WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
14 June 2013  
(13-3101)  Page: 1/118  
Committee on Trade and Development    
 
  SPECIAL AND DIFFERENTIAL TREATMENT PROVISIONS  
IN WTO AGREEMENTS AND DECISIONS 
 
NOTE BY THE SECRETARIAT1 
1   INTROD UCTION  .......................................................................................................... 3  
2   MULTILATERAL AGREEMEN TS ON TRADE IN GOODS ................................................... 6  
2.1   General Agreement on Ta riffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 .................................................... 6  
2.2   Understanding on the Balance-of-Payments Provisions of the General Agreement on 
Tariffs and Tr ade 1994 ..................................................................................................... 18 
2.3   Agreement on Agriculture .......................................................................................... 21 
2.4   Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytos anitary Me asures ............................. 26 
2.5   Agreement on Tech nical Barriers to Trade .................................................................... 36 
2.6   Agreement on Trade-Re lated Investment  Measures ....................................................... 45 
2.7   Agreement on Implementation of Article VI of the GATT 1994 ......................................... 47 
2.8   Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the GATT 1994 ........................................ 49 
2.9   Agreement on Import  Licensing Pr ocedures .................................................................. 53 
2.10   Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures .................................................. 56 
2.11   Agreement on Safeguards ........................................................................................ 64 
3   GENERAL AGREEMENT ON TR ADE IN SERVICES  (GATS) ............................................ 66  
4   AGREEMENT ON TRADE-RELATED ASPECTS OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY 
RIGHTS ........................................................................................................................ .. 71 
5   UNDERSTANDING ON RULES AND PROCEDURES GOVERNING THE 
SETTLEMENT OF DISPUTES ............................................................................................ 75  
6   PLURILATERAL TR ADE AGREEM ENTS ........................................................................ 80  
6.1   Agreement on Government Procurement ...................................................................... 80 
                                               
1 This document has been prepared under the Secret ariat's own responsibility and without prejudice to 
the positions of Members and to their rights and obligations under the WTO.   WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
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  7   MINISTERIAL, GENERAL COUNCIL AND OTHER RELEVANT  DECISIONS ..................... 84  
7.1   Differential and More Favourable Treatment, Reciprocity and Fuller Participation of 
Developing Countries - Decision of 28 No vember 1979 (Enabling Clause - L/4903) .................... 85 
7.2   Decision on Measures in Favour of Least-Developed Countries (15 December 1993) ........... 87 
7.3   Decision on Texts Relating to Minimu m Values and Imports by Sole Agents, Sole 
Distributors and Sole Conce ssionaires (15 De cember 1993) ................................................... 89 
7.4   Decision on Measures Concerning th e Possible Negative Effects of the Reform 
Programme on Least-Developed and Net Food-Importing Developing Countries 
(15 Decemb er 1993 ) ........................................................................................................ 91 
7.5   Preferential Tariff Treatment for Least-Developed Countries – Decision on Waiver – 
15 June 1999 (WT/L/304) ................................................................................................. 94 
7.6   Extension of the Transition Period under Article 66.1 of the TRIPS Agreement for 
Least-Developed Country Members for Certain Obligations with Respect to 
Pharmaceutical Products - Decision of the Co uncil for TRIPS of 27 June 2002 (IP/C/25) ............. 96 
7.7   Least-Developed Country Members – Obligations under Article 70.9 of TRIPS 
Agreement with Respect to Pharmaceutical Products - Decision of 8 July 2002 (WT/L/478) ..................................................................................................................... 97
 
7.8   Accession of Least-Developed Countries – Decision of 10 December 2002 
(WT/L/508) ..................................................................................................................... 99 
7.9   The implementation of Paragraph 6 of the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS 
Agreement and Public Health (WT/L/540 and WT/L/540/Corr.1) - Decision of 30 August 
2003 ............................................................................................................................ 10 2 
7.10   General Council Decision on the Amendment of the TRIPS Agreement (WT/L/641) 
–Decision of 6 December 2005 ........................................................................................ 103  
7.11   Other Decisions in Favour of Least- Developed Countries – Annex F of the Hong 
Kong Ministerial Declaration adopted on  18 December 2005 (WT/MIN(05)/DEC) ..................... 104  
7.12   Transparency Mechanism for Regional Trade Agreements – Decision of 
14 December 2006 (WT/L/671)  ....................................................................................... 107  
7.13   Transparency Mechanism for Preferential Trade Arrangements – Decision of 
14 December 2010 (WT/L/806)  ....................................................................................... 109  
7.14   Preferential Treatment to Services and Service Suppliers of Least-Developed 
Countries - Decision of 17 De cember 2011 (W T/L/847) ....................................................... 111  
7.15   Accession of Least-Developed Countries - Decision of 25 July 2012 
(WT/L/508/Add.1) ......................................................................................................... 113  
7.16   Extension of the Transition Period under Article 66.1 for Least-Developed Country 
Members - Decision of the Council for TRIPS of 11 June 2013 (IP/C/64) ................................. 118  
 
 
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  1  INTRODUCTION 
1.1.  This compilation of "Special and Differential Treatment Provisions in WTO Agreements and 
Decisions" has been prepared at the request of  the Committee on Trade and Development (CTD). 
The compilation is an updated and streamlined version of document WT/COMTD/W/77/Rev.1 of 
21 September 2001 on the "Implementation of Special and Differential Treatment Provisions in 
WTO Agreements and Decisions". It builds on a pr evious update prepared for the Special Session 
of the CTD (CTD(SS)), which is contained in docu ment TN/CTD/W/33 of 8 June 2010. The focus is 
on the implementation of special and differe ntial treatment (S&D) provisions in the WTO 
Agreements and Decisions.  
1.2.  The table below provides a numerical breakdow n of S&D provisions by type (the classification 
into six types is outlined below) and by agreem ent. The column titled "Total by Agreement" 
provides the total number of S&D provisions by ag reement, while the row marked "Total" provides 
the total number of S&D provisions of each of the six types across the different agreements. In 
this updated compilation, the total number of S&D provisions contained in the WTO Agreements amounts to 139. In addition, this update separately lists a number of Ministerial, General Council and other relevant Decisions that allow for special treatment to developing and least-developed 
country (LDC) Members.   
1.3.  Sections 2 – 6 reflect the S&D provisions contained in the different WTO Agreements.  
Section 2 reflects the S&D provisions contained in the Multilateral Agreement in Trade and Goods, Section 3 the S&D provisions contained in the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), Section 4 the S&D provisions contained in the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual 
Property Rights (TRIPS), Section 5 the S&D provisions contained in the Understanding on Rules 
and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disput es and Section 6 the S&D provisions contained 
in the Plurilateral Agreements. Section 7 reflects those S&D provisions contained in Ministerial,  General Council and other relevant Decisions.   
1.4.  Sections 2 – 7 include, in some cases, introductory information relating to the relevant 
Agreement or Decision. These sections also contain tables which reproduce, in the left-hand column, the text of the different S&D provisions, and in the right-hand column titled "Comment", information regarding the provisions, particularly concerning their implementation. The “Comment” 
column is left blank where there is no specific information available. 
1.5.   In addition, the tables in each section identify the S&D provisions relating to which proposals 
have been made in the Work Programme on S&D under paragraph 44 of the Doha Ministerial Declaration.
2 Each such provision is identified by a su perscript 'a', 'b' or 'c', which have the 
following interpretation: 
 'a' = a provision relating to which a proposal is currently under consideration in the 
CTD(SS).  
 'b' = a provision relating to which a textual proposal was agreed to, in principle, at the 
Cancún Ministerial Conference.  
 'c' = a provision relating to which a proposal was referred to other WTO bodies by the 
General Council in 2003. 
  
1.6.  The S&D provisions in this updated comp ilation have been classified according to the 
typology developed by the Secretariat in 2001. Th is six-fold typology has been retained and 
includes: 
 
                                               
2 It should be noted that not all proposals being co nsidered in the context of the Work Programme on 
S&D are reflected in this document. In particular, thos e proposals which are concerned with areas in the WTO 
Agreements and Decisions where there are curre ntly no S&D provisions are not included. WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
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  1. Provisions aimed at increasing the trade opportunities of developing country 
Members;    2. Provisions under which WTO Members should safeguard the interests of developing country Members;   
 
3. Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments;    4. Transitional time-periods;   
 
5. Technical assistance;    6. Provisions relating to LDC Members. 
  
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- 5 - Table on Special and Differential Treatm ent provisions by type and agreement 
Agreement Provisions aimed 
at increasing the 
trade 
opportunities of 
developing 
country Members Provisions that 
require WTO 
Members to 
safeguard the 
interests of 
developing country 
Members Flexibility of 
commitments, of 
action, and use of 
policy instruments Transitional 
time-periods Technical 
assistance Provisions relating 
to 
least-developed 
country Members Total by  
Agreement 
General Agreement on Tariffs and 
Trade 1994 8 13  4    25 
Understanding on Balance of 
Payments of GATT 1994   1  1  2 
Agreement on Agriculture  1  9 1  3 13 
Agreement on the Application of 
Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) 
Measures  2  2 2  6 
Agreement on Technical Barriers to 
Trade  8 1 1 8  1 19 
Agreement on Trade-Related 
Investment Measures (TRIMs)   1 2  1 3 
Agreement on Implementation of 
Article VI of GATT 1994  1     1 
Agreement on Implementation of 
Article VII of GATT 1994   1 
 2 
 4 1  8 
 
Agreement on Import Licensing 
Procedures  3  1   4 
Agreement on Subsidies and 
Countervailing Measures (SCM)  2 10 7   16 
Agreement on Safeguards  1 1    2 
General Agreement on Trade in 
Services (GATS) 3 4 4  2 2 13 
Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects 
of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS)  
  2 1  3 6 
Understanding on Rules and 
Procedures Governing the Settlement 
of Disputes.  7 1  1 2 11 
Agreement on Government 
Procurement (GPA)  3  6  1  2 10 
TOTAL 12 45 40 20 17 14 148/1393 
                                               
3 There are nine provisions which are classifi ed in more than one category, in particul ar one provision in the Agreement on Agric ulture, one in the TRIMs Agreement, three 
in the SCM Agreement, two in the GATS and two in the GPA (the details can be found in the relevant sections). The total of 139 over all the Agreements counts these provisions 
only once, while the total of 148 is the total of all listed provisions. WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
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  2  MULTILATERAL AGREEMENTS ON TRADE IN GOODS 
2.1  General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 2.1.  The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994 contains a total of 25 special and 
differential provisions. These provisions which are contained in Articles XVIII, XXXVI, XXXVII and 
XXXVIII of the GATT 1994, fall under th e following three categories.   
2.1.1  Provisions aimed at increasing the trade opportunities of developing country 
Members 
Eight provisions [Articles XXXVI.2, XXXVI. 3, XXXVI.4, XXXVI.5, XXXVII.1(a), XXXVII.4, 
XXXVIII.2(c),(e)]. 
 2.1.2  Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
 Four provisions (Articles XXXV I.8, XVIII.7(a), XVIII.8, XVIII.13). 
 
2.1.3  Provisions under which WTO Memb ers should safeguard the interests of 
developing country Members 
13 provisions [Articles XXXVI.6, XXXVI.7, XXXVI.9, XXXVII.1(b),(c), XXXVII.2, XXXVII.3, 
XXXVII.5, XXXVIII.1, XXXV III.2(a),(b),(d),(f)]. 
2.2.  WTO tariff concessions undertaken by de veloping country Members under Article II of 
GATT 1994 have generally been implemented over a longer or extended time-frame compared to 
developed countries. To date, the Secretariat is aware of only one case where a WTO Member has 
had difficulties in implementing its tariff reductions according to its schedule of concessions. It should, however, be noted that the Member concerned sought and obtained a waiver under Article IX of the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the WTO which allowed it to delay such 
implementation.
4 Members having any difficulty in implementing their WTO tariff concessions can 
renegotiate them under GATT Article XXVIII proced ures, which are available to all WTO Members 
and commonly utilized for various reasons. Sinc e the WTO was established, 20 WTO Members, 
including several developing countries and one LDC, have engaged in this type of negotiations.5  
 
                                               
4 See WT/L/610.   
5 See G/MA/W/23/Rev.9, Note by the Secretariat, Situation of Schedules of WTO Members.    
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- 7 - GENERAL AGREEMENT ON TARIFFS AND TRADE 1994 
PROVISION COMMENT 
Article XVIIIa 
Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
Section Aa 
7.  (a) If a contracting party coming within the scope of paragraph 4 (a) of 
this Article considers it desirable, in order to promote the establishment of a 
particular industry with a view to rais ing the general standard of living of its 
people, to modify or withdraw a concession included in the appropriate 
Schedule annexed to this Agreement, it shall notify the CONTRACTING 
PARTIES to this effect and enter into negotiations with any contracting party 
with which such concession was initially negotiated, and with any other 
contracting party determined by the CONTRACTING PARTIES to have a 
substantial interest therein. If agreement is reached between such 
contracting parties concerned, they shall be free to modify or withdraw 
concessions under the appropriate Schedules to this Agreement in order to 
give effect to such agreement, including any compensatory adjustments 
involved.   This provision has not been invoked by developing country Members since 
the WTO Agreement came into force.   
Section Bb 
8.  The contracting parties recognize that contracting parties coming within 
the scope of paragraph 4(a) of this Article tend, when they are in rapid 
process of development, to experience balance-of-payments difficulties 
arising mainly from efforts to expand their internal markets as well as from 
the instability in their terms of trade.  
 In the three parallel GATT Panel reports in 1989 on Republic of Korea – 
Restrictions on Imports of Beef , in response to complaints by Australia (BISD 
36S/202), the United States (BISD 36S/268), and New Zealand (BISD 
36S/234), Korea argued that its import restrictions on beef could be justified 
under Article XVIII:B because the restrictions were necessary to secure an 
adequate level of foreign reserv es that were necessary for the 
implementation of its programme of economic development. Australia also 
recognized that developing countries have a legitimate right to recourse to 
Article XVIII:B in times of balance-of-payments (BOP) difficulties. (BISD 
36S/202, para.66) The Panel took account  of "all available information" and 
found that Korea's development indicators were improving, and therefore, 
Korea should establish a phase-out for its BOP restrictions on beef. (BISD 
36S/202, paras. 98-101; 36S/268, paras. 120-123; and 36S/234, paras. 
114-117) 
 
In India – Quantitative Restrictions, India argued that Article XVIII:B is the 
most important expression of the principle of S&D in GATT. India further 
argued that, taking into account of its economic development situation, its 
import restrictions were consistent under Article XVIII:11 of the 
GATT 1994.(WT/DS90/R, panel report, para. 5.152) The Panel confirmed that  
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- 8 - PROVISION COMMENT 
Article XIII:B embodies the S&D foreseen for developing countries with 
regard to the BOP measure at issue. (WT/DS90/R, para. 5.155) However, the 
Panel found that India's measures violated Article XVIII:11. Moreover, the 
Panel concluded that India's measures did not meet specific conditions "as 
provided in" Section B of Article XVIII; therefore those measures could not be 
justified by Article XIII:B. (WT/DS90/R, para. 6.1; the Appellate Body upheld 
the Panel's findings in this respect.) 
 
In India – Autos , India asserted a defence under Article XVIII:B to the extent 
of any violation of Article XI. India pr esented no evidence regarding its BOP 
situation, and argued that the burden was on the complainants to establish 
that its measures were not justified on balance-of-payments grounds. The 
Panel rejected this argument and found that "the burden is on India in 
relation to this defence". The Panel ruled that India failed to make a prima 
facie case, because India presented no information on its actual BOP situation 
during the relevant period, and did not explain how it had met the 
substantive conditions of Article XV III:9. (WT/DS 146, DS175, panel report, 
paras. 7.289-7.294) 
 
Article XVIII:B was invoked more than 20 times before the WTO Agreement 
entered into force. Since then, 14 developing countries have made use of 
Article XVIII:B. (see records on BOP consultations from 1995-2010 in WTO 
Analytical Index, third edition, pp. 292-293; see also record of consultations 
from 1947-1994 at pp. 394-395 of the GATT Analytical Index) According to 
the latest annual report (2012) from the Committee on Balance-of-Payments 
Restrictions, there are no on-going consultations under Article XVIII:B of the 
GATT 1994. (WT/BOP/R/105)    
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- 9 - PROVISION COMMENT 
Section Cb 
13.  If a contracting party coming within the scope of paragraph 4(a) of this 
Article finds that governmental assistance is required to promote the 
establishment of a particular industry with a view to raising the general 
standard of living of its people, but that no measure consistent with the 
other provisions of this Agreement is practicable to achieve that objective, it 
may have recourse to the provisions and procedures set out in this Section.   
 Before the WTO Agreement entered into force, Article XVIII:C was invoked 
14 times.6  From 1995 through July 2002, three developing country Members 
(Colombia7, Bangladesh8, Malaysia9) sought recourse to Article XVIII:C10, and 
one developing country Member cited this provision during a dispute.11   
 
In Malaysia – Prohibition of Imports of Polyethylene and Polypropylene 
(WT/DS1/1), Singapore requested Malaysia to enter into consultations 
regarding the prohibition of imports of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene 
(PP) instituted and maintained by the Malaysian Government under the 
Customs Order 1994 dated 16 March 1994 and which came into force on 
7 April 1994. On 30 January 1995 – 20 days after the consultations request – 
Malaysia notified the WTO of its import restrictions on PE and PP, under the 
provisions of Article XVIII:C and the 1979 Decision on Safeguard Action for 
Development Purposes. In its request for the establishment of a panel, 
Singapore argued that Malaysia was not entitled to invoke Article XVIII:C in 
respect of the import prohibitions that had been in place 10 months prior to 
their notification, because "the requirements of Article XVIII:C for prior 
notification, consultations and approval of the measures by the 
CONTRACTING PARTIES were not met" . (WT/DSB/M/2, p. 3; WT/DS1/2) 
Nonetheless, Singapore seems to have accepted Malaysia's notification 
because it announced that it had decided to withdraw its complaint at the 
DSB meeting on 19 July 1995. 
Article XXXVIb 
Provisions aimed at increasing the trade op portunities of developing country Members 
2.  There is need for a rapid and sust ained expansion of the earnings of the 
less-developed contracting parties.    
3.  There is need for positive efforts designed to ensure that less-developed 
contracting parties secure a share in the growth in international trade 
commensurate with the needs of their economic development.    The average trade weighted tariff on industrial imports from developing 
Members fell by 37% after the cuts were completed following the conclusion 
of the Uruguay Round.   
4.  Given the continued dependence of many less-developed contracting See also under section on the Agreement on Agriculture.   
                                               
6 WT/COMTD/39/Add.1. 
7 WT/COMTD/N/8. 
8 G/C/7. 
9 WT/L/32. 
10 WT/COMTD/39. 
11 WT/DS1/1.  
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- 10 - PROVISION COMMENT 
parties on the exportation of a limited range of primary products, there is 
need to provide in the largest possible measure more favourable and acceptable conditions of access to world markets for these products, and wherever appropriate to devise measur es designed to stabilize and improve 
conditions of world markets in these products, including in particular 
measures designed to attain stable, equitable and remunerative prices, thus permitting an expansion of world trade and demand and a dynamic and steady growth of the real export earnings of these countries so as to provide 
them with expanding resources for their economic development.  According to WTO's international trade statistics, the value of exports of 
agricultural products from developing countries increased from US$166 billion in 2001 to US$652 billion in 2011.   
5.  The rapid expansion of the economies of the less-developed contracting 
parties will be facilitated by a diversification of the structure of their 
economies and the avoidance of an exce ssive dependence on the export of 
primary products. There is, therefore, need for increased access in the 
largest possible measure to markets under favourable conditions for 
processed and manufactured products currently or potentially of particular 
export interest to less-developed contracting parties.   A response to the provisions of paragraphs 3, 4 and 5 may be found in the 
maintenance of Members' Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) schemes 
and other non-reciprocal preferential schemes. The WTO’s Database on 
Preferential Trade Arrangements ( http://ptadb.wto.org ) contains entries for 
11 GSP schemes being implemented by WTO Members. See also the 
references to the Enabling Clause and to improved preferential market access 
measures for LDCs in Section 7 of this document.    
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Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
6.  Because of the chronic deficiency in the export proceeds and other 
foreign exchange earnings of less-developed contracting parties, there are 
important inter-relationships between trade and financial assistance to 
development. There is, therefore, need for close and continuing 
collaboration between the CONTRACTING PARTIES and the international 
lending agencies so that they can contribute most effectively to alleviating 
the burdens these less-developed contracting parties assume in the interest 
of their economic development. 
 The Uruguay Round Final Act includes a number of decisions relating to 
collaboration with other organizations. The first is the Decision on achieving 
greater coherence in global economic policy-making which among other 
things, "notes that greater exchange rate stability based on more orderly 
underlying economic and financial conditions should contribute to 'the 
expansion of trade, sustainable growth and development, and the timely 
correction of external imbalance'. It recognizes that while difficulties whose 
origins lie outside the trade field cannot be redressed through measures 
taken in the trade field alone, there are nevertheless inter linkages between 
the different aspects of economic policy". The WTO is therefore called upon to 
develop its cooperation with the international organizations responsible for 
monetary and financial matters.  
 
As part of the Uruguay Round Final Act, Ministers also adopted the 
Declaration on the Contribution of the World Trade Organization to Achieving 
Greater Coherence in Global Economic Policy-making, which recognizes, inter 
alia that difficulties the origins of which lie outside the trade field cannot be 
addressed through measures taken in the trade field alone. In addition, they 
adopted the Decision on the Relationship of the WTO with the International 
Monetary Fund which reaffirms that "that, unless otherwise provided for in 
the Final Act, the relationship of the WTO with the International Monetary 
Fund, with regard to the areas covered by the Multilateral Trade Agreements 
in Annex 1A of the WTO Agreement, will be based on the provisions that have 
governed the relationship of the CO NTRACTING PARTIES to the GATT 1947 
with the International Monetary Fund".  
 
In November 1996, the General Council approved WTO agreements with the 
IMF and the World Bank. The agreements aimed to strengthen inter-agency 
relations.12   
 
 The Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF – formally the IF established in 
1997) is a good example of an international partnership, through which the 
IMF, ITC, UNCTAD, UNDP, the World Bank and WTO combine efforts with 
those of LDCs, donors and other development partners to respond to the trade development needs of LDCs. 
                                               
12 WT/L/194.  
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- 12 - PROVISION COMMENT 
The Aid-for-Trade Initiative is anothe r concrete example of the WTO working 
closely with the international lending agencies. For further information on the Aid-for-Trade Initiative see comments under Article XXXVIII of the GATT.  
7.  There is need for appropriate collaboration between the CONTRACTING 
PARTIES, other intergovernmental bodies and the organs and agencies of 
the United Nations system, whose activities relate to the trade and 
economic development of less-developed countries. A global arrangement for cooperation between WTO and the United Nations 
was concluded on 29 September 1995 by an exchange of letters between the 
Director-General and the UN Secretary General (WT/GC/W/10). 
 
Generally speaking, the WTO collaborates with several intergovernmental 
bodies (see the Director-General's reports on Coherence in Global Economic 
Policy-Making, the most recent of which can be found in document 
WT/TF/COH/S/16).   
9.  The adoption of measures to give effect to these principles and 
objectives shall be a matter of conscious and purposeful effort on the part of the contracting parties both individually and jointly.  
Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
8.  The developed contracting parties do not expect reciprocity for 
commitments made by them in trade negotiations to reduce or remove tariffs and other barriers to the trade of less-developed contracting parties.   See above under paragraph 5. In addition, this provision was taken into 
account during the negotiations in the Uruguay Round.  This is reflected both in the extent of bindings on industrial products and the average level of tariffs of the developing country Members.   
Article XXXVIIb 
Provisions aimed at increasing the trade op portunities of developing country Members 
1.  The developed contracting parties shall to the fullest extent possible - 
that is, except when compelling reasons, which may include legal reasons, 
make it impossible give effect to the following provisions: 
(a) Accord high priority to the reduction and elimination of barriers to 
products currently or potentially of particular export interest to less-
developed contracting parties, including customs duties and other 
restrictions which differentiate unreasonably between such products in their 
primary and in their processed forms; A similar provision has been taken into account in the reduction of tariffs on 
tropical products during the Uruguay Round. Members are currently 
negotiating the reduction and elimination of barriers to products of export 
interest to developing and least-developed countries in the agriculture and 
non-agricultural market access (NAMA) negotiations. 
 
 
4.  Less-developed contracting parties agree to take appropriate action in 
implementation of the provisions of Pa rt IV for the benefit of the trade of 
other less-developed contracting parties, in so far as such action is consistent with their individual present and future development, financial and trade needs taking into account past trade developments as well as the 
trade interests of less-developed contracting parties as a whole. See the references to improved preferential market access measures for 
LDCs in Section 7 of this document.  
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Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
1. (b) refrain from introducing, or increasing the incidence of, customs 
duties or non-tariff import barriers on products currently or potentially of particular export interest to less-developed contracting parties; and 
(c) (i) refrain from imposing new fiscal measures, and (ii) in any 
adjustments of fiscal policy accord high priority to the reduction and elimination of fiscal measures, which would hamper, or which hamper, significantly the growth of consumption of primary products, in raw or 
processed form, wholly or mainly produced in the territories of less-
developed contracting parties, and which are applied specifically to those products.  
2.  (a) Whenever it is considered that effect is not being given to any of the 
provisions of subparagraph (a), (b) or  (c) of paragraph 1, the matter shall 
be reported to the CONTRACTING PARTIES either by the contracting party 
n o t  s o  g i v i n g  e f f e c t  t o  t h e  r e l e v a n t  p r o v i s i o n s  o r  b y  a n y  o t h e r  i n t e r e s t e d  
contracting party.  
(b) (i) The CONTRACTING PARTIES shall, if requested so to do by any 
interested contracting party, and without prejudice to any bilateral 
consultations that may be undertaken, consult with the contracting party 
concerned and all interested contracting parties with respect to the matter 
with a view to reaching solutions satisfactory to all contracting parties 
concerned in order to further the object ives set forth in Article XXXVI. In the 
course of these consultations, the reasons given in cases where effect was 
not being given to the provisions of subparagraph (a), (b) or (c) of 
paragraph 1 shall be examined.  
(ii) As the implementation of the provisions of subparagraph (a), (b) or (c) 
of paragraph 1 by individual contracting parties may in some cases be more 
readily achieved where action is taken jointly with other developed 
contracting parties, such consultation might, where appropriate, be directed 
towards this end. 
(iii) The consultations by the CONTRACTING PARTIES might also, in 
appropriate cases, be directed towards agreement on joint action designed 
to further the objectives of this Agreement as envisaged in paragraph 1 of 
Article XXV.    
3.  The developed contracting parties shall: 
(a) make every effort, in cases where a government directly or indirectly determines the resale price of products  wholly or mainly produced in the 
territories of less-developed contracting parties, to maintain trade margins 
at equitable levels.   
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(b) give active consideration to the adoption of other measures designed to 
provide greater scope for the development of imports from less-developed contracting parties and collaborate in appropriate international action to this end.   
(c) have special regard to the trade interests of less-developed contracting 
parties when considering the application of other measures permitted under 
this Agreement to meet particular problems and explore all possibilities of 
constructive remedies before applying such measures where they would 
affect essential interests of those contracting parties.   This provision has been incorporated into the Anti-Dumping Agreement. 
 
5. In the implementation of the commitments set forth in paragraph 1 to 4 each contracting party shall afford to any other interested contracting party or contracting parties full and prompt opportunity for consultations under 
the normal procedures of this Agreement with respect to any matter or 
difficulty which may arise.  
Article XXXVIIIb 
Provisions aimed at increasing the trade op portunities of developing country Members 
2. (c) collaborate in analysing the development plans and policies of 
individual less-developed contracting parties and in examining trade and aid 
relationships with a view to devising concrete measures to promote the 
development of export potential and to facilitate access to export markets 
for the products of the industries thus developed and, in this connection, 
seek appropriate collaboration with governments and international 
organizations, and in particular with organizations having competence in 
relation to financial assistance for economic development, in systematic 
studies of trade and aid relationships in individual less-developed 
contracting parties aimed at obtaining a clear analysis of export potential, 
market prospects and any further action that may be required;   One of the aims of the WTO is to help developing countries, and in particular 
the poorest among them, expand their production and exports of goods and 
services. Some countries have done well – but others have not, including a 
large number of LDCs, where trade is failing to make the contribution that it 
should be making to economic growth and poverty reduction. The Aid-for-
Trade Initiative was launched at the WTO Ministerial Conference in Hong 
Kong in December 2005, with the aim of assisting developing countries and  
LDCs reap greater trade benefits from enhanced market access opportunities. 
The WTO initiative brings together the beneficiary countries and their 
development partners, the Bretton Woods Institutions, Regional Development 
Banks and specialized intergovernmental agencies. Aid for Trade is not meant 
to compete with existing Official Development Assistance flows and is 
intended to help build productive capacity, provide assistance for the 
implementation of WTO Agreements, and help build trade-related 
infrastructure. This requires a commitment from trade, development and 
finance ministers in developed and developing countries, including LDCs, as 
well as the support of private business in order to live up to its promise of 
catalysing trade-related investment. 
 
One of the Aid-for-Trade Task Force's conclusions in its report considered by 
the WTO's General Council in July 2006 was that existing mechanisms for 
monitoring, reviewing and evaluating Ai d for Trade were inadequate and that 
improved monitoring and evaluation were essential for, on the one hand,  
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 15 - PROVISION COMMENT 
building confidence in the fact that increased Aid for Trade would be delivered 
and used effectively, and on the other, enhancing the credibility of donors' 
commitments. Accordingly, in 2007, a system of monitoring Aid-for-Trade 
flows was established at three levels: the global level, the national level and 
the donor level. A Global Aid-for-Trade Review and Debate was held on 
19-21 November 2007, where various inputs of the monitoring process were 
put together into a coherent picture of current trends, and where Members 
considered the results of the WTO monitoring process. The three main 
themes to emerge from these discussions were the need to: encourage 
greater developing country ownership of the initiative; strengthen evaluation, 
as well as monitoring; and shift the focus on the initiative from awareness 
raising to implementation. 
   
The 2nd Global Review of Aid for Trade was held on 6 and 7 July 2009.  
Members were encouraged to honour their Aid for Trade pledges and press 
for new commitments, particularly in the context of the global economic 
slowdown. Developing countries were encouraged to promote greater 
ownership of the Aid-for-Trade Initiative through mainstreaming trade into 
their national and regional economic planning frameworks and dialogues and 
placing greater emphasis on the implem entation of Aid for Trade projects, 
particularly through regional Aid-for-Trade events. The 3rd Global Review, 
held on 18 and 19 July 2011, focused on showing results - including 
assessing results and impacts of Aid for Trade. Concrete positive results were 
achieved with regard to resource mobilization, mainstreaming, monitoring 
and evaluation, South-South cooperation, implementation at the regional 
level and the increasing role of the private sector. The Review advanced the 
debate on Aid for Trade, moving from one based on discussion of priorities 
and resource mobilization to one which also included examination of the 
effectiveness of Aid for Trade and its impact on the ability of developing 
countries to trade. It also confirmed that Aid for Trade was achieving results 
and remained a priority for developing countries and donors and highlighted 
the importance and benefit of the role that the private sector can play in 
ensuring that trade development projects lead to sustainable trade.  
 
In 2012, engagement and commitment was further maintained to ensure that 
the necessary support was being provided to developing countries to help 
them identify their Aid-for-Trade need s and priorities, and to ensure that 
trade was being integrated into their national and regional development 
strategies. Important progress continued with regard to the implementation 
of the Aid-for-Trade Initiative on the basis of the 2012-2013 Work  
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 16 - PROVISION COMMENT 
Programme, the central theme of which was "Deepening Coherence". The 
Work Programme stressed that future debate should extend to further 
enhancing the effectiveness of Aid for Trade and that showing results was a 
key component of maintaining momentum. It set out the actions which 
Members should take in areas focusing on continued mobilization of 
resources, mainstreaming trade into national and regional economic and 
development plans, strengthening regional trade integration, enhancing 
dialogue with the private sector, and refining evaluation and monitoring 
mechanisms to focus on the implementation and effectiveness of Aid for 
Trade. Work on these topics will provide inputs for the 4th Global Review of 
Aid for Trade, which will be held on 8-10 July 2013 and the central theme of 
which will be private sector development and connecting to value chains. 
 
(e) collaborate in seeking feasible methods to expand trade for the purpose 
of economic development, through international harmonization and adjustment of national policies and regulations, through technical and 
commercial standards affecting production, transportation and marketing, 
and through export promotion by the establishment of facilities for the increased flow of trade information and the development of market research;  The work of the International Trade Centre UNCTAD/WTO is oriented towards 
meeting the objectives of this provision.  
The WTO Reference Centre Programme has contributed to enhancing the flow 
of trade-related information to governments and business communities.    
Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
1.  The contracting parties shall collabo rate jointly, with the framework of 
this Agreement and elsewhere, as appropriate, to further the objectives set forth in Article XXXVI.    
2.  In particular, the CONTRACTING PARTIES shall: 
(a) where appropriate, take action, including action through international 
arrangements, to provide improved and acceptable conditions of access to 
world markets for primary products of particular interest to less-developed 
contracting parties and to devise measures designed to stabilize and 
improve conditions of world markets in these products including measures 
designed to attain stable, equitable and remunerative prices for exports of 
such products; In 2003, the delegations of Kenya, Ug anda and Tanzania tabled a non-paper 
in the CTD on the long-term trend towards a decline in the prices of primary 
commodities (WT/COMTD/W/113). The non-paper highlighted the problem 
posed to primary commodity exporting countries in this regard and stated the 
need for the WTO to take action on the issue. Subsequently, in the 
1 August 2004 General Council Decision13, it was agreed that the issue of 
commodities should be taken into consideration, as appropriate, in the course 
of the agriculture and NAMA negotiations. As a result, this issue is being dealt 
with in the ongoing negotiations on Agriculture and NAMA.   
(b)  seek appropriate collaboration in matters of trade and development 
policy with the United Nations and its organs and agencies, including any institutions that may be created on the basis of recommendations by the See comment in relation to Article XXXVI:7.   
 
                                               
13 WT/L/579.    
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 17 - PROVISION COMMENT 
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development;. 
(d)  keep under continuous review the development of world trade with 
special reference to the rate of grow th of the trade of less-developed 
contracting parties and make such recommendations to contracting parties 
as may, in the circumstances, be deemed appropriate; The CTD conducts regular reviews of the participation of developing countries 
in world trade, for which the Secretariat updates its statistical background 
paper. The last version of the paper, from October 2011, is contained in 
document WT/COMTD/W/181. Another update is being prepared for the 
CTD’s final meeting of 2013.   
(f)  establish such institutional arrangements as may be necessary to 
further the objectives set forth in Ar ticle XXXVI and to give effect to the 
provision of this Part. The WTO CTD was established in 1995. The CTD’s terms of reference can be 
found in document WT/L/46.  
 
At the Eighth Ministerial Conference (MC8), Ministers reaffirmed that development is a core element of the WTO's work. They also reaffirmed the positive link between trade and development and called for focused work in 
the CTD, which is to conduct this work in accordance with its mandate and 
report the results achieved to Ministers at the Ninth Session. Ministers called on WTO Members to fully operationalize the mandate of the CTD as a focal point for development work. These instructions from Ministers have been a 
principal area of discussion in the CTD since MC8. At the time of writing, a 
number of proposals for focused work continue to be considered by Members. WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 18 - 
 
  2.2  Understanding on the Balance-of-Payment s Provisions of the General Agreement on 
Tariffs and Trade 1994 
2.3.  The Understanding on Balance-of-Payments Provisions of the General Agreement on Tariffs 
and Trade 1994 contains two S&D provisions falling under the following categories.  
2.2.1  Flexibility of commitments, of action. and use of policy instruments 
One provision (Paragraph 8). 
 2.2.2  Technical assistance 
 One provision (Paragraph 12). 
   
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 19 - UNDERSTANDING ON BALANCE-OF-PAYMENTS PROVISIONS OF THE GENERAL AGREEMENT ON TARIFFS AND TRADE 1994 
PROVISION COMMENT 
Members, 
Recognizing the provisions of Articles  XII and XVIII:B of GATT 1994 and of 
the Declaration on Trade Measures Taken for Balance-of-Payments Purposes 
adopted on 28 November 1979 (BISD 26S/205-209, referred to in this 
Understanding as the "1979 Declaration") and in order to clarify such provisions
14; 
Hereby agree as follows:  
Flexibility of commitments, o f action,  and use of policy instruments  
Procedures for balance-of-payments consultations 
8. Consultations may be held under th e simplified procedures approved on 
19 December 1972 (BISD 20S/47-49, referred to in this Understanding as 
"simplified consultation procedures") in the case of least-developed country 
Members or in the case of developing country Members which are pursuing liberalization efforts in conformity with the schedule presented to the Committee in previous consultations. Simplified consultation procedures may 
also be used when the Trade Policy Review of a developing country Member 
is scheduled for the same calendar year as the date fixed for the consultations. In such cases the decision as to whether full consultation procedures should be used will be made on the basis of the factors 
enumerated in paragraph 8 of the 1979 Declaration. Except in the case of 
least-developed country Members, no more than two successive consultations may be held under simplified consultation procedures.
b  
                                               
14 Nothing in this Understanding is intended to modify the rights and obligations of Members under Articles XII or XVIII:B of GAT T 1994. The provisions of Articles XXII and 
XXIII of GATT 1994 as elaborated and applied by the Dispute Settlement Un derstanding (DSU) may be invoked with respect to any m atters arising from the application of 
restrictive import measures  taken for BOP purposes.  
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 20 - PROVISION COMMENT 
Technical assistance  
Notification and documentation 
12.  The Secretariat shall, with a view to facilitating the consultations in the Committee, prepare a factual background paper dealing with the different 
aspects of the plan for consultations. In the case of developing country 
Members, the Secretariat document shall include relevant background and analytical material on the incidence of the external trading environment on the balance-of-payments situation and prospects of the consulting Member. 
 
The technical assistance services of the Secretariat shall, at the request of a developing country Member, assist in preparing the documentation for the consultations.  WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 21 - 
 
  2.3  Agreement on Agriculture 
2.4.  The Agreement on Agriculture contains 13 S&D provisions.  The S&D provisions of the 
Agreement fall under four categories.15   
2.5.  These provisions cover positive actions to be taken by Members with respect to developing 
country Members, including LDCs and Net Food-I mporting Developing Country Members (NFIDCs), 
and actions developing countries may take as a result of exemptions, time-bound or otherwise 
provided for in the Agreement. With the except ion of Article 12.2, available data show that 
developing countries made use of all the available provisions. 
2.6.  Under the notification requirements adop ted by the Committee on Agriculture (G/AG/2 and 
G/AG/2/Add.1), LDCs are to submit notifications on domestic support only every two years.  
Developing countries are to notify their domestic support measures annually but the Committee on 
Agriculture may, upon request, set aside parts of the notification requirements.  To date, there has been no request for such flexibility. 
2.3.1  Provisions aimed at increasing trade opportunities of develo ping country Members 
 One provision (Preamble to the Agreement).   
 2.3.2  Transitional time-periods 
 One provision (Article 15.2). 
 
2.3.3  Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
Nine provisions (Article 6.2; Article 6.4; Article 9.2(b)(iv); Article 9.4; Article 12.2; 
Article 15.1; Annex 2, paragraph 3 and footnote 5; Domestic food aid: Annex 2, 
paragraph 4, footnotes 5 and 6; Annex 5, Section B). 
 2.3.4  Provisions relating to LDC Members 
 Three provisions (Article 15.2, Article 16.1
16 and Article 16.217). 
 
                                               
15 Article 15.2 is listed in both the transitional time-periods category and the LDCs category but is not 
counted twice when calculating the total nu mber of provisions in the Agreement. 
16 This provision is also available to NFIDCs.   
17 This provision is also available to NFIDCs.    
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 22 - AGREEMENT ON AGRICULTURE 
PROVISION COMMENT 
Provisions aimed at increasing trade oppo rtunities of developing country Members 
Preamble 
Having agreed that in implementing their commitments on market access, 
developed country Members would take fully into account the particular 
needs and conditions of developing country Members by providing for a 
greater improvement of opportunities and terms of access for agricultural 
products of particular interest to these Members, including the fullest 
liberalization of trade in tropical agricultural products as agreed at the Mid-
Term Review, and for products of particular importance to the diversification 
of production from the growing of illicit narcotic crops;   Schedules of developed country Members show greater-than-average 
reductions in tariffs on a range of products of particular interest to 
developing countries (e.g. average ta riff reduction of 43% for tropical 
agricultural products) and often their accelerated implementation.   
Transitional time-periods 
Article 15.2b,c  
Developing country Members shall have the flexibility to implement reduction 
commitments over a period of up to 10 years. Least-developed country 
Members shall not be required to undertake reduction commitments. Used by developing and least-developed countries in the establishment of 
scheduled commitments in market acce ss, domestic support, and export 
subsidies. The transition period is no longer valid for developing country 
Members.   
Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
Article 6.2 (Domestic Support Commitments) c 
In accordance with the Mid-Term Review Agreement that government 
measures of assistance, whether direct or indirect, to encourage agricultural 
and rural development are an integral  part of the development programmes 
of developing countries, investment subsidies which are generally available 
to agriculture in developing country Members and agricultural input subsidies 
generally available to low-income or resource-poor producers in developing 
country Members shall be exempt from domestic support reduction 
commitments that would otherwise be applicable to such measures, as shall 
domestic support to producers in developing country Members to encourage 
diversification from growing illicit narcotic crops. Domestic support meeting 
the criteria of this paragraph shall not be required to be included in a 
Member's calculation of its Current Total AMS. A number of developing countries took account of the provision when 
submitting the constituent data and methodologies in support of their 
respective Schedules.  
 
Individual notifications reflect the extent to which some Members have 
actually taken recourse to this provision during the implementation years. 
These include: Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Bolivarian Republic of 
Venezuela, Botswana, Brazil, Burundi,  Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, 
Ecuador, Egypt, Fiji, The Gambia, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Korea, 
Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Mexico, Morocco, Namibia, Nepal, 
Oman, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, 
Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates and Uruguay. See Members’ 
notifications in the G/AG/N/-- series.  
Article 6.4 (b) (Domestic Support Commitments- calculation of current total 
AMS) 
For developing country Members, the de minimis percentage under this 
paragraph shall be 10%. A number of developing countries took account of the de minimis  clause 
when calculating their Base Total AMS in order to schedule domestic support 
reduction commitments.   
 Actual recourse to the de minimis  clause for the specified percentage, 
whether on a product-specific or non-product specific basis, during the 
implementation years is reflected in the notifications submitted by a number  
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 23 - PROVISION COMMENT 
of developing country Members, incl uding: Bangladesh, Barbados, Brazil, 
Chile, India, Israel, Jordan, Korea, Mexico, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey and Uruguay. See 
Members’ notifications in the G/AG/N/-- series. 
Article 9.2(b)(Budgetary outlays for export subsidies) 
(iv) the Member's budgetary outlays for export subsidies and the quantities 
benefiting from such subsidies, at the conclusion of the implementation 
period, are no greater than 64% and 79% of the 1986-1990 base period 
levels, respectively.  For developing country Members these percentages 
shall be 76 and 86%, respectively. A number of developing countries took account of the provision in 
establishing their schedules. All developing country Members having 
scheduled export subsidy reduction commitments (e.g., the Bolivarian 
Republic of Venezuela, Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia, Israel, Mexico, Romania, 
Turkey and Uruguay) have used the flexibility to apply a lower rate of 
reduction.  For further information see the individual Members' schedules. 
Article 9.4 During the implementation period, developing country Members shall not be 
required to undertake commitments in respect of the export subsidies listed 
in subparagraphs (d) and (e) of paragraph 1 above, provided that these are not applied in a manner that would circumvent reduction commitments:
18 Developing countries took account of the provision in the establishment of 
their Schedules.   
A number of developing countries (e.g. Barbados, India, Korea, Mauritius, 
Mexico, Morocco, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Tunisia) notified the use of Article 9.1(d) and/or Article 9.1(e) export subsidies under this provision. 
 
See developing country Members’ notifications in the G/AG/N/-- series. 
Article 12.2 (Export prohibitions and restrictions) 
The provisions of [Article 12.1] shall not apply to any developing country 
Member, unless the measure is taken by  a developing country Member which 
is a net-food exporter of the specific foodstuff concerned. It should be noted that no developing country Member has ever notified the 
introduction of export restrictions and prohibitions, and that there is no 
formal indication of whether recourse to this flexibility has been taken at all. 
Article 15.1c 
In keeping with the recognition that differential and more favourable 
treatment for developing country Members is an integral part of the negotiation, S&D in respect of commitments shall be provided as set out in 
the relevant provisions of this Agreement and embodied in the Schedules of 
concessions and commitments. The schedules of developing countries and LDCs reflect the flexibility on 
ceiling bindings, longer implementation periods, and lower reduction commitments in market access, domestic support and export subsidies. 
Annex 2, paragraph 3, footnote 5 (Public stockholding for food security 
purposes) 
For the purposes of paragraph 3 of Annex 2, governmental stockholding 
programmes for food security purposes in developing countries whose 
operation is transparent and conducted in accordance with officially 
published objective criteria or guidelines shall be considered to be in 
conformity with the provisions of th is paragraph, including programmes 
under which stocks of foodstuffs for fo od security purposes are acquired and Developing countries took account of the provision in the establishment of 
the Schedules.  This particular category of government assistance has been 
implemented by several developing country Members, as reflected in their 
respective domestic support notifications.  See Members’ notifications in the 
G/AG/N/-- series. 
                                               
18 Memo: paragraphs (d) and (e) of Article 9.1 of the Agreement on Agriculture refer to the following export subsidy policies: 
"(d) the provision of subsidies to reduce the costs of marketing exports of agricultural products, (other than widely available  export promotion and advisory services) 
including handling, upgrading and other pr ocessing costs, and the costs of international transport and freight;" and  
"(e) internal transport and freight charges on  export shipments, provided or mandated by governments,  on terms more favourable than for domestic  shipments;".  
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 24 - PROVISION COMMENT 
released at administered prices, provided that the difference between the 
acquisition price and the external reference price is accounted for in the 
AMS. 
Annex 2, paragraph 4, footnotes 5 & 6 (Domestic food aid) 
For the purposes of paragraphs 3 and 4 of Annex 2, the provision of 
foodstuffs at subsidized prices with the objective of meeting food requirement of urban and rural poor in developing countries on a regular basis at reasonable prices shall be considered to be in conformity with the 
provisions of this paragraph. Developing countries took account of this provision in the establishment of 
the Schedules. This particular category of government assistance has been 
implemented by several developing country Members, as reflected in their respective domestic support notificati ons. See Members notifications in the 
G/AG/N/-- series. . 
Annex 5, Section B 
7.  The provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 4 shall also not apply with effect 
from the entry into force of the WTO Agreement to a primary agricultural 
product that is the predominant staple in the traditional diet of a developing 
country Member and in respect of which the following conditions, in addition 
to those specified in paragraph 1(a) through 1(d), as they apply to the 
products concerned, are complied with:  
(a)  minimum access opportunities in respect of the products concerned, as 
specified in Section I-B of Part I of the Schedule of the developing country 
Member concerned, correspond to 1% of base period domestic consumption 
of the products concerned from the beginning of the first year of the 
implementation period and are increased in equal annual instalments to 2% 
of corresponding domestic consumption in the base period at the beginning 
of the fifth year of the implementation period. From the beginning of the 
sixth year of the implementation period, minimum access opportunities in 
respect of the products concerned correspond to 2% of corresponding 
domestic consumption in the base period and are increased in equal annual 
instalments to 4% of corresponding domestic consumption in the base period 
until the beginning of the 10th year.  Thereafter, the level of minimum access 
opportunities resulting from this formula in the 10th year shall be maintained 
in the Schedule of the developing country Member concerned;  The Schedules of Korea19, the Philippines20 and the Separate Customs 
Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu21, reflect recourse to this 
provision.    
                                               
19 Flexibility extended until 2014 (see G/MA/TAR/RS/98). 
20 Flexibility extended up to 30 June 2012 (see G/MA/TAR/RS/99). Th e Philippines has subsequently submitted a waiver request to t he Council for Trade in Goods seeking a 
further extension of the Special Treatment (see G/C/W/665/Rev.1, 16 November 2012). 
21 However, the Separate Cu stoms Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Mats u has already "tariffied" the tariff lines previousl y subject to this flexibility (see 
G/MA/TAR/RS/88).  
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 25 - PROVISION COMMENT 
(b) appropriate market access opportunities have been provided for in other 
products under this Agreement. 10.  In the event that special treatment under paragraph 7 is not to be continued beyond the 10
th year following the beginning of the 
implementation period, the products concerned shall be subject to ordinary 
customs duties, established on the basis of a tariff equivalent to be calculated in accordance with the guidelines prescribed in the attachment hereto, which shall be bound in the Schedule of the Member concerned.  In 
other respects, the provisions of paragraph 6 shall apply as modified by the 
relevant S&D accorded to developing country Members under this Agreement.  
Provisions relating to LDC Members 
Article 15.2b,c 
Developing country Members shall have the flexibility to implement reduction 
commitments over a period of up to 10 years. Least-developed country Members shall not be required to undertake reduction commitments. See comment under Article 15.2 of transitional time-periods.   
Article 16.1 
Developed country Members shall take such action as is provided for within 
the framework of the Decision on Measures Concerning the Possible Negative 
Effects of the Reform Programme on Least-Developed and Net 
Food-Importing Developing Countries. Information on actions undertaken within the framework of the decision is 
contained in the comments relating to paragraph 3(iii) of the Decision on 
Measures Concerning the Possible Negative Effects of the Reform Programme 
on Least-Developed and Net Food-Importing Developing Countries.   
Article 16.2 
The Committee on Agriculture shall monitor, as appropriate, the follow-up to this Decision. The Decision has been on the agenda  of virtually every meeting of the 
Committee on Agriculture. Please see the comments relating to paragraph 3(iii) of the Decision on Measures Concerning the Possible 
Negative Effects of the Reform Programme on Least-Developed and Net 
Food-Importing Developing Countries.   
 WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 26 - 
 
  2.4  Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures 
2.7.  The Agreement on the Application of Sanita ry and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement) 
contains six specific S&D provisions which fall under three broad categories: 
2.4.1  Provisions under which WTO Memb ers should safeguard the interests of 
developing country Members 
 Two provisions (Article 10.1 and 10.4). 
 2.4.2  Transitional time-periods 
 Two provisions (Article 10.2 and 10.3). 
 2.4.3  Technical assistance 
 Two provisions (Article 9.1.and 9.2). 
 
2.8.  In addition, guidelines and decisions adopted by the Committee have regularly taken into consideration the specific needs and concerns expressed by developing country Members, and contain pertinent provisions. These include: 
a. Guidelines to Further the Practical Implementation of Article 5.5 (G/SPS/15);   
b. Decision on the Implementation of Articl e 4 of the SPS Agreement (on Equivalence) 
(G/SPS/19/Rev.2);  
c. Recommended Procedures for Implementing the Transparency Obligations of the SPS 
Agreement (G/SPS/7/Rev.3); and 
d. Procedure to Enhance Transparency of S&D in Favour of Developing Country Members 
(G/SPS/33/Rev.1).   
Equivalence 
2.9.  In response to a request from the General Council to examine the concerns of developing 
country Members regarding the equivalence of sanitary and phytosanitary measures, the SPS Committee adopted guidelines on the Implementation  of Article 4 of the Agreement regarding the 
Recognition of Equivalence in October 2001 (G/SPS/ 19). Following instructions from Ministers at 
the Doha Ministerial Conference, further guidance and clarifications were subsequently agreed, and 
revised guidelines were adopted in July 2004 (G/SPS/19/Rev.2).   
2.10.  The international standard-setting organizations referenced in the SPS Agreement have 
developed guidance in this area, and the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), International 
Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) and the World Or ganization for Animal Health (OIE) have been 
invited to provide information on equivalence at each meeting of the SPS Committee since June 2005. Codex has adopted principles for the development of equivalence agreements regarding food safety import and export inspection and certification systems, and guidelines on the 
judgement of equivalence of such systems.
22 In October 2011, Codex provided information 
regarding the development of guidelines for the ju dgement of equivalence of food control systems 
by the Committee on Food Import and Export Insp ection and Certification Systems (CCFICS). It 
was proposed that the principle of recognition th at other systems could be capable of meeting the 
same food safety objectives be included in the general guidelines for food control systems for both 
national and international levels. The OIE has developed guidelines for judgement of the equivalence of zoo-sanitary measures.
23 The IPPC adopted in 2005 an international standard for 
phytosanitary measures with guidelines for determination and recognition of equivalence of 
phytosanitary measures (ISPM 24). In addition, ISPM 1, which also includes principles on 
                                               
22 http://www.Codexalimentarius.net/download/standards/10047/CXG_053e.pdf  
23 http://www.oie.int/eng/normes/en_mcode-2004.htm  WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 27 - 
 
  equivalence, was revised in 2006.24 At the March 2012 SPS Committee meeting, the IPPC 
indicated that it would start an analytical st udy on the topic of equivalence (G/SPS/GEN/1153 
refers).   
Transparency 
2.11.  Managing information on changes in other Members' measures remains challenging for 
many developing country Members that also struggle with implementing basic obligations with respect to the transparency provisions of the SPS Agreement. Many developing country Members 
have flagged their need for assistance and suppo rt to resolve their individual transparency 
difficulties, for example with the process of send ing notifications to the WTO. Other difficulties 
faced by developing country Members relate to the operation of their SPS National Notification Authority and their National Enquiry Point. 
2.12.  As part of the discussion on the five proposals referred to the SPS Committee by the 
General Council in 2003, the SPS Committee tried to address the concerns that underlay the 
proposals (G/SPS/35 - see paragraph 2.18 below). There have been some important developments that address, in part, some of the "initial elements" put forward in paragraph 43 of G/SPS/35, including  improvements in the recommended notification procedures and creation of a public, 
searchable database of SPS notifications to, inter alia , help developing countries better make use 
of existing transparency procedures and information. 
2.13.  The Committee adopted revised Recommended Procedures for Implementing the 
Transparency Provisions of the SPS Agreement in  June 2008 (G/SPS/7/Rev.3). The public version 
of the SPS Information Management System (IMS) was launched in October 2007. Its trilingual 
interface allows access to the most recent information on notifications as well as on Enquiry Points 
and National Notification Authorities. It also includes information on specific trade concerns and other SPS documents. It facilitates the conduct of  searches according to specific needs/interests 
and also the preparation of reports/summaries which can be shared with interested stakeholders.   
2.14.  At the March 2011 meeting, the Secretariat launched the SPS Notification Submission 
System (NSS) which allows National Notification Authorities to fill out and submit SPS notifications online. Currently, almost half of all notifications received are through the SPS NSS. The Secretariat has also established a mentoring mechanism which aims to bring together those individuals who 
are fulfilling the functions of Enquiry Points and Notification Authorities in different Members.
25 The 
objective of this voluntary procedure is to a ssist Members in not only implementing their 
obligations with respect to the transparency provisions but also in benefiting from their rights. A practical Manual on the operation of Enquiry Points and Notification Authorities is additionally 
available. It includes guidance on how to prepare a notification, how to manage incoming 
notifications, how to alert stakeholders, and how to draft some standard letters.
26 
2.15.  The training and technical assistance activities of the WTO Secretariat on the SPS 
Agreement also devote a significant amount of time to transparency issues. In addition, the 
Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF) published a scoping study that identifies and 
assesses the myriad of regional SPS policy frameworks and strategies in Africa, in order to avoid multiplication of transparency requirements, and guide future work in this area.
27   
Transparency of S&D 
2.16.  In 2004, the SPS Committee formally adopted a Procedure to Enhance the Transparency of 
S&D.28 The Committee agreed to review the proposed notification process after one year to 
evaluate its implementation, and determine whether changes were required and/or its continuation warranted. According to this procedure, if an exporting developing country Member identifies in its 
comments significant difficulties with a proposed  SPS measure notified by another Member, the 
                                               
24https://www.ippc.int/servlet/BinaryDownloade rServlet/124047_2007_ISPMs_b ook_Engl.doc?filename
=1187683730555_ISPMs_1to29_2007_En_with_convention.doc&refID=124047  
25 See G/SPS/W/217 and G/SPS/GEN/1097. 
26 Go to http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e /sps_e/transparency_toolkit_e.htm . 
27 http://www.standardsfacility.org/Files/Publicatio ns/STDF_Regional_SPS_Stategies_in_Africa _EN.pdf  
28 G/SPS/33.   WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 28 - 
 
  Member proposing to introduce the measure will, upon request, enter into discussions to examine 
whether and how the identified problem could best be addressed to take into account the special needs of the exporting developing country Member . Resolution of the concern identified could 
include one or a combination of (1) a change in the measure; (2) the provision of technical assistance; or (3) the provision of S&D. Members agreed to inform the Committee regarding the 
response provided to such requests. At its October 2009 meeting, the Committee adopted a 
revision of the procedure to enhance the transparency of S&D.
29    
2.17.  The STDF has funded various projects to increase transparency by enhancing inter-agency 
coordination at a national and/or regional le vel, as well as strengthening linkages between 
government agencies and the private sector.   
S&D – General Observations 2.18.  A report to the General Council on the proposals referred to the SPS Committee was 
adopted in June 2005.
30 The report expresses the Committee's commitment to continue to 
examine the proposals before it, and any revision of these proposals, with the aim of developing 
specific recommendations for a decision. The report also identifies elements for discussion on further work to assist the Committee to address the concerns underlying the proposals as 
identified by Members, with a view to fulfilli ng the Doha Development Mandate. Discussion of 
these elements commenced at the Committee meeting of October 2005. 
2.19.  During 2006, the Committee continued its ex amination of the implementation of the SPS 
Agreement and the concerns of developing country Members. The proposals referred to the SPS Committee by the General Council were on the agenda of each meeting of the Committee. 
Although there were substantive discussions of some  of the underlying issues in the proposals, the 
Committee was not able to reach a decision on any of the specific proposals as presented.
31   
2.20.  The latest report of the Chairman of the SPS Committee to the General Council on S&D was 
in 2007.32 In addition, as mentioned above, at its October 2009 meeting, the Committee adopted 
a revision of the procedure to enhance the transparency of S&D.33   
2.21.  It may be noted that the CTD(SS) has been considering proposals relating to Article 10.2 
and 10.3 of the SPS Agreement. The specific proposals and the most recent language considered under each article have been brought to the attention of the SPS Committee. 
                                               
29 G/SPS/33/Rev.1. 
30 G/SPS/35. 
31 G/SPS/41. 
32 G/SPS/46. 
33 G/SPS/33/Rev.1.  
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PROVISION COMMENT 
Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
Article 10.1c 
In the preparation and application of sanitary or phytosanitary measures, 
Members shall take account of the special needs of developing country 
Members, and in particular of the least-developed country Members. A report to the General Council on the proposals referred to the SPS 
Committee was adopted in June 2005.34 It includes the text of the proposals 
relating to Article 10.1. A revised proposal relating to Article 10.1 was 
presented to the Committee in June 2007 and discussed at its October 
meeting.35  
 
In this context, it may be useful to mention that the Procedure to Enhance 
Transparency of S&D in Favour of Developing Country Members 
(G/SPS/33/Rev.1) was developed explicitly in response to some of the S&D 
proposals, and the proposal relating to Article 10.1 can be said to have been 
addressed, in part, by the agreed procedure.  G/SPS/33/Rev.1. uses virtually 
the same language as parts of the proposal re: "if an exporting developing 
country Member identifies significant problems…", but provides for 
consultations to address specific problems in complying with an SPS 
measure. In G/SPS/33/Rev.1, the exporting developing country Member 
should identify "the specific problems that the proposed measure may create 
for its exports, or the specific reasons why it is unable to comply…". 
 
Regarding the suggestion in the proposal that Members indicate the names 
of the developing country Members that could be affected by the applied 
measure, the recommended notification procedures adopted by the SPS 
Committee (G/SPS/7/Rev.3) requests the identification of regions or 
countries that are likely to be affected by the measure, to the extent 
practicable. This is already included in the notification formats. 
The proposal also refers to Members initiating consultations in the 
Committee before taking any measure likely to affect imports from 
developing countries. In discussions leading to G/SPS/35, Members indicated 
that they could not put on hold measures necessary for health protection in 
between Committee meetings (three times per year) - this would contradict 
the basic right to protect health. Already Members are obliged to give 
advance notification of proposed measures, and to receive comments from 
                                               
34 G/SPS/35. 
35 JOB(07)/99.  
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 30 - PROVISION COMMENT 
trading partners (more than 15,000 SPS notifications to date). There is 
already a standing agenda item under which Members can raise any 
questions/concerns regarding notified measures, or any "specific trade 
concern" about any measure. There have been 344 specific trade concerns 
raised in the SPS Committee since 1995, about half by developing countries. 
With regard to the proposal for an SPS-specific facility under the Global Trust 
Fund, no such facility was created. However, the WTO joined with FAO, 
WHO, OIE and the World Bank to create the STDF, specifically to fund 
SPS-capacity building. It is demand-driven (on-line application system) and 
funds projects that help build the technical capacity to meet SPS 
requirements. In addition, the WTO funds the participation of developing 
country officials (approx. 75) once each year in a workshop, and an SPS 
meeting. Codex, IPPC and OIE all have trust funds to help fund participation, 
and WTO/STDF have assisted in the establishment of regional initiatives that 
also help fund participation. The aim of the WTO training programmes at 
both regional and national levels is to increase knowledge of the SPS 
Agreement in developing countries.  
Article 10.4c 
Members should encourage and facilitate the active participation of 
developing country Members in the relevant international organizations. The General Council Decision of 15 December 2000 stated that: "In 
accordance with the request to the Director-General to work with the relevant international standard-setting organizations on the issue of the 
participation of developing countries in their work, these organizations are 
urged to ensure the participation of Members at different levels of development and from all geographic regions, throughout all phases of 
standard development". (WT/L/384)   
 
The Director-General provided three reports regarding his efforts in this area, the last one in the lead up to the Doha Ministerial Conference.
36 At the 
Doha Ministerial Conference, Members urged him to continue his efforts to facilitate participation of developing countries in standard setting.   
 
 The growing consensus that financial support was needed to enhance 
participation of developing country Members in international organizations led to the creation of several funding initiatives. The Heads of the FAO, the 
OIE, the WHO, the World Bank and the WTO issued a joint statement during 
the Doha Ministerial Conference reaffirming their commitment to enhance developing countries' capacity to participate effectively in the development 
                                               
36 WT/GC/45, WT/GC/46, WT/GC/54.  
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- 31 - PROVISION COMMENT 
and application of international standards and in taking full advantage of 
trade opportunities.37 (These discussions led to the establishment of the 
STDF.)     
 A number of developments have since occurred which address some of the 
underlying concerns. With respect to the three standard-setting bodies of 
relevance under the SPS Agreement, trust funds have been established to 
increase participation of developing country Members in the standard-setting 
activities of the IPPC, of the FA O/WHO Codex and of the OIE.   
 
 In addition, the OIE supports the participation of developing country 
Members in the elaboration of standards by ensuring that experts from every 
region participate in developing the draft text of a scientific standard. The 
Codex and the IPPC have trust funds which sponsor the participation of officials from developing country Members and economies in transition to participate in their meetings. These programmes are aimed at enhancing 
those officials' level of participation in the elaboration of Codex and IPPC 
standards.    Meetings of the SPS Committee have when possible been scheduled back-to-
back with the meetings of the Codex Commission and/or IPPC, to enable SPS 
experts from developing countries to combine both meetings in one trip.   
Transitional time-periods 
Article 10.2a  
Where the appropriate level of sanitary or phytosanitary protection allows 
scope for the phased introduction of new sanitary or phytosanitary measures, longer time-frames for compliance should be accorded on products of interest to developing country Members so as to maintain opportunities for their exports. The Decision on Implementation-Related Issues and Concerns taken at the 
Doha Ministerial Conference in 2001 included, inter alia , a clarification on 
Article 10.2.
38 It specifies that where the appropriate level of protection 
allows scope for the phased introduction of SPS measures, the "longer time-frame for compliance" referred to in Article 10.2 shall normally mean at least six months. Where the phased introduction of a new measure is not 
possible, but a Member identifies specific problems, the Member applying the 
new measure shall enter into consultations, upon request, to try to find a mutually satisfactory solution. The Decision also indicated that in the context of paragraph 2 of Annex B of the SPS Agreement, a period of six months 
shall normally be provided between the publication of a measure and its 
entry into force. 
                                               
37 WT/MIN(01)/ST/97. 
38 WT/MIN(01)/17, paragraph 3.1.  
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- 32 - PROVISION COMMENT 
The relationship between the time-frames in different provisions of the SPS 
Agreement is described in G/SPS/GEN/819.   
Article 10.3a 
With a view to ensuring that developing country Members are able to comply 
with the provisions of this Agreement,  the Committee is enabled to grant to 
such countries, upon request, specified, time-limited exception in whole or in 
part from obligations under this Agreement, taking into account their 
financial, trade and development needs. To date, no request has been made under Article 10.3.   
   
 
 
Technical assistance 
Article 9.1  
Members agree to facilitate the provision of technical assistance to other 
Members, especially developing count ry Members, either bilaterally or 
through the appropriate international organizations. Such assistance may be, 
inter alia, in the areas of processing technologies, research and 
infrastructure, including in the establishment of national regulatory bodies, 
and may take the form of advice, credits, donations and grants, including for 
the purpose of seeking technical expertise, training and equipment to allow 
such countries to adjust to, and comply with, sanitary or phytosanitary 
measures necessary to achieve the appropriate level of sanitary or 
phytosanitary protection in their export markets. Technical assistance is a standing agenda item.  At each regular meeting of 
the SPS Committee, Members and Observers are invited to identify any 
specific technical assistance needs which they may have. The WTO 
Secretariat reports on its assistance activities. In addition, Members 
regularly update the Committee on the SPS-specific assistance and capacity 
building they provide. The representati ves of Codex, OIE, IPPC and of the 
other Observer organisations, including FAO, the World Bank, OIRSA, IICA, 
UNIDO and UNCTAD, provide regular updates concerning their provision of 
technical assistance.  
 
Article 9.2c  
Where substantial investments are required in order for an exporting 
developing country Member to fulfil the sanitary or phytosanitary requirements of an importing Member , the latter shall consider providing 
such technical assistance as will permit the developing country Member to 
maintain and expand its market access opportunities for the product 
involved. In discussions in the SPS Committee, some developing country Members 
have indicated that although a substantial amount of technical assistance is 
provided in the SPS area, in many cases this assistance is not appropriate or does not correspond to the needs of the developing country.  
The view was expressed that S&D provisio ns would be effective only if they 
were complemented by sufficient technical assistance to strengthen developing countries' ability to deal with scientific issues, especially risk assessment, and to improve laboratory fa cilities and technologies needed to 
comply with SPS obligations.
39   
 
Noting their growing interest in trading with other developing countries, a number of developing country Members expressed concern that proposals for technical assistance to be provided by developed countries to specific 
developing country trading partners could discriminate among trading 
partners.  In addition, a number of delegations suggested that S&D and 
                                               
39 G/SPS/R/19 and G/SPS/GEN/128.  
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 33 - PROVISION COMMENT 
technical assistance could be provided by some developing countries to other 
developing countries.  Some Members also noted that justified SPS measures should not be withdrawn simply because some Members might 
have difficulty complying with the requirement. 
 
It may be noted that several Members have created specific mechanisms to assist developing countries to participate in the relevant international institutions and in the activities of the SPS Committee, such as the Initiative 
for the Americas on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures.
40 Furthermore, 
bilateral technical assistance related to SPS capacity is being provided by many Members.
41   
 
Similarly the STDF,  established in 2002, addressed the substance raised in 
some of the ASPs by providing funding for SPS-capacity building through a demand-driven process. The STDF finances Project Preparation Grants (PPGs) to help turn good ideas into fully-developed proposals for funding 
from STDF or external funding sources.  It also supports innovative and 
collaborative projects that promote compliance with international SPS requirements. Governments, private sector associations, academic institutions, etc. can all apply for STDF funding, but the endorsement of all 
relevant government agencies is required, as well as some financial/in-kind 
contribution from beneficiaries. To date, STDF has funded 55 PPGs and 
65 projects, along with a number of cross-cutting practical studies, guidelines and briefing notes on issues such as management of invasive 
species, creation of national and regional SPS coordination mechanisms, SPS 
risks related to climate change, use of Public-Private Partnerships to support SPS capacity, SPS capacity evaluation tools, use of economic analysis to support SPS decision-making, and use of a multi-criteria decision analysis tool to prioritise SPS capacity-building needs. 
 
Since the SPS Agreement entered into force, the FAO/WHO, OIE and IPPC have also developed and/or strengthened technical assistance programmes, including conferences, seminars and workshops, to enhance national 
capacities on SPS matters. The IPPC  developed a diagnostic tool, the 
                                               
40 G/SPS/GEN/549. 
41 Paragraphs 27 to 46 of document G/SPS/GEN/543 provide a summary description of recent actions taken to enhance the provision o f SPS-related technical assistance.  
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 34 - PROVISION COMMENT 
Phytosanitary Capacity Evaluation (PCE), to help countries address their 
current capacity and identify needs for assistance.42 Similar diagnostic tools 
have been developed by the FAO/WHO with respect to food safety, and recently by OIE.
43   
 
                                               
42 http://www.ippc.int  
43 See G/SPS/GEN/525; also "Performance, Vision and Strategy  (PVS) for National Veterinary Services", available from http://www.oie.int   
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 35 -  
PROVISION 
 COMMENT 
Committee Decision on Procedure to enhance tr ansparency of special and differential trea tment in favour of developing country M embers 
G/SPS/33/Rev.1. 
 One of the specific issues raised in the Committee has been the need to 
enhance transparency regarding the pr ovision of S&D. In October 2004 it 
adopted an elaboration of the steps to  implement a procedure agreed to in 
principle in March 2003.44 This procedure provides for the submission of 
specific addenda to notifications which indicate when S&D or technical 
assistance has been requested in the context of the notification of a new or 
modified SPS measure, and what response has been given to the request. 
The Committee agreed to review the proposed notification process one year 
after its adoption, to evaluate its implementation, and determine whether 
changes are required and/or its continuance warranted.  
 
In February 2006, the Committee agreed to further extend the procedure for 
transparency of S&D or technical assistance provided in response to the 
specific needs of developing country Members (G/SPS/33/Add 1). However, 
to date there has been no indication that Members are using this procedure, 
and no notifications have been submitted. Some Members have suggested 
that a mechanism is needed to help developing country Members cope with 
the large number of notifications concerning changing requirements.   
  
At its October 2009 regular meeting, the Committee adopted, on an ad referendum basis, a revision of the procedure to enhance the transparency 
of S&D. The revised decision was circulated as G/SPS/33/Rev.1. 
   
Recommended Notification Procedures  
G/SPS/7/Rev.3.  There have been some important developments that address, in part, some 
of the elements in paragraph 43 of document G/SPS/35, including: 
(a) improvements in the recommended notification procedures 
(G/SPS/7/Rev.3), and (b) creation of a public, searchable database of SPS 
notifications (SPS IMS) to, inter alia , help developing countries better make 
use of existing transparency procedures and information.   
 
                                               
44 G/SPS/33. WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 36 - 
 
  2.5  Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade 
2.22.  The Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT Agreement) contains a total of nine 
provisions relating to technical assistance and ten relating to S&D. These are contained in Articles 11 and 12 of the TBT Agreement. In addition, a number of other Articles in the TBT 
Agreement may be relevant to S&D (see reference to Article 2.12 below).   
2.5.1  Provisions under which WTO Memb ers should safeguard the interests of 
developing country Members 
Eight provisions (Article 10.6; Article 12.1; Article 12.2; Article 12.3; Article 12.5; 
Article 12.6; Article 12.9 and Article 12.10). 
 2.5.2  Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
 One provision (Article 12.4). 
 
2.5.3  Transitional time-periods  
 One provision (Article 12.8). 
 
2.5.4  Technical assistance  
Eight provisions (Article 11.1; Article 11.2; Article 11.3; Article 11.4; Article 11.5; 
Article 11.6; Article 11.7 and Article 12.7). 
 
2.5.5  Provisions relating to LDC Members 
 One provision (Article 11.8).   
 
2.23.  Article 12 of the TBT Agreement deals with S&D of Developing Country Members. This 
Article has been a topic of consideration in the TBT Committee since 1995. On various occasions, Members have exchanged information and views on the operation and implementation of S&D 
under the TBT Agreement.   
2.24.  The TBT Agreement has a separate Article on technical assistance (Article 11). The eight 
subparagraphs of Article 11 include two sorts of obligations:  obligations to advise other Members, especially developing country Members, on certain issues, and obligations to provide them with technical assistance. Although there is a link between technical assistance and S&D – and this was 
noted by Members during the Fourth Triennial Review (in 2006)
45 - to date, these two issues have 
been discussed separately in the TBT Committee. Wh at follows is an overview of the provision on 
S&D (Article 12) and the Committee's work in this area. 
Overall context of S&D in the TBT Agreement 
2.25.  Articles 12.1 and 12.2 provide the overal l context of S&D under the TBT Agreement. Under 
Article 12.1, Members shall provide differential and more favourable treatment to developing country Members, both through the provisions of Article 12, as well as through the relevant provisions of other Articles of the Agreement. For example, pursuant to Article 2.12 of the TBT 
Agreement, Members shall allow a "... reasonable interval between the publication of technical 
regulations and their entry into force in order to allow time for producers in exporting Members, and particularly in developing country Members, to adapt their products or methods of production to the requirements of the importing Member". The Decision on Implementation-Related Issues 
and Concerns adopted at the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference in Doha, Qatar, in 
November 2001 clarified the phrase "reasonable interval". According to the Decision, the phrase 
                                               
45 G/TBT/19, paragraph 81. WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 37 - 
 
  shall be understood to mean "normally a period of not less than six months, except when this 
would be ineffective in fulfilling the legitimate objectives pursued".46 
2.26.  Pursuant to Article 12.2, Members shall give particular attention to the provisions of the 
TBT Agreement concerning developing country Members' rights and obligations and shall take into account the special development, financial and tr ade needs of developing country Members in the 
implementation of the Agreement, both nation ally and in the operation of the Agreement's 
institutional arrangements.   
Information Exchange 
2.27.  At the Fourth Triennial Review (2006), the Committee underscored the continuing need for 
exchanges of information concerning implementation  of the S&D of the Agreement. This includes 
sharing of information on S&D provided by Members and its impact, as well as information on how Members have taken into account S&D provisions in the preparation of technical regulations and 
conformity assessment procedures. The Committee also noted the possible challenges of 
ascertaining and providing information on S&D and also a possible link between discussions on S&D and technical assistance. In order to have a more focused exchange of information, the Committee agreed
47: 
a. to encourage Members to inform the Committee of S&D provided to developing country 
Members, including information on how they have taken into account S&D provisions in the preparation of technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures; and 
b. to encourage developing country Members to  undertake their own assessments of the 
utility and benefits of such S&D. 
2.28.  At the Sixth Triennial Review (2012), the Committee emphasized, again, the importance of 
Members providing S&D to developing Members thro ugh the implementation of Article 12 of the 
TBT Agreement. With a view to furthering discussi on in this area, Members agreed to exchange 
views and explore ideas on the implementation of Article 12 of the TBT Agreement with respect to 
the preparation of technical regulations, standards and conformity assessment procedures, and the 
enhancement of the effective operation of Article 12, in coordination with the CTD.
48 
 
                                               
46 WT/MIN(01)/17, paragraph 5.2. 
47 G/TBT/19, paragraphs 81-83.   
48 G/TBT/32, 29 November 2012, paragraph 22.  
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PROVISION COMMENT 
Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
Article 10.6 
The Secretariat shall, when it receives notifications in accordance with the 
provisions of this Agreement, circulate copies of the notifications to all 
Members and interested international standardizing and conformity 
assessment bodies, and draw the attention of developing country Members 
to any notifications relating to products of particular interest to them.  
Article 12a 
Article 12.1 
Members shall provide differential and more favourable treatment to developing country Members, through the provisions of this Article, as well 
as through the relevant provisions of other Articles of this Agreement.  
Article 12.2 
Members shall give particular attention to the provisions of this Agreement 
concerning developing country Members' rights and obligations and shall 
take into account the special development, financial and trade needs of 
developing country Members in the implementation of this Agreement, both 
nationally and in the operation of this Agreement's institutional 
arrangements.  
Article 12.3a 
Members shall, in the preparation and application of technical regulations, 
standards and conformity assessment procedures, take account of the special development, financial and trade needs of developing country 
Members, with a view to ensuring that  such technical regulations, standards 
and conformity assessment procedures do not create unnecessary obstacles to exports from developing country Members. Various Members have referred to the need for information to be provided as 
to how S&D is taken into account in the development by Members of technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures. Such references have been raised in the TBT Committee's discussions on S&D and 
also in the context of other items on the Committee's agenda, such as 
specific trade concerns. Further, at the Third Triennial Review (November 2003), the TBT Committee resolv ed that to impr ove the ability of 
developing country Members to comment on notifications, and consistent 
with the principle of S&D, developed country Members were encouraged to 
provide more than a 60-day comment period.
49 
                                               
49 G/TBT/13, paragraph 26, first tiret.    
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- 39 - PROVISION COMMENT 
  In the area of conformity assessment, the TBT Committee has acknowledged 
the benefits of Supplier's Declarations of Conformity (SDoC)50, as a flexible 
and trade-friendly approach to conformity assessment.51  
 
The TBT Committee has held focussed discussions on SDoC, including on 
how suppliers from developing country Members exporting to markets of 
developed country Members could benefit from this approach. In accordance 
with the work programme on conformity assessment agreed at the Third 
Triennial Review, the TBT Committee engaged in an in-depth discussion of 
SDoC at a special meeting held in June 2004, and a workshop specifically on 
SDoC was held in March 2005.52 
Article 12.5 
Members shall take such reasonable measures as may be available to them 
to ensure that international standard izing bodies and international systems 
for conformity assessment are organized and operated in a way which facilitates active and representative participation of relevant bodies in all 
Members, taking into account the spec ial problems of developing country 
Members .   
Article 12.9 
During consultations, developed country Members shall bear in mind the 
special difficulties experienced by developing country Members in 
formulating and implementing standards and technical regulations and 
conformity assessment procedures, and in their desire to assist developing 
country Members with their efforts in this direction, developed country 
Members shall take account of the special needs of the former in regard to 
financing, trade and development.    
Article 12.10 
The Committee shall examine periodically the Special and Differential Treatment, as laid down in this Agreement, granted to developing country 
Members on national and international levels. During an examination of S&D undertaken pursuant to Article 12.10 of the 
TBT Agreement, in October 1996, the TBT Committee took note of the fact that no requests had been made under Article 12.8 of the TBT Agreement for 
"specified, time-limited exceptions".
53 The situation remains unchanged.   
                                               
50 A procedure by which a supplier provides assurance of conformity with specified requirements.   
51 G/TBT/13, paragraph 33.   
52 The Report of the Special Meeting of the TBT Committee Dedicated to  Conformity Assessment Procedures  Held on 29 June 2004 is c ontained in G/TBT/M/33/Add.1. The 
Committee's work programme on conformity assessment is contained in G/TBT/13, paragraph 40. A report on the 21 March 2005 SDoC workshop is contained in Annex 1 to 
G/TBT/M/35. 
53 G/TBT/M/6, paragraph 17.    
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- 40 - PROVISION COMMENT 
Article 12.6 
Members shall take such reasonable measures as may be available to them 
to ensure that international standardizing bodies, upon request of developing 
country Members, examine the possibilit y of, and, if practicable, prepare 
international standards concerning products of special interest to developing 
country Members.   In the First Triennial Review (November 1997), the TBT Committee 
reiterated that in the preparation of international standards, it was 
important, inter alia , that trade needs were taken into account along with 
technical progress and Article 12.6 concerning products of special interest to 
developing country Members.54 The TBT Committee also agreed to consider, 
as part of its work programme, inviting representatives of relevant 
international standardizing bodies and international systems for conformity 
assessment procedures to report to the Committee on whether and how 
account is taken of the special problems of developing countries in such 
bodies and systems.55 
 
 At the Second Triennial Review (November 2000), and in order to improve 
the quality of international standards and to ensure the effective application 
of the TBT Agreement, the TBT Committee agreed there was a need to develop principles concerning transparency, openness, impartiality and consensus, relevance and effectiveness, coherence and developing country 
interests that would clarify and strengthen the concept of international 
standards under the Agreement and contribute to the advancement of its objectives.
56 In this regard, the TBT Committee adopted a Decision 
containing a set of principles it considered important for the development of 
international standards, guides and recommendations.57 Section F of the 
Decision deals with the "Development Dimension". It states:  "Constraints on developing countries, in particular, to effectively participate 
in standards development, should be taken into consideration in the 
standards development process. Tangible ways of facilitating developing countries' participation in international standards development should be sought. The impartiality and openness of any international standardization process requires that developing countries are not excluded de facto from 
the process. With respect to improving participation by developing countries, 
it may be appropriate to use technical assistance, in line with Article 11 of the TBT Agreement. Provisions for capacity building and technical assistance within international standardizing bodies are important in this context."   
 
                                               
54 G/TBT/5, paragraph 20.  
55 G/TBT/5, paragraph 33(b)(iii). These elements were subsequently  reflected in the Committee's work programme, see G/TBT/M/13, p aragraph 119. 
56 G/TBT/9, paragraph 20. 
57 G/TBT/1/Rev.9, Annex B (pp. 37-39).  
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- 41 - PROVISION COMMENT 
  At the 2001 Doha Ministerial Conference, in the Decision on Implementation-
Related Issues and Concerns, Members took note of actions taken by the 
Director-General to facilitate the increased participation of Members at 
different levels of development in the work of the relevant international 
standard-setting organizations, as well as his efforts to coordinate with these 
organizations and financial institutions in identifying TBT-related 
technical-assistance needs and how best to address them. The 
Director-General was urged to continue his cooperative efforts with these 
organizations and institutions, including with a view to according priority to 
the effective participation of LDCs and facilitating the provision of technical 
and financial assistance for this purpose.58 As a follow-up to this, in 2001-
2002, the WTO Secretariat, in cooperation with various international 
standard-setting organizations, held  five regional workshops (Bangkok, 
Belgrade, Bogotá, Cairo and Nairobi) aimed at identifying possible actions to 
enhance the participation of developing countries in international 
standardization.59 Presently, observer international standard-setting 
organizations report regularly to the TBT Committee on actions they are 
taking to enhance the participation of developing country Members in their 
work. 
 
At its Fourth Triennial Review (in 2006), the TBT Committee noted and 
welcomed the actions taken by observer international standardizing bodies 
to enhance the participation of developing country Members in their work 
and invites these and other internatio nal standardizing bodies to provide 
information on steps taken to ensure their effective participation.60   
Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments  
Article 12.4 
Members recognize that, although in ternational standards, guides or 
recommendations may exist, in their particular technological and 
socio-economic conditions, developing country Members adopt certain 
technical regulations, standards or conformity assessment procedures aimed In discussions that have taken place in the TBT Committee, various Members 
have noted the importance of Article 12.4. Also, in the First Triennial Review 
(November 1997), when considering the difficulties that might be 
encountered in relation to the use of certain international standards, the TBT 
Committee agreed to invite Members, on a voluntary basis, to submit 
                                               
58 WT/MIN(01)/17, paragraph 5.3.   
59 For additional information on follow-up to this decision, see WT/GC/W/500, pp. 12-13.   
60 For instance, the ISO General Assembly adopted, in 2004, an ISO Strategic Plan for the period 2005-2010 which aims, inter alia , at enhancing developing country 
involvement in its technical activities. The IEC has also report ed on the use of its "Affiliate Country Programme", which is ai med at facilitating the participation of developing 
countries in the elaboration of international electrotechnical st andards. The FAO/WHO (for Codex) has set up trust funds to enh ance the participation of developing countries in 
standard-setting meetings and ac tivities, training programmes and regional technical consultations on standards and their imple mentation. G/TBT/19, paragraph 77.    
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at preserving indigenous technology and production methods and processes 
compatible with their development needs. Members therefore recognize that 
developing country Members should not be expected to use international 
standards as a basis for their technical regulations or standards, including 
test methods, which are not appropriate to their development, financial and 
trade needs. specific examples to the Committee of the difficulties and problems they 
encountered in this regard, taking into account Article 12.4.61   
Transitional time-periods  
Article 12.8 (…) 
Accordingly, with a view to ensuring that developing country Members are 
able to comply with this Agreement, the Committee on Technical Barriers to 
Trade provided for in Article 13 is enable d to grant, upon request, specified, 
time-limited exceptions in whole or in part from obligations under this 
Agreement. When considering such requests the Committee shall take into 
account the special problems, in the field of preparation and application of 
technical regulations, standards and conformity assessment procedures, and 
the special development and trade needs of the developing country Member, 
as well as its stage of technological development, which may hinder its 
ability to discharge fully its obligations under this Agreement. The Committee 
shall, in particular, take into account the special problems of the least-
developed country Members.   No request for time-limited exemptions has so far been made under this 
Article.  
Technical assistance  
Article 11a 
Article 11.1 
Members shall, if requested, advi se other Members, especially the 
developing country Members, on the preparation of technical regulations.  
Article 11.2 
Members shall, if requested, advi se other Members, especially the 
developing country Members, and shall grant them technical assistance on mutually agreed terms and conditions regarding the establishment of 
national standardizing bodies, and participation in the international 
standardizing bodies, and shall encourag e their national standardizing bodies 
to do likewise At the Fourth Triennial Review, the Committee noted and welcomed the 
actions taken by observer international standardizing bodies to enhance the participation of developing country Members in their work and invites these and other international standardizing bodies to provide information on steps 
taken to ensure their effective participation.
62 
Article 11.3 
Members shall, if requested, take such reasonable measures as may be 
available to them to arrange for the regulatory bodies within their territories At the Fourth Triennial Review of the TBT Agreement, Members noted that, 
inter alia , enhancing effective provision of technical assistance is important; 
in this regard the use of good practices is essential to enhance efficiency and 
                                               
61 G/TBT/5, paragraphs 18 and 22. 
62 G/TBT/19, paragraph 77.    
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to advise other Members, especially the developing country Members, and 
shall grant them technical assistance on mutually agreed terms and 
conditions regarding: 
(i) the establishment of regulatory bodies, or bodies for the assessment of 
conformity with technical regulations; and 
(ii) the methods by which their technical regulations can best be met. effectiveness. For instance, it is important that technical assistance is 
provided in a timely manner and that it is predictable and sustainable.  In 
some cases, technical assistance may need to be provided on an urgent and 
ad hoc basis to assist developing country Members regarding the methods by 
which technical regulations can best be met, in accordance with 
Article 11.3.2.63 
Article 11.4 
Members shall, if requested, take such reasonable measures as may be 
available to them to arrange for advice to be given to other Members, 
especially the developing country Members, and shall grant them technical assistance on mutually agreed terms and conditions regarding the establishment of bodies for the assessment of conformity with standards 
adopted within the territory of the requesting Member.   
Article 11.5 
Members shall, if requested, advi se other Members, especially the 
developing country Members, and shall grant them technical assistance on 
mutually agreed terms and conditions regarding the steps that should be 
taken by their producers if they wish to have access to systems for 
conformity assessment operated by governmental or non-governmental 
bodies within the territory of the Member receiving the request.    
Article 11.6 
Members which are members or participants of international or regional systems for conformity assessment sh all, if requested, advise other 
Members, especially the developing country Members, and shall grant them 
technical assistance on mutually agreed terms and conditions regarding the 
establishment of the institutions and legal framework which would enable them to fulfil the obligations of membership or participation in such systems. 
  
Article 11.7 
Members shall, if so requested, encourage bodies within their territories 
which are members or participants of international or regional systems for 
conformity assessment to advise other Members, especially the developing 
country Members, and should consider requests for technical assistance from 
them regarding the establishment of the institutions which would enable the 
relevant bodies within their territories to fulfil the obligations of membership 
or participation.  
Article 12.7 Members shall, in accordance with the provisions of Article 11 (see above), Requirements on the provision of technical assistance under Article 12.7 are 
linked to the objective of Article 12.3.   
                                               
63 G/TBT/19, paragraph 74.    
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provide technical assistance to developing country Members to ensure that 
the preparation and application of technical regulations, standards and conformity assessment procedures do not create unnecessary obstacles to the expansion and diversification of exports from developing country 
Members. In determining the terms and conditions of the technical 
assistance, account shall be taken of the stage of development of the requesting Members and in particular of the least-developed country Members. At the 2001 Doha Ministerial Conference , Ministers confirmed the approach 
to technical assistance being developed by the TBT Committee, reflecting the results of the triennial review work in this area, and mandated the work to continue.
64 Furthermore, Members were urged to provide, to the greatest 
extent possible, the financial and technical assistance necessary to enable 
LDCs to respond adequately to the introduction of any new TBT measures which may have significant negative effects on their trade. Members were also urged to ensure that technical assistance was provided to LDCs with a 
view to responding to the special problems they faced in implementing the 
TBT Agreement.
65  
Provisions relating to LDC Members 
Article 11.8 
In providing advice and technical assistance to other Members in terms of 
Article 11:1 to 11:7, Members shall give priority to the needs of the least-developed country Members.  
                                               
64 WT/MIN(01)/17, paragraph 5.1. 
65 WT/MIN(01)/17, paragraph 5.4. WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 45 - 
 
  2.6  Agreement on Trade-Related Investment Measures 
2.29.  There are three S&D provisions in the Agreement on Trade-Related Investment Measures 
(TRIMs Agreement), which fall into three separate categories:66  
2.6.1  Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
 One provision (Article 4). 
 2.6.2  Transitional time-periods 
 Two provisions (Article 5.2 and 5.3). 
 
2.6.3  Provisions relating to LDC Members 
One (Article 5.2). 
 
                                               
66 Article 5.2 is listed in both the transitional time-periods category and the LDCs category but is not 
counted twice when calculating the total number of S& D provisions in the Agreement. The Article specifies 
different transitional peri ods for developing country Members and LD C Members. For provisions relating to 
LDCs, see also the reference in Section 7.11 of this do cument to Decision 84 from Annex F of the Hong Kong 
Ministerial Declaration.   
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PROVISION COMMENT 
Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
Article 4 (Developing Country Members)c 
A developing country Member shall be free to deviate temporarily from the 
provisions of Article 2 to the extent and in such a manner as Article XVIII of 
GATT 1994, the Understanding on the Balance-of-Payments Provisions of 
GATT 1994, and the Declaration on Trade Measures Taken for Balance-of-
Payments Purposes adopted on 28 November 1979 (BISD 26S/205-209) 
permit the Member to deviate from the provisions of Articles III and XI of 
GATT 1994. In the TRIMs Committee a developing country Member cited this provision as 
justifying some measures it has taken; some other Members questioned this 
justification. (G/TRIMS/M/9, paragraphs 30-37 and G/TRIMS/M/10 
paragraphs 16-22) 
Transitional time-periods 
Article 5.2 
Each Member shall eliminate all TRIMs which are notified under Article 5.1, 
within two years of the date of entry into force of the WTO Agreement in the 
case of a developed country Member, within five years in the case of a 
developing country Member, and within seven years in the case of a least-
developed country Member. 
 Notifications under Article 5.1 have been submitted by 47 Members.  For 
most Members having made notifications, the Article 5.2 transition period for 
elimination of the TRIMs expired on 1 January 2000 (G/L/860).   
 
Issues that have arisen with respect to Article 5 include the question of what 
measures should be notified under Article 5.1, as well as the question of 
whether TRIMs notified after the deadline are still entitled to benefit from the 
transition period (WT/G/TRIMS/M/2-7).   
 
Article 5.3c 
On request, the Council for Trade in Goods may extend the transition period 
for the elimination of TRIMs notified under Article 5.1 for a developing country Member, including a least-developed country Member, which 
demonstrates particular difficulties in implementing the provisions of this 
Agreement. In considering such a request, the Council for Trade in Goods shall take into account the individual development, financial and trade needs of the Member in question. Ten developing country Members reques ted extensions of the transition 
period pursuant to Article 5.3.  On 31 July 2001, eight developing country Members were granted 
extensions of the transition period to eliminate TRIMs through end-2003. 
The extensions were provided through decisions of the Council for Trade in Goods under Article 5.3 in seven of the eight cases (see G/L/460-466 and G/L/497-504), and in the other case through a waiver under Article IX of the 
WTO Agreement. (see WT/L/410)     
Provisions relating to leas t-developed country Members 
Article 5.2 
Each Member shall eliminate all TRIMs which are notified under Article 5.1 
[…]within seven years in the case of  a least-developed country Member. One LDC Member notified TRIMs under Article 1 (G/TRIMS/N/1/UGA/1). To 
date, no request for an extension has been received.   WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 47 - 
 
  2.7  Agreement on Implementation of Article VI of the GATT 1994 
2.7.1  Provisions under which WTO Memb ers should safeguard the interests of 
developing country Members 
 One provision (Article 15).   
  
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PROVISION COMMENT 
Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
Article 15 (Developing Country Members)c 
It is recognized that special regard must be given by developed country 
Members to the special situation of developing country Members when 
considering the application of anti-dumping measures under this Agreement. 
Possibilities of constructive remedies provided for by this Agreement shall be 
explored before applying anti-dumping duties where they would affect the 
essential interests of developing country Members. 
 Disputes: 
 
This article has been invoked in a number of anti-dumping-related disputes 
(EC – bed linen (DS141), US – Steel Plate (DS206) and EC – Tube or Pipe 
fittings (DS216). The panels examining these disputes have considered 
issues pertaining to the extent of Members' obligations under this article, 
when and to whom "special regard" should be given, the constructive 
remedies provided for by the Anti-Dumping Agreement (ADA), the 
interpretation of the term "explore" and the phrase "before applying anti-
dumping duties".   
 
Committee vs. Negotiations: 
 
In 2001, Paragraph 7.2 of the "Doha Ministerial Decision on 
Implementation-Related Issues and Concer ns" recognized that this article is 
a mandatory provision and that modalities for its application would benefit 
from clarification. It instructed the Working Group on Implementation of the 
Committee on Anti-Dumping Practices (the Committee) to examine this issue 
and draw up appropriate recommendations for its operationalization. In 
2003, the General Council referred anti-dumping proposals to the 
Negotiating Group on Rules. A number of Participants in the negotiations 
have submitted proposals under document series TN/RL/W/4, TN/RL/W/7 
and TN/RL/GEN/154 and these are still under consideration by the Group. 
 
Committee: 
 
Paragraph 7.4 of the Doha Ministerial Decision has also instructed the 
Committee to draw up guidelines for the improvement of annual reviews. In 
2002, a Recommendation Regarding Annual Reviews of the ADA was 
adopted by The Committee (G/ADP/9). This Recommendation provided for 
regular reporting by developed country Members on fulfilment of their 
obligations under this article. It required those Members, when reporting 
anti-dumping actions in their semi-annual reports, to indicate the manner in 
which such obligations have been fulfilled (e.g. price undertakings and lesser 
duty). The recommendation also required the Committee's Annual Report to 
include a separate table compiling all information reported by each Member 
in this respect during the reporting period.       WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
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  2.8  Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the GATT 1994  
2.30.  The Agreement on Implementation of Arti cle VII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and 
Trade (GATT) 1994 contains eight provisions for S&D which fall under the following headings:   
2.8.1  Provisions under which WTO Memb ers should safeguard the interests of 
developing country Members 
 One provision (Annex III:5). 
 2.8.2  Flexibility of commitments, of ac tion, and use of policy instruments  
 Two provisions (Annex III:3 and Annex III:4). 
 2.8.3  Transitional time-periods   
 Four provisions (Article 20.1; Article 20.2; Annex III:1; and Annex III:2). 
 
2.8.4  Technical assistance 
 One Provision (Article 20.3).  
 
2.31.  In the course of the work of the Customs Valuation Committee, Members have made statements and/or taken action in regard, or pursuant to, a number of the S&D provisions listed above. The provisions in relation to which statem ents made or actions taken have been recorded 
by the Committee and are detailed below.   
2.32.  Following the Doha Ministerial Declaration (WT/MIN(01)/DEC/1), the Committee on Customs 
Valuation held a series of meetings during 2002 to carry out the mandates contained in paragraph 12(b) of the Doha Ministerial Declaration (WT/MIN(01)/DEC/1) and paragraphs 8.3 and 13 of the Decision on Implementation-Related Issues and Concerns  (WT/MIN(01)/17). The reports 
on this work are contained in documents G/VAL/50 and 49 respectively. The General Council 
decided that the Committee should continue its work under the mandate contained in paragraph 8.3 of the Decision on Implementation-R elated Issues and Concerns and report to the 
General Council upon its completion. This matter continues to be on the agenda of the 
Committee's meetings. 
  
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- 50 - AGREEMENT ON IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLE VII OF THE GATT 1994 
PROVISION COMMENT 
Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
Annex III:5 
Certain developing countries may have problems in the implementation of 
Article 1 of the Agreement in so far as it relates to importations into their 
countries by sole agents, sole distributors and sole concessionaires. If such 
problems arise in practice in developing country Members applying the 
Agreement, a study of this question shall be made, at the request of such 
Members, with a view to fi nding appropriate solutions. No request for a study has been made so far. 
 
Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
Annex III:3 
Developing countries which consider that the reversal of the sequential order 
at the request of the importer provided  for in Article 4 of the Agreement may 
give rise to real difficulties for them may wish to make a reservation to 
Article 4 in the following terms:  
"The Government of …......... reserves the right to provide that the relevant 
provision of Article 4 of the Agreemen t shall apply only when the customs 
authorities agree to the request to reverse the order of Articles 5 and 6."  
If developing countries make such a reservation, the Members shall consent 
to it under Article 21 of the Agreement. Fifty-three developing country Members, of which 13 are LDC Members, 
have invoked this paragraph.67   
 
Annex III:4 
Developing countries may wish to make a reservation with respect to Article 5:2 of the Agreement in the following terms:  "The Government of …......... reserves the right to provide that Article 5:2 of 
the Agreement shall be applied in accordance with the provisions of the 
relevant note thereto whether or not the importer so requests."  If developing countries make such a reservation, the Members shall consent to it under Article 21 of the Agreement.   Fifty-one developing country Members, of which 11 are LDC Members, have 
invoked this paragraph.
68 
Transitional time-periods 
Article 20.1a 
Developing country Members not party to the Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the GATT (Tokyo Round), may delay application of the 
provisions of this Agreement for a period not exceeding five years from the This provision was invoked by 56 developing countries, of which 12 are LDCs 
(see G/VAL/2 and Rev.1 to 24). For 29 of these Members, the provision expired on 1 January 2000 and for another 24, the provision expired during 
the year up to July 2001.   
                                               
67 G/VAL/W/70 and G/VAL/70/Corr.1. 
68 G/VAL/2/Rev.10/Corr.2 and G/VAL/2/Rev.24.  
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- 51 - PROVISION COMMENT 
date of entry into force of the WTO Agreement for such Members.  
Developing country Members who choose to delay application of this 
Agreement shall notify the Director-General of the WTO accordingly. The General Council decision of 15 December 2000 stated that: "Noting that 
the process of examination and approval, in the Customs Valuation Committee, of individual requests from Members for extension of the five-year delay period in Article 20.1 is proceeding well, the General Council 
encourages the Committee to continue this work."  (WT/L/384) 
 As of March 2009, this provision expired for all WTO Members which benefited from it. 
Article 20.2a 
In addition to paragraph 1, developing country Members not party to the 
Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the GATT (Tokyo Round), 
may delay application of paragraph 2(b)(iii) of Article 1 and Article 6 for a 
period not exceeding three years following their application of all other 
provisions of this Agreement. Developing country Members that choose to 
delay application of the provisions specified in this paragraph shall notify the 
Director-General of the WTO accordingly. This provision was invoked by 48 developing country Members of which 
11 are LDCs.   
 
As of March 2009, this provision expired for all WTO Members which 
benefited from it. 
Annex III:1 The five-year delay in the application of the provision of the Agreement by 
developing country Members provided for in paragraph 1 of Article 20 may, in practice, be insufficient for certain developing country Members. In such 
cases a developing country Member may request before the end of the 
period referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 20 an extension of such period, it being understood that the Members will give sympathetic consideration to such a request in cases where the developing country Member in question 
can show good cause. A total of 20 Members have requested extensions under this provision, and 
one Member requested a second extension; 13 of which have been granted. (G/VAL/2 and Rev.1 to 24). The duration of extensions granted range from one year to two years. 
 
As of March 2009, this additional delay period expired for all WTO Members which benefited from it. 
Annex III:2   
Developing countries which currently value goods on the basis of officially 
established minimum values may wish to make a reservation to enable them 
to retain such values on a limited and transitional basis under such terms 
and conditions as may be agreed to by the Members.  
(please also refer to Decision on texts relating to minimum values and 
imports by sole agents, sole distributors and sole concessionaires.) Seventeen developing country Members reserved their rights to retain 
minimum values under Annex III.2. (G/VAL/2 and Rev.1 to 24). The 
Committee has adopted four Decisions containing the terms and conditions 
under which four Members may continue to use minimum values while 
applying the Agreement.   
 
As of March 2009, this provision expired for all WTO Members which 
benefited from it.    
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- 52 - PROVISION COMMENT 
Technical assistance 
Article 20.3a 
Developed country Members shall furnish, on mutually agreed terms, 
technical assistance to developing country Members that so request. On this 
basis developed country Members shall draw up programmes of technical 
assistance which may include, inter alia, training of personnel, assistance in 
preparing implementation measures, access to sources of information 
regarding customs valuation methodology, and advice on the application of 
the provisions of this Agreement. All requests for technical assistance are now dealt with through the process 
established under the Institute for Training and Technical Cooperation 
(ITTC).   
 WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 53 - 
 
  2.9  Agreement on Import Licensing Procedures 
2.33.  The Agreement on Import Licensing Procedures includes four S&D provisions, which can be 
classified as follows: 
2.9.1  Provisions under which WTO Memb ers should safeguard the interests of 
developing country Members 
 Three provisions [Article 1.2; Article 3.5 (a)(iv); Article 3.5(j)]. 
 2.9.2  Transitional time-periods 
 One provision (Article 2.2, footnote 5).  
  
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PROVISION COMMENT 
Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
Article 1.2  General Provisionsb 
Members shall ensure that the administrative procedures used to implement 
import licensing regimes are in conformity with the relevant provisions of 
GATT 1994 including its annexes and protocols, as interpreted by this 
Agreement, with a view to preventing trade distortions that may arise from 
an inappropriate operation of those procedures, taking into account the 
economic development purposes and financial and trade needs of developing 
country Members.   This matter has not been raised in the Committee on Import Licensing.  
However, this provision has been invoked in dispute settlement cases. 
(WT/DS/27, WT/DS169/R, WT/DS/334)   
Article 3:5  Non-automatic Import Licensinga 
(a) Members shall provide, upon the request of any Member having an 
interest in the trade in the product concerned, all relevant information 
concerning: (iv) where practicable, import statistics (i.e. value and/or volume) with respect to the products subject to import licensing. Developing country Members would not be expected to take additional administrative or 
financial burdens on this account.    
Article 3.5  Non Automatic Import Licensinga 
(j) In allocating licences, the Member should consider the import 
performance of the applicant. In this regard, consideration should be given 
as to whether licences issued to applicants in the past have been fully 
utilized during a recent representative period. In cases where licences have 
not been fully utilized, the Member shall examine the reasons for this and 
take these reasons into consideration when allocating new licences. 
Consideration shall also be given to ensuring a reasonable distribution of 
licences to new importers, taking into account the desirability of issuing 
licences for products in economic quantities. In this regard, special 
consideration should be given to those importers importing products 
originating in developing country Members and, in particular, the least-
developed country Members.   This matter has not been raised in the Committee on Import Licensing.  
However, this provision has been invoked in dispute settlement cases. 
(WT/DS/27, WT/DS/69, WT/DS/90, WT/DS/113, WT/DS/161, WT/DS/169 
and WT/DS/334)   
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- 55 - PROVISION COMMENT 
Transitional time-periods 
Article 2:2 footnote 5 Automatic Import Licensing  
A developing country Member, other than a developing country Member 
which was a Party to the Agreement on Import Licensing Procedures done on 
12 April 1979, which has specific difficulties with the requirements of 
Article 2:2 subparagraphs (a)(ii) and (a)(iii) may, upon notification to the 
Committee, delay the application of these subparagraphs by not more than 
two years from the date of entry into force of the WTO Agreement for such 
Member.   Twenty-four developing country Members invoked the delayed application 
provisions since the entry into force of the WTO Agreement. 
(WT/LT/1/Rev.2, WT/LT/1/Rev.14, WT/LT/1/Rev.19, WT/LT/1/Rev.24, 
WT/LT/1/Rev.41, WT/LT/1/Rev.48 and WT/LT/1/Rev.72) The two-year 
period of delay allowed under the Agreement had expired for all these 
Members, and accordingly the obligations of Articles 2.2(a)(ii) and (a)(iii) 
apply to all current WTO Members. It is recalled that the invocation of the 
above provisions did not exempt Memb ers from the obligation to notify 
under Articles 1.4(a), 8.2(b) and 7.3 of the Agreement. (G/LIC/W/14)   WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 56 - 
 
  2.10  Agreement on Subsidie s and Countervailing Measures 
2.34.  The Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM Agreement) contains 
16 S&D provisions which fall under three categories:69   
2.10.1  Provisions under which WTO Memb ers should safeguard the interests of 
developing country Members 
 Two provisions (Articles 27.1 and 27.15). 
 2.10.2  Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
Ten provisions (Article 27.2 (a) and Annex VII, Articles 27.4; 27.6; 27.7; 27.8; 27.9; 
27.10; 27.11; 27.12 and 27.13). It should be noted that Article 27.2(a) is applicable to a subset of developing countries, listed in Annex VII, and not developing countries as a whole. 
 
2.10.3  Transitional time-periods 
 Seven provisions (Articles 27.2 (b), 27.3; 27.4; 27.14; 27.5; 27.6; and 27.11). 
 
In addition to these provisions applicable to developing countries, or a sub-group thereof, 
are the provisions of Article 29 which apply to  Members in the process of transformation 
from a centrally-planned into a market, free-enterprise economy.   
 
                                               
69 Articles 27.4, 27.6 and 27.11 are listed in both the flexibility and transitional time-periods category, 
as their hybrid nature combines characteristics of both these categories, but they are not counted twice when calculating the total number of S&D provisions in the Agreement.  
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PROVISION COMMENT 
Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
Article 27.1c 
Members recognize that subsidies may play an important role in economic 
development programmes of developing country Members.  
Article 27.15c 
The Committee shall, upon request by an interested developing country 
Member, undertake a review of a specific countervailing measure to examine 
whether it is consistent with the provisions of 27.10 and 27.11 as applicable 
to the developing country Member in question.   No such request has been received by the Subsidies and Countervailing 
Measures (SCM) Committee.   
Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
Article 27.2 
The prohibition of paragraph 1(a) of Article 3 shall not apply to: 
(a)  developing country Members referred to in Annex VII.  
 Annex VII (Developing country Members referred to in paragraph 2(a) of 
Article 27) 
(a)  Least-developed countries designate as such by the United Nations which are Members of the WTO.  (b)  Each of the following developing countries which are Members of the 
WTO shall be subject to the provisions which are applicable to other 
developing country Members according to Article 27.2(b) when GNP per capita has reached $1,000 per annum;  Bolivia, Cameroon, Congo, Côte 
d’Ivoire, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Ghana, Guatemala, Guyana, India, 
Indonesia, Kenya, Morocco, Nicaragu a, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, 
Senegal, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe.     The General Council's decision of 15 December 2000 stated that, "Taking 
into account the unique situation of Honduras as the only original Member of 
the WTO with a GNP per capita of less than US$1000 that was not included in Annex VII(b) to the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures ('SCM Agreement'), Members call upon the Director-General to take 
appropriate steps, in accordance with WTO usual practice, to rectify the 
omission of Honduras from the list of Annex VII(b) countries".    The rectification of this omission was communicated by the Director-General 
of the WTO to its Members throug h a letter dated 20 January 2001. 
(WT/Let/371)  In paragraph 10.1 of the Doha Ministerial Decision on Implementation-
Related Issues and Concerns (WT/MIN(01)/17), Ministers agreed: 
"that Annex VII(b) to the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures includes the Members that are listed therein until their GNP per capita reaches US$1,000 in constant 
1990 dollars for three consecutive years. This decision will enter 
into effect upon the adoption by the Committee on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures of an appropriate methodology for calculating constant 1990 dollars. If, however, the Committee 
on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures does not reach a 
consensus agreement on an appropriate methodology by 1 January 2003, the methodology proposed by the Chairman of the Committee set forth in G/SCM/38, Appendix 2 shall be 
applied. A Member shall not leave Annex VII(b) so long as its  
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- 58 - PROVISION COMMENT 
GNP per capita in current dollars has not reached US$1000 
based upon the most recent data from the World Bank". 
Additionally in paragraph 10.4 of the same Decision, they agreed: 
"that if a Member has been excluded from the list in paragraph 
(b) of Annex VII to the Agreement on Subsidies and 
Countervailing Measures, it shall be re-included in it when its GNP per capita falls back below US$1,000". 
Based on this decision, the Secretariat carries out the necessary calculations 
and identifies, on a yearly basis, the Members that fall under Annex VII(b) of 
the SCM Agreement. The results of such calculations are circulated in the G/SCM/110/… document series.   
Article 27.4c 
Any developing country Member referred to in Article 27.2(b) shall phase out 
its export subsidies within the eight-year period, preferably in a progressive 
manner. However, a developing country Member shall not increase the level 
of its export subsidies, and shall elimin ate them within a period shorter than 
that provided for in this paragraph when the use of such export subsidies is 
inconsistent with its development needs. If a developing country Member 
deems it necessary to apply such subsidies beyond the eight-year period, it 
shall not later than one year before the expiry of this period enter into 
consultation with the Committee, which will determine whether an extension 
of this period is justified, after examining all the relevant economic, financial 
and development needs of the developing country Member in question. If the 
Committee determines that the extension is justified, the developing country 
Member concerned shall hold annual consultations with the Committee to 
determine the necessity of maintaining the subsidies. If no such 
determination is made by the Committee, the developing country Member 
shall phase out the remaining export subsidies within two years from the end 
of the last authorized period.   Please refer to the comment on Article 27.4 under the section on transitional 
time-periods.   
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Article 27.6 
Export competitiveness in a product exists if a developing country Member's exports of that product have reached a share of at least 3.25% in world trade of that product for two consecutive calendar years. Export 
competitiveness shall exist either (a) on the basis of notification by the 
developing country Member having reached export competitiveness or (b) on the basis of a computation undertaken by the Secretariat at the request of any Member. For the purposes of this paragraph, a product is defined as a 
section heading of the Harmonised System Nomenclature. The Committee 
shall review the operation of this provision five years from the date of the entry into force of the WTO Agreement.   Please refer to the comment on Article 27.5 below. 
Article 27.7 
The provisions of Article 4 shall not apply to a developing country Member in 
the case of export subsidies which are in conformity with the provisions of 
Article 27:2 through 27.5. The relevant provisions in such a case shall be 
those of Article 7.   This provision has been invoked in the dispute settlement context 
(WT/DS/46/R.) (See comment on Article 27.4 under the section on 
transitional time-periods.)  
Article 27.8c 
There shall be no presumption in terms of Article 6.1 that a subsidy granted 
by a developing country Member results in serious prejudice, as defined in this Agreement.  Such serious prejudice, where applicable under the terms 
of Article 27.9, shall be demonstrated by positive evidence, in accordance 
with the provisions of Article 6.3 through 6.8. In the context of a complaint by two developed Members concerning 
subsidies provided by one developing Member, the Panel found: 1) that there was more than 5% subsidization as provided in Article 6.1, such that a 
serious prejudice claim could be brought against the developing Member 
based on positive evidence; and 2) that the subsidization caused serious 
prejudice in the form of significant price undercutting. (WT/DS54/R, WT/DS55/R, WT/DS59/R, WT/DS64/R.)   
[Note: Pursuant to Article 31, Article 6.1 applied for a period of five years 
from the date of entry into force of the WTO Agreement, and could have been extended for a further period by consensus of the SCM Committee. No such consensus was reached at the end of the five-year period (1999), so this provision lapsed.]   
Article 27.9c 
Regarding actionable subsidies granted or maintained by a developing 
country Member other than those referred to in Article 6.1, action may not 
be authorized or taken under Article 7 unless nullification or impairment of 
tariff concessions or other obligations under GATT 1994 is found to exist as a 
result of such a subsidy, in such a way as to displace or impede imports of a 
like product of another Member into the market of the subsidizing developing 
country Member or unless injury to a domestic industry in the market of an 
importing Member occurs.    
Article 27.10 Any countervailing duty investigation of a product originating in a developing   
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country Member shall be terminated as soon as the authorities concerned 
determine that:   (a)  the overall level of subsidies granted upon the product in question does not exceed 2% of its value calculated on a per unit basis; or  
(b)  the volume of the subsidized imports represents less than 4% of the 
total imports of the like product in the importing Member, unless imports from developing country Members whose individual shares of total imports represent less than 4% collectively account for more than 9% of the total 
imports of the like product in the importing Member. 
Article 27.11   
For those developing country Members within the scope of Article 27.2(b) 
which have eliminated export subsidies prior to the expiry of the period of 
eight years from the date of entry into force of the WTO Agreement, and for 
those developing country Members referred to in Annex VII, the number in 
Article 27.10(a) shall be 3% rather than 2%. This provision shall apply from 
the date that the elimination of export subsidies is notified to the Committee, 
and for so long as export subsidies are not granted by the notifying 
developing country Member. This provision shall expire eight years from the 
date of entry into force of the WTO Agreement. 
(Article 27.10 (a): Any countervailing duty investigation of a product 
originating in a developing country Member shall be terminated as soon as 
the authorities concerned determine that: the overall level of subsidies 
granted upon the product in question does not exceed 2% of its value 
calculated on a per unit basis.) As stipulated in its text, Article 27.11 expired eight years from the date of 
entry into force of the WTO Agreement (at the end of 2002). 
Article 27.12 
The provisions of Article 27.10 and 27.11 shall govern any determination of de minimis under Article 15.3.    
Article 27.13c 
The provisions of Part III (Actionable Subsidies) shall not apply to direct 
forgiveness of debts, subsidies to cover social costs, in whatever form, 
including relinquishment of governme nt revenue and other transfer of 
liabilities when such subsidies are granted within and directly linked to a 
privatization programme of a developing country Member, provided that 
both such programme and the subsidies involved are granted for a limited 
period and notified to the Committee and that the programme results in 
eventual privatization of the enterprise concerned.   The SCM Committee received and discussed one notification made pursuant 
to this provision (G/SCM/N/13/BRA and G/SCM/N/13/BRA/Corr.1).   
  
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Transitional time-periods  
Article 27.2 
The prohibition of Article 3.1(a) shall not apply to: (b) other developing 
country Members for a period of eight years from the date of entry into force 
of the WTO Agreement, subject to compliance with the provisions in 
Article 27.4.   Please refer to the comment on Article 27.4, below. This provision has been 
the subject of a proposal in the Negotiating Group on Rules. 
Article 27.3c 
The prohibition of Article 3.1(b) shall not apply to developing country 
Members for a period of five years, and shall not apply to least developed 
country Members for a period of eight years, from the date of entry into force of the WTO Agreement.    The five- and eight-year periods referred  to in this provision expired at the 
end of 1999 and the end of 2002, respectively.   
Article 27.4c 
Any developing country Member referred to in Article 27.2(b) shall phase out 
its export subsidies within the eight-year period, preferably in a progressive 
manner. However, a developing country Member shall not increase the level 
of its export subsidies, and shall elimin ate them within a period shorter than 
that provided for in this paragraph when the use of such export subsidies is 
inconsistent with its development needs. If a developing country Member 
deems it necessary to apply such subsidies beyond the eight-year period, it 
shall not later than one year before the expiry of this period enter into 
consultation with the Committee, which will determine whether an extension 
of this period is justified, after examining all the relevant economic, financial 
and development needs of the developing country Member in question. If the 
Committee determines that the extension is justified, the developing country 
Member concerned shall hold annual consultations with the Committee to 
determine the necessity of maintaining the subsidies. If no such 
determination is made by the Committee, the developing country Member 
shall phase out the remaining export subsidies within two years from the end 
of the last authorized period. The eight-year phase-out period mentioned in Article 27.4 expired at the end 
of 2002. 
 
However, certain Members obtained extens ions of this transition period using 
the mechanism in Article 27.4. (documents G/SCM/95-G/SCM/102) 
 
Furthermore, in paragraph 10.6 of the Doha Ministerial Decision on 
Implementation-Related Issues and Concerns (WT/MIN(01)/17), Ministers 
decided as follows:   
"Having regard to the particular situation of certain developing-
country Members, directs the Committee on Subsidies and 
Countervailing Measures to extend the transition period, under 
the rubric of Article 27.4 of the Agreement on Subsidies and 
Countervailing Measures, for certain export subsidies provided 
by such Members, pursuant to the procedures set forth in 
document G/SCM/39. Furthermore, when considering a request 
for an extension of the transition period under the rubric of 
Article 27.4 of the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing 
Measures, and in order to avoid that Members at similar stages 
of development and having a similar order of magnitude of 
share in world trade are treated differently in terms of receiving 
such extensions for the same eligible programmes and the 
length of such extensions, directs the Committee to extend the 
transition period for those developing countries, after taking into 
account the relative competitiveness in relation to other 
developing-country Members who have requested extension of 
the transition period following the procedures set forth in  
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- 62 - PROVISION COMMENT 
document G/SCM/39".   
In accordance with the procedures set out in document G/SCM/39, and the 
language in paragraph 10.6 of the Ministerial Decision, the SCM Committee 
in 2002 granted extensions of the eight-year transition period with regard to 
certain export subsidy programmes maintained by 20 developing country 
Members. (See the 2003 Annual Repo rt of the Committee, G/L/655, 
paragraph 23.) 
 
On 27 July 2007, the General Council adopted a Decision on Procedures for 
Continuation of Extensions Pursuant to Article 27.4 of the SCM Agreement of 
the Transition Period under Article 27.2(b) of the SCM Agreement for Certain 
Developing Country Members.70 This Decision provides that with respect to 
certain export subsidy measures of Members covered by the procedures 
contained in G/SCM/39, the SCM Committee will continue the extensions of 
the transition period for calendar year 2008, if so requested by the Member 
concerned. The Decision also provides that in the period 2008-2012 the 
Committee will take annual decisions to continue these extensions of the 
transition period, subject to certain conditions. The Decision makes it clear 
that the Committee cannot extend the transition period beyond 
31 December 2013, and that, as a consequence, the final two-year 
phase-out period provided for in the last sentence of Article 27.4 of the SCM 
Agreement shall end not later than 31 December 2015. 
Currently, 19 Members are benefiting from the final year of such extensions, 
based on decisions taken by the Committee in October 2012.  (G/SCM/M/83, 
paras.23-28). A list of such Members and the programmes for which 
extensions have been granted is found in document G/SCM/W/546/Rev.4. 
 
In the context of a dispute between a developing country Member and a 
developed country Member, the Panel held that the exemption for 
developing Members from the prohibition on export subsidies is conditional 
on compliance with the provisions in Article 27.4. The Appellate Body held 
that the conditions set forth in Article 27.4 are positive obligations not 
affirmative defences. The Panel considered that the overall level of export 
subsidies was an appropriate measure for evaluating the Member's 
compliance with Article 27.4 in that case, and that the appropriate reference 
period was that immediately preceding the entry into force of the WTO 
                                               
70 Document WT/L/691 dated 31 July 2007.  
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Agreement. (WT/DS46/R and WT/DS46/AB/R)   
 
This provision has been the subject of a proposal in the Negotiating Group on 
Rules. 
Article 27.14 
The Committee shall, upon request by an interested Member, undertake a review of a specific export subsidy practice of a developing country Member to examine whether the practice is in conformity with its development needs. 
 No such request has been received by the SCM Committee.   
Article 27.5 
A developing country Member which ha s reached export competitiveness in 
any given product shall phase out its export subsidies for such product(s) 
over a period of two years. However, for a developing country Member which 
is referred to in Annex VII and which has reached export competitiveness in 
one or more products, export subsidies on such products shall be gradually 
phased out over a period of eight years.   In paragraph 10.5 of the Doha Ministerial Decision on Implementation-
Related Issues and Concerns (WT/MIN(01)/17), Ministers decided as follows: 
"Subject to the provisions of Articles 27.5 and 27.6, it is reaffirmed that 
least-developed country Members are exempt from the prohibition on export 
subsidies set forth in Article 3.1(a) of the Agreement on Subsidies and 
Countervailing Measures, and thus have flexibility to finance their exporters, 
consistent with their development needs.  It is understood that the eight-year 
period in Article 27.5 within which a least-developed country Member must 
phase out its export subsidies in respect of a product in which it is 
export-competitive begins from the date export competitiveness exists 
within the meaning of Article 27.6". No developing country Member has 
notified to have reached export competitiveness. Requests by certain 
Members for the calculation of export competitiveness of other Members and 
the results of the calculations made are found in the following documents: 
G/SCM/Q3/COL/12; G/SCM/46; G/SCM/103; G/SCM/103/Add.1 and 
G/SCM/103/Add.2; G/SCM/47 - G/SCM/Q3/THA/16; G/SCM/48; G/SCM/132 
and G/SCM/132/Add.1/Rev.1. Articles 27.5 and 27.6 have been the subject 
of a proposal in the Negotiating Group on Rules. 
Article 27.6 
See above for the text of this Article.   Please refer to the comment on Article 27.5 above.   
Article 27.11 
See above for the text of this Article. Please refer to the comment on Article 27.11 above. WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 64 - 
 
  2.11  Agreement on Safeguards 
2.35.  The Agreement on Safeguards contains two S&D provisions: 2.11.1  Provisions under which WTO Memb ers should safeguard the interests of 
developing country Members 
 One provision (Article 9.1 and Footnote 2). 
 2.11.2  Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
 One provision (Article 9.2). 
  
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PROVISION COMMENT 
Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
Article 9.1 and footnote 2c 
Safeguard measures shall not be applied against a product originating in a 
developing country Member as long as its share of imports of the product 
concerned in the importing Member does not exceed 3%, provided that 
developing country Members with less than 3% import share collectively 
account for not more than 9% of total imports of the product concerned.  
and footnote 2: 
A Member shall immediately notify an action taken under Article 9.1 to the 
Committee on Safeguards.   Opposition was voiced over the manner in which one Member had applied 
Article 9.1 of the Safeguards Agreement, to exclude one developing Member 
from eligibility under Article 9.1 on the grounds that that Member was not 
included in the preference-giving Member's list of GSP beneficiaries. 
(G/SG/M/9 and G/SG/M/14) 
 
At the initiative of a developing country Member, the Committee on 
Safeguards discussed the various ways Members implemented this provision. 
(G/SG/M/26, G/SG/M/27, G/SG/M/28, G/SG/M/29 and G/SG/M/30.)    
Flexibility of Commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
Article 9.2 Developing Country Membersc 
A developing country Member shall have the right to extend the period of 
application of a safeguard measure for a period of up to two years beyond 
the maximum period provided for in Article 7:3. Notwithstanding the 
provisions of Article 7:5, a developing country Member shall have the right 
to apply a safeguard measure again to the import of a product which has 
been subject to such a measure, taken after the date of entry into force of 
the WTO Agreement, after a period of time equal to half that during which 
such a measure has been previously applied, provided that the period of 
non-application is at least two years. Two developing country Members have extended their measures up to ten 
years by virtue of this provision. (G/SG/N/10/BRA/1, G/SG/N/10/BRA/2 and 
its supplements as well as G/SG/N/10/PHL/1, G/SG/N/14/PHL/1 and its 
supplements.)   
 
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  3  GENERAL AGREEMENT ON TRADE IN SERVICES (GATS) 
3.1.  The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) does not adopt the traditional concept 
of S&D, according to which, to a large extent, all developing countries are treated the same. It 
rather addresses the concerns and needs of deve loping countries through providing appropriate 
flexibility on an individual basis. Such flexibility is reflected in numerous provisions of the 
Agreement as well as in its basic structure, which allows each Member to undertake liberalization commitments in a manner consistent with its development needs. Such commitments are always negotiated on a case-by-case basis. 
3.2.  Under the typology developed for considering S&D, it can be said that the GATS contains 
13 S&D provisions dealing with developing country-related issues. Their classification can be broken down as follows:
71 
3.1.1  Provisions aimed at increasing trade opportunities of develo ping country Members 
 Three provisions (Preamble, Article IV:1; Article IV:2). 
 3.1.2  Provisions under which WTO Memb ers should safeguard the interests of 
developing country Members 
 Four provisions (Preamble, Article XII:1; Article XV:1; Article XIX:3). 
 3.1.3  Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
Four provisions (Article III:4; Article V:3; Article XIX:2; and Paragraph 5(g) of the Annex 
on Telecommunications). 
 3.1.4  Technical assistance   
 Two provisions (Article XXV:2 and Paragraph 6 of the Annex on Telecommunication).  
 
3.1.5  Provisions relating to le ast-developed country Members   
 Two Provisions (Article IV:3; Article XIX:3).  
 
                                               
71 The Preamble is listed in both the increasing trade opportunities catego ry and the safeguarding 
interests category, while Article XIX:3 is listed in bo th the safeguarding interests category and the LDCs 
category. However, they are not counted twice when calculating the total number of S&D provisions in the Agreement.  
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PROVISION COMMENT 
Provisions aimed at increasing trade opportunities 
Preamble 
Wishing to establish a multilateral framework of principles and rules for trade 
in services with a view to the expansion of such trade under conditions of 
transparency and progressive liberalization and as a means of promoting the 
economic growth of all trading partners and the development of developing 
countries; 
Desiring to facilitate the increasing participation of developing countries in 
trade in services and the expansion of their services exports including, inter 
alia, through the strengthening of their domestic services capacity and its 
efficiency and competitiveness.  For the DDA negotiations, the requirements of the provisions of this Article 
are reflected in S/L/93 "Guidelines and Procedures for the Negotiations on 
Trade in Services", particularly Section I ("Objectives and Principles"), 
paragraphs 1-2.   
Article IVb,c 
Article IV:1  
The increasing participation of developing country Members in world trade 
shall be facilitated through negotiated specific commitments, by different 
Members pursuant to Parts III and IV  of this Agreement, relating to:   
(a) the strengthening of their domestic services capacity and its efficiency and competitiveness, inter alia through access to technology on a commercial basis;  
(b)  the improvement of their access to distribution channels and information 
networks; and  (c)  the liberalization of market access in sectors and modes of supply of export interest to them. For the DDA negotiations, the requirements of the provisions of this Article 
are reflected in S/L/93 "Guidelines and Procedures for the Negotiations on Trade in Services", particularly Section I ("Objectives and Principles"), paragraphs 1-4; Section II ("Scope"), paragraph 5.   
   
Article IV:2  
Developed country Members, and to the extent possible other Members, 
shall establish contact points within two years from the date of entry into 
force of the WTO Agreement to facilitate the access of developing country 
Members' service suppliers to information, related to their respective 
markets, concerning: 
(a) commercial and technical aspects of the supply of services;  
(b) registration, recognition and obtaining of professional qualifications; and 
(c) the availability of services technology. All developed country Members, and many developing country Members, 
have established contact points. The latest listing of enquiry and contact 
points notified to the Council for Trade in Services is contained in document 
S/ENQ/78/Rev.13, dated 4 December 2012. 
    
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Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
Preamble 
Recognizing the right of Members to  regulate, and to introduce new 
regulations, on the supply of services wi thin their territories in order to meet 
national policy objectives and, given asymmetries existing with respect to 
the degree of development of services regulations in different countries, the 
particular needs of developing countries to exercise this right. For the DDA negotiations, the requirements of the provisions of this Article 
are reflected in S/L/93 "Guidelines and Procedures for the Negotiations on 
Trade in Services", specifically in paragraphs 1-2 Section I relating to 
"Objectives and Principles".   
Article XII:1 
"…It is recognized that particular pressures on the balance of payments of a 
Member in the process of economic de velopment or economic transition may 
necessitate the use of restrictions to ensures, inter alia, the maintenance of a level of financial reserves adequate for the implementation of its 
programme of economic development or economic transition."  
Article XV:1 
"…Such negotiations (on subsidies) shall recognize the role of subsidies in 
relation to the development programmes of developing countries and take 
into account the needs of Members, particularly developing country 
Members, for flexibility in this area…"  
Article XIX:3  
For each round, negotiating guidelines and procedures shall be established.  
For purposes of establishing such guidelines, the Council for Trade in Services shall carry out an assessment of  trade in services in overall terms 
and on a sectoral basis with reference to the objectives of this Agreement, 
including those set out in paragraph 1 of Article IV. Negotiating guidelines 
shall establish modalities for the treatment of liberalization undertaken 
autonomously by Members since previous negotiations, as well as for the special treatment for least-developed country Members under the provisions of paragraph 3 of Article IV.   For the DDA negotiations, the requirements of the provisions of this Article 
are reflected in S/L/93 "Guidelines and Procedures for the Negotiations on 
Trade in Services". See paragraph 2 of Section I relating to "Objectives and 
Principles"; and paragraphs 13-15 of Section III relating to "Modalities and Procedures". The modalities for S&D for LDC Members in the negotiations on trade in services were adopted on 3 September 2003 (see TN/S/13). 
 
Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
Article III:4 
Each Member shall also establish one or more enquiry points to provide specific information to other Members, upon request, on all such matters as well as those subject to the notification requirement in paragraph 3. Such 
enquiry points shall be established within two years from the date of entry 
into force of the Agreement Establishing the WTO (referred to in this Agreement as the "WTO Agreement"). Ap propriate flexibility with respect to 
the time-limit within which such enquiry points are to be established may be 
agreed upon for individual developing country Members. Enquiry points need 
not be depositories of laws and regulations.     
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Article V:3c  
(a) Where developing countries are parties to an agreement of the type 
referred to in Article V:1, flexibility shall be provided for regarding the 
conditions set out in Article V:1, particularly with reference to Article V:1(b) 
thereof, in accordance with the level of development of the countries 
concerned, both overall and in individual sectors and sub-sectors.   
(b) Notwithstanding Article V:6, in th e case of an agreement of the type 
referred to in Article V:1 involving only developing countries, more 
favourable treatment may be granted to juridical persons owned or 
controlled by natural persons of the parties to such an agreement.  Members did not clarify what was meant by S&D of developing countries in 
Article V (paragraph 46 of S/C/M/35)   
 
In response to a question, it was clarified that the need for flexibility with 
respect to coverage of such agreements when a developing country was 
involved was a point certainly raised and taken note of in the reports of the 
Committee on Regional Trade Agreements (paragraph 35 of S/C/M/46)   
Article XIX:2 
The process of liberalization shall take place with due respect for national 
policy objectives and the level of development of individual Members, both 
overall and in individual sectors. Th ere shall be appropriate flexibility for 
individual developing country Members for opening fewer sectors, liberalizing 
fewer types of transactions, progressively extending market access in line 
with their development situation and, when making access to their markets 
available to foreign service suppliers, attaching to such access conditions aimed at achieving the objectives referred to in Article IV. (See section on Article IV.)  For the DDA negotiations the requirements of the provisions of this Article 
are reflected in S/L/93 "Guidelines and Procedures for the Negotiations on 
Trade in Services", particularly Section I ("Objectives and Principles"), 
paragraphs 2-3, and Section III ("Modalities and Procedures"), paragraphs 12, 14 and 15.   
Annex on Telecommunications 
5. g) Notwithstanding the preceding para graphs of this section, a developing 
country Member may, consistent with its level of development, place 
reasonable conditions on access to and use of public telecommunications 
transport networks and services necessary to strengthen its domestic 
telecommunications infrastructure and service capacity and to increase its 
participation in international trade in telecommunications services. Such 
conditions shall be specified in the Member's Schedule.   To date, no developing country government has elected to exercise this 
provision by indicating in its schedule any reservation or condition on the 
obligations contained in the Annex. 
Technical assistance 
Article XXV:2b 
Technical assistance to developing countries shall be provided at the 
multilateral level by the Secretariat and shall be decided upon by the Council 
for Trade in Services. The requirements of the provisions of this Article are reflected in S/L/93 
"Guidelines and Procedures for the Negotiations on Trade in Services".   
 
 
Annex on Telecommunications,  paragraph 6(c)b 
In cooperation with relevant international organizations, Members shall make available, where practicable, to developing countries information with respect to telecommunications services and developments in 
telecommunications and information technology to assist in strengthening 
their domestic telecommunications services sector.  On 25 June 1999, the Services Council held a special Information Session on 
Telecommunication Services.  The Information Session examined in depth technical assistance to developing countries on regulatory issues such as the establishment of an independent regulator, interconnection and competitive 
safeguards. Experts from other international intergovernmental 
organizations including the International Telecommunications Union and the  
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World Bank participated as well as national regulators from capitals.  On 
26 May 2000, the Council for Trade in Services adopted the text of the cooperation agreement between the International Telecommunication Union and the World Trade Organization (S/C/9/Rev.1). Subsequently, the ITU 
Council also adopted the text at its annual session held on 19-28 July. 
 
Paragraph 6 of the agreement states th at the WTO and ITU secretariats will 
endeavour to cooperate on matters relating to technical assistance and technical cooperation. 
Provisions relating to LDC Members  
Article XIX:3 "…Negotiating guidelines shall establish modalities for the treatment of liberalization undertaken autonomous ly by Members since previous 
negotiations, as well as for the special treatment for least-developed country 
Members under the provisions of paragraph 3 of Article 4." For the DDA negotiations, the requirements of the provisions of this Article 
are reflected in S/L/93 "Guidelines and Procedures for the Negotiations on Trade in Services" (paragraph 13 of Section III relating to "Modalities and 
Procedures"). The modalities for S&D for LDC Members in the negotiations 
on trade in services were adopted on 3 September 2003 (TN/S/13). 
Article IV:3 Increasing Participation of Developing Countries b, c 
Special priority shall be given to the least-developed country Members in the 
implementation of Article IV:1 and 2. Particular account shall be taken of the 
serious difficulty of the least-developed countries in accepting negotiated 
specific commitments in view of their special economic situation and their 
development, trade and financial needs. 
 For the DDA negotiations, the requirements of the provisions of this Article 
are reflected in S/L/93 "Guidelines and Procedures for the Negotiations on 
Trade in Services" (see paragraph 2 of Section I relating to "Objectives and 
Principles"). By virtue of the Decision of 17 December 2011 on "Preferential 
Treatment to Services and Service Suppliers of Least-Developed Countries" 
(WT/L/847; see Section 7.14), Members may under certain conditions grant 
special priority to LDC services or service suppliers otherwise inconsistent 
with Article II (MFN) of the GATS. 
 
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  4  AGREEMENT ON TRADE-RELATED ASPECT S OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS 
4.1.  The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement) 
and related instruments contain six S&D provisions and five Decisions. The six provisions fall under the following categories: 
4.1.1  Transitional time-periods  
 Two provisions (Article 65.2 and 65.4).   
 4.1.2  Technical assistance 
 One provision (Article 67).   
 4.1.3  Provisions relating to LDC Members  
Three provisions (Part of the Preamble to th e Agreement; Article 66.1 and 66.2); and four 
related Decisions, namely TRIPS Council Decision of 27 June 2002 on the Extension of the 
Transition Period under Article 66.1 of the TRIPS Agreement for LDC Members for Certain Obligations with respect to Pharmaceutical Products (IP/C/25); General Council Decision of 8 July 2002 on LDC Members Obligations under Article 70.9 of the TRIPS Agreement with 
respect to Pharmaceutical Products (WT/L/478); TRIPS Council Decision of 
29 November 2005 on the Extension of the Transition Period under Article 66.1 for LDC Members (IP/C/40); and TRIPS Council Decision of 11 June 2013 on the Extension of the Transition Period under Article 66.1 for Least-Developed Country Members (IP/C/64). 
 
The following two Decisions include provisions in favour of LDCs: General Council Decision of 30 August 2003 on the Implementation of Paragraph 6 of the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health (WT/L/540 and Corr.1) and General Council Decision 
of 6 December 2005 on the Amendment of the TRIPS Agreement (WT/L/641). See the 
references in Section 7 of this document.   
  
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PROVISION COMMENT 
Transitional time-periods 
Article 65.2c  
A developing country Member is entitled to delay for a further period of four 
years the date of application, as defined in paragraph 1, of the provisions of 
this Agreement other than Articles 3, 4 and 5.   Extensive use was made of the transiti on period provided for developing 
countries under Article 65.2. This transition period expired on 
1 January 2000. 
Article 65.4c  
T o  t h e  e x t e n t  t h a t  a  d e v e l o p i n g  c o u n t r y  M e m b e r  i s  o b l i g e d  b y  t h i s  
Agreement to extend product patent protection to areas of technology not so 
protectable in its territory on the general date of application of this Agreement for that Member, as defined in paragraph 2, it may delay the application of the provisions on product patents of Section 5 of Part II to 
such areas of technology for an additional period of five years.   The additional transition period for developing country Members in fields of 
technology not subject to product patent protection on the date of 
application of the TRIPS Agreement expired on 1 January 2005. Some 
Members made use of this transition period.   
Technical assistance 
Article 67b 
In order to facilitate the implementation of this Agreement, developed 
country Members shall provide, on re quest and on mutually agreed terms 
and conditions, technical and financial cooperation in favour of developing and least-developed country Members. Such cooperation shall include assistance in the preparation of laws and regulations on the protection and 
enforcement of intellectual property righ ts as well as on the prevention of 
their abuse, and shall include support regarding the establishment or reinforcement of domestic offices and agencies relevant to these matters, including the training of personnel.   Considerable attention has been given by the TRIPS Council to the provision 
of technical cooperation pursuant to Article 67 of the TRIPS Agreement. This 
issue has been a regular item on the agenda of the Council's meetings, with 
a view to monitoring compliance with the obligation contained in Article 67, sharing information on the technical cooperation possibilities available and providing an opportunity to identify any needs not adequately being 
addressed. Developed country Members have provided, on an annual basis, 
for a special technical cooperation review meeting normally held at the end of year TRIPS Council's meeting, reports on their technical and financial cooperation activities of relevance (in 2012 in documents IP/C/W/582 and 
addenda). Some Members have provided  complementary reports specifically 
focusing on their technical cooperation activities for the benefit of LDCs. Furthermore, they have notified contact points in their administrations for technical cooperation on TRIPS (available on the Members' transparency 
toolkit page at 
http://www.wto.org/english/tratop _e/trips_e/trips_ toolkit_e.htm ). As part of 
the annual review, intergovernmental organizations with observer status in 
the TRIPS Council have also provided written information on their technical 
cooperation activities relating to TRIPS matters (in 2012 in documents 
IP/C/W/581 and addenda), as has the WTO Secretariat (in 2012 in document IP/C/W/577). Pursuant to the provisions on enhanced technical cooperation for LDC Members contained in the 2005 TRIPS Council Decision on the 
Extension of the Transition Period under Article 66.1 for LDC Members, eight  
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LDC Members submitted information on their priority needs to the TRIPS 
Council (IP/C/W/499 and IP/C/W/523, IP/C/W/500 and IP/C/W/510, IP/C/W/546, IP/C/W/548 and IP/C/W/548/Add.1, IP/C/W/552, IP/C/W/555, IP/C/W/575, and IP/C/W/584). In that context, the Secretariat has 
organized, at the request of the LDC Gr oup, symposia on LDC priority needs 
back-to-back with the Council's end-of-year meetings that have brought together delegates from LDCs and technical cooperation partners from developed countries, as well as representatives from a number of 
intergovernmental organizations. 
Provisions relating to LDC Members 
Preamble  
Recognizing also the special needs of  the least-developed country Members 
in respect of maximum flexibility in the domestic implementation of laws and 
regulations in order to enable them to create a sound and viable technological base.     
Article 66.1c 
In view of the special needs and requ irements of least-developed country 
Members, their economic, financial and administrative constraints, and their 
need for flexibility to create a viable technological base, such Members shall 
not be required to apply the provisions of this Agreement, other than 
Articles 3, 4 and 5, for a period of 10 years from the date of application as 
defined under Article 65.1. The Council for TRIPS shall, upon duly motivated 
request by a least-developed country Member, accord extensions of this 
period.   With a view to implementing paragraph 7 of the Doha Declaration on the 
TRIPS Agreement and Public Health (W T/MIN(01)/DEC/2), the TRIPS Council 
adopted a Decision on 1 July 2002 by which the transition period under 
Article 66.1 for LDC Members with respect to the protection and enforcement 
of patents and undisclosed information was extended until 1 January 2016 
(IP/C/25). This was completed by a Decision of the General Council of 
12 July 2002, which waived the obligat ions of LDC Members under Article 
70.9 with respect to exclusive marketing rights for pharmaceutical products 
subject of a patent application until 1 January 2016. (WT/L/478) 
 
The general transition period for LDC Members under Article 66.1 was initially 
due to expire on 1 January 2006. Recognizing their special needs and 
requirements, the TRIPS Council adopted a decision on 29 November 2005 
that extended the transition period under Article 66.1 for LDC Members until 
1 July 2013 (IP/C/40). The TRIPS Council adopted a Decision on 
11 June 2013 that further extended the transition period until 1 July 2021 
(IP/C/64). 
 
Article 66.2b 
Developed country Members shall provide incentives to enterprises and 
institutions in their territories for the purpose of promoting and encouraging 
technology transfer to least develope d country Members in order to enable 
them to create a sound and viable technological base. Following the instructions of the Mini sterial Conference to the TRIPS Council 
in paragraph 11.2 of the Decision on  Implementation-Related Issues and 
Concerns (WT/MIN(01)/17), a Decision of the TRIPS Council of 
20 February 2003 put in place a mechanism monitoring the implementation 
of the obligations under Article 66.2 (IP/C/28). Developed country Members  
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are to submit annually reports on actions taken or planned in pursuance of 
their commitments under Article 66.2 and to provide new detailed reports every third year and updates in the intervals (in 2012 in documents IP/C/W/580 and addenda). Those reports have been regularly reviewed at 
the TRIPS Council's end of year meetings (see IP/C/M/71 for the review in 
2012). Since 2008, the Secretariat has organized, at the request of the LDC Group, workshops back-to-back with the Council's end-of-year meetings as a platform for LDC Members and developed country Members to engage in in-
depth dialogues on the implementation of Article 66.2.   
 At its meeting in March 2013, the Council requested the Chair to consult on the request made in November 2012 by Haiti on behalf of the LDC Group 
that the Council adopt a proposed format for reports submitted by developed 
country Members under Article 66.2 contained in a communication by Angola on behalf of the LDC Group (IP/C/W/561).  
Paragraph 7 of the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public 
Health reaffirmed the commitment of developed country Members pursuant to Article 66.2 (WT/MIN(01)/DEC/2). According to the Decision of the General Council on the Implementation of Paragraph 6 of the Doha 
Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health (WT/L/540 and 
WT/L/540/Corr.1) and the Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement (WT/L/641), Members also undertook to cooperate in paying special attention to the transfer of technology and capacity building in the 
pharmaceutical sector pursuant to Article 66.2. WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
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  5  UNDERSTANDING ON RULES AND PROC EDURES GOVERNING THE SETTLEMENT OF 
DISPUTES 
5.1.  The Understanding on Rules and Procedures  Governing the Settlement of Disputes (Dispute 
Settlement Understanding or DSU) contains 11 provisions relating to S&D, which can be classified 
as follows: 
5.1.1  Provisions under which WTO Memb ers should safeguard the interests of 
developing country Members 
Seven provisions (Article 4.10, Article 8.10*, Article 12.10*, Article 12.11*, Article 21.2*, 
Article 21.7*, and Article 21.8*).   
 
5.1.2  Flexibility of commitments, of ac tion, or use of policy instruments  
 One provision (Article 3.12). 
 
5.1.3  Technical assistance 
 One provision (Article 27.2).   
 
5.1.4  Provisions relating to LDC Members. 
 Two provisions (Article 24.1 and Article 24.2).   
 
* Note that these provisions are addressed to specific organs within the dispute settlement 
process, rather than to "WTO Members" directly.  5.2.  Possible improvements and clarifications to the DSU continue to be discussed in Special 
Sessions of the DSB. The latest publicly available compilation of proposals in these negotiations is 
contained in the Report by the Chairman of th e Special Session of the Dispute Settlement Body, 
dated 21 April 2011.
72 This document provides an overall assessment of the negotiations at that 
point. It also reproduces the consolidated draft legal text and thematic overview of the issues 
under discussion circulated by the Chairman in July 2008.73 One of the twelve issues in discussion 
identified in this document is "Developing country interests, including S&D". A summary of the issues and related discussions is contained in th e thematic overview section and Annex B of the 
Chairman's report.
74 
5.3.  Since then, discussions have continued on the issues identified in the Chairman's text of 
July 2008.75 In this context, a group of Members presen ted a revised draft legal text on developing 
country interests. The group identified four aspects of dispute settlement proceedings for improvement: (1) adequate timeframes to address the specific needs of specific disputes; 
(2) adjusting the remedies available in order to induce effective compliance; (3) mitigating the 
cost of litigation in dispute settlement procedures ; and (4) regulating the access to participation in 
the process in order to secure a more positive solution.  
5.4.  In December 2012, the Chairman of the Special Session of the Dispute Settlement Body 
reported to the TNC the completion of a full review of all twelve issues under consideration in the 
negotiations, including developing country interests. He also announced his intention of consulting further with participants, with a view to moving to a more horizontal process, to facilitate further progress towards a successful conclusion of the negotiations.
76     
                                               
72 TN/DS/25. 
73 JOB(08)/81. 
74 TN/DS/25, pp. A-40-A-41. 
75 Summaries of the discussions are available in the JOB/DS series. 
76 Podcast of the Chairman's statement at th e TNC meeting of 7 December 2012 available at 
http://www.wto.org/english/news_e/news12_e/tnc_stat_07dec12_e.htm   
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PROVISION COMMENT 
Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
Article 4.10c 
During consultations Members should give special attention to developing 
country Members' particular problems and interests. One developing country Member complained that its request for 
consultations with another Member (developed) had been disregarded, thus 
discriminating against and impairing its interests, contrary to the provisions 
of Article 4.10 of the Dispute Settlement Understanding. (WT/DSB/M/7, p. 2) 
Article 8.10b 
When a dispute is between a developing country Member and a developed 
country Member the panel shall, if the developing country Member so 
requests, include at least one panelist from a developing country Member. In disputes between developing country Members and developed country 
Members, nationals of developing country Members regularly serve as 
panelists. For example, in US – Steel Safeguards , the Director-General was 
requested to compose the single panel taking into account Article 8.10 of the Dispute Settlement Understanding. (WT/DS248/R, WT/DS249/R, WT/DS251/R, WT/DS252/R, WT/DS253/R, WT/DS254/R, WT/DS258/R and 
WT/DS259/R) Overall, 249 different persons have served as panelists, 118 
of whom have come from developing countries. Two have come from LDCs. 
Article 12.10c  
In the context of consultations involving and measures taken by a 
developing country Member, the parties may agree to extend the periods 
established in paragraphs 7 and 8 of Article 4. If, after the period has 
elapsed, the consulting parties cannot agree that the consultations have 
concluded, the Chairman of the DSB shall decide, after consultation with the 
parties, whether to extend the relevant period and, if so, for how long. In 
addition, in examining a complaint against a developing country Member, the 
panel shall allow sufficient time for the developing country Member to 
prepare and present its argumentation. The provisions of paragraph 1 of 
Article 20 and paragraph 4 of Article 21 are not affected by any action 
pursuant to this paragraph.   In one dispute, a developing country respondent contended that the process 
raised important questions in relation to the Dispute Settlement 
Understanding such as: (i) the real difficulties faced by developing countries 
on the insistence by a developed country that consultations be held only in 
Geneva; (ii) the meaning and significance of the consultations stage; 
(iii) whether a Member could decide unilaterally that consultations had been 
concluded in particular since Article 12.10 of the Dispute Settlement 
Understanding provided that "in the context of consultations involving a 
measure taken by a developing country Member, the parties may agree to 
extend the period established in paragraphs 7 and 8 of Article 4". 
(WT/DSB/M/21, page 4) 
 
After the DSB had considered the complaining party's first request for 
establishment of a panel, in Turkey – Rice  (WT/DS334). On 27 February 
2006, Turkey (the respondent) requested by letter a longer consultation 
period in light of Article 12.10. Given the timing of the request by Turkey, 
the Chairman of the DSB stated at the DSB meeting on 17 March 2006 that 
he did not intend to rule per se on the Turkish request at this point. 
Subsequently, the DSB Chairman responded (in his personal capacity) in 
writing to the letter sent to him on this matter by Turkey (see also 
WT/DSB/M/207, pp. 18-19). The final panel report (WT/DS334/R) was 
adopted at the DSB meeting on 22 October 2007. (see also WT/DS334/8) At 
this meeting, the United States raised a "systemic concern" on the inclusion 
of Part VII.G., S&D, in the final report, because it was a finding not  
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requested by either party and neither party had had a chance to review it in 
the interim report. (WT/DS334/9) The United States considered that the 
Panel's decision to make new findings in a new section of its report at the 
final stage of the proceeding, and after the interim report had been reviewed 
by the parties could not be reconciled with the provisions of Article 15 of the 
Dispute Settlement Understanding. Australia and Canada expressed similar 
concerns. (WT/DSB/M/241, p. 10) 
 
In India – Quantitative Restrictions  (WT/DS90), India requested additional 
time to review the interim report, in accordance with Article 12.10 of the 
Dispute Settlement Understanding (see also WT/DS90/R, para. 4.1)  
 
A number of panels have taken the respondent's status as a developing 
country Member into account when preparing and revising the timetable for 
the proceeding. (For instance, Turkey – Rice, WT/DS344/R, para. 7.305; see 
also, Philippines – Distilled Spirits , WT/DS396/R and WT/DS403/R, para. 
7.190; Dominican Republic – Safeguard Measures , WT/DS417/R and 
WT/DS418/R, para. 7.443; and EC-Bananas III (Article 21.5-Ecuador II), 
WT/DS27/RW2/ECU, paras. 2.74-2.76.) 
Article 12.11c 
Where one or more of the parties is a developing country Member, the 
panel's report shall explicitly indicate the form in which account has been taken of relevant provisions on differential and more-favourable treatment for developing country Members that form part of the covered agreements 
which have been raised by the developing country Member in the course of 
the dispute settlement procedures. Panel reports show how this provision has been taken into account.  For 
example, see: WT/DS27/R, WT/DS27/RW2/ECU, WT/DS46/R, WT/DS90/R, 
WT/DS204/R, WT/DS217, WT/DS234/R, WT/DS248/R, WT/DS249/R, WT/DS251/R, WT/DS252/R, WT/DS253/R, WT/DS254/R, WT/DS258/R, WT/DS259/R; WT/DS308/R WT/DS334/R, WT/DS396/R, WT/DS403/R, 
WT/DS417/R and WT/DS418/R. 
Article 21.2c 
Particular attention should be paid to matters affecting the interests of 
developing country Members with respect to measures which have been 
subject to dispute settlement. This provision has been referred to in arbitration awards pursuant to 
Article 21.3(c) of the Dispute Settlement Understanding (See WT/DS54/15, 
WT/DS55/14, WT/DS59/13, WT/DS64/12, WT/DS87/15, WT/DS110/14, 
WT/DS207/13, WT/DS217/14, WT/DS234/22; WT/DS246/14, WT/DS265/33, 
WT/DS266/33, WT/DS283/14, WT/DS268/12, WT/DS269/13, WT/DS286/15 
WT/DS285/13, WT/DS366/13, WT/DS384/24 and WT/DS386/23.)   
Article 21.7c 
If the matter is one which has been raised by a developing country Member, 
the DSB shall consider what further action it might take which would be appropriate to the circumstances.   
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Article 21.8c 
If the case is one brought by a developing country Member, in considering 
what appropriate action might be taken, the DSB shall take into account not 
only the trade coverage of measures complained of, but also their impact on 
the economy of developing country Members concerned.   This provision has been taken into account in an arbitrator's decision 
pursuant to Article 22.7 of the Dispute Settlement Understanding. (See e.g. 
WT/DS27/ARB/ECU.)   
Flexibility of commitments, of action, or use of policy instruments 
Article 3.12 
Notwithstanding Article 3.11, if a complaint based on any of the covered 
agreements is brought by a developing country Member against a developed 
country Member, the complaining party shall have the right to invoke, as an 
alternative to the provisions contained in Articles 4, 5, 6 and 12 of this 
Understanding, the corresponding provisions of the Decision of 5 April 1966 
(BISD 14S/18), except that where the Panel considers that the time-frame 
provided for in paragraph 7 of that Decision is insufficient to provide its 
report and with the agreement of the complaining party, that time-frame 
may be extended. To the extent that there is a difference between the rules 
and procedures of Articles 4, 5, 6 and 12 and the corresponding rules and 
procedures of the Decision, the latter shall prevail.   In European Communities – Regime for the Importation of Bananas , 
Colombia, referring to Article 3.12 of the Dispute Settlement Understanding 
and the Decision of April 1966 (BISD 14S/18) in its request for consultations 
(26 March 2007, WT/DS361/1), reserved the possibility of requesting the 
good offices of the Director-General. Panama filed a similar request for 
consultations (WT/DS364/1) on 27 June 2007. 
 
On 2 November 2007, Colombia referred the matter to the Director-General, 
requesting that he act in an ex officio  capacity and use his good offices to 
help facilitate a solution under Article 3.12 of the Dispute Settlement 
Understanding. Panama similarly requested the Director-General's good 
offices on 14 December 2007. 
 
After conducting several meetings under the Colombia/EU and the 
Panama/EU "good offices" processes, on 21 December 2009, the 
Director-General circulated to Members his report on the use of his good 
offices (WT/DS361/2, WT/DS364/2).  
 
On 15 December 2009, together with eight other Latin American countries, 
Colombia and Panama announced a comprehensive agreement with the 
European Union, i.e. Geneva Agreement on Trade in Bananas (WT/L/784). 
On 8 November 2012, the European Union and ten Latin American countries 
reached an agreement on the EU's revised commitments, which include the 
2009 Geneva Agreement, and finally settled the EU-Latin American banana 
disputes (WT/DS27, WT/DS361, WT/DS364, WT/DS16, WT/DS105, 
WT/DS158, WT/DS158, WT/L/616 and WT/L/625).  
Technical assistance 
Article 27.2c 
While the Secretariat assists Members in respect of dispute settlement at 
their request, there may also be a need to provide additional legal advice 
and assistance in respect of dispute settlement to developing country 
Members. To this end, the Secretariat shall make available a qualified legal 
expert from the WTO technical cooperation services to any developing The Secretariat makes available to developing countries the services of two 
consultants who are available to provide legal assistance to developing 
countries in dispute settlement, pursuant to this provision. This service is 
coordinated by ITTC.   
  
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country Member which so requests. This expert shall assist the developing 
country Member in a manner ensuring the continued impartiality of the 
Secretariat. 
Provisions relating to LDC Members 
Article 24.1c 
At all stages of the determination of the causes of a dispute and of dispute 
settlement procedures involving a least-developed country Member, 
particular consideration shall be given to the special situation of least-
developed country Members. In this regard, Members shall exercise due 
restraint in raising matters under these procedures involving a 
least-developed country Member. If nullification or impairment is found to 
result from a measure taken by a least-developed country Member, 
complaining parties shall exercise due restraint in asking for compensation or 
seeking authorization to suspend the application of concessions or other 
obligations pursuant to these procedures.   To date, one LDC has initiated a dispute settlement proceeding (WT/DS306 – 
India Anti-Dumping Measure on Batteries from Bangladesh ). 
 
On the basis of the UN list of LDCs77 and WTO data of disputes by country78, 
the participation of LDC Members in WTO dispute settlements is summarized 
as follows: 
 
Bangladesh, as complainant (DS306), as third party (DS243) 
Benin, as third party (DS267) 
Chad, as third party (DS267) 
Madagascar, as third party (DS27, DS265, DS266, DS283) 
Malawi, as third party (DS265, DS266, DS283, DS434) 
Senegal, as third party, (DS27, DS58) 
Tanzania, as third party (DS265,DS266,DS283) 
Zambia, as third party (DS434) 
 
Eight LDCs have participated in panel proceedings as a third party. As DS243 
was not appealed and DS434 is still at the panel stage, six LDCs have 
participated in Appellate Body proceedings as a third participant. 
Article 24.2 
In dispute settlement cases involving a least-developed country Member, 
where a satisfactory solution has not been found in the course of consultations the Director-General or the Chairman of the DSB shall, upon request by a least-developed country Member offer their good offices, conciliation and mediation with a view to assisting the parties to settle the 
dispute, before a request for a panel is made. The Director-General or the 
Chairman of the DSB, in providing the above assistance, may consult any source which either deems appropriate. In an attempt to make Article 5 of the Dispute Settlement Understanding 
operational (on good offices, conciliation and mediation), the 
Director-General has proposed some procedural steps to be taken by the parties to a dispute when requesting the Director-General's assistance under Article 5 (see WT/DSB/25). 
 
                                               
77 http://unctad.org/en/Pages/ALDC/Least%20Developed%20 Countries/UN-list-of-Least-Developed-Countries.aspx  
http://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/whatis_e/tif_e/org7_e.htm  
78 http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_ e/dispu_e/dispu_by_country_e.htm  
 WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
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  6  PLURILATERAL TRADE AGREEMENTS  
6.1  Agreement on Government Procurement 6.1.  The revised Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA/113)
79 contains ten S&D 
provisions falling under four categories.80   
6.1.1  Provisions under which WTO Memb ers should safeguard the interests of 
developing country Members 
 Three provisions (Article V.1; Article V.2; and Article V.10).   
 
6.1.2  Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
Six provisions (Article V.3; Article V.4; Article V.5; Article V.6; Article V.7; and Article V.9).   
 
6.1.3  Technical assistance 
 One provision (Article V.8).   
 6.1.4  Provisions relating to LDC Members 
 Two provisions (Article V.1 (a) and Article V.4 (a)).    
 6.2.  The focus of the S&D provisions in the Ag reement on Government Procurement is to provide 
developing country Members acceding to the GPA with the flexibility to negotiate more nuanced, 
tailor-made exclusions and exceptions from th e Agreement. Compared with the GPA 1994, the 
revised text aims at providing more legally precise and enforceable transitional measures.   
6.3.  As a plurilateral Agreement, not all WTO Members are bound by the GPA.  The Agreement at 
present covers the following 42 WTO Members: Armenia; Canada; the European Union and its 
27 member States; Hong Kong, China; Iceland; Israel; Japan; Korea; Liechtenstein; the 
Netherlands with respect to Aruba; Norway; Si ngapore; Switzerland; Chinese Taipei; and the 
United States. 
                                               
79 In light of Article XXIV:7 of the Agreement on Government Procurement (1994), the Committee on 
Government Procurement has renegotiated the Agreement and adopted the results of negotiations on 30 March 2012. While the revised Agreement is still pend ing on Parties' domestic ratifications, the S&D 
provisions for developing countries thereof are alread y, with the consensus of the Committee, put into 
application. Therefore, the presentation here refers to the revised text. For the GPA 1994 provisions on S&D, see document TN/CTD/W/33. 
80 In addition to Article V.1 being listed in the safeguarding intere sts category, and Article V.4 being 
listed in the flexibility category, Articles V.1(a) and V.4(a) have been placed in the LDCs category. However, the two references in the LDCs category are not counted separately when calculating the total number of provisions in the Agreement.  
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PROVISION COMMENT 
Article V 
Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
1. In negotiations on accession to, and in the implementation and 
administration of, this Agreement, the Parties shall give special consideration 
to the development, financial and trade needs and circumstances of developing countries and least develope d countries (collectively referred to 
hereinafter as "developing countrie s", unless specifically identified 
otherwise), recognizing that these may differ significantly from country to 
country.  As provided for in this Article and on request, the Parties shall accord S&D to: 
[…] any other developing country, where and to the extent that this 
S&D meets its development needs. Note that this provision explicitly addresses the situation of developing 
countries acceding to the Agreement in addition to the implementation and 
administration of the Agreement. 
2. Upon accession by a developing country to this Agreement, each Party 
shall provide immediately to the good s, services and suppliers of that 
country the most favourable coverage that the Party provides under its 
annexes to Appendix I to any other Party to this Agreement, subject to any 
terms negotiated between the Party and the developing country in order to 
maintain an appropriate balance of opportunities under this Agreement.  
10. The Committee shall review the operation and effectiveness of this 
Article every five years.  
Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
3. Based on its development needs, and with the agreement of the Parties, a 
developing country may adopt or maintain one or more of the following 
transitional measures, during a transition period and in accordance with a 
schedule, set out in its relevant annexes to Appendix I, and applied in a manner that does not discriminate among the other Parties: 
(a) a price preference programme, provided that the programme: 
(i) provides a preference only for the part of the tender 
incorporating goods or services originating in the developing country applying the preference or goods or services originating in other developing countries in respect of which 
the developing country applying the preference has an 
obligation to provide national treatment under a preferential agreement, provided that where the other developing country is a Party to this Agreement, such treatment would 
be subject to any conditions set by the Committee;  and This provision not only spells out the specific types of flexibilities permitted 
but also requires that all measures should be limited in time, 
non-discriminatory and set out in an Annex. It should be noted that any 
flexibility is to be negotiated by each developing country individually based on its specific developmental needs.    
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(ii) is transparent, and the preference and its application in 
the procurement are clearly described in the notice of intended procurement; 
(b) an offset, provided that any requirement for, or consideration of, 
the imposition of the offset is clearly stated in the notice of intended 
procurement; (c) the phased-in addition of specific entities or sectors; and a threshold that is higher than its permanent threshold. 
4.  In negotiations on accession to this Agreement, the Parties may agree to 
the delayed application of any specific obligation in this Agreement, other 
than Article IV:1(b), by the acceding developing country while that country 
implements the obligation. The implementation period shall be: 
[…]  
(b) for any other developing country, only the period necessary to 
implement the specific obligation and not to exceed three years.  
5. Any developing country that has negotiated an implementation period for 
an obligation under paragraph 4 shall list in its Annex 7 to Appendix I the 
agreed implementation period, the specific obligation subject to the implementation period and any interim obligation with which it has agreed to comply during the implementation period.  
6. After this Agreement has entered into force for a developing country, the 
Committee, on request of the developing country, may: 
(a) extend the transition period for a measure adopted or maintained 
under paragraph 3 or any implementation period negotiated under 
paragraph 4; or 
(b) approve the adoption of a new transitional measure under 
paragraph 3, in special circumstances that were unforeseen during 
the accession process.  
7. A developing country that has nego tiated a transitional measure under 
paragraph 3 or 6, an implementation period under paragraph 4 or any 
extension under paragraph 6 shall take such steps during the transition period or implementation period as may be necessary to ensure that it is in compliance with this Agreement at the end of any such period. The 
developing country shall promptly notify the Committee of each step.  
9.  The Committee may develop procedures for the implementation of this 
Article. Such procedures may include provisions for voting on decisions 
relating to requests under paragraph 6.   
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- 83 - PROVISION COMMENT 
Technical assistance 
8.  The Parties shall give due consideration to any request by a developing 
country for technical cooperation and capacity building in relation to that 
country's accession to, or implementation of, this Agreement. Unlike the GPA 1994 provisions on technical assistance, this provision does 
not refer to any specific technical assistance measures in order to provide 
maximum flexibilities. The revised text also extends the coverage of 
recipients from existing Parties to any developing country Members that are 
not yet a party to the GPA. This reflects the fact that the technical assistance 
is mostly provided to developing country  Members acceding to the GPA.      
The WTO Secretariat provides technical assistance on a regular basis under 
its annual technical assistance programme. This includes: 
 
(i) a regional seminar on government procurement organized for each 
developing country region once every two year (for the current plan, see 
document WT/COMTD/W/180/Rev.1); and 
 
(ii) national seminars on government procurement to developing country 
Members of the WTO on request whether or not they are a party to the 
Agreement. On average, six such seminars were delivered every year.  
Provisions relating to LDC Members 
1. In negotiations on accession to, and in the implementation and 
administration of, this Agreement, the Parties shall give special consideration 
to the development, financial and trade needs and circumstances of 
developing countries and least develope d countries (collectively referred to 
hereinafter as "developing countrie s", unless specifically identified 
otherwise), recognizing that these may differ significantly from country to 
country. As provided for in this Article and on request, the Parties shall 
accord S&D to: 
(a) least developed countries; and 
              […]  
4.  In negotiations on accession to this Agreement, the Parties may agree to 
the delayed application of any specific obligation in this Agreement, other 
than Article IV:1(b), by the acceding developing country while that country implements the obligation. The implementation period shall be: 
(a) for a least developed country, five years after its accession to 
this Agreement; 
              […]  
 
 WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 84 - 
 
  7  MINISTERIAL, GENERAL COUNCIL AND OTHER RELEVANT DECISIONS 
7.1.  The following section includes Ministerial, General Council and other relevant Decisions 
providing S&D to developing and least-developed countries. As in sections 2 to 6, the tables reproduce in the left-hand column, the text of the relevant Decision, and in the right-hand column 
titled "Comment", information on their implementation.   
 
  
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- 85 - 7.1  Differential and More Favourable Trea tment, Reciprocity and Fuller Participation of Developing Countries - Decision of 28 November 1979 
(Enabling Clause - L/4903)b 
PROVISION COMMENT 
1.  Notwithstanding the provisions of Article I of the General Agreement, contracting parties may accord differential and more favourable treatment to 
developing countries,
81 without according such treatment to other 
contracting parties.    
2.  The provisions of paragraph 1 apply to the following:82    
Provisions aimed at increasing the trade op portunities of developing country Members 
(a) Preferential tariff treatment accorded by developed contracting parties to 
products originating in developing countries in accordance with the 
Generalized System of Preferences.83 Implementation of this provision ha s been through GSP schemes. The WTO’s 
Database on Preferential Trade Arrangements ( http://ptadb.wto.org ) 
contains information on 11 GSP schemes being implemented by WTO 
Members.  
Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
(b) Differential and more favourable treatment with respect to the provisions 
of the General Agreement concerning non-tariff measures governed by the 
provisions of instruments multilaterally negotiated under the auspices of the 
GATT.  
(c)  Regional or global arrangements entered into amongst less-developed 
contracting parties for the mutual reduction or elimination of tariffs and, in accordance with criteria or conditions which may be prescribed by the 
CONTRACTING PARTIES, for the mutual reduction or elimination of non-tariff 
measures, on products imported from one another.   To date, 34 RTAs and two accessions to existing agreements have been 
notified under the Enabling Clause. Divergent views have been expressed in the CTD on how to deal with the issues relating to the RTAs notified under 
both the Enabling Clause and GATT Article XXIV and their implications, in 
particular with regard to the RTA notifications concerning the Gulf Cooperation Council Customs Union, the ASEAN-Korea Agreement and the India-Korea Agreement. Members have made numerous interventions on this 
matter. A communication titled "Systemic and specific issues arising out of 
the dual notification of the Gulf Cooperation Council Customs Union" (WT/COMTD/W/175) has been submitted by China, Egypt and India in this regard.      
                                               
81 The words "developing countries" as used in this text are to be understood to refer al so to developing territories. 
82 It would remain open for the CONTRACTING PARTIES to consider on an ad hoc basis under the GATT provisions for joint action any  proposals for differential and more 
favourable treatment not falling within the scope of this paragraph. 
83 As described in the Decision of the CONTRACTING PARTIES of 25 June 1971, relating to the establishment of "generalized, non-re ciprocal and non-discriminatory 
preferences beneficial to the developing countries".  
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Provisions relating LDC Members 
(d)  Special treatment of the least developed among the developing 
countries in the context of any general or specific measures in favour of developing countries. Almost all developed Members of the WTO provide either total or nearly total 
duty-free and quota-free (DFQF) access to products originating from LDCs, including through LDC-specific components of GSP schemes. The 
Sub-Committee on LDCs, pursuant to the WTO Work Programme for LDCs, 
annually reviews market access for LDC products. The latest review is contained in document WT/COMTD/L DC/W/56/Rev.1, which includes 
information on recent market access initiatives taken by Members. See also 
the information provided in Section 7.11 in the context of Decision 36 in 
Annex F of the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration on DFQF market access for LDCs. 
  
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- 87 - 7.2  Decision on Measures in Favour of Least-Developed Countries (15 December 1993)b  
PROVISION COMMENT 
Ministers... 
2.  Agree that: (i)  Expeditious implementation of all special and differential measures taken 
in favour of least-developed countries including those taken within the 
context of the Uruguay Round shall be ensured through, inter alia, regular reviews. (ii)  To the extent possible, MFN concessions on tariff and non-tariff 
measures agreed in the Uruguay Round on products of export interest to the 
least-developed countries may be implemented autonomously, in advance and without staging.  Consideration shall be given to further improve GSP and other schemes for products of particular export interest to 
least-developed countries. 
(iii)  The rules set out in the various agreements and instruments and the transitional provisions in the Uruguay Round should be applied in a flexible and supportive manner for the least-developed countries. To this effect, 
sympathetic consideration shall be given to specific and motivated concerns 
raised by the least-developed countries in the appropriate Councils and Committees. (iv)  In the application of import relief measures and other measures 
referred to in paragraph 3(c) of Article XXXVII of GATT 1947 and the 
corresponding provision of GATT 1994, special consideration shall be given to the export interests of least-developed countries. (v)  Least-developed countries shall be accorded substantially increased 
technical assistance in the development, strengthening and diversification of 
their production and export bases including those of services, as well as in trade promotion, to enable them to maximize the benefits from liberalized access to markets. 
3.  Agree to keep under review the specific needs of the least-developed 
countries and to continue to seek the adoption of positive measures which facilitate the expansion of trading opportunities in favour of these countries. This Decision has been a landmark one to help LDCs integrate into the 
multilateral trading system, in particular by enhancing trading opportunities for LDCs as well as providing for greater flexibility in the implementation of 
WTO rules. The Decision also asks Members to continue to seek the adoption 
of positive measures to facilitate expansion of trading opportunities for LDCs. In fact, pursuant to the letter and spirit of the Decision, several important measures/legal instruments have been adopted by Members both in the area 
of goods as well as in services. Most notably, three of the important LDC 
Agreement-specific proposals under the S&D Work Programme which have been adopted by Members through Annex F of the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration stems from provisions contained in this Decision. The significant 
one among the three is the comprehens ive decision on duty-free and quota-
free (DFQF) market access for LDC products (See Section 7.11). The other two Agreement-specific proposals reaffirmed that LDCs will only be required to undertake commitments and concessions to the extent consistent with 
their individual development, financial or trade needs, or their administrative 
and institutional capacities.   T h e  D e c i s i o n  o n  m e a s u r e s  i n  f a v o u r  o f  L D C s  a l s o  p l a y e d  a  r o l e  i n  t h e  
designing of the Integrated Framewor k in 1997 - a trade capacity building 
programme for the LDCs - which evolved into the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) in 2009. Information on the EIF is available at the following website: www.enhancedif.org . Most LDCs are at various stages of their EIF 
process which also serves as an instrument to access broader Aid-for-Trade 
funding. Following the mid-term review conducted between July and November 2012, the EIF Steering Committee (EIFSC) at its December 2012 meeting accepted the proposal by the EIF Board to extend the programme 
mandate to the end of 2015, with an ad ditional operational period for project 
implementation up to 2017.   A number of important decisions have been  taken in favour of LDCs since the 
adoption of the Decision on measures in favour of LDCs. And in almost all 
those decisions, this Decision has been referenced to. These include: (i) Decision on waiver to allow developing country Members to provide preferential tariff treatment to products of LDCs (WT/L/304; see Section 7.5. 
the waiver has been extended until 30 June 2019 (WT/L/759); (ii) The LDC 
Services waiver decision adopted at MC8 (WT/L/847; see Section 7.14).    
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- 88 - PROVISION COMMENT 
Members have been responsive to the needs and requirements of the LDCs 
in the WTO. For instance, upon expiry of the initial transition period under Article 66.1 of the TRIPS Agreement, th e LDCs were granted an additional 
transition period until 1 July 2013. On 11 June 2013, the TRIPS Council 
adopted a Decision (IP/C/64) that further extended the transition period until 
1 July 2021 (see Section 7.16).   T h e  D e c i s i o n  o n  m e a s u r e s  i n  f a v o u r  o f  L D C s  a l s o  s t i p u l a t e s  t h a t  s p e c i f i c  
needs of LDCs be kept under review. The WTO Work Programme for LDCs 
(WT/COMTD/LDC/11) which was adopted in 2002 addresses systemic issues of interest to LDCs in the multilateral trading system. Work is on-going to update this Work Programme.   
  WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 89 - 
 
  7.3  Decision on Texts Relating to Minimu m Values and Imports by Sole Agents, Sole 
Distributors and Sole Concessionaires (15 December 1993) 
7.2.  The Decision On Texts Relating To Minimum Values And Imports By Sole Agents, Sole 
Distributors And Sole Concessionaires contains two provisions for S&D.   
7.3.1  Provisions under which WTO Memb ers should Safeguard the Interests of 
Developing Country Members 
 Two provisions (Text I and Text II).   
 
 
  
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- 90 - DECISION ON TEXTS RELATING TO MINIMUM VALUES AND IMPORTS BY SOLE AGENTS, SOLE DISTRIBUTORS AND SOLE CONCESSIONAIRES 
(15 DECEMBER 1993) 
PROVISION COMMENT 
Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
Text I  
Where a developing country makes a reservation to retain officially 
established minimum values within the terms of Annex III:2 and shows good 
cause, the Committee shall give the request for the reservation sympathetic 
consideration. Where a reservation is consented to, the terms and conditions 
referred to in Annex III:2 shall take full account of the development, 
financial and trade needs of the developing country concerned. For information on the Members that have made use of this provision see 
G/VAL/2 and Rev.1 to 24.  Currently, no Member is making use of this 
provision.   
Text II.I 
A number of developing countries have a concern that problems may exist in 
the valuation of imports by sole agents, sole distributors and sole 
concessionaires.  Under Article 20:1, developing country Members have a period of delay of up to five years pr ior to the application of the Agreement. 
 
In this context, developing country Members availing themselves of this 
provision could use the period to cond uct appropriate studies and to take 
such other actions as are necessary to facilitate application. In consideration of this, the Committee recommends that the Customs Co-operation Council assist developing country Members, in accordance with 
the provisions of Annex II, to formulate and conduct studies in areas 
identified as being of potential concern, including those relating to importations by sole agents, sole distributors and sole concessionaires. There have been no such studies requested. 
 
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- 91 - 
 
  7.4  Decision on Measures Concerning th e Possible Negative Effects of the Reform 
Programme on Least-Developed and Net Food-Importing Developing Countries84 
(15 December 1993) 
7.3.  All the provisions of the Decision cover posi tive actions to be taken by Members with respect 
to developing country Members, including LDCs.   
7.4.  The Secretariat prepares a background note on an annual basis in order to facilitate the work 
of the Committee on Agriculture in this area.85 The note provides an introduction on the follow-up 
process to the net food-importing developing countries (NFIDC) Decision as a whole and examines 
the substantive provisions of the Decision, providing detailed information regarding their 
implementation.   
 
                                               
84 The WTO list of NFIDC as it currently stands comprises:  
(a) the LDCs as recognized by the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations; as well as  (b) Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Bolivarian Republ ic of Venezuela, Botswa na, Côte d'Ivoire, Cuba, 
Dominica, Dominican Republic, Egypt, El Salvador, Ga bon, Grenada, Honduras, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, 
Maldives, Mauritius, Mongolia, Morocco, Namibia, Pakist an, Peru, Saint Kitts and Ne vis, Saint Lucia, Saint 
Vincent and the Grenadines, Senegal, Sri Lanka, Swazila nd, Trinidad and Tobago and Tunisia (G/AG/5/Rev.10, 
dated 23 March 2012).   
85 G/AG/W/42/Rev.15 dated 2 November 2012.    
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- 92 - DECISION ON MEASURES CONCERNING THE POSSIBLE NEGATIVE E FFECTS OF THE REFORM PROGRAMME ON LEAST-DEVELOPED AND NET 
FOOD-IMPORTING DEVELOPING COUNTRIES (15 DECEMBER 1993)C  
PROVISION COMMENT 
Provisions under which WTO Members should safegu ard the interests of deve loping country Members 
Paragraph 3(i) 
To review the level of food aid established periodically by the Committee on 
Food Aid under the Food Aid Convention 1986 and to initiate negotiations in 
the appropriate forum to establish a level of food aid commitments sufficient 
to meet the legitimate needs of developing countries during the reform 
programme.    The Food Aid Convention is administered by the International Grains Council 
which services the Food Aid Committee (FAC). The Food Aid Convention 
1999 was expected to expire on 30 June 2002. Considering the linkages 
between the work of the FAC and negotiations in the WTO on international 
food aid, the FAC decided that conclusive recommendations under the new 
food aid convention should await the outcome of the WTO negotiations. In 
these circumstances, the Convention was extended several times pending 
the outcome of the DDA negotiations.  
 
At its 103rd Session on 14 December 2010, the FAC launched the formal 
process of renegotiating the Food Aid Convention 1999, with immediate 
effect. The new Food Assistance Convention was adopted on 25 April 2012 
and entered into force on 1st January 2013. For more details, see 
paragraphs 26-30 of G/AG/W/42/Rev.15 and G/AG/GEN/99. 
Paragraph 3(ii) 
T o  a d o p t  g u i d e l i n e s  t o  e n s u r e  t h a t  a n  i n c r e a s i n g  p r o p o r t i o n  o f  b a s i c  foodstuffs is provided to least-develo ped and net food-importing developing 
countries in fully grant form and/or on appropriate concessional terms in line 
with Article IV of the Food Aid Convention 1986.   Under the Food Aid Convention 1999, all f ood aid provided to LDCs will be in 
the form of grants.  Overall, food aid in the form of grants is to represent, at 
a minimum, 80% of FAC member's contributions and donors are to seek to 
progressively exceed this share.  Si milarly, under the Food Assistance 
Convention, no less than 80% of a party's committed food assistance to eligible countries and vulnerable populations shall be in fully grant form. 
 
Donors are to seek progressively to exceed this share. For more details, see 
paragraphs 31-34 of G/AG/W/42/Rev.15. 
Paragraph 4  
Ensure that any agreement relating to agricultural export credits makes 
appropriate provision for differential treatment in favour of least-developed 
and net food-importing developing countries.   The matter of agricultural export cred its has been undertaken in both the 
regular meetings of the Committee on Agriculture and in the Special Session 
negotiations on the basis, inter alia , of the proposals that have been tabled 
and other inputs, including with respect to S&D in favour of developing 
countries. (See paragraphs 43-46 of G/AG/W/42/Rev.15 and Annex J of the 
Revised Draft Modalities for Agriculture in TN/AG/W/4/Rev.4.)   
Paragraph 5 
As a result of the Uruguay Round certain developing countries may 
experience short-term difficulties in financing normal levels of commercial imports and that these countries may be eligible to draw on the resources of international financial institutions under existing facilities, or such facilities as 
may be established, in the context of adjustment programmes, in order to 
address such financing difficulties. In this regard, Ministers take note of During the Committee's annual monitoring exercise of the Marrakesh NFIDC 
Decision, several of the international observer organizations regularly 
comment on the development of international food prices and their impact on the food import bills of the LDCs and NFIDCs as well as on the resources of the international financial institutions and initiatives in favour of LDCs and 
NFIDC - see paragraphs 47-58 of G/AG/W/42/Rev.15 and the statements by 
the international observer organizations circulated in the G/AG/GEN series.    
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- 93 - PROVISION COMMENT 
paragraph 37 of the report of the Director-General to the CONTRACTING 
PARTIES to GATT 1947 on his consultations with the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund an d the President of the World Bank 
(MTN.GNG/NG14/W/35).   
Technical assistance 
Paragraph 3(iii) To give full consideration in the context of their aid programmes to requests for the provision of technical and financial assistance to least-developed and 
net food-importing developing countries to improve their agricultural 
productivity and infrastructure. During the Committee's annual monitoring exercise of the Marrakesh NFIDC 
Decision, the provision of technical and financial assistance continues to be subject of review. For this purpose,  updated Table NF:1 notifications are 
submitted by donor Members concerned.  Any contributions made by the 
observer organizations in this context are also circulated.  For more details, see paragraphs 35-42 of G/AG/W/42/Rev.15 and the statements by the international observer organizations circulated in the G/AG/GEN series. 
  
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- 94 - 7.5  Preferential Tariff Treatment for Least-Developed Co untries – Decision on Waiver – 15 June 1999 (WT/L/304) 
PROVISION COMMENT 
Considering that the Parties to the World Trade Organization Agreement 
have recognized the need for positive efforts designed to ensure that developing countries, and especially the least-developed among them, 
secure a share in the growth in international trade commensurate with the 
needs of their economic development; Considering the statements contained in the Comprehensive and Integrated WTO Plan of Action for the Least-Developed Countries adopted at the 
Singapore Ministerial Conference on 13 December 1996 and in the Ministerial 
Declaration of 20 May 1998 concerning integration of least-developed countries into the world trading system and providing predictable and favourable market access conditions for the products of such countries;  
Considering the 1979 Decision on Differential and More Favourable 
Treatment, Reciprocity and Fuller Participation of Developing Countries and the 1994 Decision on Measures in Favour of Least-Developed Countries, and without prejudice to rights of Members to continue to act pursuant to the 
provisions contained in those Decisions; 
Desiring to provide an additional means for developing country Members to offer preferential tariff treatment to products of least-developed countries notwithstanding the obligations of paragraph 1 of Article I of the General 
Agreement; 
Having regard to the Guiding Principles to be followed in considering applications for waivers adopted on 1 November 1956, the Understanding in Respect of Waivers of Obligations under the General Agreement on Tariffs 
and Trade 1994, and paragraphs 3 and 4 of Article IX of the Marrakesh 
Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization (the "WTO Agreement"); Members, acting pursuant to the provis ions of paragraph 3 of Article IX of 
the WTO Agreement, 
Decide that: 1.  Subject to the terms and conditions set out hereunder, the provisions of paragraph 1 of Article I of the GATT 1994 shall be waived until 
30 June 2009, to the extent necessary to allow developing country Members 
to provide preferential tariff treatm ent to products of least-developed 
countries, designated as such by the United Nations, without being required to extend the same tariff rates to like products of any other Member. 
2. Developing country Members wishing to take actions pursuant to the 
provisions of this Waiver shall notify to the Council on Trade in Goods the list 
of all products of least-developed countries for which preferential tariff Through the Decision of 27 May 2009 (WT/L/759), the waiver contained in 
the 1999 Decision (WT/L/304) was extended until 30 June 2019.   
Several notifications concerning preferential schemes for products from LDCs 
were made recently to the Council for Trade in Goods (CTG) under this waiver (these schemes were also notified to the CTD under the Transparency Mechanism for Preferential Trade Arrangements – see Section 7.14). These 
include the preferential schemes of  India (G/C/W/651 - WT/COMTD/N/38); 
China (G/C/W/656/Rev.1 – WT/COMTD/N/39/Add.1/Rev.1); Chinese Taipei (G/C/W/664 - WT/COMTD/N/40 and WT /COMTD/N/40/Corr.1); and Korea 
(G/C/W/670 - WT/COMTD/N/12/Rev.1/ Add.1). In addition, Morocco 
submitted a notification in 2001 (G/C/6 - WT/LDC/SWG/IF/18).  
 Information on the preferential schemes for LDCs notified under this waiver can be found on the WTO's Database for Preferential Trade Arrangements 
(http://ptadb.wto.org ).  
 
  
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- 95 - PROVISION COMMENT 
treatment is to be provided on a generalized, non-reciprocal and 
non-discriminatory basis and the preference margins to be accorded.  
Subsequent modifications to the preferences shall similarly be notified. 3. Any preferential tariff treatment implemented pursuant to this Waiver 
shall be designed to facilitate and promote the trade of least-developed 
countries and not to raise barriers or create undue difficulties for the trade of any other Member. Such preferential tariff treatment shall not constitute an impediment to the reduction or elimination of tariffs on a most-favoured-
nation basis. 
4 .  I n  a c c o r d a n c e  w i t h  t h e  p r o v i s i o n s  o f  p a r a g r a p h  4  o f  A r t i c l e  I X  o f  t h e  WTO Agreement, the General Council shall review annually whether the exceptional circumstances justifying the Waiver still exist and whether the 
terms and conditions attached to the Waiver have been met. 
5. The government of any Member providing preferential tariff treatment pursuant to this Waiver shall, upon request, promptly enter into consultations with any interested Memb er with respect to any difficulty or 
any matter that may arise as a result of the implementation of programmes 
authorized by this Waiver. Where a Member considers that any benefit accruing to it under GATT 1994 may be or is being impaired unduly as a result of such implementation, such consultation shall examine the possibility 
of action for a satisfactory adjustment of the matter. This Waiver does not 
affect Members' rights as set forth in the Understanding in Respect of Waivers of Obligations under GATT 1994. 6. This waiver does not affect in any way and is without prejudice to rights of 
Members in their actions pursuant to the provisions of the 1979 Decision on 
Differential and More Favourable Treatment, Reciprocity and Fuller Participation of Developing Countries.   
  
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- 96 - 7.6  Extension of the Transition Period under Article 66.1c of the TRIPS Agreement for Least-Developed Country Members for Certain 
Obligations with Respect to Pharmaceut ical Products - Decision of the Co uncil for TRIPS of 27 June 2002 (IP/C/25) 
PROVISION COMMENT 
The Council for Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (the 
"Council for TRIPS"), 
 
...  Decides as follows: 
 
1. Least-developed country Members will not be obliged, with respect to pharmaceutical products, to implement or apply Sections 5 and 7 of Part II of the TRIPS Agreement or to enforce rights provided for under these 
Sections until 1 January 2016.   
 2. This decision is made without prejudice to the right of least-developed country Members to seek other extensions of the period provided for in 
paragraph 1 of Article 66 of the TRIPS Agreement.   When Rwanda made use of the System established under the Decision of 
30 August 2003 on the Implementati on of Paragraph 6 of the Doha 
Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement an d Public Health, it referred to the 
TRIPS Council Decision of 27 June 2002 as constituting the basis for its decision not to enforce patent rights that may have been granted within its territory with respect to pharmaceutical products to be imported under the 
system. (IP/N/9/RWA/1)   
 
  
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- 97 - 7.7  Least-Developed Country Members – Obligations under Article 70.9b of TRIPS Agreement with Respect to Pharmaceutical Products - 
Decision of 8 July 2002 (WT/L/478) 
PROVISION COMMENT 
The General Council,  
Having regard to paragraphs 1, 3 and 4 of Article IX of the Marrakesh 
Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization (the "WTO Agreement");  
Conducting the functions of the Ministerial Conference in the interval 
between meetings pursuant to paragraph 2 of Article IV of the WTO Agreement;  
Noting the decision of the Council for TRIPS on the Extension of the 
Transition Period under Article 66.1 of the TRIPS Agreement for Least-Developed Country Members for Certain Obligations with respect to Pharmaceutical Products (IP/C/25) (the "Decision"), adopted by the Council 
for TRIPS at its meeting of 25-27 June 2002 pursuant to the instructions of 
the Ministerial Conference contained in paragraph 7 of the Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health (WT/MIN(01)/DEC/2) (the "Declaration"); 
 
Considering that obligations under paragraph 9 of Article 70 of the TRIPS Agreement, where applicable, should not prevent attainment of the objectives of paragraph 7 of the Declaration; 
 
Noting that, in light of the foregoing, exceptional circumstances exist justifying a waiver from paragraph 9 of Article 70 of the TRIPS Agreement with respect to pharmaceutical products in respect of least-developed 
country Members; 
 Decides as follows:  
1.  The obligations of least-develo ped country Members under paragraph 9 
of Article 70 of the TRIPS Agreement shall be waived with respect to pharmaceutical products until 1 January 2016.  
 
    
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- 98 - PROVISION COMMENT 
2.  This waiver shall be reviewed by the Ministerial Conference not later than 
one year after it is granted, and thereafter annually until the waiver terminates, in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 4 of Article IX of the WTO Agreement.    
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- 99 - 7.8  Accession of Least-Developed Countries – Decision of 10 December 2002 (WT/L/508) 
PROVISION COMMENT 
The General Council ... 
Decides that: 1.  Negotiations for the accession of LDCs to the WTO, be facilitated and 
accelerated through simplified and streamlined accession procedures, with a 
view to concluding these negotiations as quickly as possible, in accordance with the guidelines set out hereunder:   The adoption of the Guidelines on LDCs' Accessions in December 2002 marked a 
concrete step in favour of acceding LDCs. In addition, building on the 2002 guidelines a new set of provisions were adopted by the General Council in 2012 
to further facilitate the accession of LDCs to the WTO (see Section 7.16). 
Accession terms of LDCs are to be negotiated in accordance with these two important decisions by WTO Members. WTO Members have emphasized their commitment to implement these guidelines. 
 
Six LDCs have acceded to the WTO since the adoption of the 2002 Guidelines: Nepal (23 April 2004); Cambodia (13 October 2004); Cape Verde (23 July 2008); Samoa (10 May 2012); Vanuatu (24 August 2012) and Lao PDR (2 
February 2013).  However, Cape Verde graduated from LDC status in December 
2007.    The 2002 Decision on LDC Accession sets out guidelines with respect to 
(i) market access; (ii) WTO rules; (iii) the process; and (iv) trade-related 
technical assistance and capacity building. A brief analysis on the implementation of the 2002 guidelines has been carried out in WTO document WT/COMTD/LDC/W/44. Accedi ng LDCs appear to have benefitted from country-
specific flexibility in market access negotiations. For instance, Cambodia, Nepal, 
Samoa and Vanuatu have bound their tariffs at overall average levels of 19.1%, 26.0%, 21.1% and 39.7%, respectively. These bound rates are at levels of up to double or nearly double of their applied rates at the time of accession. The 
benchmarks introduced through the 2012 guidelines will provide further 
flexibility to the remaining LDCs in th e process of accession to the WTO.  
 Acceding LDCs are also allowed transitional arrangements for compliance with 
WTO Agreements. For example, Cambodia and Nepal were granted transitional 
periods to implement the WTO Agreements on Customs Valuation, SPS, TBT, TRIPS, etc. It may also be noted that all acceded LDCs so far did not undertake commitments to accede to any of the Plurilateral Trade Agreements 
 
WTO delivers technical assistance to acceding LDCs on a priority basis. WTO assistance is being provided under the Biennial Technical assistance and Training Plan. The latest TA Plan is contained in WT/COMTD/W/180/Rev.1.   
 
   
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- 100 - PROVISION COMMENT 
Accession packages of acceded LDCs can be reviewed in the following 
documents: Nepal (WT/ACC/NPL/16, WT/ACC/NPL/16/Add.1, WT/ACC/NPL/16/Add.2); 
Cambodia (WT/ACC/KHM/21, WT/ACC/KH M/21/Add.1,  WT/ACC/KHM/21/Add.2); 
Cape Verde (WT/ACC/CPV/30, WT/ACC/CP V/30/Add.1, WT/ACC/CPV/30/Add.2);  
Samoa (WT/ACC/SAM/30, WT/ACC/SAM/30/Add.1, WT/ACC/SAM/30/Add.2); Vanuatu (WT/ACC/VUT/17, WT/ACC/VUT/17/Add.1, WT/ACC/VUT/Add.2); Lao PDR (WT/ACC/LAO/45, WT/ACC/LA O/45/Add.1, WT/ACC/LAO/45/Add.2) 
 
I.  Market access 
- WTO Members shall exercise restraint in seeking concessions and 
commitments on trade in goods and services from acceding LDCs, taking 
into account the levels of concessions and commitments undertaken by 
existing WTO LDCs' Members;    
- acceding LDCs shall offer access through reasonable concessions and 
commitments on trade in goods and services commensurate with their 
individual development, financial and trade needs, in line with 
Article XXXVI.8 of GATT 1994, Article 15 of the Agreement on Agriculture, 
and Articles IV and XIX of the General Agreement on Trade in Services.    
II.  WTO rules 
- S&D, as set out in the Multilateral Trade Agreements, Ministerial 
Decisions, and other relevant WTO legal instruments, shall be applicable to 
all acceding LDCs, from the date of entry into force of their respective 
Protocols of Accession;    
- transitional periods/transitional arrangements foreseen under specific WTO 
Agreements, to enable acceding LDCs to effectively implement commitments and obligations, shall be granted in accession negotiations taking into account individual development, financial and trade needs;    
- transitional periods/arrangements shall be accompanied by Action Plans 
for compliance with WTO rules. The implementation of the Action Plans shall 
be supported by Technical Assistance and Capacity Building measures for 
the acceding LDCs'.  Upon the request of an acceding LDC, WTO Members 
may coordinate efforts to guide that LDC through the implementation 
process;    
- commitments to accede to any of the Plurilateral Trade Agreements or to 
participate in other optional sectoral market access initiatives shall not be a precondition for accession to the Multilateral Trade Agreements of the WTO. 
 
As provided in paragraph 5 of Article IX and paragraph 3 of Article XII of the WTO Agreement, decisions on the Plurilateral Trade Agreements shall be   
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- 101 - PROVISION COMMENT 
adopted by the Members of, and governed by the provisions in, those 
Agreements.  WTO Members may seek to ascertain acceding LDCs interests in the Plurilateral Trade Agreements.   
III.  Process  
- The good offices of the Director-General shall be available to assist acceding LDCs and Chairpersons of the LDCs' Accession Working Parties in implementing this decision;    
- efforts shall continue to be made, in line with information technology 
means and developments, including in LDCs themselves, to expedite 
documentation exchange and streamline accession procedures for LDCs to 
make them more effective and efficient, and less onerous. The Secretariat 
will assist in this regard. Such efforts will, inter-alia, be based upon the 
WTO Reference Centres that are already operational in acceding LDCs;  
- WTO Members may adopt additional  measures in their bilateral 
negotiations to streamline and facilitate the process, e.g., by holding bilateral negotiations in the acceding LDC if so requested;    
- upon request, WTO Members may thro ugh coordinated, concentrated and 
targeted technical assistance from an early stage facilitate the accession of 
an acceding LDC.    
IV.  Trade-related technical a ssistance and capacity building  
- Targeted and coordinated technical assistance and capacity building, by 
WTO and other relevant multilateral, regional and bilateral development 
partners, including inter alia under the Integrated Framework (IF), shall be 
provided, on a priority basis, to assist acceding LDCs.  Assistance shall be 
accorded with the objective of effectively integrating the acceding LDC into 
the multilateral trading system;    
- effective and broad-based technical cooperation and capacity building 
measures shall be provided, on a priority basis, to cover all stages of the accession process, i.e. from the prepar ation of documentation to the setting 
up of the legislative infrastructure and enforcement mechanisms, 
considering the high costs involved and in order to enable the acceding LDC to benefit from and comply with WTO rights and obligations.    
2.  The implementation of these guide lines shall be reviewed regularly in 
the agenda of the Sub-Committee on LDCs. The results of this review shall 
be included in the Annual Report of the Committee on Trade and 
Development to the General Council. In pursuance of their commitments on 
LDCs' accessions in the Doha Ministerial Declaration, Ministers will take 
stock of the situation at the Fifth Ministerial Conference and, as appropriate, 
at subsequent Ministerial Conferences.       
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- 102 - 7.9  The implementation of Paragraph 6 of  the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health (WT/L/540 and WT/L/540/ Corr.1) 
- Decision of 30 August 2003 
PROVISION COMMENT 
1(b): "eligible importing Member" means any least-developed country Member ...; 
2(a)(ii): confirms that the eligible importing Member in question, other than 
a least-developed country Member, has established that it has insufficient or no manufacturing capacities in the pharmaceutical sector ... ;  4. ... in the event that an eligible importing Member that is a developing 
country Member or a least-developed country Member experiences difficulty 
in implementing this provision, develo ped country Members shall provide, on 
request and on mutually agreed terms and conditions, technical and financial cooperation in order to facilitate its implementation; 
6. With a view to harnessing economies of scale for the purpose of 
enhancing purchasing power for, and facilitating the local production of, pharmaceutical products:  (i) where a developing or least-developed country WTO Member is a party to 
a regional trade agreement within the meaning of Article XXIV of the GATT 
1994 and the Decision of 28 November 1979 on Differential and More Favourable Treatment Reciprocity and Fuller Participation of Developing Countries (L/4903), at least half of the current membership of which is made 
up of countries presently on the United Nations list of least-developed 
countries, the obligation of that Member under Article 31(f) of the TRIPS Agreement shall be waived to the extent necessary to enable a pharmaceutical product produced or imported under a compulsory licence in 
that Member to be exported to the markets of those other developing or 
least-developed country parties to the regional trade agreement that share the health problem in question.    Rwanda has been the first LDC Member to make use of the System 
established under the Decision as an eligible importing Member and notified 
the TRIPS Council on 17 July 2007 accordingly (IP/N/9/RWA/1). 
 The Decision provides for an annual review of the functioning of the System by the TRIPS Council and an annual report on its operation to the General 
Council (most recently in document IP/C/63). Since 2010, those reviews 
have been framed by a more structured debate which, beyond the narrow aspects of the System's operation, exte nded to broader issues related to the 
innovation of and access to medical technologies. 
 
The WTO Secretariat has also made available on its webpage an illustrative guide to notifications under the System, including a set of model notifications. 
(http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e /trips_e/par6_mod elnotifs_e.htm )  
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- 103 - 7.10  General Council Decision on the Amendment of the TRIPS Agreement (WT/L/641) –Decision of 6 December 2005 
PROVISION COMMENT 
The General Council; ... 
Decides as follows: 
1.  The Protocol amending the TRIPS Agreement attached to this Decision is 
hereby adopted and submitted to the Members for acceptance. 
2.  The Protocol shall be open for acceptance by Members until 1 December 
2007 or such later date as may be decided by the Ministerial Conference.  
3 .   T h e  P r o t o c o l  s h a l l  t a k e  e f f e c t  i n  a c c o r d a n c e  w i t h  t h e  p r o v i s i o n s  o f  
paragraph 3 of Article X of the WTO Agreement. 
 The Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement attached to it and submitted to 
WTO Members for acceptance contains the same provisions in paragraph 3 of 
Article 31bis and paragraphs 1(b), 2(a)(ii), 3 of the Annex to the TRIPS Agreement.  The Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement is currently open 
for acceptance by WTO Members until 31 December 2013. (WT/L/829) To 
date, 45 notifications have been received, including from the European 
Union. (IP/C/W/490/Rev.9, updated list available at: http://www.wto.org/english/trat op_e/trips_e/am endment_e.htm  ).   
 
The WTO Secretariat has made available background information clarifying a 
range of procedural issues regarding the acceptance of the Protocol by WTO Members. (available at: http://www.wto.org/english/tr atop_e/trips_e/ accept_e.htm  ). 
  
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 104 - 7.11  Other Decisions in Favour of Least-Developed Countries – Annex F of the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration adopted on 
18 December 2005 (WT/MIN(05)/DEC) 
PROVISION COMMENT 
23)  Understanding in Respect of Waivers of Obligations under the GATT 1994  
(i) We agree that requests for waivers by least-developed country Members 
under Article IX of the WTO Agreement and the Understanding in respect of Waivers of Obligations under the GATT 1994 shall be given positive consideration and a decision taken within 60 days. 
(ii) When considering requests for waivers by other Members exclusively in 
favour of least-developed country Members, we agree that a decision shall be taken within 60 days, or in exceptional circumstances as expeditiously as possible thereafter, without prejudice to the rights of other Members.   WTO Members have been responsive in relation to requests for waivers by 
LDCs or by other Members. An important waiver granted in 2009 was the 
Decision to extend the waiver on "Preferential Tariff Treatment for 
Least-Developed Countries”. (WT/L/759; see Section 7.5)    
36)  Decision on Measures in Favour of Least-Developed Countries 
We agree that developed-country Members shall, and developing-country 
Members declaring themselves in a position to do so should:  
(a)(i)Provide duty-free and quota-free market access on a lasting basis, for 
all products originating from all LDCs by 2008 or no later than the start of 
the implementation period in a manner that ensures stability, security and 
predictability. 
(a)(ii) Members facing difficulties at this time to provide market access as 
set out above shall provide duty-free and quota-free market access for at 
least 97% of products originating from LDCs, defined at the tariff line level, 
by 2008 or no later than the start of the implementation period. In addition, 
these Members shall take steps to progressively achieve compliance with the 
obligations set out above, taking into account the impact on other 
developing countries at similar levels of development, and, as appropriate, 
by incrementally building on the initial list of covered products. 
(a)(iii) Developing-country Members shall be permitted to phase in their 
commitments and shall enjoy appropriate flexibility in coverage. 
(b) Ensure that preferential rules of origin applicable to imports from LDCs 
are transparent and simple, and contribute to facilitating market access. 
 
Members shall notify the implementation of the schemes adopted under this 
decision every year to the Committee on Trade and Development. The 
Committee on Trade and Development sh all annually review the steps taken 
to provide duty-free and quota-free market access to the LDCs and report to 
the General Council for appropriate action. 
We urge all donors and relevant international institutions to increase 
financial and technical support aimed at the diversification of LDC The Decision taken at the Hong Kong Ministerial Conference on DFQF market 
access for LDCs is a standing item on the CTD's agenda. Members have 
provided information on the steps they are taking, or have already taken, to 
provide DFQF market access to LDCs. A number of written communications 
have been considered. To date, the CTD has conducted seven annual reviews 
of the implementation of the Hong Kong Decision, as mandated in Annex F of 
the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration. At the 87th Session of the CTD on 
4 March 2013, a communication from Nepal on behalf of the LDC Group, 
titled “Better utilization of the market access provided to LDCs under 
duty-free and quota-free” (WT/COMTD/W/194) was considered. Discussions 
on this communication are to continue at the 88th Session.  
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- 105 - PROVISION COMMENT 
economies, while providing additional financial and technical assistance 
through appropriate delivery mechanisms to meet their implementation 
obligations, including fulfilling SPS and TBT requirements, and to assist them 
in managing their adjustment processes, including those necessary to face 
the results of MFN multilateral trade liberalisation.   
38)  Decision on Measures in Favour of Least-Developed Countries 
It is reaffirmed that least-developed country Members will only be required to undertake commitments and concessions to the extent consistent with 
their individual development, financial or trade needs, or their administrative 
and institutional capacities. Within the context of coherence arrangements with other international institutions, we urge donors, multilateral agencies and international financial 
institutions to coordinate their work to  ensure that LDCs are not subjected to 
conditionalities on loans, grants and official development assistance that are inconsistent with their rights and obligations under the WTO Agreements.  
84)  Agreement on Trade-Related Investment Measures 
LDCs shall be allowed to maintain on a temporary basis existing measures 
that deviate from their obligations under the TRIMs Agreement.  For this 
purpose, LDCs shall notify the Council for Trade in Goods (CTG) of such 
measures within two years, starting 30 days after the date of this 
declaration. Least-developed countries will be allowed to maintain these 
existing measures until the end of a new transition period, lasting seven 
years. This transition period may be extended by the CTG under the existing 
procedures set out in the TRIMs Agreement, taking into account the 
individual financial, trade, and de velopment needs of the Member in 
question. 
LDCs shall also be allowed to introduce new measures that deviate from 
their obligations under the TRIMs Agreement. These new TRIMs shall be 
notified to the CTG no later than six months after their adoption. The CTG 
shall give positive consideration to such notifications, taking into account the 
individual financial, trade, and de velopment needs of the Member in 
question. The duration of these measures will not exceed five years, 
renewable subject to review and decision by the CTG. 
Any measures incompatible with the TRIMs Agreement and adopted under 
this decision shall be phased out by year 2020.   The two-year period for notification referred to in the first paragraph expired 
on 18 January 2008 with no notifications received from the least-developed 
countries. So far, no notifications have been received under the second 
paragraph.  
 
8 8 )   D e c i s i o n  o n  M e a s u r e s  i n  F a v o u r  o f  L e a s t - D e v e l o p e d  C o u n t r i e s  –  
Paragraph 1  
Least-developed country Members, whilst reaffirming their commitment to 
the fundamental principles of the WTO and relevant provisions of GATT 1994, and while complying with the general rules set out in the  
 
 
   
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- 106 - PROVISION COMMENT 
aforesaid instruments, will only be required to undertake commitments and 
concessions to the extent consistent with their individual development, financial and trade needs, and their administrative and institutional capabilities.  Should a least-developed country Member find that it is not in a 
position to comply with a specific obligation or commitment on these 
grounds, it shall bring the matter to the attention of the General Council for examination and appropriate action. We agree that the implementation by LDCs of their obligations or 
commitments will require further technical and financial support directly 
related to the nature and scope of such obligations or commitments, and direct the WTO to coordinate its efforts with donors and relevant agencies to significantly increase aid for trade-related technical assistance and capacity 
building.    
   
 
  Total Aid-for-Trade commitments to LDCs in 2011 increased by 94% over 
the 2002-2005 baseline average, while total Aid-for-Trade disbursements to 
LDCs increased by nearly 72% over 2006. WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 107 - 
 
  7.12  Transparency Mechanism for Region al Trade Agreements – Decision of 
14 December 2006 (WT/L/671) 
7.5.  In accordance with paragraph 47 of the Doha Ministerial Declaration (WT/MIN(01)/DEC/1), 
the General Council, on 14 December 2006, established on a provisional basis a new transparency mechanism for all regional trade agreements (RTAs). The new transparency mechanism builds upon the existing transparency requirements contained in WTO provisions related to RTAs and it 
introduces the provisions for early announcement of any RTA and consideration of the notified 
RTAs on the basis of a factual presentation by  the WTO Secretariat. The Committee on Regional 
Trade Agreements will conduct the review of RTAs falling under Article XXIV of GATT and Article V of the GATS. The CTD will conduct the review of RTAs falling under the Enabling Clause (trade 
arrangements between developing countries). Memb ers are to review, and if necessary modify, the 
decision, and replace it by a permanent mechanism adopted as part of the overall results of the 
Doha Round.   
 
 
  
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- 108 - TRANSPARENCY MECHANISM FOR REGIONAL TRADE AGREEMENTS – DECISION OF 14 DECEMBER 2006 (WT/L/671) 
PROVISION COMMENT 
Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
Section C 
8.  The data referred to in paragraph 7(a) shall be made available as soon as 
possible. Normally, the timing of the data submission shall not exceed ten 
weeks – or 20 weeks in the case of RTAs involving only developing countries 
– after the date of notification of the agreement. Parties to notified RTAs have to make available to the WTO Secretariat data 
as specified in the Annex, if possible in  an electronically exploitable format.  
The data is required for the drafting of the Factual Presentation of the RTA 
by the Secretariat. Recognizing the resource and technical constraints of 
developing country Members, the Decisi on extends the timing of the data 
submission from ten to 20 weeks in the case of RTAs involving only 
developing countries. In case of RTAs between developed and developing 
country Members the standard ten weeks' time-frame applies.   
Technical assistance 
Section F 
19.  Upon request, the WTO Secretariat shall provide technical support to 
developing country Members, and especially least-developed countries, in 
the implementation of this Transparency  Mechanism, in particular – but not 
limited to - with respect to the prep aration of RTA-related data and other 
information to be submitted to the WTO Secretariat. Recognizing the resource and technical constraints of developing country 
Members, the Decision provides for the provisions, by the Secretariat, of 
technical support to developing country Members for the implementation of 
the Transparency Mechanism.   
 
The provision has not been invoked by developing country Members.   WT/COMTD/W/196 
 
- 109 - 
 
  7.13  Transparency Mechanism for Preferential Trade Arrangements – Decision of 
14 December 2010 (WT/L/806) 
7.6.  The Transparency Mechanism for Preferential  Trade Arrangements (PTAs) is implemented by 
the CTD. The CTD, meeting in dedicated session, is to conduct the review of notified PTAs on the 
basis of a factual presentation prepared by the WTO Secretariat. The transparency mechanism is 
to apply on a provisional basis until Members approve its permanent application. Members will review the mechanism after three years and will if necessary modify it in light of the experience gained from its provisional application.   
 
   
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- 110 - TRANSPARENCY MECHANISM FOR PREFERENTIAL TRADE ARRANGEMENTS – DECISION OF 14 DECEMBER 2010 (WT/L/806) 
PROVISION COMMENT 
Flexibility of commitments, of action, and use of policy instruments 
Section C 
8.  The data referred to in paragraph 7(a) shall be made available as soon as 
possible. Normally, the timing of the data submission shall not exceed ten 
weeks – or 20 weeks in the case of PTAs notified by developing country 
Members – after the date of notification of the PTA. Members notifying PTAs have to make available to the WTO Secretariat data 
as specified in Annex I in an appropriate electronic format. The data is 
required for the drafting of the Factual Presentations of the PTAs by the 
Secretariat.  The timing of the data submission is extended from ten to 
20 weeks for PTAs notified by developing countries.    
Section D 
18. To the extent a developing country Member has technical constraints 
fulfilling the notification requirements of paragraph 16, the Member will not 
be expected to do so until 31 July 2013. The Member may submit an outline of the steps to be taken to fulfil these notification requirements to the CTD 
by 31 July 2012. Developing country Members that have notified PTAs are not, until 
July 2013, expected to annually notify the data on imports specified in 
paragraph 16 of the Decision. No developing country Member has submitted an outline of steps to be taken to fulfil these notification requirements. 
Technical assistance 
Section E 22.  Upon request, the WTO Secretariat shall and any Member may provide 
technical support to developing country Members, and especially least-
developed countries, in the implementation of this Mechanism, in particular – but not limited to - with respect to the preparation of PTA-related data and other information to be submitted to the WTO Secretariat, as well as 
regarding access to the information provided by the notifying Member. Recognizing the resource and technical constraints of developing country 
Members, the Decision provides for the provision, by the Secretariat and any 
Member, of technical support to developing country Members for the 
implementation of the Transparency Me chanism. The provision has not been 
invoked by any developing country Member.     
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 111 - 7.14  Preferential Treatment to Services and Service Suppliers of Least-Developed Countries - Decision of 17 December 2011 (WT/ L/847) 
PROVISION COMMENT 
The Ministerial Conference… 
Decides as follows: 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of  Article II:1 of the GATS, Members 
may provide preferential treatment to se rvices and service suppliers of least-
developed countries with respect to the application of measures described in Article XVI and any other measures as may be annexed to this waiver, than to like services and service suppliers of other Members. Any such treatment 
shall be granted immediately and unconditionally to like services and service 
suppliers of all least-developed country Members. Preferential treatment with respect to the application of measures other than those described in Article XVI, is subject to approval by the Council for Trade in Services in 
accordance with its procedures and will be annexed to this waiver.  No preferences have yet been notified under the Waiver. The Council for 
Trade in Services has therefore not yet had the opportunity to approve a preference with respect to measures other than those described in 
Article XVI.  
2. Each Member according preferential treatment pursuant to this waiver 
shall submit a notification to the Council for Trade in Services. The notification 
shall specify the preferential treatm ent made available, the sectors or 
sub-sectors concerned and the period of time during which the Member is 
intending to maintain those preferences.  A supplemental notification shall be 
made if the preferential treatment is subsequently modified. The notifications 
shall be made before the preferential treatment is granted or modified.  
3. Each Member granting preferential treatment pursuant to this waiver 
shall, upon request, promptly enter in to consultations with any Member with 
respect to any difficulty or matter that may arise as a result of such treatment. Where a Member considers that any benefit accruing to it under 
the GATS may be or is being impaired unduly as a result of such treatment, 
the consultations shall examine the possibility of action for a satisfactory adjustment of the matter.  
4. Any preferential treatment accorded pursuant to this Waiver shall be 
designed to promote the trade of least-developed countries in those sectors 
and modes of supply that are of particular export interest to the 
least-developed countries and not to raise barriers or create undue difficulties 
for the trade of any other Member. Such preferential treatment shall not 
constitute an impediment to the reduction or elimination of market access 
barriers on a most-favoured-nation basis.  
5. For the purpose of preferential treatment granted pursuant to 
paragraph 1, a service supplier of a least-developed country is: 
(a) a natural person of a least-developed country;  or 
(b) a juridical person which is either:   
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 112 - PROVISION COMMENT 
 (i) constituted or otherwise organized under the law of a least-
developed country and, if it is owned or controlled by natural persons of a non-least-developed country Member or  juridical persons constituted or 
otherwise organized under the law of a non-least-developed country Member, 
is engaged in substantive business operations in the territory of any 
least-developed country; or 
 (ii) in the case of the supply of a service through commercial 
presence, owned or controlled by: 
  1. natural persons of least-developed countries; or 
  2. juridical persons of least-developed countries identified under subparagraph (i). 
6. In accordance with the provisions of paragraph 4 of Article IX of the 
WTO Agreement, the General Council shall review annually whether the 
exceptional circumstances justifying the Waiver still exist and whether the 
terms and conditions attached to the Waiver have been met.  
7. This Waiver shall terminate upon the expiration of a period of 
15 years from the date of its adoption.  
8. This Waiver shall apply to preferential treatment granted to services 
and service suppliers of least-developed countries designated as such by the 
United Nations. Notwithstanding the pr ovisions of paragraph 7 above, this 
Waiver shall terminate with respect to the preferential treatment granted to 
services and service suppliers of any particular least-developed country when 
graduation of that country from the United Nations list of least-developed 
countries becomes effective.  
  
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- 113 - 7.15  Accession of Least-Developed Countries - Decision of 25 July 2012 (WT/L/508/Add.1) 
PROVISION COMMENT 
The General Council… 
Decides that:  
1. The 2002 LDC Accession Guidelines shall be strengthened, streamlined and 
operationalized in accordance with the provisions set out hereunder. This Decision is to be considered as an Addendum to the 2002 LDC Accession Guidelines. In accordance with the mandate contained in the Ministerial Decision 
of 17 December 2011 (WT/L/846), the General Council on 25 July 2012 adopted a Decision on the accession of LDCs. (WT/L/508/Add.1) 
 
LDC accessions negotiations will henceforth take the provisions of this Decision into account, in addition to the provisions contained in WT/L/508. 
2. The 2002 guidelines stipulate that Members are to exercise restraint in seeking 
market access concessions from acceding LDCs, while the latter are expected to 
offer reasonable concessions commensurate with their individual development, 
financial and trade needs. Further, the Decision on LDC accession adopted at the 
MC8 Conference directs the Sub-Committee to develop recommendations to further 
strengthen, streamline and operationalize the 2002 guidelines, and in this context, 
inter alia, develop benchmarks in the area of goods taking into account the level of 
commitments undertaken by existing LDC Members.  
I. Benchmark on Goods  
3. Members agree that market access negoti ations on goods shall be guided by the 
following principles and benchmarks:  
Principles: 
(a) Comprehensive binding coverage is a fundamental objective of the 
multilateral trading system (MTS), ensuring stability and predictability about a 
country's trading regime. At the same time, it  is also recognized that some flexibility 
should be provided to the acceding LDCs in order to help them integrate into the 
MTS, consistent with their individual development, financial and trade needs. 
(b) Tariff negotiations of Members with acceding LDCs should ensure the 
appropriate balance between predictability of tariff concessions of acceding LDCs 
and their need to address specific constraints or difficulties as well as to pursue 
their legitimate development objectives.   
(c) It is recognized that each accession is unique. The tariff concessions to be 
offered by the acceding LDCs could vary depending on their individual/particular 
circumstances. Establishing benchmarks on  average bound rates does not prejudge 
the right of Members to negotiate the leve l of bound rates in individual lines of   
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- 114 - PROVISION COMMENT 
interest to them. At the same time, this offers an opportunity to acceding LDCs to 
determine the bound rate suitable to each tariff line.86 Benchmarks do not stipulate 
minimum or maximum bound tariffs to be undertaken by any acceding LDC. 
4. Drawing from the above principles, the acceding LDCs shall undertake 
commitments in the following manner:  
A. Agriculture 
5. Pursuant to the provisions of the Agreement on Agriculture, Members had 
bound all their agricultural tariff lines at the time of joining the WTO. This will also 
be required from the acceding LDCs. With regard to average bound rates, the 
acceding LDCs shall bind all of their agricultural tariff lines at an overall average 
rate of 50%.87    
B. Non-Agriculture 
6. With regard to negotiations on tariff bindings on non-agricultural products, 
while comprehensive binding coverage is a fundamental objective, flexibilities shall 
be provided to acceding LDCs consistent with their individual development, financial and trade needs. 
7. Accordingly, the acceding LDCs shall undertake commitments in the area of 
non-agricultural market access as set out below:
88  
(i) Acceding LDCs shall bind 95% of their non-agricultural tariff lines at an overall average rate of 35%.  
(ii) Acceding LDCs that choose to underta ke comprehensive bindings of NAMA tariff 
lines may do so and be afforded proportionately higher overall average rates than provided for in paragraph 7(i), with the precise level of bindings and average rates to be agreed between the acceding LDC and the Members. In such cases the 
acceding LDC shall be entitled to transition periods of up to 10 years for up to 10% 
of their tariff lines.  
II. Benchmarks on Services 
8. Members agree that market access negotiations on services shall be guided 
by the following principles and benchmarks:  
(a) Negotiations of Members with acceding LDCs shall respect the principle of 
special treatment for LDCs contained in Articles IV and XIX of the General 
Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). In particular, Members shall take into 
account the serious difficulty of acceding LDCs in undertaking commitments, in view 
of their special economic situation and their individual development, financial and  
                                               
86 In accordance with established procedures and practice, market access negotiations shall proceed  bilaterally on the basis of r equests from WTO Members or on the basis 
of offers from an acceding LDC. 
87 Simple average of the final ad valorem  tariff rates or ad valorem equivalents. 
88 The unbound tariff lines will be subject to  negotiations and will include tariff lines that take into account the sensitivitie s of acceding LDCs.  
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 115 - PROVISION COMMENT 
trade needs. 
(b) There shall be flexibility for acceding LDCs for opening fewer sectors, 
liberalizing fewer types of transactions, and progressively extending market access 
in line with their development situation. Acceding LDCs shall not be expected to 
offer full national treatment, nor are they expected to undertake additional 
commitments under Article XVIII of the GATS on regulatory issues which may go 
beyond their institutional, regulatory, and administrative capacities. 
(c) Since each accession is unique, offers from acceding LDCs may vary 
depending on their individual/particular circumstances, without prejudice to the 
right of Members to negotiate commitments of interest to them or the commitments 
that would be undertaken by an acceding LDC. 
9. Drawing from the above principles, the acceding LDCs shall undertake 
commitments in the following manner:  
10. Acceding LDCs shall identify their pr iority services sectors and sub-sectors 
and make reasonable offers commensurate with their individual development, 
financial and trade needs as well as their regulatory and institutional capacities. 
Acceding LDCs shall be provided with technical assistance, as appropriate, to 
enhance their regulatory and institutional capacities.  
11. Acceding LDCs shall have the flexibility to undertake commitments, whether 
full or partial, under different modes of supply. They shall have the flexibility to 
phase in such commitments, as appropriate, over an adequate period of time.  
12. Acceding LDCs shall not be required to undertake commitments in services 
sectors and sub sectors beyond those that have been committed by existing WTO 
LDC Members, nor in sectors and sub-sectors that do not correspond to their 
individual development, financial and trade needs. Accordingly, WTO Members shall 
exercise restraint in seeking commitments in trade in services from the acceding 
LDCs.  
III. Transparency in Accession Negotiations  
13. Members agree that transparency in  the accession negotiations shall be 
further enhanced in the following manner:  
14. The Accession Working Parties will continue to provide the forum for 
Members and acceding LDCs to collectively review the bilateral market access negotiations on goods and services. Members shall refrain from reopening the 
accession package once negotiations have been completed and consolidated 
schedules circulated for verification at the level of the Working Party.
89    
15. Accession of LDCs shall continue to remain one of the systemic elements of 
the WTO Work Programme for the LDCs under which Members may monitor the  
                                               
89 The consolidated schedules refer to both the schedule of concessions & commitments on goods as well as schedule of specific co mmitments on services.  
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
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progress in LDC accessions, including based on state-of-play reports from the 
Secretariat. The Chairs of Working Parties of acceding LDCs shall report regularly to 
the Sub-Committee on LDCs on the progress made in their respective accession 
processes. The accession of LDCs shall continue to receive particular attention in the 
Director- General's annual reports on the state-of-play of accessions to the WTO. 
16. The good offices of the Chairperson of the Sub-Committee on LDCs as well 
as Chairpersons of the LDCs' Accession Working Parties shall be available to facilitate the conclusion of the accession process of acceding LDCs.  
17. Upon request from the acceding LDCs or Members, periodic dialogues under 
the aegis of the Sub-Committee on LDCs could be held, with a view to deepening 
the understanding of issues relating to LDC accessions as well as to finding ways to 
address any difficulties encountered by the acceding LDCs.90     
IV. S&D and Transition Periods  
18. It is reaffirmed that S&D, as set out in the Multilateral Trade Agreements, 
Ministerial Decisions, and other relevant WT O legal instruments, shall be applicable 
to all acceding LDCs, from the date of entry into force of their respective Protocols 
of Accession.91  
19. Requests for additional transition periods/arrangements beyond the ones 
foreseen under specific WTO Agreements shall be favourably considered on a case-by-case basis, taking into account individual development, financial and trade needs 
of acceding LDCs.  
20. Requests for transition periods/arrangements shall be accompanied by 
Action Plans, with a view to helping acceding LDCs implement WTO rules. It is 
recognized that acceding LDCs need adequate technical assistance and support to 
implement such Action Plans. Members commit themselves to ensure support and 
assistance during the transition periods.  
V. Technical Assistance   
21. Members underline the need for enhanced technical assistance and capacity 
building to help acceding LDCs to complete their accession process, implement their 
commitments and to integrate them into the multilateral trading system.  
22. As part of each LDC's accession proc ess, the WTO Secretariat shall draw up 
technical assistance framework plans, based on inputs from the acceding LDCs, aiming at greater coordination and effective delivery of technical assistance at all 
stages of the process, making optimal use of existing facilities.  Such plans will 
include the assistance required to implement the Action Plans referred to in paragraph 20. The TA framework Plans will be demand driven and will be adjusted  
                                               
90 To the extent possible, these dialogues sh ould take place on the margins of Geneva Week to allow participation of non-resident  acceding LDCs. 
91 As originally set out in the 2002 Accession Guidelines in document WT/L/508.  
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- 117 - PROVISION COMMENT 
over time to reflect changes in acceding LDCs' needs. 
23. The Sub-Committee on LDCs, through the WTO Secretariat, shall seek 
reports, on a periodic basis, from relevant multilateral, regional or bilateral 
development partners, to update WTO Members on their TA support in favour of 
acceding LDCs. The WTO Secretariat shall continue to attach priority attention to 
the technical assistance requests from the acceding LDCs.  
24. It is reaffirmed that acceding LDCs preparing or updating their DTIS under 
the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) have the option to identify and prioritize 
accession-related needs through their DTIS and DTIS Action Matrix. Development 
partners are urged to respond adequately to such needs expressed by the acceding LDCs.  
  
  WT/COMTD/W/196  
 
- 118 - 7.16  Extension of the Transition Period under Article 66.1c for Least-Developed Country Members - Decision of the Council for TRIPS of 
11 June 2013 (IP/C/64) 
PROVISION COMMENT 
... Decides as follows: 
1. Least-developed country Members shall not be required to apply the 
provisions of the Agreement, other than Articles 3, 4 and 5, until 1 July 2021, or until such a date on which they cease to be a least-developed country Member, whichever date is earlier. 
2. Recognizing the progress that least-developed country Members 
have already made towards implementing the TRIPS Agreement, including in accordance with paragraph 5 of IP/C/40, least-developed country Members express their determination to preserve and continue the progress towards 
implementation of the TRIPS Agreemen t. Nothing in this decision shall 
prevent least-developed country Members from making full use of the flexibilities provided by the Agreement to address their needs, including to create a sound and viable technological base and to overcome their capacity 
constraints supported by, among other steps, implementation of Article 66.2 
by developed country Members. 3. This Decision is without prejudice to the Decision of the Council for 
TRIPS of 27 June 2002 on "Extensio n of the Transition Period under 
Article 66.1 of the TRIPS Agreement for Least-Developed Country Members 
for Certain Obligations with respect to Pharmaceutical Products" (IP/C/25), and to the right of least develope d country Members to seek further 
extensions of the period provided for in paragraph 1 of Article 66 of the 
Agreement. See also comments under Articles 66.1 and 67 of the TRIPS Agreement. 
 
 
The general transition period for least-developed country Members was initially due to expire on 1 January 2006. Recognizing their special needs and requirements, the TRIPS Council adopted a Decision on 29 November 2005 
that extended the transition period under Article 66.1 for least-developed 
country Members until 1 July 2013 (IP/C/40). The TRIPS Council adopted a Decision on 11 June 2013 that further extended the transition period until 1 July 2021 (IP/C/64). 
 
   
 
   
 
   
 
 
 
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