
statement7) as delivered at the Informal TNC meeting on 25 July . Under the item on "R eport by 
the Director -General on the Informal Heads of Delegation M eeting ", the representatives of 
Cameroon, Uganda, Norway, New Zealand, Switzerland, Mexico, Kenya, the Dominican Republic, 
Pakistan, Jamaica, Nigeria, the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Montenegro, the Bolivarian Republic 
of Venezuela and Rwanda spoke. The General Council took note of the Director -General's Report, 
of the statements8 as delivered at th e Informal HODs  meeting on 25 July  and of the other 
statements.  
1.6.  At the October  meeting, the  representatives of  Dominica (OECS) and Cameroon  spoke. The 
General Council took note of the Director -General's report  (including the reports of the Negotiating 
Group Chairs ), of the statements9 as delivered at the Informal TNC and Informal HODs Meeting s 
on 24 October  and of the other statements . 
1.7.  At the November  meeting,  the Chairman said that he would present in his oral statement to 
Ministers at the Opening Session of MC11 the Director -General's report at the 28 November TNC 
meeting  (JOB/TNC/66)  and the reports of the Chairs of the Negotiating Bodies  (Special Session of 
the Committee on Agriculture – TN/AG/37; Special Session of the Committee on Trade and 
Development  – TN/CTD/32; Special Session of the Dispute Settlement Body – TN/DS/30; Special 
Session of the Council for TRIPS – TN/IP/25; Negotiating Group on Market Access – TN/MA/31; 
Special Session of the Council for Trade in Services – TN/S/41; and, Special Sessio n of the 
Committee on Trade and Environment – TN/TE/24)  through the General Council's Annual Report, 
together with the reports of the regular bodies – in accordance with the reporting obligations as 
adopted by the General Council and contained in document WT/L/105. He noted that he would be 
informing the Ministerial Conference of the state -of-play of the discussions in the various areas of 
work and recalled that the Director -General and some Negotiating Group Chairs had noted that 
work was continuing in a n umber of areas, including after the General Council meeting, in an effort 
to make as much progress as possible on the matters that Ministers might  wish to take up in 
Buenos Aires. T he representatives of Ghana, Grenada (OECS), the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the 
Plurinational State of Bolivia, Rwanda, Philippines (ASEAN) and Qatar  spoke.  The General Council 
took note of  the Director -General's report including the reports of the Negotiating Group Chairs10, 
                                                                                                                                                  
Republic of Venezuela; Zimbabwe; Solomon Islands; Tunisia; Paraguay; Fiji; South Africa; Morocco; United 
States; Cameroon; Colombia; Uruguay; Canada; Norway; Nigeria; Kingdom of  Saudi Arabia (Arab Group) and  
Kenya.  
6 The statements delivered at the 25 July Informal TNC Meeting by the following delegations were 
incorporated in the minutes of the July  meeting in WT/GC/M/168: Rwanda (African Group); Israel; Philippines; 
Chinese Taipei (Article XII Members); European  Union; Chile; Barbados (CARICOM); Cambodia (LDCs); 
Nigeria; Republic of Korea; Dominica (OECS); Benin (C -4); Pakistan; Paraguay; Morocco; Peru; Ecuador; 
Singapore; Mexico; Indonesia (G -33); Zimbabwe; India; Zambia; Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela; Russia n 
Federation; Nepal; Plurinational State of Bolivia; Ukraine; Fiji (Pacific Group); Senegal; Norway; South Africa; 
Cameroon; Ghana; Republic of Moldova; Uganda; Jamaica; Hong Kong, China; Uruguay; Tanzania; China; 
Brazil; Switzerland; Montenegro; Thailand;  Mozambique; United States; Kenya and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.  
7 The statement of the MC11 Chairperson at the July Informal TNC Meeting was subsequently circulated 
as JOB/TNC/62.  
8 The statements delivered at the 25 July Informal HODs Meeting by the follow ing delegations were 
incorporated in the minutes of the July  meeting in WT/GC/M/168: Costa Rica ( FEDs); Argentina; Switzerland; 
Dominican Republic (IGDC); Brazil (Friends of MSMEs); Australia; United States; Canada; Philippines (ASEAN); 
Colombia; Qatar; Ne w Zealand; Japan; Norway; Pakistan; Chinese Taipei; Russian  Federation and European 
Union.  
9 The statements delivered at the 24 October Informal TNC and Informal HODs Meetings by the 
following delegations were incorporated in the minutes of the October  meeting in WT/GC/M/169: Chile; 
Zambia; Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela; Japan; Argentina; Zimbabwe; United States; Paraguay; 
Switzerland; Peru; Brazil; Iceland; India; Rwanda (African Group); South Africa; Russian Federation; Turkey; 
European Union; Australi a; Barbados (CARICOM); Republic of Korea; Mali (C -4); Pakistan; Uganda; 
Plurinational State of Bolivia; Swaziland; Guyana (ACP); Uruguay; Hong Kong, China; Israel; Cuba; Chinese 
Taipei; Indonesia (G -33); Cambodia (LDCs); Ecuador; China; Costa Rica; Tanzani a; Canada; Colombia; 
Cameroon; Thailand; Mexico and Norway.  
10 Apart from the written reports of the Negotiating Group Chairs above -mentioned, they also provided  
oral reports  at the 28 November Formal TNC Meeting which were incorporated by reference in the minutes of 
the November meeting in WT/GC/M/170 and can be found in the minutes of the 28 November Formal TNC 
Meeting in TN/C/M/38 (to be issued).    WT/GC/191  
 
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  of the statements11 as delivered at the Formal TNC and Inf ormal HODs Meetings on 28 November , 
of the Chairman's statement  and of the other statements.  
2  PROTOCOL AMENDING TH E MARRAKESH AGREEMEN T ESTABLISHING THE W ORLD 
TRADE ORGANIZATION – AGREEMENT ON TRADE F ACILITATION (WT/GC/M /166)  
2.1.  At the Ninth Ministerial Confer ence in Bali, Ministers concluded the negotiation of the 
Agreement on Trade Facilitation and established a Preparatory Committee on Trade Facilitation 
under the General Council to draw up a Protocol of Amendment to insert the Agreement into 
Annex 1A of the  WTO Agreement. On 27 November 2014, the General Council adopted the 
Protocol and opened it for acceptance by Members. In line with this decision, the Protocol would 
enter into force upon acceptance of two -thirds of the Members.  
2.2.  At the February  meeting, t he Chairman noted that on 22 February, Rwanda, Oman, Chad and 
Jordan had deposited their instruments of acceptance of the Protocol with the Director -General.  
Therefore, with the deposit of the 4 new instruments, he understood, and took note of the fact 
that the entry into force conditions set out in Article X:3 of the WTO Agreement had been fulfilled, 
and that the Trade Facilitation Agreement Protocol had entered into force on 22 February 2017. 
The Director -General then made a statement on this matter, sig ned the official Depositary 
Notification of the entry into force of the Protocol amending the Marrakesh Agreement establishing 
the WTO concerning the Agreement on Trade Facilitation and formally presented to the Chairman 
the original signed text of the dep ositary notification on the entry into force of the TFA Protocol.  
2.3.  The General Council formally took note of the entry into force of the Agreement on Trade 
Facilitation . 
2.4.  The representatives of the Philippines (ASEAN); Japan; the European Union; the United 
States; Mexico; Cambodia (LDCs); Montenegro; Nigeria; Australia; Hong Kong, China; Brazil; 
Switzerland; the Republic of Korea; Norway; Uganda; China; Sri Lanka; the Republic of Moldova; 
Canada and Rwanda spoke. The General Council took note of the statement s. 
3  AMENDMENT OF THE TRA DE POLICY REVIEW MEC HANISM (WT/GC/M/168)  
3.1.  At the July meeting, the TPRB Chair person  recalled that one of the main results of the Sixth 
Appraisal of the Trade Policy Review Mechanism, which had been adopted in December 2016, was 
the co nsensus reached about the change in the TPR review cycles. Members had decided to launch 
the necessary procedures, pursuant to paragraph 8 of Article X of the Marrakesh Agreement in 
order to change the current review cycles from 2, 4 or 6 years to 3, 5 or 7 years, effective as of 
1 January 2019.  This resulted in a draft decision contained in WT/TPR/399. The Chairman and the 
representative of Hong Kong, China (as former TPRB Chair person ) spoke.  
3.2.  The General Council adopted12 the draft decision on the Amendmen t of the Trade Policy 
Review Mechanism contained in document WT/TPR/399  and took note of the statement s. 
                                                
11 The statements delivered at the 28 November Formal TNC and Informal HODs Meetings by the 
following delegat ions were incorporated by reference in the minutes of the November meeting in WT/GC/M/170 
and can be found in the minutes of the 28 November Formal TNC meeting in TN/C/M/38 (to be issued): 
Nigeria; Rwanda (African Group); Guyana (ACP); Peru; Japan; Egypt ( also on behalf of the NFIDCs); 
Plurinational State of Bolivia; South Africa; United States; Zimbabwe; Indonesia (also on behalf of the G -33); 
China; Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela; Switzerland; Uganda; Russian Federation; Cuba; Philippines (also on 
behal f of ASEAN); Republic of Korea; Benin (C -4); Bangladesh; Chinese Taipei; Solomon Islands (Pacific 
Group); Cambodia (LDCs); Norway; Uruguay; Brazil; Colombia; Chile (also on behalf of the Friends of MSMEs); 
Panama (also on behalf of the SVEs); Australia; Is rael; Senegal; Pakistan; Sri Lanka; India; European Union; 
Paraguay; Mexico; Hong Kong, China; Costa Rica; Singapore; Kenya; Cameroon; Ecuador; Oman and 
Argentina (also on behalf of the Friends of Investment Facilitation for Development).  
12 The decision on  the Amendment of the Trade Policy Review Mechanism was subsequently circulated in 
WT/L/1014.  WT/GC/191  
 
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  4  IMPLEMENTATION OF TH E BALI AND NAIROBI O UTCOMES – STATEMENTS BY THE 
CHAIRMAN  (WT/GC/M/166; WT/GC/M /167; WT/GC/M/168 ; WT/GC/M/ 169 AND 
WT/GC/M/170 ) 
4.1.  Since July 2014 , the item on implementation of the Bali outcomes  has been included on the 
General Council's agenda at the request of the Chairman , to provide an update on  the work taking 
place in th e regular bodies which were directly working on the various Bal i Decisions.  After the 
Tenth Ministerial Conference, reports on the implementation of the Nairobi outcomes were also 
provided  under this item.  
4.2.  At the General Council meetings in February , May, July, October , and November , the 
Chairman reported on the work taking place in WTO regular bodies to fulfil the Bali  and Nairobi  
Ministerial mandates.13 
4.3.  At the February  meeting, the representative of Rwanda and Nigeria spoke. The General 
Council took note of the Chairman's report and of the statement s. 
4.4.  At the May meeti ng, the  Director -General and the representative of China  spoke. The General 
Council took note of the Chairman's report , of the Director -General's statement  and of the other 
statement . 
4.5.  At the July meeting, the General Council took note of the Chairman's rep ort. 
4.6.  At the October  meeting, the  representative s of the Philippines and Cambodia (LDCs)  spoke. 
The General Council took note of the Chairman's report and of the statements.  
4.7.  At the November  meeting, the General Council took note of the Chairman's report.  
5  WORK PROGRAMME ON ELEC TRONIC COMMERCE  
5.1  Review of Progress (WT/GC/M/168)  
5.1.  In line with the Declaration on Global Electronic Commerce adopted by Ministers at the 
second session of the Ministerial Conference (WT/MIN(98)/DEC/2), in September 1998, the 
General Coun cil adopted a Work Programme on Electronic Commerce (WT/L/274). At MC10, 
Ministers adopted a Decision on the Work Programme on Electron ic Commerce  (WT/MIN(15)/42 – 
WT/L/977)  which  instructed the General Council to hold periodic reviews in its sessions of J uly and 
December 2016 and July 20 17 based on the reports that could  be submitted by the WTO bodies 
entrusted with the implementation of the Work Programme.  
5.2.  At the July meeting, t he Chairman drew attention to the reports submitted by the Chairs of 
the Counc il for Trade in Services (S/C/52 ), of the Goods Council (G/C/59 ) and of the TRIPS Council 
(IP/C/77 ) to the General Council. The Chairs of the CTS, CTG, TRIPS Council and CTD then 
reported on developments under the work programme on e -commerce since the las t periodic 
review in December.  The General Council took note of the statements of the Chairs of the CTS, 
CTG, TRIPS Council and CTD, and of the reports in S/C/52, G/C/59 and IP/C/77.  
5.2  Communications from Japan, the Russian Federation, Australia, Canada, Col ombia, 
Qatar and Singapore (WT/GC/M/168)  
5.3.  At the July meeting, the Chairman drew attention to the Communications from Japan 
(JOB/GC/130), the Russian Federation (JOB/GC/131), and Australia, Canada, Colombia, Qatar and 
Singapore (JOB/GC/132). The respective proponents presented their communications. The 
representatives of Japan; Russian Federation; Singapore (also on behalf of Australia; Brunei 
Darussalam; Canada; Colombia; Costa Rica; Hong Kong, China; the Republic of Korea; Lao PDR; 
Malaysia; the Republic o f Moldova; Myanmar; New Zealand;  Nigeria and Qatar); Qatar; Costa Rica 
(FEDs); the Republic of Moldova; Canada; Colombia; Chinese Taipei; New Zealand; Chile; Mexico; 
the United States; Australia; Hong Kong, China; the Republic of Korea; the Philippines (AS EAN); 
                                                
13 The Chairman's statements were subsequently circulated in JOB/GC/119, JOB/GC/125, JOB/GC/134, 
JOB/GC/146 and JOB/GC/ 164 respectively.  WT/GC/191  
 
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  the European Union; China; Pakistan; Norway; Switzerland; the Plurinational State of Bolivia; 
Rwanda (African Group); Barbados; Uganda; Brazil; Nigeria; Turkey; South Africa; India; the 
Bolivarian State of Venezuela; Cameroon and Chad spoke. The Gene ral Council took note of the 
statements.  
6  WORK PROGRAMME ON SM ALL ECONOMIES – REPORTS  (WT/GC/M/166; 
WT/GC/M/167; WT/GC/M /168 ; WT/GC/M/ 169 AND WT/GC/M/170 ) 
6.1.  In 2002, the General Council took note of a framework and procedures for the conduct of the 
Work Progr amme on Small Economies, which had been agreed by Ministers at Doha 
(WT/MIN(01)/DEC/1, paragraph 35), under which this Work Programme would be a standing item 
on the General Council's agenda and which also provided that the Committee on Trade and 
Developme nt (CTD) would report regularly to the General Council on the progress of work in its 
Dedicated Sessions on this subject.  In December 2015, Ministers at MC10  adopted the Decision on 
the Work Progra mme on Small Economies (WT/MIN(15)/40 – WT/L/975)  which rea ffirmed  their 
commitment to the Work Programme and instructed the CTD to continue its work in Dedicated 
Sessions under the overall responsibility of the General Council.  
6.2.  At the February  meeting, t he CTD Chairperson reported that the sectoral discussions an d 
reviews of Global Value Chains had been completed and that the SVEs were currently working on 
an outcome document based on the discussions which had taken place during the meetings held in 
2015 and 2016. On the Nairobi mandate, the Secretariat was curren tly carrying out its research 
and expected to have a report ready by the end of Mar ch. The representative of Guatemala (SVEs) 
spoke. The General Council took note of the report and of the statement.  
6.3.  At the May meeting, t he CTD Chairperson reported that th e sectoral discussions and reviews 
of Global Value Chains had been completed and that the SVEs had circulated an outcome 
document based on those discussions in WT/COMTD/SE/W/35. On the Nairobi mandate, the 
Secretariat presented its paper in WT/COMTD/SE/W/3 4 at the CTD Dedicated Session where the 
SVEs and the STDF also talked about their efforts to reduce trade costs. The representative of 
Guatemala (SVEs) spoke . The General Council took note of the report and of the statement.  
6.4.  At the July meeting, t he CTD C hairperson  reported that the sectoral discussions and reviews 
of Global Value Chains had been completed and that the SVEs had circulated an outcome 
document in WT/COMTD/SE/W/35 which was discussed at the CTD Dedicated Session. The 
Secretariat also presente d at that meeting its paper in WT/COMTD/SE/W/34. The representative 
Guatemala (SVEs) spoke. The General Council took note of the report and of the statement.  
6.5.  At the October  meeting, t he CTD Chair person  reported that Members agreed to continue 
discussions o n the Challenges and Opportunities experienced by small economies to reduce trade 
costs, particularly in trade facilitation – to identify challenges and to provide possible solutions. 
The SVEs were also working on a draft Ministerial Decision on the Work P rogram me on Small 
Economies. The representatives of Guatemala (SVEs) and Fiji spoke.  The General Council took 
note of the report and of the statements.  
6.6.  At the November  meeting,  Deputy Director -General Agah, on behalf of th e CTD Chairperson, 
reported that t he CTD in Dedicated Session had agreed to forward the draft decision contained in 
document WT/COMTD/SE/W/36/Rev.1 to the General Council for transmission to the Ministerial 
Conference . The draft decision was also reflected in the report of the CTD in Dedic ated Session to 
the General Council in WT/COMTD/SE/10. The representative s of Guatemala (SVEs)  and Tonga 
(also on behalf of the Pacific Group)  spoke . The General Council took note of the report  in 
WT/COMTD/SE/10 and of the statements  and agreed to forward the draft decision in 
WT/COMTD/SE/W/36/Rev.1  to MC11  which was subsequently circu lated in document 
WT/MIN(17)/W/2 . 
7  AID FOR TRADE – REPORT  (WT/GC/M/16 8) 
7.1.  At the July meeting, the Director -General reported  that the Sixth Global Review on Aid for 
Trade was a s uccess. The issues covered in the review, discussed through the lens of capacity -
building, included trade facilitation, connectivity infrastructure, e -commerce, gender, investment, 
LDCs, MSMEs, t rade finance  and the SDGs. The representatives of Sierra Leon e; Japan; Cambodia WT/GC/191  
 
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  (LDCs); European Union; Australia; Brazil and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia spoke. The General 
Council took note of the Director -General's  report and of the statements14. 
8  THE DEVELOPMENT ASSI STANCE ASPECTS OF CO TTON - PERIODIC REPORT BY T HE 
DIRECTOR -GENERAL  (WT/GC/M/170)  
8.1.  In Paragraph 1.b of the 1 August 2004 Decision in WT/L/579, the General Council, inter alia , 
took note of the bilateral, multilateral, and regional efforts to make progress on the development 
assistance aspects of the Cotton  Initiative, and instructed the Secretariat to continue to work with 
the development community and to provide the Council with periodic reports on relevant 
developments. The Council also instructed the Director -General to consult with relevant 
internationa l organizations, including the Bretton Woods Institutions, the Food and Agriculture 
Organization and the International Trade Centre, to direct effectively existing programmes and any 
additional resources towards development of the economies where cotton ha d vital importance.  
The Nairobi Decision on Cotton (WT/MIN(15)/46 – WT/L/981) reaffirmed this mandate, and invited 
the Director -General to continue to provide periodic reports on this matter.  
8.2.  At the November  meeting,  the Director -General  introduced the Eig hth Periodic Report on the 
Developmental Assistance aspects of Cotton (WT/GC/187 – WT/CFMC/DG/8 – WT/MIN(17)/5). The 
representatives of Brazil, the European Union, Pakistan and India  spoke. The General Council took 
note of the statement s and of the Directo r-General's report, which would be before Ministers at the 
Eleventh Session of the  Ministerial Conference.  
9  TRIPS COUNCIL MATTER S 
9.1  Annual Review  of the Special Compulsory Licensing System – Paragraph 7 of the 
Annex to the Amended TRIPS Agreement and Paragrap h 8 of the Decision on the 
Implementation of Paragraph 6 of the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and 
Public Health – Report of the Council for TRIPS  (WT/GC/M/170); and,  
9.2  Proposal for a Decision on an Extension of the Period for the Acceptance by 
Memb ers of the Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement  (WT/GC/M/170)  
9.1.  In August 2003, the General Council adopted a Decision on the Implementation of 
Paragraph  6 of the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health.  Parag raph 8 of 
that Decision provi ded that the TRIPS Council should  review annually the functioning of the system 
set out in the Decision with a view to ensuring it s effective operation, and should  annually report 
on its operation to the General Council.  In addition, in keeping with the A ugust 2003 Decision, the 
General Council adopted, in December 2005, a Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement, which 
was submitted to Members for acceptance. In accordance with Article X:3 of the WTO Agreement, 
the Protocol entered into force on 23 January 2 017, upon acceptance by two -thirds of the WTO 
Members who had accepted it on or before that date. The same legal provision also stated that for 
each other Member, the Protocol would take effect upon acceptance by it. In this regard, t he 
TRIPS Council at it s meeting in October 2017 agreed to submit to the General Council a pro posal 
for a decision on a sixth  extension  of the period for the acceptance by Members of this Protocol.  
9.2.  At the November  meeting, the Chairperson  of the TRIPS Council introduced th e repo rt of the 
Council (IP/C/79 ) on its annual review of the Decision on the Implementation of Paragraph 6 of the 
Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health, as well as a pr oposal for a Decision 
on a Sixth  Extension of the Period for the Acceptan ce by Members of the Protocol Amend ing the 
TRIPS Agreement (IP/C/78 ).  
9.3.  The General Council took note of the report of the T RIPS Council in document IP/C/79 , and 
adopted the draft decision extending the time period for acceptance by Members of the Protocol 
amending the TRI PS Agreement to 31 December 201915. 
                                                
14 At their request, the  statement of Japan on the Closing Session of the Aid for Trade Global Review on 
13 July and those of Pakistan and the United States under that  item were incorpo rated in the minutes of the 
July meeting in WT/GC/M/168 . 
15 The decision was subsequently circulate d in WT/L/ 1024. WT/GC/191  
 
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  10  ACCESSION MATTERS  
10.1  Chairmanship of Accession Working Parties (WT/GC/M/169  and WT/GC/M/170 )  
10.1.   At the October  meeting, the Chairperson  made an announceme nt recalling the appointment 
of Ambassador Carsten  Staur  (Denmark) as the Chairman of the Working Party on the Accession of 
Ethiopia and Ambassador  Pedro Nuno Bártolo ( Portugal) as the Chairperson  of the Working Party 
on the Accession of Timor -Leste , and the ongoing process to fulfil the vacancies in the Workin g 
Parties on the accession of Algeria and Bosnia Herzegovina. The General Council took note of the 
Chairman's statement.  
10.2.   At the November  meeting, the Chairman made a statement  on the appointment of 
Ambassador Atanas Atanassov Paparizov  (Bulgaria) as the Chairperson  of the Working Party  on 
the A ccession of Bosnia Herzegovina. The General Council took note of the Chairman's statement.  
10.2  2017 Annual Report by the Director -General (WT/GC/M/170)  
10.3.   At the November  meeting, Deputy Director -General  Wolff, on behalf of  the Direc tor-General, 
introduced the 2017  Annual Report on WTO Accessions ( WT/A CC/31 – WT/GC/189 – 
WT/MIN(17)/6 ). The representatives of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Russian Federation, 
Yemen, Egypt, Oman, Cambodia (LDCs) and  the Republic of Moldova  spoke. The General Council 
took note of the statements and of the Director -General's report, which would be before Ministers 
at the Eleve nth Session of the Ministerial Conference.  
11  REVIEW OF THE EXEMPT ION PROVIDED UNDER P ARAGRAPH 3 OF THE GA TT 1994 
(WT/GC/M/ 166 AND WT/GC/M/170 ) 
11.1.   Paragraph 3(a) of GATT 1994 provides an exemption from Part II of GATT 1994 for 
measures under specific mandatory legislation – enacted by a Member before it became a 
Contracting Party to GATT 1947 – which prohibited the use, sale or l ease of foreign -built or 
foreign -reconstructed vessels in commercial applications between points in national waters or 
waters of an exclusive economic zone. On 20 December 1994, the United States invoked the 
provisions of Paragraph 3(a) with respect to spe cific legislation that met the requirements of that 
paragraph. Paragraph 3(b) of GATT 1994 calls for a review of this exemption five years after the 
date of entry into force of the WTO Agreement – and thereafter every two years for as long as the 
exemption  was in force – in order to examine whether the conditions which had created the need 
for the exemption still prevailed. The General Council last considered this matter at its meeting in  
November 2015  at which it had taken note that under the two -year cycl e in Paragraph 3(b) of 
GATT 1994, the n ext review would be held in 2017 .  
11.2.   At the February  meeting,  in relation to the conduct of the review in 2017 , the Chairman 
proposed that the Council proceed in a manner similar to that in 2015 , which had been based on  a 
procedure agreed by the General Council in 2002. The statements, questions and responses from 
all interested delegations together with the annual statistical report provided by the US under 
Paragraph 3(c) of GATT 1994, would form the basis for the curre nt year's review. This matter 
would be on the Agenda of subsequent General Counci l meetings in the course of 2017  as the 
Chair deemed appropriate, or at the request of any Member. The Council would consider this 
matter again at its last meeting for the yea r, and the subsequent revie w would normally be held in 
2019. He also noted that, as provided in paragraph 3(e) of GATT 1994, the exemption was without 
prejudice to solutions concerning specific aspects of the legislation covered by this exemption 
negotiate d in sectoral agreements or in other fora.  The Chairman then drew attention to the 
annual report circulated by the United States in document WT/L/1005  and the United States 
presented that report to Members. The representatives of the  European Union; Japan;  Norway; 
Hong Kong, China; the Republic of Korea; Canada and Panama  spoke. The General Council took 
note of the statements and agreed to revert to this item at a future meeting.  
11.3.   At the November  meeting,  the General Council again considered the exemption pr ovided 
under paragraph 3 of GATT 1994 for review. The representatives of the United States; Norway; 
Japan; Canada; Hong Kong, China; China; Panama; the Republic of Korea; Australia; the 
European Union and Brazil spoke. The General Council took note of the statements and also took WT/GC/191  
 
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  note that the subsequent review under the two -yearly cycle provided in paragraph 3(b) of GATT 
1994 would normally be held in 2019.  
12  WAIVERS  
12.1  Introduction of Harmonized System 2002, 2007, 2012 and 2017 Changes into WTO 
Schedules of Ta riff Concessions – Draft Decision (WT/GC/M/170)  
12.1.   At the November  meeting, the General Council considered four  draft waiver decisions, 
contained in G/C/W/ 741, G/C/W/742, G/C/W/743 and G/C/W/744, G/C/W/744/Corr.1 and 
G/C/W/744/Corr.2  which concerned the Intro duction of H armonized System 2002, 2007, 2012 and 
2017 Changes into WTO Schedules of Tar iff Concessions, respectively. The Chairman, on behalf of 
the Chairperson of the  Council for Trade in Goods , reported on the consideration of  this matter by 
that Counci l. The representatives of Honduras, the Dominican Republic and the United States 
spoke. The Chairman said that he understoo d that the Domi nican Republic and Honduras would  be 
submitting a request to be covered by the HS 2017 waiver, in line with its provis ions. The General 
Council took note of the report and the statements and, in accordance with the Decision -Making 
Procedures under Articles IX and XII of the W TO Agreement agreed in November  1995 (WT/L/93), 
adopted the four draft Decisions which were subseq uently circulated in WT/L/ 1026, WT/L/ 1027, 
WT/L/ 1028 and WT/L/ 1029.  
12.2  Review of Waivers Pursuant to Article IX:4 of the WTO Agreement  
(WT/GC/M/166; WT/GC/M/168 and WT/GC/M/170)  
12.2.   Under Article IX:4 of the WTO Agreement, "[a]ny waiver granted for a period of m ore than 
one year shall be reviewed by the Ministerial Conference not later than one year after it is granted, 
and thereafter annually until the waiver terminates ." 
12.3.   At the February  meeting, the General Council considered the following waiver for review 
under Article IX:4:  
i. United States – African Growth and Opportunity Act  (WT/L/1006)  
 
12.4.   In doing so, the General Council considered the report  on the implemen tation of the waiver 
in document WT/L/1006 . The representative of Morocco (African Group) spoke. The Gene ral 
Council took note  of the report contained in document W T/L/1006 and of the statement.  
12.5.   At the July meeting, the General Council considered the following waivers for review under 
Article IX:4:  
i. Least -Developed Country Members – Obligations under Article 7 0.8 and Article 70.9 of 
the TRIPS Agreement with respect to Pharmaceutical Products, granted on 
30 November 2015 until 1 January 2033 (WT/L/971)  
 
ii. Preferential Treatment for Least -Developed Countries, granted on 27 May 2009 until 
30 June 2019 (WT/L/759)  
 
iii. Canada – CARIBCAN, granted on 28 July 2015 until 31 December 2023 (WT/L/958, 
WT/L/1013)  
 
iv. United States – Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act, granted on 5 May 2015 until 
31 December 2019 (WT/L/950, WT/L/1012)  
 
12.6.   In doing so, the General Council considered re ports on implementation of the respective 
waivers in documents  WT/L/1012 and WT/L/1013. The representatives of Barbados (CARICOM) 
and Cambodia (LDCs) spoke. T he General Council took note of the reports contained in documents 
WT/L/1012 and WT/L/ 1013 and of the statements , and agreed to revert to the review of multi -
year waivers under Article IX.4 of the WTO Agreement at its last regular meeting in 2017.  
12.7.   At the November  meeting, the General Council considered the following waivers for review 
under Article IX: 4: WT/GC/191  
 
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  i. Preferential Treatment in favour of Services and Service Suppliers of Least developed 
Countries, granted on 17 December 2011 until 31 December 2030 (WT/L/847, 
WT/L/982)  
 
ii. Kimberly Process Certification Scheme for Rough Diamonds, granted on 12 December 
2012 until 31 December 2018 (WT/L/876)  
 
iii. Cuba – Article XV:6 – Extension of waiver, granted on 7 December 2016 until 31 
December 2021 (WT/L/1003, WT/L/1023)  
 
iv. European Union – Application of Autonomous Preferential Treatment to the Western 
Balkans, granted on 7 December 2016 until 31 December 2021 (WT/L/1002, 
WT/L/1019)  
 
v. United States – African Growth and Opportunity Act, granted on 30 November 2015 
until 30 September 2025 (WT/L/970, WT/L/1017)  
 
vi. United States – Former Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, gra nted on 7 December 
2016 until 31 December 2026 (WT/L/1000, WT/L/1018)  
 
vii. United States – Trade Preferences granted to Nepal, granted on 7 December 2016 
until 31 December 2025 (WT/L/1001, WT/L/1021)  
 
12.8.   In doing so, the General Council considered reports on impl ementation of the respective 
waivers in documents  WT/L/1017, WT/L/1018, WT/L/1019, WT/L/1021 and WT/L/1023 . The 
representatives of Vanuatu and Montenegro spoke. T he General Council took note of the reports 
contained in documents WT/L/1017, WT/L/1018, WT/L/ 1019, WT/L/1021  and WT/L/102 3 and of 
the statements . 
13  DERESTRICTION OF ADD ITIONAL NEGOTIATING MATERIALS – DRAFT DECISION 
(WT/GC/M/170)  
13.1.   At the November  meeting, the Chairman drew the Council's attention to the Draft Decision  
on the Derestriction of Additiona l Negotiating Materials contained in document G/MA/ W/131 . He 
said that the decision was forwarded to the General Council by the Committee on Market Access 
through the Council for Trade in Go ods. He proposed that the G eneral Council adopt the draft. The 
General Council so agreed.16 
14  ELEVENTH  SESSION OF THE  MINISTERIAL CONFEREN CE 
14.1  Statement by the Chairman  (WT/GC/M/166 ; WT/GC/M/169  and WT/GC/M/170 ) 
14.1.   At the February  meeting, the Chairman made a statement on the preparations for MC11 
including on the administrative  and organizational  matte rs that the General Council would  have to 
take a decision on in the first part of the year and on the LDC Trust Fund.  The General Council 
took note of the Chairman's statement.  
14.2.   At the October  meeting, the Chairman reported on the preparation s for MC11 including his 
consultations on E-Commerce and announced that he would soon begin consultations on the 
organization of the Ministerial Conference and a  possible outcome document. The General Council 
took note of the Chairman's statement . 
14.3.   At the November  meeting,  the Chairman made a statement on  organizational matters  
including the MC11 programme and the MC11 items on the date and venue of MC12 and the 
election of officers ; and on the MC11 item on Overview of WTO Activities . The Chairman  also 
reported  on his consultations on E -Commerce.  His report was subsequently circulated in  
WT/GC/W/739 . On the process of consultations on a possible MC11 outcome document, the 
Chairman  recalled that he had suspended further work on the draft text and not ed that the Host 
for MC11 had  expressed  an intention to continue work for a Ministerial Declaration. His statements 
at the Informal Open Ended meetings  on this matter which took place on 10 November, 
                                                
16 The decision was subsequently circulated in  WT/L/10 25. WT/GC/191  
 
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  17 November and 22 November 2017  had been circulated in JOB/GC/151, JOB/GC/154 and 
JOB/GC/157 , respectively . The Chairman also noted that in the interest of transparency and 
inclusivity, and following some requests, he had  circulated a draft text in a Room  Document – 
RD/GC/6 – representing  the extent of work in  the representative d rafting group as of 
21 November. He wanted to  make it clear that the text was not agreed. He had  circulated it for the 
information of all Members so that everyone – in particular those Members who did not participate 
in the drafting gr oups – could be made aware of the text at the time of suspension of this work.  
14.4.   The representatives of Afghanistan, Grenada (OECS), the European Union, Japan, Barbados 
(CARICOM), Guyana (ACP) and the Dominican Republic  spoke. The General Council took note of 
the Chairman's statement  and of the other statements . 
14.2  Election of officers (WT/GC/M/167 ; WT/GC/M/168  and WT/GC/M/169 ) 
14.5.   At the May meeting, the General Council agreed to elect H.E. Minister Susana Malcorra of 
Argentina  to be the Chair for MC11 .  
14.6.   At the July meeting, the General Council agreed to elect the following Vice -Chairs for MC11: 
H.E. Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment of Nigeria; 
H.E. Mr Todd McClay, Minister of Trade of New Zealand and Mr Edward Yau, Secretary for 
Commerce and Economic Development of Hong Kong, China.  
14.7.   At the October  meeting, the Chairman said that  due to a change of government in New 
Zealand, the new Trade Minister, Honourable David Parker , would be willing to fulfil the role of 
MC11 Vice -Chair that had been allocated to New Zealand. The representative of New Zealand 
spoke.  The General Council took note of the Chairman's statement and of the other statement.  
14.3  Attendance of observers from governments and international intergovernmental 
organizations (WT /GC/M/167 ; WT/GC/M/168  and WT/GC/M/169 ) 
14.8.   At the May meeting, the General Council agreed to repeat past practice with respect to the 
attendance of observer governments. On the participation of IGOs, the Chairman said he would 
consult with interested Members and invited them to approach the matter with a constructive 
spirit.  The representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (Arab Group) spoke. The General Council 
took note of the statements.  
14.9.   At the July meeting,  the Chairman said that while he was ready to con tinue consulting on 
that matter, including the recently received request from the League of Arab States, he was fully 
aware of the difficulties in resolving the issue.  The General Council took note of the statement.  
14.10.   At the October  meeting, the Chairman said that he had engaged with several delegations 
after the summer break to see if there had been any new developments and reported that there 
was still no consensus on that matter. His sense was that the situation was unlikely to change 
before MC11. The Gene ral Council took note of the statement.  
14.4  Attendance of non -governmental organizations (WT/GC/M/167)  
14.11.   At the May meeting, the General Council agreed to repeat past practice with respect to the 
registration procedure for NGOs.  
14.5  Launch of the logo of the Elevent h Session of the Ministerial Conference 
(WT/GC/M/167)  
14.12.   At the May meeting, the MC11 logo was launched. On the dates of MC11 , the 
representative of Argentina requested that it be advanced  by one day, i.e. from 10 to 
13 December 2017. The Chair man said that h e would provide an opportunity for Members to WT/GC/191  
 
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  consult and that a communication would be sent in due course.17 The General Council took note of 
the statements.  
14.6  Trust fund in support of LDC Participation in MC11 (WT/GC/M/167)  
14.13.   At the May meeting, the Chairman and the CBFA Chairperson urged Members to contribute 
to the LDC Trust Fund . The representative of Benin (LDCs) spoke. The General Council took note of 
the statements.  
14.7  Request for Observer Status by Palestine (WT/GC/M/168)  
14.14.   At the July meeting,  the General C ouncil agreed to grant Palestine Observer Status at 
MC11 on an ad hoc basis.  
14.8  Request for Observer Status by the Republic of South Sudan (WT/GC/M/170)  
14.15.   At the November  meeting, the General Council agreed to grant the Republic of South 
Sudan Observer Status a t MC11 on an ad hoc basis.  
15  MSME s – STATEMENT BY THE PHI LIPPINES (WT/GC/M/16 6) 
15.1.   At the February  meeting,  the Philippines (also on behalf of Brunei Darussalam, Lao PDR  and 
Malaysia)  provided an u pdate on their MSMEs initiative,  drew attention to its communica tion 
entitled "Towards a MSME Marketplace: Growing Global Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises 
(MSMEs) for Inclusive Development" circulated in WT/GC/W /731 and noted the UN resolution to 
celebrate Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Day on 27 June each year.  The representatives of 
Nigeria,  Argentina and Switzerland spoke. The General Council took note of the statements.  
16  INFORMAL DIALOGUE ON  MICRO, SMALL AND MED IUM ENTERPRISES (MSM Es) – 
STATEMENT BY ARGENTI NA, BRAZIL, BRUNEI D ARUSSALAM, CHILE, CO LOMBIA, 
MALAYS IA, PARAGUAY, THE PH ILIPPINES, SWITZERLA ND, URUGUAY AND VIET  NAM 
(WT/GC/M/167)  
16.1.   At the May meeting, Argentina ( also on behalf of Brazil; Brunei Darussalam; Chile; 
Colombia; Costa Rica; the European Union; Guatemala; Malaysia; Mexico; Panama; Paraguay; 
Peru;  the Philippines; the Russian Federation; Singapore; Switzerland; Uruguay and Viet Nam ) 
highlighted some of the difficulties encountered by MSMEs  in import/export activities and in this 
respect introduced their initiative to set up a process – "Friends of MSMEs" aimed at identifying 
possible ways forward on MSMEs in the WTO, based on concrete proposals and suggestions 
submitted by Mem bers. Th e representatives of Chile; Paraguay; Pakistan; Switzerland; the 
European Union; Colombia (also on behalf of Panama);  the Russian Federation; Japan; the 
Republic of Moldova; Canada; the Republic of Korea; Nigeria; Thailand; Chinese Taipei; Hong 
Kong, China; Singapore; the Philippines (ASEAN); Australia; New Zealand; South Africa; India; 
Nicaragua;  the Plurinational State  of Bolivia; Norway; Cuba; China; the Bolivarian Republic of 
Venezuela and Uruguay spoke. The General Council took note of the statements.  
17  WORKSHOP ON MSME s – STATEMENT BY CHILE ( WT/GC/M/169)  
17.1.   At the October  meeting, the representative of  Chile invited Memb ers to a MSMEs workshop  
entitled " How to Support MSMEs: Sharing of National, Region al and Multilateral Experiences"  
organized by the Friends of MSMEs on 31 October to 1 November  at the WTO. The General Council 
took note of the statement.   
18  MIKTA WORKSHOP O N TRADE AND INVESTME NT – STATEMENT BY AUSTRAL IA 
(WT/GC/M/166)  
18.1.   At the February  meeting, the representative of Australia invited delegations on a MIKTA 
Workshop on 20 March to exchange views on trade, investment and devel opment; investment 
                                                
17 The communication confirming the dates of 10 to 13 December 2017 was subsequently circulated in 
WT/GC/INF/21.  WT/GC/191  
 
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  facilitation  and t he WTO's role in this endeavour.  The representatives of Mexico; the Republic of 
Korea; China; the Russian Federation; Argentina; Nigeria; Pakistan; Hong Kong, China; 
Singapore; Brazil; Cote d'Ivoire; Turkey and Canada spoke. The General Council took note o f the 
statements.  
19  COMMUNICATIONS ON MI KTA WORKSHOP AND INF ORMAL DIALOGUE ON 
INVESTMENT FACILITAT ION – COMMUNICATION FROM M EXICO, INDONESIA, KO REA, 
TURKEY AND AUSTRALIA  – JOINT COMMUNICATION FROM THE FRIENDS OF 
INVESTMENT FACILITAT ION FOR DEVELOPMENT – COMM UNICATIONS FROM THE 
RUSSIAN FEDERATION, CHINA, ARGENTINA AND  BRAZIL (WT/GC/M/167)  
19.1.   At the May meeting18, the representative of Australia (MIKTA)  presented their 
communication in JOB/GC/121 on the results of the MIKTA Workshop on Trade and Investment 
held o n 20 March. China (FIFD  – Friends of Investmen t Facilitation for Development ) presented 
their communication in JOB/GC/122 and Add.1 on a proposal for an informal dialogue on 
investment facilitation for development . China also presented its own communication in 
JOB/GC/123 on possible elements of investment facilitation.  The Russian Federation presented its 
communication in JOB/GC/120 on an investment p olicy discussion group. Brazil (also on behalf of 
Argentina ) presented their  communication in JOB/GC/124 entit led "Possible Elements of a WTO 
Instrument on Investment Facilitation".  The representatives of Nigeria; Cameroon; Mexico; 
Pakistan; Ecuador; South Africa;  the European Union; Qatar; the Plurinational State of Bolivia; 
Turkey; Uganda; India; Chinese Taipei;  Paraguay; Singapore; the Republic of Korea; the United 
States; New Zealand; Switzerland; Norway; Canada; Japan; the Kingdom of Bahrain; Cuba; the 
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; Israel; Colombia; Hong Kong, China and the Bolivarian Republic of 
Venezuela spoke. T he General Council took note of the statements.  
20  REPORT ON THE 'HIGH -LEVEL POLICY AND PRI VATE SECTOR TRADE AN D 
INVESTMENT FACILITAT ION PARTNERSHIP FORU M FOR DEVELOPMENT', HELD IN 
ABUJA, NIGERIA, FROM 2 -3 NOVEMBER 2017  – STATEMENT BY NIGERIA 
(WT/GC/M/170)  
20.1.   At the November  meeting, the representative of Nigeria provided a report on this forum  and 
referred to Nigeria's  communication circulated in WT/GC/186 . The representative  of Pakistan  
spoke. The General Council took note of the statements.  
21  TRADE AND WOMEN'S E CONOMIC EMPOWERMENT – STATEMENT BY ICELAND  
(WT/GC/M/170)  
21.1.   At the November  meeti ng, the representative of Iceland (also on behalf of Sierra Leone)  
made a statement on this matter  and referred to their communication subsequently circulated in 
JOB/GC/161 . The representative  of Canada  spoke. The General Council took note of the 
statements.  
22  MIKTA AND SYRIA – STATEMENTS BY TURKEY  (WT/GC/M/170)  
22.1.   At the November  meeting, the representative of Turkey made statements on two matters – 
MIKTA and Syria. The General Counci l took note of the statement.  
                                                
18 At the May meeting, before the adoption of the agenda on 10 May, the representative of India spoke. 
The representatives of China; Russian Federation; Nigeria; Pakistan; Norway; Mexico; Chile; European Union; 
Colombia; Republic of Korea; Uganda; Paraguay; Hong Kong, China; Australia; Turkey; Plurinational State of 
Bolivia; S witzerland; Singapore; Costa Rica; Ecuador; New Zealand; Uruguay; Japan; Chinese Taipei; United 
States; Canada; Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; Republic of Moldova and Indonesia subsequently took the floor. The 
Chairman suspended the meeting, requested Members to  remain on call and announced that the General 
Council would reconvene as soon as possible and possibly at very short notice.  The General Council reconvened 
on 18 May after a series of consultations were conducted by the Chairman and adopted the Agenda  with the 
proposed amendments as the Chairman had spelled out in his statement  in Paragraph 65 of WT/GC/M/167 . 
The adopted agenda was subsequently circulated in WT/GC/W/732/Rev.1 . WT/GC/191  
 
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  23  TRADE RESTRICTIVE ME ASURES BY CERTAIN ME MBERS – STATEMENT BY QATAR 
(WT/GC/M/168)  
23.1.   At the July meeting, the representative of Qatar made a statement on this matter. The 
representative  of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia ( also on beha lf of the United Arab Emirates;  the 
Kingdom of Bahrain and Egypt) spoke . The General Council took note of the statements.  
24  TRADE RESTRICTIVE ME ASURES ON THE BORDER S IMPOSED BY KAZAKHS TAN – 
STATEMENT BY THE KYRGYZ REPUBLIC (WT/ GC/M/170)  
24.1.   At the November  meeti ng, the representative of the Kyrgyz Republic made a statement on 
this matter. The representative of Kazakhstan  spoke. The General Council took note of the 
statements.  
25  COMMITTEE ON BUDGET,  FINANCE AND ADMINIST RATION  
25.1  Reports and Recommendations ( WT/GC/M/16 7; WT/GC/M/168; WT/GC/M/169  
AND WT/GC/M/170 ) 
25.1.   At the May meeting, the Ge neral Council considered the report  by the Committee on 
Budget, Finance and Administration on its meeting in March ( WT/BFA/162 ). The General Council 
took note of the statement and adopte d the report in WT/BFA/162.  
25.2.   At the July meeting, the General Council considered the report by the Committee on 
Budget, Finance and Administration on its meeting s in February (WT/BFA/161), May  
(WT/BFA/ 163) and June (WT/BFA/ 164/Rev.1 ). The General Council to ok note of the statements, 
approved the Budget Committee's specific recommendations in paragraphs 7.6 and 8.2 of 
WT/BFA/161 and paragraph 4.14 of WT/BFA/164/Rev.1 and adopted the reports in WT/BFA/161, 
WT/BFA/163 and WT/BFA/164/Rev.1.   
25.3.   At the October  meeting, the General Council considered the report by the Committee on 
Budget, Finance and Administration on its meeting in July ( WT/BFA/165 ). The General Council took 
note of the statement and adopted the report in  WT/BFA/165 .  
25.4.   At the November  meeting, the Ge neral Council considered the report by the Committee on 
Budget, Finance and Administration on its meeting s in September (WT/BFA/166), October 
(WT/BFA/167) and November  (WT/BFA/168 and WT/BFA/169 ). The General Council took note of 
the statements, approved t he Budget Committee's specif ic recommendations in paragraph  1.12 of 
WT/BFA/168 and paragraphs 1.2, 2.11 , and 3.1 and tables 1 to 5 of WT/BFA/169 and a dopted the 
reports in WT/BFA/166, WT/BFA/167, WT/BFA/168  and W T/BFA/169 .   
26  COMMITTEE ON BALANCE  OF PAYMENT S RESTRICTIONS  
26.1  Consultations with Ecuador (WT/GC/M/169)  
26.1.   At the October  meeting, the BOP Committee  Chairperson  reported on the Consultations with 
Ecuador. The representative of Ecuador spoke. T he General Council adopted the report in 
WT/BOP/R/114  and took n ote of the statement.  
27  WTO PENSION PLAN  
27.1  Reports (WT/GC/M/168 ) 
27.1.   At the July meeting, the Chairperson  of the Management Board of the WTO Pension Plan 
introduced the Annual Report of the Management Board for 2016 contained in document 
WT/L/1009 , and the Report of the Independent External Auditor on the Audit of the Fina ncial 
Statements o f the WTOPP in document WT/L/1008 . The General Council took note of the Annual 
Report of the Management Board for 2016 , the Report of the Independent External Auditor on the 
Audit of the Financial Statements of the WTOPP , and the WTOPP Chairperson's statement  made on 
behalf of the Outgoing Chair of the WTOPP . WT/GC/191  
 
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  27.2  Alignment of the WTO Pension Plan Regulations with the WTO's Policies Regarding 
the Definition of Spouse to Include Domesti c Partnership (WT/GC/M/168)  
27.2.   At the July meeting, the General Council approved the WTOPP Management Board's specific 
recommendation in paragraph 5 of WT/L/1010 . 
27.3  Election of Chairperson, Members, and Alternates to the Management Board  
(WT/GC/M/168 ) 
27.3.   Article 4 (a) of the Regulations of the WTO Pension Plan provides, inter alia , for the election 
by the General Council of a Chairperson, four members and four alternates to the Management 
Board of the Pension Plan, each for a three -year term.  
27.4.   At the  July meeting, the Chairman  recalled the process of consultations that had been 
undertaken regarding the membership of the whole Management Board that had come up for 
renewal in May 2017.  On the basis of this process, he  proposed that the General Council elect  
Mr Robert Prochazka (Austria)  to be the WTOPP Chairperson and Ms Alicia Goujon (Mexico) , 
Ms Eleni Patibouli (Greece), Ms Claudia Hernández Vetsch (Dominican Republic) , Mr Chr istopher 
Wilson (United States), Mr Jean-Marc van Dril (Switzerland), Mr Ian Medcalf (Canada ), Mr Faisal Al 
Nabhani (Oman) and Mr Rodolfo Rivas (Israel)  to serve as  the four  members and four alternates  of 
the WTOPP Management Board, respectively. The representative of Turkey spoke. The General 
Council so agreed19 and took note of the statement.  
28  ADMINISTRATIVE MEASURE S FOR MEMBERS IN ARR EARS ( WT/GC/M/166; 
WT/GC/M/167; WT/GC/M /168 ; WT/GC/M/ 169 AND WT/GC/M/170 ) 
28.1.   In October 2012, the General Council approved a recommendation from the Committee on 
Budget, Finance and Administration regarding revised Admi nistrative Measures for Members in 
arrears, as contained in WT/BFA/132, Annex I. These new revised Measures entered into force on 
1 January 2013. These Measures required that at the end of each meeting of the General Council, 
the Chairman of the Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration should provide information 
with regard to which Members and Observers were under Administrative Measures; and, the 
General Council Chairperson would request Members and Observers in Categories II and III to 
inform the Secretariat as to when the payment of arrears might be expected.  
28.2.   At the General Council meetings in February , May, July, October , and November , the 
Chairperson of the Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration provided information with 
regard to which  Members were under Administrative Measures and the Chairman made the said 
request to Members and Observers in Categories II and III. The General Council took note of the 
statements.  
29  WTO YOUNG PROFESSION ALS PROGRAMME – STATEMENT BY THE DIR ECTOR -
GENERAL (WT /GC/M/169)  
29.1.   At the October  meeting, the Director -General provided an update on the progress of the 
WTO Young Professionals Programme and inform ed Members that the 2018 process was already  
complete . Out of some 1,500 applications, 15 Young Professionals, al l of whom came from 
Members that had  no professional representation in the Secretariat, would join the organization in 
early January 2018 . The General Council took note of the statement.  
30  INTERNATIONAL TRADE CENTRE UNCTAD/WTO (W T/GC/M/170)  
30.1.   At the November  meeting, the  General Council considered a report of the Joint Advisory 
Group on the International Trade Centre UNCTAD/WTO on its Fifty -First Session (ITC/AG(LI)/268), 
which had been considered initially by the Committee on Trade and Development at its meeti ng on 
15 November where it had been presented by the Chairperson of the Joint Advisory Group, 
Ambassador Frances Lisson  (Australia ). Deputy Director -General Agah, on behalf of the  CTD 
Chairperson , made a statement on the Committee's consideration of the re port. The 
representatives of Canada, Pakistan and Montenegro spoke.  The General Council took note of the 
                                                
19 The decision can be found in document WT/L/1015.  WT/GC/191  
 
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  CTD Chairperson's statement  and of the other statements,  and adopted the report of the Joint 
Advisory Group.  
31  REVIEW OF WTO ACTIVI TIES (WT/GC/M/170)  
31.1.   At the November  meeting, the General Council co nsidered Annual Reports for 2017  from 
WTO bodies that had been drawn up in pursuance of the Decision concerning procedures for an 
annual overview of WTO activities and for reporting under the WTO in document WT/L /105.  
31.2.   The General Council took note of the statement, adopted the report of the Committee on 
Trade and Development in document WT/COMTD/ 96 and WT/COMTD/96/Corr.1 , took note of the 
reports of other WTO bodies, including the reports of the bodies under the P lurilateral Trade 
Agreements, in documents WT/DSB/ 74, WT/TPR/ 407, G/L/ 1204, S/C/ 53, IP/C /80, WT/CTE/ 24, 
WT/BOP/R/ 115, WT/BFA/ 170, WT/REG/ 27, WT/W GTDF/ 16, WT/WGTTT/ 19, GPA/ 145 and 
GPA/145/Corr.1,  and WT/L/ 1016, and agreed to forward the reports to the Eleve nth Ministerial 
Conference.  
31.3.   The General Council then adopted the draft Annual Report for 2017  of the General Council 
(WT/GC/W/ 736), on the understanding that the Secretariat would make the necessary 
adjustments to it as to include matters considered at tha t meeting, and agreed to forward it to the 
Eleventh Ministerial Conference.  
32  APPOINTMENT OF DIRECTOR -GENERAL  (WT/GC/M/166 ) 
32.1.   In October 2016, the Chairman informed Members in a communication that in accordance 
with the Procedures for the Appointment of Direct ors-General adopted by the General Council in 
December 2002 (WT/L/509) , the process for appointment of the Director -General would begin on 
1 December 2016. Members w ould have until 31 December 2016  to nominate candidates . He also 
recalled the announcement made by the Director -General at the July  2016 meeting that he would 
be available for a second term if Members found it useful . Based on the  Procedures, a decision on 
the appointment of a new Director -General would have to be taken  not later than 31 May 201 7. 
32.2.   At the February  meeting, the Chairman recalled that in line with the Procedures for the 
Appointment of Directors -General (WT/L/509), the process for the appointment of the next 
Director -General had begun on 1 December 2016 with a notification from him a s the General 
Council Chair to the Membership to the effect that Members had had until 31 December to 
nominate candidates.  In keeping with the procedures, Members had therefore been informed in a 
communication from him in document JOB/GC/109 dated 3 Novemb er 2016 of the candidature of 
Mr Azevêdo, the current Director -General, who had formally notified him before the start of the 
process of his intention to seek reappointment for a further term. As announced in his 
communication in WT/GC/INF/20, by the close  of the nomination period of 31 December 2016, he 
had not rec eived any further candidatures. In his communication, he had also announced that he 
would consult with Members as to the next steps in the process. In his consultations, Members had 
expressed wid espread support for Mr Azevêdo's appointment for a second term, and had indicated 
a willingness to expedite the process so that the appointment of the DG could take place without 
delay, to allow him and the whole of the Membership to fully focus on the pre paratory process for 
MC11. Hence, he had sent a fax on 6 February clarifying his intention to take  up the issue of 
appointment of the Director -General at the February formal meeting of the General Council. In the 
same communication, he had given Members th e opportunity to present any reacti ons to him, if 
they so wished. On 27 February, Member s had  the opportunity to meet formally with Mr Azevêdo 
and to hear his presentation which was followed by a question and answer session20. He believed it 
was clear that there remained widespread support for Mr Azevêdo's appointment for a second 
term.  
32.3.   According ly, the Chairman  formally proposed that the General Council a gree to appoint Mr 
Roberto Azevêdo as the Director -General of the WTO for a second term of four years , starting on 
1 September 2017. The General Council so agreed.  
                                                
20 Mr Azevêdo 's presentation, as well as the questions put and the answers provided, can be found 
annexed in the minutes of the February meeting in WT/GC/M/166 . WT/GC/191  
 
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  32.4.   The Chairman, on behalf of the General Council, congratulated Mr Azevêdo on his 
appointment  for a second term . The Director -General and the  representatives of Morocco (African 
Group); Cambodia (L DCs); the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (Arab Group); Rwanda (ACP); Guatemala 
(SVEs); Brazil (GRULAC); the Philippines (ASEAN); the Dominican Republic (IGDC); Pakistan; 
India; Uganda; the Republic of Moldova; Montenegro; Sri Lanka; Kenya; Jamaica; Benin; 
Paragua y; the United States; Chad; China; Colombia; Chile; New Zealand; Argentina; the 
European Union; Nigeria; the Plurinational State of Bolivia and Nepal spoke. The General Council 
took note of the statements.  
33  APPOINTMENT OF OFFIC ERS TO WTO BODIES  (WT/GC/M/166 ; WT/GC/M/16 7; 
WT/GC/M/16 9 AND WT/GC/M/170 ) 
33.1.   At the February  meeting, the Chairman reported that, in accordance with the Guidelines for 
Appointment of Officers to WTO Bodies approved by the General Council in 2002 in WT/L/510 and 
the related practical steps  to improve their implementation in JOB/GC/22, he, together with the 
serving Chairperson of the Dispute Settlement Body – Ambassador Xavier Carim of South Africa 
and Ambassador Jonathan Fried of Canada – former Chair of the General Council, had conducted 
consultations on a slate of names for the Appointment of Chairpersons to WTO Regular Bodies 
listed in groups 1, 2, 4 and 5 in the annex to the Guidelines. During the process and in light of the 
coincidence in time of the vacancies in two negotiating bodies,  consultations had also been 
conducted on new Chairpersons for the Dispute Settlement Body in Special Session and the 
Committee in Agriculture in Special Session. He thanked Ambassador Carim and Ambassador Fried 
for their assistance.  
33.2.   The Chairman provided  a report on the consultations he  had conducted on the annual 
exercise for the appointment of officers to WTO regular bodies as well as for the two negotia ting 
bodies whose chairmanship wa s vacant, i.e. the Committee on Agriculture in Special Session and 
the DSB  in Special Session.  In particular, he recalled the difficulties faced regarding the 
chairmanship of the CoA SS , which had led to an impasse not only in the CoA SS itself, but also in 
the slate of names for the regular bodi es, with the exception of t he General Council and the DSB.  
He highlighted the seriousness of the situation and urged Members to wo rk urgently to find a 
solution.  He then proceeded with the Chairs of the General Council and the DSB as followed: for 
the General Council – H.E. Mr Xavie r Carim of South Africa and for the Dispute Settlement Body – 
H.E. Mr Junichi Ihara of Japan. The General Council took note of the slate of names for the 
Chairmanships of the General Council and the Dis pute Settlement Body, suspended the 
consideration of t he rest of the item and would reconvene the meeting  to revert back to it at the 
appropriate time.  
33.3.   At the reconvened meeting  on 7 April, the Chairman report ed on his consultations21 and 
said that the feedback that he had received was that there wa s no opposi tion to the slate  he had 
presented at an informal meeting that had just been concluded prior to reconvening the regular 
session. Members could  therefore be in a positi on to accept the slate as it had been presented . 
Only the chairmanship of one of the Work ing Group on Trade, Debt and Finance  remained unfilled. 
Additional time and consultations  would be needed  to fill that position.  
33.4.   On the basis of t hose consultations, there was consensus o n the following slate of names for 
the two negotiating groups:  
Commit tee on Agriculture in Special Session  
 H.E. Mr Stephen Ndungu Karau (Kenya)  
Dispute Settlement Body in Special Session  
 H.E. Mr Coly Seck (Senegal)  
 
33.5.   On the basis of those consultations, there was consensus on the slate of names  for the  
following regular bodies : 
                                                
21 The report is reflected in Paragraph 8.37 of WT/GC/M/166.  WT/GC/191  
 
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  Trade Policy Review Body  
 H.E. Mr Juan Carlos Gonzalez 
(Colombia)  
 
Council for Trade in Goods  
 
 H.E. Mr Kyonglim Choi  
(Republic  of Korea)  
Council for Trade in Services  
 H.E. Mr Julian Braithwaite  
(United Kingdom)  
 
Council for TRIPS  
 Ms Irene B.K. Young  
(Hong Kong, China)  
 
Committee on Trade and Development  
 H.E. Mr Taonga Mushayavanhu 
(Zimbabwe)  
 
Committee on Balance -of-Payments 
Restrictions  
 H.E. Mr Tudor Ulianovschi ( Republic  
of Moldova)  
Committee on Budget, Finance and  
Administration  
 H.E. Mr Peter Brňo (Slovak Republic)  
Committee on Trade and Environment  
 H.E. Mrs Zhanar Aitzhanova  
(Kazakhstan)  
 
Committee on Regional Trade 
Agreements  
 H.E. Mr Walid Doudech (Tunisia)  
Working Group on T rade and Transfer 
of Technology  H.E. Ms Zorica Mar ić-Djordjević 
(Montenegro)  
 
Committee on Trade Facilitation  H.E. Mr  Daniel Blockert (Sweden)  
 
33.6.   The Chairman  formally invite d the Ge neral Council to take note of his  statement and of the 
consensus on the slate of names for th e appointment of officers that he had just announced in the 
informal meeting – including the chairmanships of the Committee on Agriculture in Special Session 
and of the Dispute Settlement Body in S pecial Session.  The General Council so agreed . 
33.7.   Appointm ents for the regular bodies would b e for one year  in keeping with the general rule 
in the Guidelines.  Those appointments would be made formally by the WTO bodies concerned at 
their subsequent meetings in 2017. On  the Committee on Trade Facilitation, as of the next 
appointme nt process, consu ltations on its  chairmanship would be conducted at the level of the 
CTG given that the TF Committee had since become a subsidiary body of that Council up on entry 
into force of the TFA. On the  consultations to fill the Chairmanship of the WGTDF , the Selecti on 
Committee would  communicate  the next steps  with Members in due course.  The Chairman also 
made a statement on the consultations on the Chairmanships of the subsidiary bodies of the CTG 
and CTS in accordance with the relevant guidelines to be led by the i ncoming CTG Chair and the 
outgoing CTS Chair . The representatives of Chinese Taipei and Zimbabwe spoke. The General 
Council took note of the statements.  
33.8.   At the May meeting, the Chairman updated Members on the consultations on the 
Chairmanship of the WGTDF . He said that o ne delegation had expressed an intere st in chairing the 
group and the Selection Committee was  in the process of consulting group coordinators on that WT/GC/191  
 
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  expression of interest. The Chairman would communicate with Members in due course.  The 
General Council took note of the statement. 22 
33.9.   At the October  meeting, the Chairman invited group coordinators to start consulting within 
their constituencies for the process of appointment of officers to WTO bodies in 2018 . The General 
Council took note of the  statement.  
33.10.   At the November  meeting, the Chairman said that in accordance with the Guidelines for 
the Appointment of Officers to WTO bodies in document WT/L/510 and the practical steps to 
improve the implementation of the Guidelines (JOB/GC/22), he would b e starting the selection 
process for the appointment of chairpersons to the WTO bodies in Groups 1, 2, 4 and 5 of the 
Annex to the Guidelines. In accordance with paragraph 7.1(b) of the Guidelines, he would be 
assisted in the selection process by the servi ng Chairman of the Dispute Settlement Body, 
Ambas sador Junichi Ihara (Japan ) and Ambassador Harald Neple (Norway ), former General Council 
Chairman. The General Council took note of the statement, which had been made pursuant to the 
Guidelines for the Appoi ntment of Officers.  
34  ELECTION OF CHAIRPER SON (WT/GC/M/166 ) 
34.1.   At the February  meeting, the Chairman, as the outgoing presiding officer of the General 
Council, made a statement. The General Council then unanimously elected H.E. Mr Xavier Carim 
(South Africa ) to the Chair.  
34.2.   The Director -General, the newly -elected Chairman, and the representatives of Morocco 
(African Group); Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (Arab Group); Rwanda; Brazil (GRULAC); Uganda; 
Kenya; Cameroon; Dominican Republic (IGDC); Cambodia (LDCs) and Iran ( Observer) spoke. The 
General Council took note of the statements.  
 
__________  
                                                
22 Following the Chairman's report, the Selection Committee conti nued its consultations. On 1 June, the 
Chairman sent a fax to all delegations informing them that in light of the  consultations  of the Selection 
Committee , it was their understanding that delegations could  agree to the appointment of Mr Asi Yosef (Israel)  
as Chair  of the Working Group on Trade, Debt and Finance.  If he would  not receive comments or objecti ons to 
that understanding by 7  June close of business , he proposed for  the WGTDF to appoint Mr Yosef at its next 
formal meeting.  On 9 June, the Chairman sent another fax informing delegations that f ollowing further 
consultations, he was then  in a position to indicate that Mr Asi Yosef (Israel) could  be appointed  as Chair of the 
Working Group on Trade, Debt and Finance at the Workin g Group's next meeting.