WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  RESTRICTED 
WT/GC/M/137 
13 September 2012 
 (12-4913) 
General Council 
25-26 July 2012  
 
 
 
MINUTES OF MEETING 
 
Held in the Centre William Rappard 
on 25-26 July 2012 
 
Chairperson:  Mrs Elin Johansen (Norway) 
 
 
At the outset of the meeting, the Chairperson informed Members that on 23 July, the Russian 
Federation had officially notified the Secretariat that the ratification process of its Protocol of 
Accession had been completed, and that the Russian Federation would become the WTO's 
156th Member on 22 August.  On behalf of all Members, she congratulated the Russian Federation on 
its achievement and applauded its committed efforts, and expressed the hope that its participation in 
the trading system as a new WTO Member would yiel d substantial and continui ng benefits for Russia 
and for the entire membership. 
 
With regard to the Proposed Agenda for the present meeting, in light of new developments 
she proposed, and Members agreed, that Item 4(b), or iginally requested to be placed on the Agenda by 
Haiti for the LDC Group, now read "Accession of Lao PDR and Yemen – Reports by the facilitators". 
 
 
Subjects discussed:1 Page 
 
1.	 Accession of Vanuatu – Request by Vanuatu to re-open the Protocol of 
Accession ..................................................................................................................... ............... 3 	
2.	 Report by the Chairman of the Trade Negotiations Committee .......................................... 6 	
3.	 Work Programme on Small Economies – Report by the Chairman of the 
Dedicated Session of the Committ ee on Trade and Development ...................................... 30 	
4.	 Accession of Least-Developed Countries .............................................................................. 31 	
(a)	 Recommendations of the Sub-Committee on LD Cs to further strengthen, streamline 
and operationalize the 2002 LDC Accession Guidelines .......................................................... 31 	
(b)	 Accession of Lao PDR and Yemen – Reports by the Facilitators ............................................ 37 	
5.	 Work Programme on Electronic Co mmerce – Review of progress ................................... 41 	
(a)	 Report by the Deputy Director-General .................................................................................... 41 	
(b)	 Reports by Chairmen of subsidiary  bodies of the General Council .......................................... 41 	
6.	 Waivers under Article IX of  the WTO Agreement .............................................................. 45 	
(a)	 Philippines – Request for a waiver relatin g to special treatment for rice of the 
Philippines – Statement by the Chairman of the Council for Trade in Goods .......................... 45 	
(b)	 Review of waivers pursuant to Article IX:4 of the WTO Agreement ...................................... 47 	
                                                      
1 The Proposed Agenda was circulated in document WT/GC/W/658. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 2  
 
  (i)	 LDCs – Article 70,9 of the TRIPS Ag reement with respect to pharmaceutical 
products, granted on 8 July 2002 until 1 January 2016 ........................................................... 47 	
(ii)	 Preferential tariff treatment for Least-d eveloped countries, granted on 27 May 2009 
until 30 June 2019 ............................................................................................................ ......... 47	
(iii)	European Union – Application of autonomous preferential treatment to Moldova, 
granted on 7 May 2008 until 31 December 2013 ..................................................................... 47 	
(iv)	 United States – Former Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, granted on 27 July 
2007 until 31 December 2016 ...................................................................................................  47	
(v)	 United States – Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act, granted on 27 May 2009 
until 31 December 2014 ........................................................................................................ .... 47	
(vi)	 United States – African Growth and Opport unity Act, granted on 27 May 2009 until 
30 September 2015 ............................................................................................................. ....... 47	
(vii)	United States – ANDEAN Trade Preference Act, granted on 27 May 2009 until 
31 December 2014 .............................................................................................................. ...... 47	
7.	 Ninth Session of the Ministerial Conference – Date and venue .......................................... 47 	
8.	 Guidelines for appointment of officers to WTO bodies – Statement by the Chair ........... 49 	
9.	 Improving the guidelines for granting intergovernmental organizations 
permanent observer status in the WT O – Statement by the Chair .................................... 51 	
10.	 Measures to streamline the production of documents and the conduct of 
meetings – Statement by the Director-General .................................................................... 52 	
11.	 Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration – Report on meeting of 
May 2012 ...................................................................................................................... ............ 54 	
12.	 Legal status of the Cuban brand "Havana Club" in the United States – 
Statement by  Cuba ............................................................................................................. ..... 54	
13.	 Director-General's report on trade-related developments during the period 
October 2011 - May 2012 – St atement by India ................................................................... 58 	
14.	 Chairmanship of the Working Party on the Accession of Algeria – Statement by 
the Chair ..................................................................................................................... ............. 58 	
15.	 Chairmanships of the Working Group on Trade, Debt and Finance and of the 
Negotiating Group on Market Access ................................................................................... 59 	
16.
	 Administrative Measures for Members in arrears – Statement by the Chair .................. 59 	
ANNEX I – Statement by Lesotho on behalf of the African Group  at the informal 
Heads of Delegations meet ing on 17 July 2012 ..................................................................................  61	
ANNEX II – Statement by Paraguay on behalf of the landlocked developing countries at 
the meeting of the Negotiating Group on Trade Facilitation on 9-13 July 2012 ............................ 63 	
ANNEX III – Statement by Brazil at the meeting of the TRIPS Council on 5 June 2012 ............. 64 	
ANNEX IV – Statement by India at the informal  meeting of the TPRB on 18 July 2012 ............. 65 	
 
  WT/GC/M/137 
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  1. Accession of Vanuatu - Request by Vanuatu to re-open the Protocol of Accession 
(WT/GC/146, WT/GC/W/657) 
1. The Chairperson, on behalf of all delegati ons, welcomed the Deputy Prime Minister and 
Minister for Trade, Industry and Tourism of the Republic of Vanuatu, Mr Ham Lini Vanuaroroa, who 
was heading his country's delegation to the present m eeting.  She drew attention to the communication 
from Vanuatu in document WT/GC/146, requesting to re-open the Protocol of Accession for 
acceptance, and to the draft decision in documen t WT/GC/W/657, which had been circulated to 
facilitate the Council's consideration of this matte r at the present meeting.  In its communication, 
Vanuatu indicated that due to unforeseen developm ents, it had not been in a position to deposit its 
instrument of acceptance within the time-limit of 31 December 2011 pr ovided for in paragraph 7 of its 
Protocol of Accession to the WTO.  Having now co mpleted its domestic ratification process, Vanuatu 
had requested that the Protocol be re-opened for acceptance by 31 December 2012 so as to allow it to 
deposit its instrument of acceptance.  In the light of  this request, she proposed that, in accordance with 
the Decision-Making Procedures under Articles IX and XII of the WTO Agreement agreed in 
November 1995 (WT/L/93), the General Council adopt the draft decision contained in document 
WT/GC/W/657. 
2. The General Council so agreed.2 
3.  H.E. Mr Ham Lini Vanuaroroa, Deputy Prime Minister of Vanuatu, speaking as an observer, 
thanked Members for the decision just taken.  His Government had completed its domestic ratification 
process, and following the adjournment of the presen t meeting he would deposit with the Director-
General its Instrument of Acceptance of the Prot ocol.  Trade liberalization and painful domestic 
reforms had not been easy, but his Government had pe rsisted, because countries that engaged in trade 
openness grew faster than those that were trade-r estrictive, protectionist and insular. The mandate-
driven WTO accession process was a valuable instru ment for domestic reform. Sustained domestic 
reforms were necessary to improve competitiveness, a ttract foreign investment, strengthen the rule of 
law, and reinforce domestic institutions, transparency  and coordination.  He advised those countries in 
the process of WTO accession to wait if they were not ready, and to not quarrel with the WTO 
accession process, which was an indispensable instru ment for trade integration and rapid growth.  
Vanuatu had chosen the path of WTO-driven domes tic reform because it was convinced that it would 
yield gains in improved economic welfare for its peopl e.  This had not been a vote winner, but it had 
been done for Ni-Vanuatu, the Melanesian people that made up the population of the Republic of 
Vanuatu.  The economic results from continuing reform s confirmed that Vanuatu had chosen wisely.  
It would not deviate from the path of sustained do mestic reforms, because this was good for Vanuatu's 
development and growth. 
4. Vanuatu's decision to maintain its commitment to WTO membership had tested its democracy 
to the maximum and had required courage to main tain.  Democratic govern ance, domestic reforms 
and trade opening all required the courage of lead ership – not just talking about courage, but 
demonstrating it.  With all humility, Vanuatu believe d it had provided useful lessons for the rules-
based multilateral trading system.  Vanuatu thanked all Members for standing by it as it had faced the domestic challenges of ratifying its Protocol of Accession.  It wished to convey its sincere and particular appreciation to Australia, China, New Ze aland, the European Union and the United States 
for their technical assistance to Vanuatu as it moved across the finishing line.  It praised Members for 
confirming that the accession of Least-Developed Countries (LDCs) was a strategic priority for the 
organization.  The Prime Minister and the Govern ment of Vanuatu wished to convey their special 
appreciation to the Director-General for his strong support in bringing Vanuatu to this final stage of its accession and for his vision for a rules-based mul tilateral trading system that took account of the 
priorities and concerns of LDCs like Vanuatu.  It also wished to thank the Director of the WTO 
                                                      
2 The Decision was subsequently circulated in document WT/L/862. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 4  
 
  Accessions Division for his support and advice.  In  30 days, Vanuatu would become a WTO Member, 
marking the 17th year from the day the Working Party on its accession had been established, and Vanuatu looked forward to this.   
5.  All representatives who spoke, as well as Cambodi a for ASEAN; Kenya; Hong Kong, China; 
Canada; Switzerland; Tunisia; Chinese Taipei; Ba ngladesh; Argentina; Paraguay; Colombia; Nepal; 
and Ukraine, supported the decision to re-open the Protocol on the Accession of Vanuatu, welcomed 
the Deputy Prime Minister and his delegation to the meeting and said they looked forward to working 
with Vanuatu in the WTO. 
6. The representative of Australia said his delega tion recognised that the accession process was a 
notoriously long and arduous road, requiring both  comprehensive economic reform and strong 
political perseverance.  In this light, it recognised Vanuatu's significant achievement in completing its 
domestic ratification process and hoped that other Me mbers would agree to Vanuatu's request.  Aside 
from the benefits accruing directly to Vanuatu's economy and traders, its membership would further 
integrate the Pacific region into the global trading system.  Australia was confident that Vanuatu's 
accession would help lead to an increased profile for the Pacific region in the WTO and would focus 
more Members’ attention on the particular needs of small, island developing states.  This focus meant 
that their needs would be better taken into account  when Members monitored the implementation of 
existing rules and negotiated new ones.  In this sense, Vanuatu's accession was a positive 
development for Pacific Island countries more broa dly.  Vanuatu's accession would also take the 
WTO closer to achieving the overarching principle of universality, which was a long-standing and 
important goal for Australia.  In recent times, that goal had been behind its support for the efforts of a 
number of individual acceding countries, as well as for improving the guidelines on LDC accessions.  
Along with a strong bilateral relationship, these regi onal and systemic consider ations had underlined 
Australia's ongoing support for Vanuatu’s accession.   It acknowledged Vanuatu's efforts towards 
fulfilling the requirements of WTO membership a nd stood ready to provide assistance in the post-
accession phase, as required. 
7. The representative of New Zealand said Vanuatu's accession had been a long journey, and the 
path had not always been smooth.  It had require d careful consideration on the part of Vanuatu's 
leaders, officials, and people, and careful we ighing of the benefits and obligations of WTO 
membership.  New Zealand rec ognized that genuinely unforeseen developments had prevented 
Vanuatu from completing its domestic ratificatio n procedures prior to the 31 December 2011 
deadline, and completely understood the need for fu rther time to let the process run its course.  New 
Zealand celebrated the fact that Vanuatu was in a position to deposit its instrument of acceptance, 
commended its efforts to follow through on the commi tments it had made and was pleased to support 
its bid for membership. 
8. The representative of China reiterated his country 's strong support to Vanuatu's request.  He 
also noted with pleasure that the Vanuatu delega tion had benefited from China's modest contribution 
for its presence at the present meeting.  China enco uraged the Government of Vanuatu to notify its 
acceptance and complete the whole process as early as possible.   
9. The representative of Haiti, on behalf of th e LDC Group, recalled that Vanuatu had been 
scheduled to be the first LDC to be admitted to the WTO in 2001.  However, because of the intricacy 
of democratic rules and the need to build consen sus at home in order to complete parliamentary 
ratification of the accession package, it had not been possible until now.  The country was now ready 
to join the WTO and become its 157th member.  The Group endorsed Vanuatu's call to reopen its 
Protocol of Accession and called on all Members to  join in welcoming Vanuatu as a full-fledged 
Member.  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 5 
 
 
  10. The representative of Pakistan said his country  supported Vanuatu's request.  After 17 years 
of hard work, Vanuatu's accession process had been completed, and Pakistan was waiting to formally 
welcome it in the WTO fraternity. 
11. The representative of Solomon Islands said that as a close Pacific Melanesian neighbour, his 
country had followed Vanuatu's accession with much inte rest.  It had been a long and at times difficult 
and frustrating process, but Vanuatu had finally ma de it and should be congratulated and commended 
for its determination.  However, this was only th e beginning.  Now would begin the requirements of 
notification, periodic reviews, reporting and so on.   For small countries, fulfilling these obligations 
required continuous technical as sistance and support from Members.  Vanuatu's accession process 
underscored the price most developing countries, and in particular LDCs, had to pay to be part of the 
multilateral trading system.  The five LDCs which had acceded to the WTO since its establishment 
had had to make onerous commitments beyond the levels of some original developed-country 
Members.  This called into question Members' genuine willingness to support the accession of LDCs 
and other non-members.  Solomon Islands wished  to call on Members to be more flexible and 
understanding towards the accession process of LDCs and, in particular, Yemen's accession process. 
12. The representative of the United States welc omed the announcement that Vanuatu would 
submit its instrument of acceptance at the end of th e present meeting.  This was the end of a long 
journey for Vanuatu, and the US could only congratulat e it for the successful efforts, over the years, 
of its negotiating team, its parliamentarians and government officials, and most recently, of Prime 
Minister Sato Kilman to bring these negotiations to  a successful conclusion.  The terms of Vanuatu's 
accession were, for the most part, already implemen ted and fully respected the 2002 Guidelines for 
LDC Accession.  The trade regime established within these terms was based on the rule of law and 
transparency, and would encourage trade and invest ment that would benefit Vanuatu and its citizens 
for many years to come.  The US commended the Va nuatu delegation for its hard and patient work 
and the skill and flexibility with which it had crafte d this final accession package and had guided it to 
final approval, not only at the WTO, but also in Port Vila. 
13. The representative of the European Union sai d the EU had taken note of the internal 
constraints faced by Vanuatu regarding the ratif ication of its accession, and supported its request, 
taking into consideration that the substantive el ements of the package were not affected.  The 
accession would be a welcome step for Vanuatu itself to integrate into the multilateral trading system, 
after years of reforms.  It would be a welcome step for Members who had accompanied the country 
throughout this accession process and for the WTO as a whole, as welcoming a new Member 
confirmed once again the organization's central role in global governance.   
14. The representative of Panama, on behalf of GRULAC, said the Group recognized Vanuatu's 
efforts as clear proof of its on-going commitment to  the WTO.  With regard to the LDC accession 
draft decision, the Group hoped that this woul d facilitate the prompt accession of other LDCs. 
15. The representative of Mauritius said that as a memb er of the ACP, he was pleased because the 
ACP Group would be stronger and richer by in cluding an additional WTO Member.  He also 
supported the decision just taken, and looked forwar d to the negotiations to sort out the problems 
faced by Vanuatu. 
16. The representative of Mexico said Vanuatu's accession would bring the WTO closer to 
universality, and in this respect supporte d the statement by Panama for GRULAC. 
17. The representative of India said his country fully supported the accession of Vanuatu and 
hoped that after the submission of its Protocol of  Accession, it would have a smooth transition into 
WTO membership. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 6  
 
  18. The representative of Barbados, on behalf of the SVEs, said that after 17 years of effort, 
Vanuatu was highly deserving of this result.  Th e SVEs took note of the difficulties Vanuatu had 
encountered and the recognition by Members that  commitments had to recognize its level of 
development.  The SVEs understood the challeng es Vanuatu faced in getting thus far and the 
adjustments that would be required of it in the years ahead. 
19. The representative of Samoa said his country knew all too well the long and arduous road of 
accession, having recently acceded itself, and looked forward to welcoming another Pacific Island 
country to the WTO and the multilateral trading system. 
20. The representative of Cuba congratulated Vanuatu for its efforts, which had made possible the 
submission of its instrument of acceptance after a very long road. 
21. The General Council took note of the statements.3 
  
2. Report by the Chairman of the Trade Negotiations Committee 
22. The Chairperson invited the Director-General, Chairman of the TNC, to report on the TNC's 
activities since his last report to the Council. 
23. The Director-General, Chairman of the TNC, said4 he wished to start by congratulating 
Russia on the formal completion of its long walk to wards the WTO.  He could now count on seeing 
Russia seated among Members as from the next General Council, and understood he would be able to 
make a similar statement late r that day regarding Vanuatu5.  Since the last meeting of the General 
Council, he had reported on his activities in detail to the membership on two occasions at the HODs 
level.  These had included internati onal and regional meetings in whic h he had participated, and work 
that had taken place in Geneva to follow up on MC8.  His reports had been circulated to Members in 
documents JOB/GC/19 and 20.  He did not intend to repeat what he had said then, but simply to place 
on the record the main messages.  First, in light of  the deteriorating economic situation and what he 
saw as rising downside risks, he had urged colle ctive action to re-double efforts to strengthen 
multilateral co-operation to find gl obal solutions in order to avoid further trade and investment 
tensions.  He had expressed hope that all Members would live up to the commitment by Ministers at 
MC8 to keep markets open and resist protectionism in all forms.  He had also urged Members to 
remain vigilant and begin to think about creative wa ys to improve their multilateral transparency and 
peer reviews, through fruitful discussions such as the one that had taken place at the most recent 
TPRB meeting, and also through the consultations  the TPRB Chair was conducting.  Second, on the 
negotiating front, he had reporte d on the consultations all Nego tiating Group Chairs had been 
conducting with delegations in their respective areas.   This included technical work that had taken 
place in the areas of Trade Facilitation, S&D treatmen t and DSU reform.  At the informal meeting of 
the Negotiating Group on NAMA on 18 July, the Chair of the Group – whose presence and humour all would miss – had introduced a report prepared  on his own responsibility.  The Negotiating Group 
might wish to revert to this report at the appropriate time. 
                                                      
3  See also footnote 5.  
4  The Director-General's statement was subsequently circulated in JOB/GC/21. 
5 At the start of the afternoon session, the Director General said he was now in a position to 
congratulate Vanuatu on the formal completion of its accession process.  During the lunch break, 
Deputy Prime Minister Vanuaroroa fo rmally deposited with him Vanuatu' s instrument of acceptance.  This 
meant that Vanuatu woul d become the WTO 157th Member on 24 August.  He therefore looked forward to 
seeing Vanuatu also seated among WTO Members as from the next General Council.  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 7 
 
 
  24. At the informal HODs meetings, he had hear d some delegations highlight specific areas 
where they wished to see tangible progress soon.  Th ey had emphasized that whatever was agreed in 
any Paragraph 47 outcomes, whether in Trade Facilita tion or elsewhere, this did not imply the end of 
the Round.  The Single Undertaking remained the gu arantee that all mandated issues would have to be 
addressed.  Several delegations, while stressing the significance of Trade Facilitation, said they did 
not at present consider this area as self-balancing.  These delegations had cautioned against selectivity 
in implementing Paragraph 47 and had expressed c oncerned about achieving the right balance within 
this approach.  Several participan ts had also stressed the importan ce of transparency, inclusiveness 
and multilateralism in any future processes, including in agreeing on early-harvest candidates.  A 
number had also emphasized the importance of resp ecting the development mandate of the Round.  
Although work had continued at varying levels across the DDA to  implement the elements of political 
guidance from MC8, progress and activity had been, in diplomatic language, mixed.  Over the past six 
months, various processes and initiatives had benef itted from the time and space which delicate and 
complicated issues sometimes merited.  He underst ood that these discussions would continue after the 
summer break, and he would continue to encourage participants to reach  out to the wider membership.   
25. He felt that all would agree that the harvest fro m the first half of 2012 had been meagre.  Of 
course, there had been important and positive ach ievements such as the LDC accession guidelines, on 
which Members should build as they operationalized  fully the guidelines from Ministers on the Doha 
part of their dossier, during the second half of 2012.  However, in so doing they had to recognise that prolonged and dogmatic discussions about whether or not to deliver on everything or a few things or 
nothing at all had not and would not take them very far.  The only thing all knew was that an "all or 
nothing" approach did not work, and that a "my way or the highway" approach was the best way to 
ensure paralysis.  It was important going forward fo r all to remain faithful to the guidance Ministers 
had provided at MC8.  This included remaining fa ithful to the mandate, and recognizing that not all 
elements of the DDA could be concluded simulta neously in the near future; adopting a gradual 
approach and advancing those areas where progr ess could be achieved; and exploring different 
negotiating approaches, while respecting the principl es of transparency and inclusiveness.  The time 
had also come for more serious and creative th inking about how to bridge gaps in areas where 
convergence remained elusive.  It also included e xploring issues relevant to the multilateral trading 
system.  The guidance from Ministers was clear:  Members had to collectively and urgently agree on what could be done at a technical level, how it should be achieved and when and where it should be 
done.   After the summer break, Memb ers needed to change gears at various levels so as to ensure 
that they used their time in the most efficient manner.  They had a heavy collective responsibility, not 
only for the Doha Round but for the multilateral trading system in these difficult times, to make sure that 2012 was not a wasted year.  For his part, he would meet with the Negotiating Group Chairs immediately following the summer break to explore sp ecific steps to take the work forward.  Some 
Negotiating Groups had already mapped out their ne xt steps and all the relevant Chairs had 
undertaken to make themselves availabl e in the autumn to any delegation. 
26. As a college, the Negotiating Group Chairs and he  would need to look at ways to deliver on 
the instructions stemming from MC8, in line with what many of Members had requested, and would 
try to look at creative ways to bridge the most difficult and intractable issues.  He was under no 
illusion that this would be easy, but was convinced  that the Negotiating Group Chairs and he would 
have to explore these issues together with Members.   Over the past few weeks and months – whether 
at the level of informal HODs or in the General Council – it had been said time and again that there 
was interest in re-engaging more seriously on a br oad range of issues under the Doha Agenda.  He 
firmly believed that Members needed to test this  stated interest and do so in an inclusive and 
transparent fashion.  He would be faithful to th ese principles in his consultations, and as always, his 
door remained open to any delegation wishing to  consult with him on these issues.  However, 
ultimately the ball lay in the Members' court.  The negotiators had to achieve the needed substantive 
and balanced progress across all areas of the negotiations  that all desired.  Those who believed that as 
time passed, the Round might lose all its remaining st eam might be right.  However, it was clear that WT/GC/M/137 
Page 8  
 
  not engaging seriously in  trying to find solutions to the presen t impasse would increase the probability 
of such a disappointing outcome.  Credibility lay in  the capacity to produce results, not statements.  
All should face up to this reality and accept that there was no individual clever escape from this collective responsibility.  As they broke for the summer, he urged each delegation to reflect on its 
individual contribution to collectively breaking the deadlock and allowing for forward movement, in 
order to fully operationalize the guidance from Ministers at MC8.  
27. Delegations thanked the Director-General for his report. 
28. The representative of Lesotho, on behalf of th e African Group, requested that the statement 
made by the Group at the 17 July informal Heads of Delegations meeting be included in the records of 
the present meeting.6  He wished to briefly zero in exclusiv ely on Trade Facilitation.  The African 
Group thanked the Chair for his guidance on the work  currently undertaken in the Negotiating Group 
on Trade Facilitation.  Taking into account the Dir ector-General's report and the Doha Agenda as a 
whole, the African Group was acutely aware that some Members considered Trade Facilitation as a 
priority that should be part of an early harvest ag reement as per paragraph 47 of  the Doha Declaration.  
While noting this position of some Members, the A frican Group would like to state the following.  
29. First, the Group would like to stress that the composition of the Trade Facilitation Agreement 
should constitute measures that meet developmen t concerns of developing countries as the main 
building blocks of the Agreement.  Members were, therefore, encouraged to make every effort to 
strike an internal balance on the measures in th e consolidated text. These would ensure that the 
composition of the Trade Facilitation Agreement as a whole resulted in measures that were beneficial 
to developing Members of the WTO.  
30. Second, the African Group would like to under score that Trade Facilitation should not be 
treated neither as a stand-alone nor as a self-balan cing agreement.  Consequently Members should 
work together towards ensuring that other deve lopment issues within the Doha Agenda were 
concluded simultaneously with the Trade Facilitation Agreement to ensure balance.  Members should 
also ensure that such development issues woul d be economically meaningful and resolved in 
substantive development impact in the economi es of the developing Members of the WTO.  
31. Third, turning to the principle of early harvest in the context of Trade Facilitation, he said the 
African Group reaffirmed its embrace of the elem ents of political guidance outcome of the MC8 on 
the principle of early harvest.  Notwithstanding this  reaffirmation, the Group would like to invite 
Members to consider investing efforts in defining and clarifying the parameters limits and principles 
in which an early harvest Agreemen t would be made and operate.  Th is would most important provide 
a framework in which discussions on the way forward on the basis of early harvest would be based.  
32. So just to conclude metaphorically agains t the background of the just-ended Montreux Jazz 
Festival and the on-going Paleo music festival, the Trade Facilitation bandwa gon, with loud music, 
was now a reality. But the African Group would jump onto the bandwagon, only if that bandwagon 
was playing Afrojazz, and the African Group volunteered to contribute to the writing of the lyrics in 
order to entice them into jumping onto the bandwagon 
33. The representative of Mauritius, on behalf of  the ACP Group, supported the statement by 
Lesotho for the African Group.  It was true that th e economic situation looked bleak and the crisis was 
not about to end, and this made things difficult for trade.  However, this should make the case for the 
WTO even stronger, because the rules-based system  was the only insurance against protectionism.  
He reaffirmed the Group’s commitment to the Single U ndertaking and, by extension, to the integrity 
of the DDA mandate.  Only if Members delivered on  the totality of the mandate would they achieve a 
                                                      
6 The statement is reproduced in Annex I to the present records.  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 9 
 
 
  horizontal balance that would be inclusive and em brace all Members.  Trade Facilitation was being 
discussed in several quarters as a candidate for ear ly harvest.  Any perception that reduced the MC8 
guidelines on early deliverables under paragraph 47 to only Trade Facilitation was misguided and 
would not be helpful.  Neither were statements  along the lines that Trade Facilitation was a self-
balancing or stand-alone issue.  Even if this was right, it was not the shared perception of all 
Members.  However, Trade Facilitation was a tool fo r enhancing trade.  It was a priority for ACP 
countries, and the ACP supported improving the trad e facilitation infrastructure.  However, there 
should first be balance within the Trade Facilita tion pillar itself, in terms of a developmental 
accommodation in the obligations of Section I of the text, but more particularly through an 
operational S&D treatment package in Section II.  Beyond the Trade Facilitation pillar, the ACP 
agreed that Trade Facilitation alone could not be a ca ndidate for early harvest.  There was a need for a 
larger mix of issues that would provide comfort and balance to Members.  The ACP Group therefore 
supported the "Afrojazz" component mentioned by Lesotho for the African Group, i.e. an element of development for SVEs. 
34. There were some good signs of useful work and progress being made.  In the CTD Special 
Session, there was hope for achieving some results.  Similarly, the ACP Group hoped that in some 
other areas, like Agriculture, Members would engage in real negotiations to try to  lock in some of the 
stabilized elements of the Revision 4 text or harvest some elements that would be helpful for development or give comfort to Members.  However,  Members had to be careful in the approach and 
methodology they chose in delivering on the DDA in  a gradual manner.  If they tried to repeat 
mistakes of the past, they would fail again.  T hus, one should not try to negotiate the concept of 
balance in a mix of issues with Trade Facilitation at  the centre.  This would mean spending time and 
energy discussing what balance was, rather than focussing on content.  Members had to concentrate 
on addressing substantive issues and try to piece th e puzzle together down the line.  However, in 
adopting such an approach, they would need to have  the necessary comfort that they would not be put 
in the situation of a fait accompli .  Thus, while Members should not contrive a balance upfront, they 
would need to give a signal that a broader mi x of issues would be on offer for discussion and 
negotiation and for an early harvest.  While ther e needed not be an over-engineered process of 
concurrent or sequential negotiati ons about such a broader mix of issues, Members would have to 
agree on a broader subset of issues.  This was th e approach Members should take to operationalize the 
Ministerial guidelines.  The ACP Group hoped that wh en Members resumed their work in September, 
they would get down to real business in this spirit. 
35. The representative of Australia, on behalf of th e Cairns Group, said that at the May General 
Council meeting the Cairns Group had called for serious engagement in 2012 on Agriculture.  
However, it had been deeply disappointed by the l ack of engagement on this area over the past few 
months.  This was in spite of the fact that Agri culture remained the most important area if Members 
were to advance the overall Doha negotiating process.  It was critical that Members re-engage in a 
meaningful way on Agriculture.  The Cairns Gr oup had pointed on many occasions to the importance 
of this for development and to address the global imbalances and distortions in world agricultural 
trade.  It had encouraged other Members to be open-minded about engaging on specific issues raised, 
including export competition and TRQ administration.  The Group looked forward to working with other Members after the summer break so that ther e was some positive momentum to report to the 
next Special Session of the Committee on Agricultu re, which it was hoped could be called soon after 
that break. 
36. Speaking for Australia, he said the messages in the above statement reflected something that 
was absolutely critical to building positive mome ntum in the second half of 2012.  To enable 
Members to build progress in all areas, one of the fundamental challenges they faced, and in which he 
was confident they could find a way forward, was to get some meaningful work going on Agriculture. 
If the "Afrojazz" included Agriculture, he was sure th at all the Cairns Group members would want to 
join the party. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 10  
 
  37. The representative of Chad, on behalf of the C-4,  recalled that in the preparatory process for 
MC8, the priority issues under the DDA had been the LDC issues, including cotton.  The C-4 failed to 
understand why, when no solution ha d yet been found to these issues, Members should now be talking 
about Trade Facilitation as the starting point for an early harvest.  On cotton, Members at MC8 had reaffirmed their commitment to do their utmost to  fulfil the mandate agreed in Hong Kong in 2005 to 
address cotton "ambitiously, expeditiously and sp ecifically", on the understanding that as the DDA 
was a development Round, there should be an early harvest on the priority issues, including cotton.  The C-4 therefore wished to recall that it would no t accept any early harvest that did not include the 
LDC issues, and cotton in particular.  Regarding the latest action by the C-4 at the bilateral level to 
achieve progress on the cotton issue at the multila teral level, from 17-21 June 2012, the C-4 had 
conducted an awareness-raising and advocacy mission in  Washington D.C.  This mission had been led 
by Mr Arthur P. Kafando in his capacity as the C- 4 Coordinating Minister, and had involved the C-4 
negotiators at the WTO, and the representatives of th e C-4 diplomatic missions in Washington and of 
the West African Economic and Monetary Union in  Geneva.  This mission had built on the C-4 
approach, based on dialogue and the endeavour to fi nd a sustainable trade solution to the issue of 
cotton subsidies, in an open and constructive manne r, and had resulted in putting practical proposals 
on the table, the main goal being to find solutions  to the problems faced by African cotton growers 
while considering the constraints of th e C-4's partners in the negotiations. 
38. In Washington, the C-4 delegation had been able to meet with high-level American 
representatives from both the executive and legislativ e branches.  The C-4 approach had been to 
undertake awareness-raising and advocacy action with US political officials and public opinion at a 
time when the revision of the Farm Bill was under way,  to ensure that the interests of the African 
cotton producers were taken into consideration.  The C-4 had thus expressed deep concern about 
certain schemes provided for in the Farm Bill, inter alia  the Stacked Income Protection Plan for 
Producers of Upland Cotton, which could lead to far greater distortion in world cotton trade than was 
already the case.  The mission to Washington had therefore been an excellent opportunity to advance 
the arguments of the African cotton growers and to call upon US legislators, in particular, to think 
about reforming their cotton subsidies in such a way as avoid causing greater or further harm to 
developing-country producers and especially African producers.  The C-4 reaffirmed its willingness to 
enter into frank negotiations, as in the past, with all of the stakeholders, so that an acceptable solution 
could be found to the thorny issue of cotton. 
39. The representative of Cambodia, on behalf of  ASEAN, said these countries were encouraged 
by the Director-General’s report that although the DDA remained at an impasse, Members' 
negotiating activities and consultations  in various formats were continuing.  This was a positive sign 
that Members were trying to move where possible, while waiting for a more comprehensive negotiation to resume.  In line with the call by Ministers at MC8, Members should intensify and advance the negotiations in the areas where c onvergence and progress could be made. In this 
connection, the ACP recognized the momentum in  the area of Trade Facilitation as well as the good 
work in the CTD Special Session on the monitori ng mechanism, the Cancún proposals and the six 
Agreement-specific proposals.  ASEAN stood ready to engage actively and make its contribution 
towards a successful outcome in these areas.  It also wished to emph asize that Agriculture was at the 
heart of the DDA and that trade-distorting domestic  support and all forms of export subsidies should 
be addressed.  All LDC issues contained in the political guidance from MC8 should be taken up as a 
matter of priority.  Members had a responsibility to assist the poorest among them to integrate their 
economies meaningfully into the multilateral trading system.  Further opening of market access on goods and services was crucial to help LDCs in their trade and economic development and poverty 
alleviation. 
  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 11 
 
 
  40. The representative of Barbados, on behalf of the SVEs, thanked all for their important 
contributions at the present meeting.  During th e seven months since MC8, Members had met in 
various configurations and had pur sued various approaches.  For th e SVEs, as small countries, while 
these approaches were noteworthy, they could no t replace the multilateral approach.  A multilateral 
approach and respecting transparency, inclusiven ess and a bottom-up approach were elements that 
should never be side-lined.  Some honest reflectio n was needed if Members were to move forward 
productively.  The SVEs urged all de legations, large and small alike, to use some of the summer break 
to reflect on how they could collectively achieve this.  They welcomed the recent positive outcome on 
LDC accession.  As small, vulnerable economies, they fully supported efforts to ensure that the most 
vulnerable were provided with the re quisite measures to facilitate thei r development.  The SVEs noted 
that intensive discussions had been held in the ar ea of Trade Facilitation and that some progress was 
being made.  They looked forward to a developmen t-friendly outcome in this  and all other areas.   
41. The representative of Pakistan said his delegati on shared the Director-General's assessment 
that protectionism during difficult tim es would have a negative impact on all countries, big and small.  
The efforts of the WTO to monito r such policies and to conduct peer  reviews had successfully curbed 
such tendencies to some extent.  Members had to fi nd different approaches to keep the initiatives alive 
and find a way out of the impasse.  In some areas, like Trade Facilitation, ne gotiations were on-going.  
Developing and least-developed countries still had syst emic concerns in certain areas, and Members 
needed to address these concerns with an open mind to find a middle path, and a positive outcome of 
efforts in the CTD Special Session would also creat e the necessary atmosphere to move forward.  
Although it was unlikely that a "small package" of de liverables could be agreed, as efforts in 2011 had 
shown, progress on the development aspect of the Round would be important, as the guidance from 
MC8 had set out.  The good news so far had been  convergence on the endeavour to facilitate LDC 
accession guidelines.  This implied that with hard  work and continued engagement, Members could 
develop mutual understandings on other issues. 
42. The representative of Mexico said his delegation ag reed with the Director-General's view that 
the recent increase in the use of protectionist measure s as a means of facing the weakness of the world 
economy was worrying.  As Mauritius for the ACP Group had said, trade was the solution, not the problem, and Mexico supported virtually all of that  statement.  Regarding the results of the G20 
Leaders' Summit in Los Cabos in June, this group, which  as a whole accounted for 80 per cent of 
global trade, had agreed that keeping trade a nd investment open was a necessary condition for 
sustained economic recovery, and had undertaken to expand markets and resist protectionism by, inter 
alia, extending their standstill commitment until the e nd of 2014.  Given the vulnerability of the 
global economy, this could only be a positive sign.  However, as had been seen at the recent meeting 
of the Trade Policy Review Body, efforts had to be  stepped up to ensure that a commitment such as 
this, undertaken at the highest level, was properly met.  It was extremely worrying to see that trade 
restrictions had been imposed at an increasing rate over recent months, and mainly by the G20 
countries.  In Los Cabos, recognition had also been  given to the importance of regional and global 
value chains and their role in fostering ec onomic growth, employment and development.  
Accordingly, his delegation welcomed the WTO's "Made in the World" initiative and applauded the 
start of preliminary work to launch discussion on th e relationship between value chains and trade and 
investment flows, development a nd employment, and on the best way to measure trade flows and their 
impact across countries.  It was also satisfying to  see that the central theme of the Fourth Global Aid-
for-Trade Review in 2013 would be "Global Value Chains and Private Sector Development".  The 
G20 Leaders' Declaration had also issued an impor tant call for Members to meet their commitment to 
streamline WTO accession procedures for LDCs.  It was therefore gratifying to see that one of the items on the present meeting's agenda concerned the a doption of a decision that fully responded to the 
MC8 mandate to improve LDC accession guidelines. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 12  
 
  43. With regard to the Doha Round, the G20 Lead ers had reaffirmed their commitment to pursue 
fresh and credible approaches to furthering the ne gotiations and their dete rmination to continue 
working towards the conclusion of the Round, includ ing by achieving results in specific areas where 
progress was possible, such as Trade Facilitation and other areas of interest to developing countries.  Mexico, like many other Members, viewed Trade Facilitation as a strategic tool for reducing the 
development divide and promoting competitiveness,  by virtue of the significant reduction in 
transaction costs for businesses and the increased par ticipation of SMEs in international trade and 
global value chains, due to more flexible and less burdensome transaction procedures.  Accordingly, 
Mexico welcomed the recent progress made in the negotiating group on this key issue and reaffirmed 
its willingness and commitment to cooperate to try to narrow the divergences that remained, with a 
view to the prompt conclusion of an agreement in th is area.  It also welcomed the significant progress 
achieved in the CTD Special Session.  On the elements of political guidance from MC8 and the 
principle of "no more business as usual", Members now seemed to be in a new "business as usual", which was to do nothing, or virtually nothing, in negotiating activities.  This was the most dangerous 
"business as usual", and the comments by the Director-G eneral made a lot of sense.  Members had to 
change gears following the summer break.  They ha d to avoid complex and circular discussions about 
what they should be talking about or negotiating.  It was clear ther e was a focus on Trade Facilitation, 
and from this focal point, Members had to talk abou t what else they could do.  There had been small 
successes, and there had been progress in  areas other than Trade Facilitation. 
44. The representative of Japan said he wished to rai se three points.  First, in the face of rising 
protectionism around the world, Japan welcomed the strong statement from the G20 Summit on the 
standstill and rollback commitment that was unconditiona l.  Given the uncertainty and downside risks 
in the world economy, trade should lead the way.  In light of the existence of global value chains, 
protectionist measures would disadvantage the c ountries applying these measures as well.  Japan 
would continue to abide by the Leaders' commitment and fully engage in the strengthening of the monitoring exercises.  Second, on the positive side, regarding the expansion of the ITA, 11 Members 
would be submitting a single working consolidated lis t to all ITA members.  Japan looked forward to 
working with other Members.  Third, on Trade Facilitation, Japan was concerned that the win-win 
nature of an agreement in this area was still not full y shared by all Members.  As a major provider of 
assistance in this area, including customs co-operation,  Japan would continue to work to advance the 
negotiations. 
45. The representative of Nigeria said that while hi s country remained greatly concerned over the 
persisting challenges in the DDA negotiations, it re -affirmed its commitment to work constructively 
and productively with others to ensure progress in th e Round, including on the basis of an incremental 
step-by-step approach or some other approach that  would allow Members to deliver balanced and fair 
multilateral outcomes, both in the shor t and long term.  To that end, Ni geria welcomed efforts to build 
on the outcome of MC8, particularly through effect ively operationalizing the elements of Ministers’ 
political guidance.  However, Nigeria wished to un derscore the need to build confidence and trust 
within the membership by ensuring that all issues remained on the table while technical work, based 
on consensus, continued, especially in those ar eas lagging behind.  Nigeria was therefore committed 
to advancing work on the development aspects of th e Trade Facilitation negotiations, particularly the 
elements dealing with S&D treatment for deve loping countries, the monitoring mechanism, and 
technical and financial assistance and capacity buildi ng.  Nigeria also wished to re-affirm its position 
that agricultural trade reform remained central to the development mandate of the DDA, and to stress 
that any outcome in Trade Facilitation could not therefore be considered as stand-alone or self-balancing.  While welcoming the recent agreem ent on LDC accession, Nigeria wished to encourage 
Members to accord priority to delivering on the other issues of particular interest to LDCs, based on the Decisions and outcomes reached on those issues at MC8.  Once again, Nigeria called on all the 
major players to show leadership and exercise the requisite flexibility that would unblock the 
persisting stalemate and lead to substantive progress in the DDA.    WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 13 
 
 
  46. The representative of the European Union underlin ed that the EU wholeheartedly believed in 
the centrality of the rules-based multilateral trad ing system, and particularly its key role in 
contributing to overcoming the ongoing economic sl owdown.  In this regard, transparency and 
monitoring trade policy in the WTO were central to resisting and combating protectionism, and had to 
be one of the fundamental pillars of activities in the organisation.  However, one should not forget 
about the other pillar – the need to continue stre ngthening the multilateral framework.  This meant re-
engaging in negotiations to advance the DDA, a nd actively moving trade negotiations forward over 
the coming months, as envisaged by Ministers at MC 8.  The EU was fully committed to achieving this 
objective and called on others to commit as well.  The successful work on revision of the LDC 
accession guidelines in recent months had demonstrat ed that Members were collectively capable of 
putting aside artificial differences and working togeth er to achieve a common goal.  They needed now 
to use this positive momentum to engage in the DDA by furthering technical work on issues where 
they could progress. The priority remained deliveri ng on issues of interest to the most vulnerable.  
The EU had already shown its determination to activ ely move this area forward and would continue to 
do so.  It welcomed the positive engagement in p ast weeks on S&D treatment issues covered in the 
CTD Special Session, such as the Agreement-specific proposals and the monitoring mechanism.  The 
EU thanked the Chair of that body for his constr uctive approach and felt there was real room for 
progress on these issues.  
47. An overall constructive spirit had also prevaile d in the negotiations on Trade Facilitation.  
Full and serious engagement was needed here from all Members in order to overcome the remaining obstacles to the benefit of all, particularly the developing and least-developed countries.  The EU was 
confident that, given the political will, progress could be made on the technical issues.  Members 
needed to keep in mind that this short-term progr ess and technical work were crucial for the WTO as 
a whole.  It had to be clear, however, that this did not in any way supplant the continued commitment 
to completing the entire DDA – in fact, it was a necessary stepping stone to progress on a broader scale.  The EU stood ready to move this work forw ard in cooperation with ot her willing Members as a 
contribution to achieving outcomes on the entire DDA.  At the same time, it welcomed progress with 
regard to non-DDA issues such as the ITA.  The EU  was happy that an informal process to review the 
ITA had now started on both the expansion of its co verage and on NTBs.  It hoped that all Members 
would continue to make efforts to achieve results  in both processes.  It was also glad to see some 
interest being expressed in looking into areas that  were increasingly becoming relevant for the broader 
membership.  In this context, the EU welcomed  initiatives to hold exploratory discussions through 
seminars and the preparation of studies on a number of such issues.  Overall, there were elements of a 
positive agenda on the table for possible steps fo rward in areas where progress could be made, as 
Members had been mandated to do by Ministers at  MC8.  Progress during the first half of 2012 had 
not been as quick as one would have liked, but the EU stood ready to move this work forward in the 
second part of the year. 
48. The representative of China said that as MC 9 was already on the radar screen, it was 
necessary for Members to collectively review progress and to chart the way forward.  During the past 
few months, Members had continued to engage in various formats to test areas where progress could 
be made in the short term and to brainstorm possi ble solutions to the Doha Round in the long run.  
China felt very encouraged that Members had re cently reached an agreement on improving the 
guidelines for LDC accession, which would be formally  adopted at the present meeting.  This was a 
valuable achievement, made possible through the joint efforts of all Members, under the able 
leadership of the Chair of the LDC Sub-Committee,  assisted by the Secretariat with professionalism 
and efficiency.  This agreement would serve as a confidence-builder, which demonstrated that the 
common goal was always deliverable if all bore it  in mind and showed strong willingness.  China 
sincerely hoped that such a constructive and coopera tive spirit could be a catalyst for progress in the 
Doha Round. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 14  
 
  49. As shown from the previous discussions, it was obvious that Members had divergent views on 
the possible candidates for early harvest, and par ticularly whether linkages should be made.  His 
delegation had detected from the discussions that the fundamental reason for this was that Members 
had different understandings or cal culations regarding the long-term objective of the Round.  Some 
assumed that the Round was at a serious impasse and the only option was to c onclude negotiations on 
some limited selected topics, while others held that  the purpose of early agreements was to pave the 
way for the final conclusion of the Round when th e political and economic atmosphere was ripe.  As a 
firm and consistent supporter of th e multilateral trading system, China strongly held to the latter.  He 
wished to be very clear that China was firmly determined, but at the same time amply patient, to 
conclude the Round.  Considering its paramount importance, the Doha Round should in no case be 
abandoned, as Members had agreed that “stop and reboot” was not an option.  Furthermore, Ministers 
at MC8 had instructed Members to work towards the successful multilateral conclusion of the Doha 
Round.  This had also been reaffirmed by G20 Lead ers and APEC trade Ministers the previous month. 
50. Trade Facilitation had been repeatedly menti oned lately.  As stated on previous occasions, 
China was open to treating Trade Facilitation as one of the potential elements of an early harvest, but 
parallel efforts should be made on other topics wher e progress could be achieved, in particular the 
development-related ones.  In any case, Trade Facilit ation should not be either the only candidate for 
an early harvest or the sole outcome of the Doha  Round.  His delegation was glad to hear at the 
present meeting the Director-General confirm that the Single Undertaking would continue to be the guarantee that all mandated issues would have to  be addressed.  China wished to emphasize the 
importance of the Doha mandate and the principle of the Single Undertaking.  It also urged all 
Members to reiterate their firm commitment to th is fundamental principle.  There were several 
reasons for the current stalemate, but the mandate itself was not to be blamed.  Any attempt to modify the mandate would discard the progress achieved th rough more than ten years of painstaking 
negotiations and would take Members back to square  one.  Therefore, China supported the statements 
by Mauritius for the ACP and Lesotho for the African  Group regarding work after the summer break.  
It also supported the EU’s reaffirmation of its commitment to conclude the entire Round.  Members 
needed to focus their attention and pool their r esources to work on credible deliverables, while 
bearing in mind the long-term objective of concl uding the Round.  All should make good use of 
August to do some serious and deep reflecting.  China would be ready to join efforts to finish the Long March of the Round in accordance with th e mandate and based on progress already achieved. 
51. The representative of New Zealand said he wished  to draw Members’ attention to the recent 
Rio+20 Conference on Sustainable Development hosted by Brazil in June, as some of the issues 
addressed there touched on issues of direct relevance and interest to the TNC and the Doha negotiations.  In particular, he wished to refer to paragraph 173 of the Rio+20 Declaration addressing 
the issue of fisheries subsidies, which remained one of the key issues for the Doha negotiations on 
Rules.  Participants in the Rio Conference, having reiterated their commitment to conclude 
multilateral disciplines on fisheries subsidies that woul d give effect to that aspect of the DDA, had 
stated as follows:  “We encourage States to further improve the transparency and reporting of existing 
fisheries subsidies programmes through WTO.”  Particip ants had gone on to state:  “Given the state of 
fisheries resources, and without prejudicing the WTO Doha and Hong Kong Ministerial mandates on fisheries subsidies or the need to conclude th ese negotiations, we encourage States to eliminate 
subsidies that contribute to overcapacity and overfishing, and to refrain from introducing new such 
subsidies or from extending or enhancing existing ones.”  New Zealand commended these two 
elements of the Rio Declaration for Members’ attention. 
52. Regarding improving the transparency and reporting of existing fisheries subsidies 
programmes through the WTO, it once again encouraged  all Members to fully report subsidies in the 
fishing sector in their notifications under the SCM Agreement, as well as to make publicly available 
broader information on their frameworks for support to  the fisheries sector.  It was very clear that a 
full understanding of the nature of the issues th at would need to be addressed to advance the  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 15 
 
 
  negotiations in fisheries subsidies would be assisted by the provision of further information.  The call 
made in Rio recognised the importance of improving tr ansparency in this area, and it would be useful 
for Members to consider ways in which provisi on and dissemination of information on subsidies in 
the fisheries sector could be improved.  Regard ing the second element, his delegation wished to 
emphasise the call made in Rio for countries to elim inate subsidies that contributed to overcapacity 
and overfishing and to refrain from introducing new su ch subsidies or extending or enhancing existing 
ones.  New Zealand remained firmly committe d to the successful conclusion of multilateral 
disciplines on fisheries subsidies.  At the same ti me, given the adverse impact these subsidies had on 
sustainable development, the world could not afford  to put off action in this area until new disciplines 
were finalised.  His country would continue to support all efforts aimed at promoting progress in this 
area at the national level as well as in the WTO and ot her relevant internationa l and regional fora.   
53. The representative of Kenya supported the statement by Lesotho for the African Group.  His 
delegation took note of the activities taking place in va rious WTO subsidiary bodies, and in particular 
those mandated by Ministers at MC8.  Kenya than ked the Director-General for the reflections and 
pronouncements he had shared with Members fro m other global meetings such as the G20 and 
RIO+20.  Kenya agreed with th e common shared view that the global economy was still fragile and 
that concerted effort was needed to enable it to re bound.  In this regard, the WTO as an institution had 
a huge contribution to make towa rds much-needed recovery and st ability.  Through its Trade Policy 
Review Mechanism, it should continue to urge Memb ers to resist any form of protectionism during 
these challenging times and call upon the donor community to continue providing funds in support of programmes such as Aid for Trade and trade financi ng.  At the informal General Council meeting on 
7 June, Kenya had reiterated that Ministers at MC8 ha d noted with regret that the negotiations were at 
an impasse and had recommitted themselves to work ac tively, in a transparent and inclusive manner, 
to conclude the DDA in accordance with its mandate .  The Single Undertaking principle had been 
cited as posing insurmountable challenges to the ne gotiations, and Ministers had accordingly stated, 
"It is unlikely that all elements of the Doha De velopment Round could be concluded simultaneously 
in the near future."  Against this backdrop, they had reiterated the mandate re flected in Paragraph 47 
of the DDA and had further recommitted themse lves to advance the negotiations where progress 
could be achieved, including focusing on the elemen ts of the DDA that might allow Members to reach 
provisional or definitive agreements based on c onsensus earlier than full conclusion of the 
negotiations under the Single Undertaking. 
54. Building on the goodwill emerging from MC8, there had been serious engagement in three 
areas: Trade Facilitation, where there was ongoing wo rk to remove brackets; S&D Treatment, where 
the focus was on the Cancún proposals, the si x Agreement-specific proposals as well as the 
monitoring mechanism; and work on clarifying th e Dispute Settlement Mechanism, where there had 
been progress.  Kenya welcomed these positive de velopments and thanked the Chairs of the 
respective Negotiating Groups for their tireless efforts.  At the same time, his delegation strongly 
cautioned that any reference to Trade Facilitation as the sole issue to progress on a stand-alone and 
self-balancing basis would not be helpful at the present stage and would only contribute to 
undermining the emerging constructive spirit all were witnessing.  Tr ade Facilitation was very much 
in the basket and would have to be balanced together with other issues such as LDC issues, 
Agreement-specific proposals, S&D treatment, the export competition pillar in Agriculture, and so 
forth, which had equally reached a high degree of maturity. 
55. To nurture this emerging goodwill there was a need to embrace transparency and 
inclusiveness in order to build mutual trust am ong the membership, and any interpretation of the 
mandate had to promote a win-win situation among the va ried interests.  This was the way to keep the 
DDA flame burning.  In this regard, Kenya wished to reiterate the following five steps, also stated at 
the informal General Council in June, for possibl e consideration by Members as a contribution 
towards breaking the impasse in the DDA and enabling the negotiations to move forward:  (i) discuss 
and agree on a set of, preferably, five issues such  as Agriculture, LDC issues, Agreement-specific WT/GC/M/137 
Page 16  
 
  S&D treatment proposals, Trade Facilitation, and Se rvices; (ii) identify, through a process of open, 
transparent and inclusive dialogue, areas where provi sional or early agreement was feasible on each of 
the identified five issues; (iii) develop a non-paper on  each of the five issues with the aim of preparing 
the ground for a negotiated provisional or early agre ement; (iv) draft and negotiate a provisional or 
early agreement as per the provisions of Paragra ph 47 of the DDA before or by MC9; (v) review 
progress and take appropriate action on the DDA.  Ke nya would continue to remain constructively 
engaged. 
56. The representative of Chile said his delegation appreciated the Director-General's report on 
the meetings in which he had participated.  His repor ts always provided an excellent indication of the 
political pulse that should guide Members' work.  With regard to the work already done, Chile 
welcomed the agreement on LDC accession as part of  the commitment undertaken at MC8.  The 
Chairman of the Sub-Committee on LDCs had s hown that with good will and diplomacy, an 
agreement was possible.  At present, six months after MC8, Members were looking towards MC9 in Bali, and Chile thanked Indonesia for its generous offer.  While waiting for better tailwinds, Members 
had to strengthen the multilateral trading system by focusing on what was possible.  Chile saw four 
areas in which Members could, in theory, move forward.  The first was Trade Facilitation, which 
would benefit all.  It was of general interest that trade be conducted in the most fluid, predictable and 
uninhibited way possible.  For this reason, certain ar eas such as freedom of transit (GATT Article V), 
fees and formalities connected with importation and exportation (GATT Article VIII), and the 
publication and administration of trade regulati ons (GATT Article X) s hould be clarified and 
improved.  Second, Members had to continue worki ng to improve, in a concrete manner, one of the 
cornerstones of the system, the Dispute Settlement  Understanding.  Third, transparency was an 
ongoing part of the WTO's work and had to be promoted  in all areas.  It was therefore vital to do the 
following:  (i) comply fully with the notification re quirements applicable to each Members; (ii) each 
committee or working group had to begin taking st eps to increase transparency; and (iii) discuss how 
to improve the existing notification system in all areas.  Last, Members had to continue to guard 
against all forms of protectionism.  There were numerous signs from various sources warning of an 
increase in the adoption of protectionist trade me asures.  Members should pay special attention to 
protectionist trade measures that were consistent  with current WTO rules, given their long-term 
implications.  This category included the raising of  tariffs below the bound rate, certain subsidies and 
the adoption of licences within pe rmitted time frames.  Sooner or la ter WTO-inconsistent measures 
would be eliminated, either voluntarily or under the pressure of the dispute settlement system, but this 
left the question of what happened to measures that  were authorized under the current rules despite 
being of a clearly protectionist nature.  He ask ed how such measures were to be eliminated. 
57. The representative of Korea said that overall, hi s delegation shared the Director-General's 
assessment in his report, which provided a mirro r of the negotiating realities in which Members 
currently found themselves.  He had been struck by  what the Director-General had said in his press 
interview the previous week, that multilateralism was at a crossroads not only in terms of 
environmental and sustainability issues, but also trad e and economic matters.  As had been repeatedly 
said, the DDA negotiations were the best stim ulus package in response to a global economic 
slowdown.  Furthermore, the successful conclusion of the DDA would be a win-win game for all.  Thus, Korea hoped that after the summer break, Members would collectively seek a mutually 
satisfactory outcome with a renewed sense of urgenc y, while making every effort to deal with the 
growing protectionist trends in an effective and tim ely manner.  He would soon be leaving his post in 
Geneva but was confident that Members would con tinue to work hard to make this organization 
remain as relevant as it should be. 
58. The representative of South Africa recalled that it had taken 40 years – since the rejection of 
the Havana Charter and the ITO by the US Congress in 1955 – for the world to create a World Trade 
Organization in 1995.  In its preamble, the Marrak esh Agreement promised to build new agreements 
on the basis of the principle of sustainable deve lopment.  The Doha Round was the first Round that  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 17 
 
 
  had agreed at the outset in its mandate to build new agreements on the basis of the internationally 
recognized principles of equity, balance and developm ent.  The built-in agenda of the Uruguay Round 
on Agriculture had failed to gain traction among Member s.  It had therefore been recognized that the 
only way to encourage developed countries to make  the necessary reforms in Agriculture would be 
through trade-offs on other issues of interest to th em, such as NAMA and Services.  It was for this 
reason that the Single Undertaking had been agreed as the basis for the negotiations.  In addition, the 
Doha Round had chosen the more inclusive multila teral route to negotiations, rather than the 
plurilateral and request-and-offer methods of previous GATT Rounds.  In the Doha mandate, 
Members had also agreed to recognize the plight  of the LDCs and had promised to create new 
opportunities for them to export into world markets in areas where they could compete.  It was for 
these reasons that the Doha Round had become know n as the Doha Development Agenda.  At MC8, 
Members had agreed that in order to help find a way out of the current impasse in the Doha Round, 
"new approaches" should be explored. 
59. South Africa was in favour of seeking new appr oaches, but not in favour of the so-called 
"new approaches" suggested by some, that were mere ly old wine in new bottles.  It was not in favour 
of bringing back the old approach of request-and-offe r and plurilaterals that had been driven by the 
main players in the GATT.  It was in favour of an approach that was multilateral, that sought to create 
balance within and between issues, and that rec ognized the different levels of development of 
developing countries.  This was what it had agreed to in the Doha mandate.  Any approach that was 
not based on the principles of equity, balance, deve lopment, inclusiveness and transparency would not 
gain the support of the majority of Members and th e world at large.  South Africa was engaged in 
advancing a fair and balanced Trade Facilitation agre ement in the WTO.  It recognized the need to 
upgrade Members' customs infrastructure, procedur es and processes.  It was already working to 
achieve this in its own economy and region.  Howe ver, South Africa also recognized that the wide 
disparities in the existing levels of development a nd modernization of customs infrastructure between 
developed and developing  countries would require the developi ng countries, and particularly the 
poorer countries in the ACP/Africa Group and LDCs, to  bear the brunt of the implementation burdens 
that would result from such an agreement.  Therefore, appropriate and necessary capacity had to be provided to these countries, as already agreed.  While an upgrading of customs infrastructure, 
processes and procedures was clearly of interest to most developing countries, an agreement on Trade 
Facilitation could not be self-balancing, as it w ould impose significant implementation burdens on 
them.  It was for this reason that to ensure a fair  and balanced outcome for any short-term deliverables 
in the Doha Round, other priority issues of impor tance to developing countries, especially the poorest, 
had to be part of the outcome.  Members could not now prioritize only an issue such as Trade Facilitation, where developed countries were the main  demandeurs.  At various Ministerial meetings 
Members had promised to prioritize the interests of the poorest countries, such as DFQF market 
access, Cotton, S&D, and the elimination of harmful export subsidies.  These issues also had to be 
addressed in any short-term deal. 
60. With regard to the discussion in the TPRB on the monitoring of trade-restrictive measures, his 
delegation wished to caution that attempts to label as protectionist the legitimate use of policy space 
available to developing countries under existing WT O rules, while refraining from commenting on the 
use of other measures witnessed in the recent bailouts of firms and banks in many developed countries, would not succeed.  These measures and their trade impact would need to be monitored and 
evaluated in the WTO.  On the so-called "new i ssues", as his country had stated on other occasions, 
while it supported the introduction of new issues for debate and analysis in the regular committees of 
the WTO, it would not be feasible or fair to move ahead with these issues before having succeeded in 
addressing issues that affected the majority of Memb ers and that had been on the agenda for decades, 
such as trade-distorting subsidies in Agriculture.  Regarding the proposed decision discussed in the 
Sub-Committee on LDCs on LDC accession referred to by the Director-General, while South Africa 
was fully committed to facilitating LDC accession and their integration in the trading system and 
would not stand in the way of the adoption of this decision, it wish ed to express concern regarding the WT/GC/M/137 
Page 18  
 
  high level of commitments anticipated from LDCs  by the proposed Benchmarks on Goods.  While 
South Africa respected the fact that this was a negotiated outcome, it wished to place on record its view that LDCs should be accord ed the necessary policy space they required to build their infant 
industries and advance their economic developmen t.  These guidelines should thus be implemented 
with this objective in mind and with due regard for the specific development situation and needs of 
each LDC, and not applied in a one-size-fits-all a pproach.  In addition, the LDC accession guidelines 
should not prejudice the negotiating rights or cons train the negotiating space of LDCs, SVEs and 
other developing countries in the current DDA negotia tions.  A more open trading system that was 
seen to be fair, inclusive, development-friendly and transparent would gain the support of all.  South 
Africa remained committed to workin g tirelessly towards this goal. 
61. The representative of Costa Rica thanked the Dir ector General for his efforts to continue 
moving the Geneva negotiating process forward.  In the past few months, things had not looked 
promising for the Doha Round.  Ho wever, there had been and would continue to be some progress in 
certain areas mentioned by the Director Genera l in his report, such as Trade Facilitation, S&D 
treatment, and reform of the Dis pute Settlement Understanding.  Cost a Rica was also optimistic about 
Members' efforts and initiatives in areas such as Se rvices.  At MC8, his delegation had supported the 
exploration of pragmatic approaches to moving forw ard in areas that directly benefitted the entire 
membership.  He wished to reiterate this messag e and call on Members to put the interest and 
common benefit of more open trade before limite d interests that prevented Members from seeing 
beyond the short term and beyond individual political positions.  His country also reaffirmed its 
commitment to open trade and the fight against protectionism, as expressed by Ministers at MC8.  At 
that meeting, Costa Rica had supported the agre ement whereby the Trade Policy Review Body would 
continue the task of monitoring trade and measures taken in the context of the world financial and 
economic crisis.  This supervisory role of the WTO was fundamental, and his delegation thanked the 
Director-General and the Secretariat for their rece nt report, as well as the TPRB Chair for having led 
the discussions held in that body to improve the me chanism.  As the most recent report said, it was 
worrying not only that  trade-restrictive measures were on the rise, but that there was less of an 
increase in the number of trade facilitation related measures. 
62. It was also of concern that there had been a shift away from temporary measures aimed at 
resolving a temporary crisis, to measures aimed at  stimulating recovery through national industrial 
planning, which seemed to be more permanent, with  an increase in protectionist rhetoric and calls 
from some leaders for inward-looking policies, thus  taking Members back to the past with import-
substitution policies.  According to a recent G20 repo rt, the trade-restrictive measures applied by this 
group of countries corresponded to three per cent of world trade in goods, an amount close to the annual value of all African trade in goods.  In the meantime, only 18 per cent of the restrictions 
imposed since October 2008 had been eliminated, which was why the accumulation of restrictive or distortive measures was worrying.  In addition, ther e had been a proliferation of non-tariff measures 
which, even if responding to legitimate objectives a nd WTO-consistent, could be used as protectionist 
tools.  The World Trade Report 2012 noted that non- tariff barriers were twice as trade-restrictive as 
tariffs, and that their impact was even greater for agricultural products.  The use of these measures had 
to be rationalized, and Members had to ensure that th ey were fully transparent.   In the case of sanitary 
and phytosanitary measures and technical regula tions and requirements, Members had to seek 
harmonization with international standards.  The ad option of protectionist measures in the context of 
significant current challenges such as the financial cr isis, climate change or food security, only tended 
to make the problems worse. 
63. In December 2011, Costa Rica had defended the importance of including the issue of global 
value chains in the WTO work programme and conducti ng a more in-depth analysis of the impact of 
this phenomenon and ways to benefit from it.  His de legation welcomed the Secr etariat's work on this 
issue.  The fragmentation of the various stages of  the production process and their location in different 
countries, together with the growth of trade in inte rmediate goods and "trade in  tasks", were radically  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 19 
 
 
  transforming traditional patterns of trade and inv estment, and could contribute significantly to 
increasing opportunities for developing countries to become integrated into world trade.  According to the World Economic Forum, 21st century trade involve d a continuous flow of  goods, people, services, 
training, investment and information that used to take place within one country.  This enabled 
countries that had not previously participated in th e production of high-value-added goods to do so by 
specializing in links of this chain, which pr ovided new opportunities for developing countries to 
create more jobs of a better quality.  Since econom ies were also more interdependent and it was 
increasingly difficult for a country to isolate itself from the rest of the world, it was important to 
reflect on the impact that protectionist measures mi ght have in an increasingl y interrelated world.  A 
measure applied by one country could disrupt the production chain and have unforeseen consequences 
for other countries that had become part of a stage of the chain.  
64. Costa Rica was pleased that the WTO recognized the growing relevance of this phenomenon 
and that it was being examined seriously.  This ne w reality was being taken into account in different 
areas of the organization's work.  It was highly appr opriate to have chosen global value chains as the 
theme for the Fourth Global Aid-for-Trade Revi ew.  Members should also recognize that the 
introduction of trade facilitation measures had a funda mental positive impact on this process.  It was 
no coincidence that Costa Rica had carried out a subs tantial reform of its customs system when taking 
its first steps towards integration into global valu e chains at the end of the 1990s.  The need to 
streamline procedures, reduce waiting times and cost s, and increase transpar ency and predictability 
had led the country to reform its customs system whic h, at the time, had made it possible to eliminate 
competitive disadvantages for exporters and provide them  with a logistical platform enabling them to 
sell to the world.  Trade facilitation had contributed  to Costa Rica's integration into global value 
chains.  At present, high-technology exports accounted  for 40 per cent of its industrial exports – the 
highest level in Latin America and the fourth high est in the world.  At the end of the 1990s, nobody 
had thought that a country exporting agricultu ral goods would, 20 years later, be exporting 
components for the aerospace industry.  Now each c ountry could decide what it would produce and 
the type of jobs it would provide in 20 y ears' time.  This was an ongoing challenge. 
65. More developed global value chains, the ever-i ncreasing fragmentation of  production, and the 
growth of trade in intermediate goods meant that  products had to cross more borders and that a 
multilateral Trade Facilitation framework was needed now  more than ever.  It was therefore important 
to continue moving forward in the negotiations on this subject and to achieve results.  Costa Rica 
firmly believed in Trade Facilitation and its benefits  and that the developing countries would be the 
main beneficiaries of a multilateral ag reement in this area.  In the words of the President of the World 
Bank and the regional developm ent banks, trade facilitation could be a down payment on the 
commitment Members had made to linking trade and development.  Costa Rica welcomed the 
decision to be adopted at the present meeting ai med at facilitating LDC accession and at providing 
these countries with technical assistance to support thei r efforts.  It was firmly convinced of the 
development benefits of participation in the multila teral trading system and the WTO, thanks to the 
legal certainty provided by the WTO and the valu e of WTO commitments and rules in the promotion 
of trade and investment.  Costa Rica therefore hoped that this decision would contribute to facilitating 
trade for LDCs that had not yet joined the WTO. 
66. The representative of Hong Kong, China said the Director-General had outlined steady, if 
unspectacular, progress in several areas, incl uding Trade Facilitation, S&D treatment and DSU 
reform, but very little progress on other issues, in cluding Rules, NAMA and Agriculture – a meagre 
harvest indeed.  At MC8, Ministers had acknowle dged that progress in the DDA would be difficult, 
but had committed themselves to continue working a nd to exploring different negotiating approaches 
to facilitate swifter progress.  His delegation would ha ve liked to have seen much more progress in the 
seven months since then, but acknowledged that th e obstacles had been formidable.  However, the 
organization needed to move forward to remain relevant, and Hong Kong, China urged Members to 
consider the consequences of not doing so by the time of MC9.  In this regard, in spite of exhortations WT/GC/M/137 
Page 20  
 
  from many Members, Trade Ministers and even L eaders, it was disappointing that Trade Facilitation 
had not made quicker progress, as this was in ev eryone’s interests.  Hong Kong, China hoped that 
matters would accelerate in the autumn and that Members could get beyond the brackets in the text and into the underlying reasons for them, and thus to  the kernels of the problems.  On S&D treatment, 
his delegation noted the intensive and constructive work taking place in the CTD Special Session.  
Hong Kong, China was aware of the immense challenge to make progress in the important area of 
trade and development, but looked forward to s eeing Members' collective labour bear fruit before 
long.  One bright spot, which although not w ithin the DDA was firmly development-focused, was 
LDC accession.  MC8 had mandated the Sub-Committee on LDCs to complete its work on this matter 
by July 2012, and his delegation looked forward to th e results of this work being gavelled shortly.  
The regular work of the WTO was just as vital as that related to the DDA, and Hong Kong, China 
looked for real progress in those endeavours in the coming year. 
67. The representative of Uruguay associated his de legation with the statement by Australia for 
the Cairns Group which highlighted the importance of Agriculture at the global level.  The importance 
of this issue was such that Members could not continue to side-line it.  Uruguay was aware that it 
would be difficult to conclude the Doha Round in th e short term, but its succ essful conclusion might 
help break the extended deadlock within the multila teral trading system.  In this respect, Uruguay 
stood ready to continue exploring issues in any ar eas in which early results could be achieved, as 
instructed by MC8.  However, such results had to  reflect balanced efforts.  Uruguay was concerned 
about the growing tendency to use legitimate obj ectives as a pretext for imposing unjustified trade 
barriers or distorting trade, and had been drawing attention to this matter in various WTO bodies.  
These types of measure, which had no scientific or ra tional basis, had to be rejected on their merit and 
because of the damage they might cause to globa l food security by affecting incentives for more 
secure food production.  Meeting the challenges of elusive food security in the near future meant 
creating conditions for competitive and environmentally  responsible agricultural activity.  Part of 
Members' responsibility in taking up th is challenge had been to pay the utmost attention to these types 
of obstacle which, without any scientific or rati onal basis, were becoming increasingly widespread 
through the application of private measures and standards.  Such measures and standards had a 
significant impact on trade and food production, thus  raising serious questions about the ability to 
respond effectively to the growing food requirements of the world's population.  These types of obstacle needed to be addressed in conjunction or in parallel with any efforts on Trade Facilitation, 
and Members had to face up to their commitment to elim inate agricultural export subsidies so that this 
had some sort of meaning for an agricultural exporting country like Uruguay.  He emphasized his 
country's commitment to continue exploring wa ys to resolve the various challenges Members 
currently faced. 
68. The representative of the Plurinational State of Bolivia said that regarding work in Geneva, 
his delegation noted the growing expectation surrou nding the negotiations on Trade Facilitation, but 
was still not clear as to how this issue would contri bute to development.  In this respect, it supported 
the concerns raised by Lesotho for the African Gr oup.  Bolivia had followed with interest the Trade 
Facilitation Symposium on 10-11 July, where it had been able to learn about some Members' 
experiences of import-platform improvement.  Bo livia had noted that each country had its own 
approach to improving import-enhancing mechanis ms and processes and that, so far, multilateral 
agreements had not necessarily been required for im proving import platforms.  What was not clear 
was how a Trade Facilitation agreement would impr ove Bolivia's exports, as an agreement on this 
issue would not address the issues that really restri cted market access for developing countries, such 
as non-trade barriers, sanitary measures and subsidies.   Therefore, Bolivia did not see why developing 
countries should be enthusiastic about this matter.   As all knew, Trade Facilitation had been proposed 
by the developed countries at the Singapore Minister ial Conference, with a view to establishing rules 
to improve import management.  In Bolivia's case,  this was something it did in accordance with its 
own foreign trade needs.  Therefore, if rules were  to be developed to impr ove imports or facilitate 
trade, they should be sufficiently balanced and flexib le, in particular for developing countries, so as to  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 21 
 
 
  allow these countries enough policy space to adapt their import processes and mechanisms to their 
own needs rather than to models that did not conf orm to the reality of their situation.  With the 
disciplines as they currently stood, many developing  countries would have a lot of legislative reforms 
to make and would have to undertake costly i nvestments in human resources and technology, while 
other Members, mainly the developed countries,  would have very little to do to assume the 
agreement's commitments.  In addition, the WTO age nda was not balanced, since this was an issue of 
interest mainly to the developed countries, w ith the support of some developing countries who 
associated their interests with the latter. 
69. Bolivia did not, however, see any progress being made regarding issues of interest to the 
developing countries, such as Agriculture.  On LDC accession, Bolivia did not oppose the adoption of 
this decision, but wished to express some doubts, as more time should have been spent analysing 
certain elements, since it appeared that the S&D tr eatment to be received by LDCs was paradoxically 
resulting in greater demands being made on the poorest countries.  It was hard to understand why LDCs should be required to bind all agricultural tariff lines at an average rate of 50 per cent, when the 
bindings of some developed countries were higher.  It was also hard to understand how in NAMA, 
LDCs were expected to bind, from the outset, 95 per cen t of their tariff lines at a rate of 35 per cent.  
This would undoubtedly have a strong impact on their meagre national budgets, with negative 
consequences for national management.  With regard  to Services, LDCs should not be required to 
undertake commitments at levels on a par with the LDC Member that had undertaken the most 
commitments.  This would lead to sectors be ing opened up almost 100 per cent, with negative 
repercussions on areas such as the financial sector, wh ich had currently shown a need for greater state 
regulation.  All these aspects, and others not mentione d due to time constraints, could lead to a loss of 
public policy space, which could hinder some LDCs' development efforts.  Bolivia would therefore 
welcome that LDCs be granted enhanced flex ibilities that really worked in favour of LDC 
development, and hoped that this obj ective could still be achieved.  If not, Bolivia feared that in the 
future, Members would have to prepare a revision of  whatever had been agreed so as to ensure 
consistency with the legitimate de velopment objectives of the poorest countries, and because of the 
possible systemic implications for all developi ng-country Members.  Regarding the NAMA Chair's 
report of 18 July, Bolivia thanked him for his work  as Chair of this body, but wished to express 
concern regarding the new approaches he had s uggested for moving forward, as the flexibilities 
envisaged for certain developing countries or groups of  countries were being diluted or eliminated by 
this new approach.  More time was needed to an alyse the document before accepting or rejecting the 
Chair's suggestion. 
70. The representative of Turkey said the Director-General had painted a bleak but realistic 
picture.  One of the few bright spots at the moment was the continued accession of new Members 
ready to pay a price that was increasingly high in  order to join the organisation. This fact 
demonstrated that even in the current impasse in the DDA, these countries saw added value in 
membership. His country hoped that following on  Vanuatu, other LDCs would speed up their 
accession negotiations in the period ahead, with the he lp of the decision to be adopted later at the 
present meeting.  Having said that, one was daily confronted with more bad news on the economic 
front.  No part of the world was spared the slow down in the world economy.  There were no grounds 
to believe that this situation w ould change any time soon.  Protectionist pressures could therefore be 
expected to rise further.  It was therefore vital th at all make better use of the second half of 2012 than 
they had of the first half.  Turkey would contin ue to pursue its pragmatic approach and try to 
contribute to progress in the DDA.  In this regard , Trade Facilitation was an area that had vast 
potential, as had been repeatedly said.  Progress c ould be made there if a spirit of compromise 
prevailed.  It was therefore important to pursue efforts aimed at the whole membership, but particularly LDCs, with a view to demonstrating to  all participants the benefits of an early and 
positive outcome to the Trade Facilitation negotiations. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 22  
 
  71. The representative of Canada said his delegation greatly valued the Director-General's frank 
and stark assessment of where Members were.  As the present meeting would be his last General 
Council meeting, he had wanted to put together a statement that reflected his views on what was 
going on.  However, despite his efforts, it had not seemed to say what he wanted to say.  He had 
discovered that over 100 years earlier, a very wise ma n had reflected in a poem all that he himself 
wished to say.  With the hope that he was not breaking any copyright rules, he wished to leave 
Members on the following note:  "If you can keep your  head when all about you are losing theirs and 
blaming it on you; if you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, but make allowance for their doubting too; if you can wait and not be tired by wa iting, or being lied about, don't deal in lies, or 
being hated, don't give way to hating; and yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise; if you can dream 
and not make dreams your master; if you can thi nk and not make thoughts your aim; if you can meet 
with triumph and disaster, and treat those two imposters just the same; if you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, or watch the things you gave your life to 
broken, and stoop and build them up with worn-out tools; if you can make one heap of all your 
winnings, and risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss, and lose, and start again at your beginnings, and 
never breathe a word about your loss; if you can fo rce your heart and nerve and sinew to serve your 
turn long after they are gone, and so hold on when there is nothing in you, except the will which says 
to them, "Hold on";  if you can talk with crowds a nd keep your virtue, or walk with kings nor lose the 
common touch; if neither foes nor loving friends can  hurt you; if all men count with you, but none too 
much; if you can fill the unforgiving minute with sixty seconds' worth of distance run; yours is the Earth and everything that's in it, and which is mo re you'll get a trade deal done."  He himself had 
unfortunately failed over the past four years to achie ve that goal, but he sincerely hoped that others 
would do so. 
72. The representative of Switzerland said his delegation subscribed to what Japan had said about 
protectionism.  Members were preoccupied by the fact that, although the G20 countries had prolonged 
the standstill with elements of a rollback, they ha d not, up to now, managed to live up to their 
promises.  Regarding the Doha Round, Ministers ha d invited delegations not to do business as usual. 
However, he had the impression that some had unders tood that they should do no business.  Such an 
attitude would be dangerous.  Whatever Members’  position was factually and legally, the Doha 
Round remained on the agenda.  In Doha, Members ha d put their hands in a pot of glue, and had the 
Doha mandate sticking to their hands.  Members woul d have to address this one way or another.  The 
world economy had fundamentally changed since the preparatory steps for D oha in 1998.  Members 
should acknowledge these changes and use them in orde r to appreciate the real value of what was, or 
what possibly could be, on the table.  On that b asis they needed to enact and implement the required 
changes.  Any other methodology would lead to minimal results that would not be worth the effort.  At present, the Doha emperor was naked.  Textile  labelling and more rational customs procedures 
would not change that.  Only politics would be able to change it.  
73. The representative of Tunisia said his delegation endorsed the statement by Lesotho for the 
African Group.  It also congratulated the Director-General on his participation in numerous fora on 
trade-related matters and for calli ng on Members to shoulder their responsibilities and make trade an 
integral part of the solution needed to counter the current crisis and protectionist tendencies.  Given 
the situation facing economies such as Tunisia, wh ere integrating a great many young people into the 
job market remained a high priority, his delegatio n understood and supported what the Director-
General had said about the importance of value ch ains.  Good intentions were necessary but not 
sufficient.  Engagement was of the essence, while b earing in mind that the common interest had to be 
the parameter for measuring possible progress towards the objectives of the DDA, in accordance with 
the guidelines from MC8.  Members should abide by th e spirit of the Doha Round, the cornerstone of 
which was development.  Tunisia thanked the Director-General for bringing the discussions on non-
tariff measures up to date in an excellent analysis in  the context of the recent World Trade Report.  He 
commended the LDC Sub-Committee Chair for his e fforts in crafting the decision on LDC accession,  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 23 
 
 
  which the General Council was about  to adopt, and congratulated hi m on his endeavours to facilitate 
the accession of Laos and Yemen. 
74. The representative of Chinese Taipei said his delegation shared the Director-General's view 
that as the global economy worsened, the threat of protectionism became more real.  In the WTO, 
Members had to step up work to keep protectionism at bay and keep markets open and trade flowing.  
In the process, it was very important to promote transparency and resist protectionist pressures.  Thus, 
the trade monitoring mechanism should be strengt hened and Members encouraged to keep up with 
their notification obligations.  However, it was mo st important to re-energize the DDA, so as to 
provide an open and free multilateral trading system  that benefitted all.  At MC8, Ministers had 
instructed all to explore fresh approaches in order to move the Round forward and to identify areas 
where progress could be made.  In this regard, hi s delegation was glad that some progress had been 
made since MC8, including an initiative in Serv ices launched by some Members, work on ITA 
expansion, finalizing LDC accession guidelines, and intensifying work on Trade Facilitation.  On the 
latter, although much technical work was still require d, it seemed this was within Members' reach if 
they had the political will to harvest it.  This wa s an area that would benefit both developed and 
developing countries, and Members should keep working on it.  Chinese Taipei welcomed the 
Director-General's idea that afte r the summer break, Members collectiv ely work to explore next steps 
on how, where and when they could make progress.  He assured all of his delegation's fullest support 
in this regard.  
75. The representative of Brazil said that informal ta lks, in different formats and configurations, 
were under way on how to translate into concrete action the elements for political guidance contained 
in the MC8 Chair's summary.  Those elements include d a public recognition that  negotiations were at 
an impasse.  There was, to be sure, one positiv e element in that public acknowledgment of the 
deadlock – it had prevented Members from sweep ing reality under the carpet and had also put 
pressure on the membership to test different and in novative ways to unblock the process.  This was 
precisely what Members had been trying to do in the first half of 2012.  As a result, a positive 
dialogue had been started in which all now seemed to be engaged.  As Members prepared to break for 
summer, Brazil wished make a few brief remark s on the process that lay ahead when Members 
resumed work in September.  Regarding strengthe ning the multilateral trading system, so far there 
seemed to be convergence that one important way to keep the WTO relevant and in line with the most 
recent developments was to explore issues of inte rest to Members in seminars, workshops and so 
forth.  Brazil agreed, as long as this remained ess entially a Member-driven process. While the whole 
membership should take ownership of the pro cess collectively, it would be up to Members 
individually or in groups to present proposals and to test them in the relevant standing bodies of the 
WTO.  However, Brazil cautioned that in presenti ng submissions, Members had to adopt a realistic 
approach, centred, at least as a first step, on debate  and analysis, rather than on possible outcomes.  
Even though some issues were more controversia l than others, Brazil was open to examining all of 
them constructively. 
76. Regarding an early harvest, Brazil had never been  particularly optimistic about the concept of 
a selective continuation of work under Paragraph 47 of the Doha Declaration.  However, it agreed that 
the overall negotiating stalemate should not prevent Me mbers from seeking resu lts in specific areas 
where they agreed that progress was possible.  Fo r that to happen, each and every Member should 
have a chance to test its priorities in the relevant  negotiating groups.  Multilate ral consensus had to be 
reached first in the negotiating groups.  Against th is background, Brazil did not at all encourage the 
idea of trying to reach any previous ly negotiated list of priorities, as this was only bound to replicate, 
on a smaller scale, the same difficulties that were at the root of the current impasse.  Neither did the 
exercise of finding common ground on early deliverables imply in any way that Members were abandoning the Single Undertaking or introducing changes in the DDA mandate.  Members had to 
ensure that any early deliverables would help conclude the DDA negotiations in line with its 
development mandate. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 24  
 
  77. As his delegation had stated before, any set of early agreements under Paragraph 47 would 
have to deliver outcomes of interest to developing countries in general, and to LDC's in particular.  
On the possibility of reaching an early agreement on Trade Facilitation, he reiterated that Brazil, as 
well as many other Members, did not consider this a self-balancing pillar.  In this regard, considering 
the relevance of agricultural trade for the economy of poor countries, improvements in this area would 
help balance the package of any possible early ha rvest, thus addressing the two conditions mentioned. 
With this principle in mind, the G-20 was undertaking technical work to submit, as early as possible in the second half of 2012, concrete proposals for the consideration of the membership.  Members had 
to keep their pledge to continue working on finalis ing the Single Undertaking in the long run.  At a 
time of economic crisis and uncertainty, they could ill afford doing without the Single Undertaking.  
There was no substitute for the completion of the Round in the long run. 
78. The representative of India said the present meeting was timely, as all could use the summer 
break to reflect and review the situation in th e negotiations and to make course corrections, as 
necessary.  India agreed with the Director-General  that the progress made in the negotiations in the 
first six months of 2012 had been quite meagre. Th e Director-General had stressed the importance of 
the Single Undertaking and the imperative of concluding the Doha Round on that basis.  India agreed 
with him entirely on this point, as well as with ot her delegations who had re iterated this in their 
statements.  There was a lot of uncertainty surro unding the Doha Round negotiations in the minds of 
many developing countries, especially as to what would happen after MC9 regarding the unresolved 
issues.  He asked if these would be forgotten,  with the demandeurs of new issues urging the 
membership to move on to a carefully selected se t of 21st century issues, or if they would be 
negotiated and agreements c oncluded on them before a de facto  new Round of negotiations was 
possibly launched after MC9.  This uncertainty lay at the heart of the problem Members were facing 
in terms of lack of progress in most areas.  If Members were to break out of this impasse and move the multilateral process forward, they needed to build trust and confidence among the membership, 
not in terms of mere words, which were never in short supply in internati onal trade negotiations, but 
in terms of concrete action in moving on areas of in terest to others and reaffirming that the Doha 
Round would get concluded on the basis of the curre nt mandate and the progress already achieved.  
Without this reassurance, the chances of a break through did not appear to be very strong. 
79. As was evident from the statements at the pr esent meeting, a large number of developing-
country groups and individual delegations were of  the view that Trade Facilitation could not be 
harvested on a stand-alone basis, nor was it self-bal ancing, from the perspective of the demandeurs as 
well as from the perspective of a majority of developing countries.  The questions raised on Trade 
Facilitation since the time of the Singapore Minist erial, and still being raised, were who it would 
benefit in the short and medium term, what the co sts would be and who would bear them.  With the 
shape the negotiations had taken recently, which was focused mainly on import facilitation, these 
questions needed to be answered in order to pr ovide comfort to the developing countries that the 
Trade Facilitation agreement would have both internal as well as external balance.  In this context, the 
statements by Barbados for the SVEs and Lesotho for the Africa Group, as well as some others, had 
brought the concerns of developing countries to the fore.  Some areas in Trade Facilitation – which 
was the middle game before MC9 – that needed to be fleshed out were needs assessment for meeting 
the financial and technical-assistance requirements of  the developing countries, and the nature of the 
compensation that had to be provided to a complaini ng country, i.e. to the DSB, in case of a default by 
another country in complying with a binding co mmitment under the Trade Facilitation agreement. 
80. In other areas covered by WTO Agreements, dispute settlement pane ls had been asking a 
defaulting country to bring the measure under challenge into conformity with the relevant agreement.  
The demandeurs had so far not made it clear as to what shape a possible violation of a binding commitment on Trade Facilitation would take.  This w ould need to be discussed in detail in order to 
allay the misgivings of developing countries and to bring further clarity to the negotiations.   At the 
present meeting, a number of delegations had stress ed the importance of achieving some deliverables  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 25 
 
 
  by MC9 and had emphasized the nineteenth para graph of Ministers' guidance from MC8, which 
basically paraphrased Paragraph 47 of the Doha ma ndate, to state that Trade Facilitation was the 
prime candidate for early harvest by MC9.  Some  delegations had indicated that the Agreement-
specific proposals and the monitoring mechanism woul d be sufficient payment for Trade Facilitation 
in terms of being faithful to the DDA, ap art from the LDC accession guidelines. The question 
Members needed to answer was whether this payment was enough, from the perspective of the 
developing countries.  Many had said it was not e nough.  A number of developing countries had said 
that Agriculture had to be in th e package, with the C-4 clearly stating their expectations regarding 
Cotton.  Others had mentioned market-access issues  of the LDCs, such as DFQF and the Services 
waiver, as priority items along with export competit ion in Agriculture and a few other issues.  The 
TRIPS extension had also been mentioned as one of the priority issues for LDCs, and was one of the 
issues specifically mentioned in Ministers’ guidan ce from MC8, and India hoped that this did not fall 
through the cracks because the TRIPS waiver pe riod for LDCs would come to an end mid-2013. 
81. Bearing in mind all these factors, the only way forward was for the membership to have a 
constructive, comprehensive and meaningful di scussion after the summer break on what kind of 
package could be aimed at in the short term.  Members could not a priori  include or exclude any 
issues from this package, including Trade Facilita tion.  A few delegations had said that a small-
package approach, such as initiated by the Director-G eneral in 2011, had not worked in the past and 
would not work now.  This would only result in business as usual.  However, the demandeurs on 
Trade Facilitation needed to bear in mind that th is had been a WTO issue since Singapore, over 15 
years earlier, and that pursuing it to the virtual ex clusion of other development issues of the Doha 
Round, especially those that yielded concrete mark et-access gains for the poorest countries, might be 
difficult to achieve. 
82. The representative of Bangladesh said that since MC8, a lot of wisdom and energy had been 
invested in trying to advance the DDA and to find a way to conclude it successfully.  His delegation 
appreciated the hard work to give new impetus to the negotiations, but this should be done with 
caution, as the DDA had to be covered holistically.  The unequivocal message from MC8 was that no 
one wanted Doha to fail, and Members could not af ford to let this happen.  How Members guided the 
multilateral trading system in a troubled time was a cr itical test of their ability and collective wisdom.  
The success or failure to conclude Doha in its orig inal format would be a prominent determinant of 
the future trading system.  Therefore, at this ve ry delicate time, Members had to be practical and 
sensitive to the developmental dimension, while keepi ng the Doha package intact.   There was no lack 
of commitment from the membership to move the Doha Round forward towards an ambitious 
outcome.  However, at present there was a need for concrete measures that would bolster confidence.  
In the run-up to MC8, particularly since April 2012, there had been a sense of broader convergence 
among the membership on an LDC package.  This  could be achieved without shifting the overall 
balance of the negotiations, as such  a package was self-balancing.  This would act as a confidence 
booster and would reenergize Members.  Bangladesh would like to see the immediate return to the 
table of all LDC-specific priorities.  In fact, ther e had already been specific decisions on these issues 
which needed only implementation.  His country stoo d ready to engage constructively to resolve any 
technical issues for implementation of these Decisions.  An LDC package would be a bedrock on which to advance other areas. 
83. Regarding the process, Bangladesh fully subscr ibed to a multilateral, bottom-up, inclusive 
and transparent approach.  However, it was open to an y format or configuration of negotiation.  It did 
not favour any hasty effort to conclude the Round.   There was a need for productive engagement in all 
areas of negotiation.   Six months after MC8, Me mbers were still searching for acceptable ways to 
advance the Doha Round.  The resumption of wo rk in the respective committees and negotiating 
groups based on the negotiating acquis  might be a good way to find the answer as to where progress 
could be made, instead of investing time in cherry picking.  Some Members had indicated they were 
considering some issues as more advanced and achie vable.  In such cases, Ba ngladesh wished to flag WT/GC/M/137 
Page 26  
 
  the issue of internal and external balance, as well as the overall impact on the future Doha package.  
In addition, Members also had to take into consideration the additional obligations and the 
implementation burden.  Since before MC8, Member s had been calling for a clear work plan.  While 
looking for ways to move forward, they also had to be mindful of crafting a work plan as quickly as possible to schedule future work. 
84. The representative of the United States said th e present meeting provided a good opportunity 
to look back at what had been done and the follo w-up to Ministers' guidance at MC8.  Overall, 
Members were in a much better place now than a year  earlier, when they had still been engaged in a 
great deal of abstract debate and tactical positioni ng that was leading nowhere.  At MC8, Members 
had turned the page.  The process had begun with Ministers recognizing that the negotiations were at 
an impasse.  As difficult as that had been, it had also  been essential, since the first step in trying to 
solve a problem was to recognize it.  Ministers had directed delegations to make progress where 
progress was possible, while also intensifying effo rts to overcome the most critical and fundamental 
stalemates.  Looking back over the past six months, it was clear that Members had been following through on that guidance.  Technical work had continued on Trade Facilitation, and Members had 
begun discussions on S&D-related issues in the CTD Special Session.  Members had also met in 
various formats to think through how to  address the more intractable issues.  
85. All probably wished they were further along in  all of this, and the progress that had been 
made was fragile.  Under the rules of the orga nization, it was easy for any Member to obstruct 
progress.  It was important to find ways to make progress wherever possible.  One heard expressions of concern that Members were focusing too much on some areas and not enough on others.  The US 
had broad interests in the WTO.  It had vital in terests in Agriculture, NAMA, Services and various 
Rules areas and would like to see progress in all of these.  At the same time, the US approach was a pragmatic one.  Where there was a way to advance work in particular areas, Members should take 
advantage of it, as directed by Ministers at MC8.  That did not mean giving up on or ignoring everything else.  The US was continuing to engage with others on a broader picture and was open to 
considering their ideas.  Professing an undying co mmitment to the DDA at best accomplished nothing 
and at worst was seen as cynical.  The issues under consideration in the negotiations meant a great 
deal to Members and frustration with lack of pr ogress on them was understandable.  However, the 
only way to make progress was for Members to be  creative and put forward ideas to advance the 
discussion.  The choice they faced in the near term  was between some work and no work.  No work 
on the negotiations would be devastating to the credibility of the institution.  His country wanted to 
work and knew that most Members were ready to engage constructively wherever possible. 
86. The representative of Norway said her delegation ag reed that there was a need to get back to 
work in a more comprehensive fashion than had b een the case during the past year.  Members could 
take encouragement from positive news on some fronts.   Accessions were moving forward, and in the 
Sub-Committee on LDCs a positive atmosphere and willingness to compromise had contributed to a 
positive outcome on guidelines for LDC accession.  On  Trade Facilitation, delegations were working 
hard, though much remained to be done.  In th e CTD Special Session, Norway remained committed 
to, and hopeful of, progress.  There were indicat ions of proposals to come on Agriculture, and 
Norway would study these carefully and with an open mind.  However, on issues such as NAMA and 
Rules, its concern was that in the absence of taking  forward steps collectively, Members were moving 
backwards individually.  In this light, some progr ess towards the objectives agreed at Doha, however 
small, would be more than mere symbolism.  It would be a much needed reversal of a dangerous 
trend.  To get there, Members would need to oper ationalize the instructions from Ministers – to find 
"ways that may allow Members to overcome the most critical and fundamental stalemates in the areas 
where multilateral convergence has proven to be esp ecially challenging".  Norway stood ready to 
engage in discussions on how to ba lance realism with the determinati on to move further towards a fair 
and market-oriented trading system, and to balance am bition with gradualism.  This was also the time 
to engage in frank discussions about Members' polic ies and topical trade-related issues, not to re- WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 27 
 
 
  launch or reframe the negotiations , but to advance Members' unders tanding of current developments 
and policies, be they related to standards, fisheri es subsidies, food security or other topics.  Norway 
would welcome the chance to exchange views on how these interacted with trade policy and the 
WTO.  Her delegation would return from the summer break ready to work. 
87. The representative of Argentina said her dele gation endorsed Australia's statement for the 
Cairns Group and thanked Chad for its statement for the C-4 informing Members about the ongoing 
bilateral talks on the status of the cotton issue.  Argentina reiterated its unfailing support for the C-4 
and for the continuation of discussions that would gi ve this issue its due place in the follow-up to 
MC8, where there had been a clear commitment to continue working towards a successful multilateral 
conclusion of the DDA in accordance with its mandat e.  Members had thus undertaken to advance 
negotiations where progress could be achieved and to  respect fully the development component of the 
mandate.  Argentina fully endorsed the Cairns Group's call regarding the lack of progress in 
Agriculture, and stood ready to contribute in specifi c areas of the Doha mandate in this area, such as 
tariff quota administration and export competition.  However, it should not be forgotten that 
Agriculture remained the bastion of protectionism par excellence, the general prohibition on import 
restrictions being fraught with exceptions – e.g. tariff peaks, quotas and tariff escalation, not to 
mention the distortions caused by domestic support po licies – all of them built into the WTO rules.  
Pursuing the Uruguay Round reform process was a pending, and now a pressing, task, given the 
growing recourse to sanitary, phytosanitary and tech nical measures lacking any scientific or technical 
basis, and to private and environmental standards.  Such was the fight against protectionism that lay 
before Members. 
88. In short, the problems facing the multilateral tr ading system were still essentially the same as 
those that had led to the initiation of the DDA – in other words, the imperati ve need to correct the 
imbalances that made it difficu lt for developing countries to become fully integrated into the 
multilateral trading system.  This necessarily imp lied completing the agricultural reform process, 
which in the short term included, as agreed in H ong Kong, eliminating all forms of agricultural export 
subsidies by December 2013 – i.e. by the time of MC9.  This would represent an initial battle won 
against protectionism.  It would also strengthen th e organization and its credibility, which currently 
gave cause for concern.  Another area that should not be neglected and in which this organization 
could make a significant contribution was the conserva tion of fisheries resources, which remained in a 
critical situation.  In this connection, while Memb ers considered how to move ahead with the pending 
negotiations on fisheries subsidies, tangible st eps could be taken in increasing the level of 
notifications relating to the granting of fisheries subsidies. 
89. The representative of Ecuador said his delegati on agreed with the points raised Brazil and 
other Members, in particular those touching on Ag riculture.  Regarding the report on 18 July 2012 by 
the Chair of the Negotiating Group on NAMA, Ecuador recognized the efforts that had been made in 
a number of areas, the structural tariff adjustments that had been achieved and the understanding that 
had been reached on several of the non-tariff ba rriers proposed since 2008 in different texts.  
However, it should be clearly stated that any s ubsequent NAMA negotiations would have to be on the 
basis of the already stabilized modalities texts of April 2011, and recognized and fully justified S&D 
treatment, in line with the Doha mandates.  On the exercise of Members' rights established in the 
various WTO Agreements, such as the Anti- Dumping Agreement and the SCM Agreement,  inter alia , 
Ecuador reiterated that it would implement them sh ould commercial conditions so require, and that it 
would not accept impairment of these rights.  His delegation acknowledged and appreciated the hard 
work the NAMA Chair had invested in the guida nce and leadership of the Negotiating Group. 
90. The representative of Paraguay said that like othe rs, Paraguay wished to stress the importance 
of the recommendations aimed at operationalizi ng the LDC accession guidelines.  The LDC Group 
included certain countries that faced the added cha llenge of being landlocked,  and Paraguay saw what 
had been achieved in a positive light.  Her dele gation supported any initiative aimed at expanding WT/GC/M/137 
Page 28  
 
  WTO membership and making the organization more universal and representative of socio-economic 
realities.  Her delegation endorsed the statement by Australia for the Cairns Group, and requested that 
Paraguay's statement for the landlocked developi ng countries at the 9-13 July meeting of the 
Negotiating Group on Trade Facilitation be include d in the minutes of the present meeting.
7   During 
the first half of 2012, a sense of lethargy had b een creeping into the negotiations.  This might be 
understandable if Members were trying to find the b est way to act on Ministers' mandate at MC8 to 
"advance the negotiations where progress can be achieved". 
91. However, Members had to be concerned at the slow pace of follow-up.  The only areas where 
there had been any intensity in the meetings were  dispute settlement, the monitoring mechanism, and 
Trade Facilitation, where there had been little progress.   Other areas, such as Agriculture and NAMA, 
had been left by the wayside.  It seemed to be a fo regone conclusion that there could be no progress in 
any of these areas.  Paraguay had invested heavily in  the 11 years of negotiations , in spite of its level 
of development and its limited r esources, both human and budgetary.  It had done this because it 
believed in the multilateral trading system, and ultim ately, because it had hopes for the liberalization 
of agricultural markets.  This had been side-lin ed in previous Rounds, but was where Paraguay was 
competitive.  It had also seen a major opportuni ty to improve elements in Trade Facilitation, 
particularly regarding freedom of transit, in view  of Paraguay's landlocked status.  WTO agreements 
had to keep up with the times. 
92. Her delegation was committed to working hard to  move forward and reach agreement.  It 
hoped that meetings would pick up in the second half of the year so that Members could move resolutely towards a good and balanced outcome.  In order to do so, the forthcoming consultations in 
the different negotiating groups would have to respect the principles of transparency and 
inclusiveness.  If Members were to achieve a ba lanced outcome, the Single Undertaking was an 
essential principle that could not be ignored.  Th e Doha mandate enabled Members to move forward 
without undermining that principle.  In doing so, Members had to preserve the general balance of the 
negotiations.  Paraguay urged Members to move fo rward constructively and reiterated its willingness 
to try to preserve a balance in any progress that might be achieved.  This could only be done if 
Members had some input, above all in the area that  had been established as a pillar of this Round, 
namely Agriculture, which was fundamental to her country.  She recalled that at the outset of the 
Round, when Members had decided it should be the Development Round, it had been agreed that the 
liberalization of Agriculture should be the driving fo rce behind the negotiations.  In past Ministerial 
Conferences, and specifically in Hong Kong, Member s had agreed on commitments that would ensure 
fairer trade.  At present, there were lingering doubts as to the fulfilment of those commitments. 
93. Meanwhile, although intensive work had been done on certain articles of the Trade 
Facilitation text, the same could not be said for other areas of that text – the section on S&D treatment 
was encountering delays, and on freedom of transit,  efforts seemed directed towards limiting GATT 
Article V rather than improving it.  He reiterated th at this was the main interest and concern of the 
landlocked developing countries, which were suff ering from inherent disadvantages that could 
nevertheless be minimized by clear rules.  If Members were really aiming at development and fair trade, they should show it by working to strengthe n the multilateral trading system in all areas – the 
trade negotiations, implementation and monitoring of the agreements, dispute settlement, and trade 
capacity building. 
94. The representative of Cuba expressed her count ry's continuing concern over the current 
impasse in the negotiations.  Cuba  fully endorsed the statements by Mauritius for the ACP, Lesotho 
for the African Group, and Barbados for the SVEs.  It reaffirmed its commitment to the principle of 
the Single Undertaking and was not prepared to accep t any approach that je opardized inclusiveness, 
transparency or multilateralism.  Cuba also wished to emphasize the importance of keeping 
                                                      
7 The statement is reproduced in Annex II to the present records.  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 29 
 
 
  development as the focus of the Doha Round, the co mponents of which remained fully relevant.  It 
was not in favour of giving up the only pro-deve lopment mandate adopted in the history of the 
multilateral trading system in order to venture into  new areas that were not in the interest of 
developing countries.  All efforts had to be brou ght to bear on resolving the pending problems and 
imbalances.  In addition, Cuba di d not subscribe to the attempts to  establish plurilateral alternatives, 
which would only serve to reveal the shortcomi ngs and breakdowns of the multilateral system and 
would result in the marginalization of the vast majority of developing countries when WTO rules were drawn up.  Cuba rejected th e claims of those who sought to en courage the plurilateral approach, 
essentially in the Services sector, or any other form of negotiation that could compromise or weaken the multilateral nature of the negotiations. 
95. Regarding Trade Facilitation, Cuba disagreed w ith those who said that the agreement would 
be to everyone's advantage.  Imbalances existed between Sections I and II  as well as within both 
sections, and needed to be redressed.  While Cuba was not in the worst position in this respect, it 
could not consent to the conclusion of this agre ement if under Freedom of Transit, for example, 
brackets remained in a paragraph addressing non-discrimination, the guiding principle of this 
organization and a sensitive matter for her country and others as a result of the objections of one 
Member.  Regarding LDC accession, Cuba had always  been a firm supporter of any initiative in 
favour of poorer countries, not only in the WTO bu t also in other fora, and would never break the 
consensus on anything that was of benefit to these c ountries.  However, her delegation shared some of 
the concerns voiced by others regarding the loss of  policy space and the difficulties that could arise.  
Regarding global value chains, the increasing prominen ce of intra-industry trade was an old issue and 
a trend in international trade that had become fa shionable in the WTO.  She recalled that the few 
developing countries that had managed to participat e in these global value chains formed the lowest 
links and did not therefore derive the greatest benefi ts.  The Secretariat could continue studying this 
issue through the initiative it had launc hed in 2011, but Cuba was not in  a position to engage in talks 
on this subject in the various WTO bodies until the Doha mandate had been fulfilled, and would find 
such talks unacceptable.  Moreover, what had been agreed by the G20 was not binding on the work of 
the WTO.  First, consensus had to be reached among Members, and as yet there was no consensus on 
this issue. 
96. The representative of Peru said that like othe rs, his delegation woul d have hoped for other 
issues to be included in the Director-General's proce ss.  Peru favoured an open, fair and predictable 
multilateral trading system and the conclusion of th e Doha Round – with the development mandate as 
its cornerstone – which would strengthen these principles.  It was therefore essential to move forward 
on various fronts.  Peru recognized the importanc e of Trade Facilitation, Dispute Settlement, the 
monitoring mechanism and other matters relating to  S&D treatment, especially for LDCs.  However, 
the negotiations should be reinvigorated in othe r areas as well.  Peru thus endorsed Australia's 
statement for the Cairns Group, which emphasized the scant progress achieved in the negotiations on 
Agriculture and proposed lines of action.  It was necessary to include the i ssue of agricultural export 
restrictions, given that the various measures app lied had affected Peru's region because of their 
adverse impact on international prices and export co mpetition.  Peru also supported the call by New 
Zealand for attention to the issue of fisheries s ubsidies, which had been echoed by the Rio+20 summit 
on sustainable development.  Moreover, Members s hould continue working with a view to lifting or 
reducing non-tariff barriers in other important sector s for developing countries, such as those relating 
to trade in information technology  products and services because of  their technological spillover and 
high potential for attracting investment.  Peruvian co mpanies were seeking to integrate in global value 
chains through greater competitiveness, and tec hnology, services and investment were critical to 
achieving this goal.  The global economy would not cease to function if Members did nothing, but if 
they took action, it could foster more efficient, equitable and integrated growth, and thus greater 
development and social inclusiveness for all.  
97. The General Council took note of the Directo r-General's report and of the statements. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 30  
 
  3. Work Programme on Small Economies – Report by the Chairman of the Dedicated 
Session of the Committee on Trade and Development 
98. The Chairperson said that in line with the fra mework and procedures agreed by the General 
Council in 2002, the Work Programme on Small Economies was a standing item on the General 
Council's agenda, and the Committee on Trade and De velopment reported regularly to the Council on 
the progress of work in its Dedicated Sessions on th is subject.  She invited Mr Maruping (Lesotho), 
Chairman of the Dedicated Session of the CTD, to  report on the progress of work in this area. 
99. Mr Maruping (Lesotho), Chairman of the Dedi cated Session of the CTD, said that since his 
last report on the Work Programme on Small Econom ies in May, the CTD's Dedicated Session had 
met on 6 July 2012.  Members had discussed future  work related to the December 2011 Ministerial 
Decision on the Work Programme on Small Economies and the effects of non-tariff measures (NTMs) 
on small economies, one area specifically identified by Ministers for further work in the Dedicated 
Session.  In this regard, Members had discussed a Secretariat paper on the effects of NTMs on the 
exports of small economies (WT/COMTD/SE/26).  They had also heard presentations by the International Trade Centre and UNCTAD, which had focused on research collected through surveys 
with exporters on what they saw as the most burdens ome NTMs and on the implications and effects of 
NTMs on small economies.  The Dedicated Session would continue its work in 2012, not only on 
NTMs, but also on other areas identified in the 2002 Work Programme on Small Economies.  Future 
subjects for discussion at upcoming meetings of the Dedicated Session would include the impact of WTO rules on small economies, the institutional and administrative constraints they faced and the 
effects on them of trade liberalization.  
100. The representative of Barbados, on behalf of  the SVEs, thanked the Chair of the CTD 
Dedicated Session for his report, which succinctly ca ptured the results of the process carried out in 
that body.  Since the May meeting of the Gene ral Council, the CTD Dedicated Session had made 
some progress towards giving effect to the instru ctions on small economies agreed by Ministers at 
MC8 and contained in WT/L/844.  As noted by the Chairman, a useful meeting had been held on 
6 July, which had begun a positive dialogue on the impor tant area of NTMs.  The SVEs wished to 
thank the Secretariat for its useful work, including  the Background Note, which could form a basis for 
further discussions, and for organizing the speakers from UNCTAD and ITC, who had made informative presentations.   NTMs were increas ingly of concern to many delegations, with a 
particularly deleterious impact being on the expor ts of SVEs, which often had high indices of trade 
openness.  Private standards and specific food regul ations and requirements were examples of the 
types of measures that could harm the often limit ed export base of small countries – exports which 
were particularly critical as these countries sought to  emerge from the economic and financial crisis.  
The importance of this area had been further evid ent as NTMs had been the focus of the World Trade 
Report 2012.  The SVEs commended the authors of th is Report, which could provide some useful 
inputs in this area.  They would continue assessing how to contribute to this most useful work, in 
consultation with those with an interest in this area.   The SVEs hoped to be able to come back to the 
membership early after the summer break with some concrete suggestions on th e way forward in this 
and other areas of the MC8 mandate on SVEs. 
101. The representative Lesotho, on behalf of the African Group, said the Group concurred with 
the thrust of the statement by Barbados for the SVEs .  It wished to bring to the attention of Members 
that most, if not all, African countries were equally  as disadvantaged as SVEs and that many of them 
were SVEs themselves when it came to the negative impact of NTMs on trade.  Evidently, NTMs had 
become the dominant barrier to a vibrant and smoot h multilateral trading system.  NTMs were on the 
ascendancy as the main protectionist tools.  On this  basis, the African Group encouraged Members to 
collectively address challenges arising from NTMs in  relevant WTO bodies, in accordance with their 
mandate.  The Group further encouraged Members to  consider establishing a framework that could 
assist in building developing countries' capacity to cope with legitimate NTMs requirements and  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 31 
 
 
  related standards.  The Group appreciated the active role the CTD was playing in this regard and the 
World Trade Report on NTMs, which should serve as a wakeup call that the increasing incidence of 
NTMs had great potential to reverse trade liberali zation gains achieved through  Members' unilateral, 
regional and multilateral efforts. 
102. The representative of Cuba thanked the Chair of the CTD Dedicated Session for his report 
and Barbados for its statement for the SVEs.  On  6 July, the CTD Dedicated Session had had a very 
constructive debate.  This had been a positive first st ep for Members to continue working in this area, 
with a view to measuring the impact of NTMs and other barriers that at present were major obstacles to trade.  Cuba was ready to provide the Secretar iat with information regarding concrete examples of 
the impact of this kind of measure on the trade a nd development of small economies, and specifically 
on Cuba itself. 
103. The General Council took note of the report of the Chairman of the Dedicated Session of the 
Committee on Trade and Development and of the statements. 
4. Accession of Least-Developed Countries 
(a) Recommendations of the Sub-Committee on LDCs  to further strengthen, streamline and 
operationalize the 2002 LDC Accessi on Guidelines (WT/COMTD/LDC/21) 
104. The Chairperson recalled that at MC8 in D ecember 2011, Ministers had adopted a Decision 
on the Accession of LDCs (WT/L/846), which di rected the Sub-Committee on LDCs to develop 
recommendations to further strengthen, stre amline and operationalize the 2002 Guidelines on 
Accession of LDCs (WT/L/508).  Ministers had also instructed the Sub-Committee to complete this 
work and make recommendations to the General Counc il not later than July 2012.  Accordingly, the 
Sub-Committee had carried out intensive work in the fi rst half of 2012.  At its meeting on 29 June, it 
had agreed to submit a set of recommendations, in li ne with the Ministers' mandate, to the General 
Council for adoption in the form of a draft decision, which was now before Members.   The Sub-Committee had also agreed that  the proposed decision would become an addendum to the 2002 
General Council Decision on LDC Accession.  She invited Mr Smidt (Denmark), Chairman of the 
Sub-Committee on LDCs, to report on that body's consideration of this matter. 
105. Mr Smidt (Denmark), Chairman of the S ub-Committee on LDCs, said that based on the 
mandate from Ministers, the Sub-Committee had begun work in January 2012, starting with a formal 
meeting and then moving on to intensive informal consultations.  As many  as 23 consultations had 
been held under the aegis of the Sub-Committee.  These consultations had been well attended, and the 
membership had been kept informed of developments  by periodic reports at formal meetings of the 
Sub-Committee.  The intense work over the past six months had permitted him to present a text to the 
Sub-Committee at the end of June.  On 29 June , the Sub-Committee had agreed to submit the 
recommendations to the General Council for adop tion.  He believed that Members would have 
reached an important milestone for LDCs and for the institution as a whole by approving the 
recommendations to further facilitate the accession of  LDCs to the WTO.  With the adoption of the 
improved guidelines, benchmarks w ould be set for market-access negotiations, both for goods and 
services.  The guidelines would also foster enhan ced transparency in the accession process.  Other 
important elements included the possibility to accord  additional transition periods to comply with 
WTO rules, and technical-assistance framework plans for better coordination and effective delivery of 
technical assistance at all stages of the accession pr ocess, making optimal use of existing facilities.  
He wished to thank Members for their active and constructive involvement in the negotiations.  A 
number of ambassadors had played a very positiv e role, without which the Sub-Committee would not 
have been able to come to this result.  He particul arly wished to thank to th e LDCs in this process for 
the commendable co-operation and flexibility they had shown.  He also wished to thank the WT/GC/M/137 
Page 32  
 
  Secretariat for its very professional support.  On behalf of the Sub-Committee on LDCs, he submitted 
the recommendations in WT/COMTD/LDC/21 for adoption by the General Council. 
106. The Chairperson drew attention to the dr aft decision in WT/COMTD/LDC/21. Before 
proposing it for adoption, she underlined that it was w ithout prejudice to the rights and obligations of 
existing LDC Members, in line with the Decision in  favour of LDCs contained in Annex F of the 
Hong Kong Declaration.  Based on this understandi ng, she proposed that the General Council adopt 
the draft decision in WT/COMTD/LDC/21. 
107. The General Council so agreed.8 
108. The Chairperson expressed appreciation for the intense work carried out by the LDC Sub-
Committee, and thanked Members for their constructiv e engagement and flexibility over the past few 
months, and the Chair of that body for his str ong commitment and tireless efforts in bringing this 
work to a successful conclusion at the present meeting.    
109. All delegations who s poke reiterated the Chairperson's sentiments. 
110. The representative of Haiti, on behalf of the LDC Group, said that under the MC8 mandate, 
the Sub-Committee, from January 2012 on, had under taken the task to develop recommendations to 
further strengthen, streamline and operationalize the 2002 LDC Accession Guidelines.  After six 
months of arduous work, the Sub-Committee had been  able to deliver.  The membership had been 
consulted, the interested parti es had negotiated, and agreement ha d been reached.  The final product 
was the result of a compromise.  The LDC Gr oup shared the understanding that these Guidelines 
would not have any implications on the rights, ob ligations and flexibilities of the LDCs under the 
DDA.  The Group insisted that the same principle should hold in any future negotiations concerning 
the LDCs.   These recommendations, despite falling s hort of the original expectations for acceding 
LDCs, would make the overall accession process some what easier for them, and going forward, there 
was still room for improving upon the terms of accession for LDCs.  For the moment, however, 
Members could compliment themselves for having been  able to deliver a resu lt within the deadline 
established.  The LDC Group wished to convey its most sincere appreciation for the work done, 
particularly by the Development and Services Divi sions of the Secretariat, and for the support and 
counsel received from UNCTAD, IDEAS Centre, ICTSD, ACWL, South Cent re and Third World 
Network.  The Group was particularly indebted to all delegations who had re mained engaged with the 
negotiations in a constructive spir it and had often helped move things  forward by suggesting mutually 
acceptable compromise positions.  They hoped that the same spirit of engagement and cooperation 
would be maintained in reaching early agreements on issues of key interest to LDCs in the days to 
come. 
111. The representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on behalf of the Arab Group, welcomed 
the recommendations of the Sub-Committee on LDCs  and commended Members'  determination to 
complete this job on time.  He recalled that th e MC8 Decision addressed several areas of concern to 
acceding LDCs under the four pillars of the 2002 Guid elines.  By extension, the recommendations 
covered several key elements in favour of LDC acce ssion, including the establishment of benchmarks 
for goods and services market-access negotiations that should facilitate the rather lengthy and 
complex bilateral negotiations for the largest group of  countries still outside the organization.  On the 
other hand, while the Arab Group welcomed the adop tion of the Decision without prejudice to current 
and future negotiations between Members and acceding developing countries, it called upon the 
membership not to overlook the complexity of the WTO accession process for developing countries, 
several of which belonged to the Arab Group.  The Group looked forward to introducing similar 
measures in favour of developing countries' ac cession, in the very near future.     
                                                      
8 The Decision was subsequently circ ulated in document WT/L/508/Add.1.  WT/GC/M/137 
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  112. The representative of Colombia said his delegation had insisted for more than two years on 
progress being made on this matter, prompted by a systemic interest in strengthening the accession 
process by making it more transparent and efficien t.  This Decision was a major step towards 
improving the accession process for LDCs and thus contributing to a stronger WTO and multilateral 
trading system, by seeking to achieve the objective of universal membership.  Colombia hoped this 
Decision would facilitate and accelerate the entry of  acceding LDCs.  Accession to the WTO would 
present these countries with a clear opportunity to achie ve greater integration into world trade and to 
advance in the implementation of domestic refo rms aimed at increased growth, development and 
well-being for their populations.  Colombia encourag ed Members to continue working on this matter 
and to apply the new tool that had been  approved for the benefit of acceding LDCs. 
113. The representative of Nepal associated his de legation with the statement by Haiti for the 
LDCs.  Nepal welcomed the adoption of the LDC accession guidelines as a positive step forward in 
facilitating the accession of LDCs.  However, as an  LDC, Nepal had hoped for a better solution, 
reflective of LDCs' structural constraints and multiple vulnerabilities as well as their level of 
development and needs.  These harsh realities, comb ined with the commitment repeatedly expressed 
by the international community to meaningfully integrate LDCs into the global economy, had amply 
justified their demand for fair treatment in the accession process.  Only time would tell how sincerely the letter and the spirit of the guidelines woul d be implemented and how expeditiously LDCs' 
accession to the WTO would materialize.  While th is was a welcome development, these Guidelines 
alone would not serve the fundamental interest of the LDCs.  This systemic issue should in no way 
overshadow other LDC-related issues under the DDA.   While Nepal was not against achieving a 
balanced outcome true to the spirit of the DDA, s eeking an early harvest that set aside LDC issues 
would be morally, politically and economically unjustif iable.  It was a matter of serious concern for 
Nepal that despite high-level commitments expr essed at MC8 and on many other occasions, no 
serious effort had been made to address core LD C-related issues under the DDA in the past seven 
months.  Nepal was concerned that the delay in LDC-related decisions would not only undermine the 
commitments made in their favour, but also further contribute to their marginalization in the global 
economy.  This would have a severe impact on their efforts to eradicate poverty and hunger and to achieve sustainable development.  Therefore,  Nepal strongly urged an early decision and 
implementation of all LDC-relate d decisions and their full operationalization.  Defining a clear 
roadmap and concrete work programme to address LDC issues should form an integral part of efforts 
to move things forward. 
114. The representative of Mauritius, on behalf of the ACP Group, welcomed the 
recommendations and associated the Group with th e statement by Haiti for the LDCs.  The ACP 
Group thanked the LDC Group, in particular Haiti a nd Bangladesh, for their continuous engagement 
and technical inputs.  These guidelines marked progress on the 2002 Guidelines and would no doubt 
help lessen the burden of acceding LDCs.  While th ey did not eliminate all problems and stumbling 
blocks, they would certainly help resolve ma ny issues that hindered the accession process. 
115. The representative of Cambodia, on behalf of ASEAN, said the Guidelines would provide 
acceding LDCs with greater clarity and flexibility in  their accession negotiations, and would facilitate 
their accession, as mandated by Ministers at MC8. 
116. Speaking on behalf of Cambodia, he associated  his delegation with the statement by Haiti for 
the LDCs. 
117. The representative of Lesotho, on behalf of the African Group, said the Group commended 
the Secretariat for the quality of inputs provi ded during the process of negotiations on these 
recommendations, which had provided a good basis on which to build.  The Group took note of the 
assurances given by the General Council Chair that  the addendum to the 2002 Accession Guidelines 
would be limited to acceding LDCs.  It consider ed that this addendum should not prejudice the WT/GC/M/137 
Page 34  
 
  existing rights, obligations and flexibilities of Memb ers as set out in the multilateral trade agreements, 
Ministerial Decisions and other WTO legal instruments,  and that it would be without prejudice to the 
current or future negotiations in the WTO or  between Members and acceding non-LDC countries. 
118. The representative of Uganda said that more cons ultations were needed to improve upon these 
recommendations, and his delegation wished to highli ght some areas of concern.  The MC8 mandate 
had required the strengthening of the 2002 LDC Ac cession Guidelines.  These Guidelines had used 
original LDC Members' commitments as a refere nce point.  However, the new recommendations for 
acceding LDCs were much more onerous.  Uganda was concerned about the possible impact on the 
ability of acceding LDCs to industrialise and develop th eir agricultural sectors, and more study of this 
issue was required.  Other areas that  needed further clarification were , for example, transition periods 
in relation to market-access commitments.  There we re also questions regarding the potential impact 
on existing Members, for example those that were  in customs unions with acceding LDCs, and the 
possible implications on negotiations in the future.   
119. The 2002 Accession Guidelines provided that  when Members sought concessions and 
commitments, they had to take into account "the  levels of concessions and commitments undertaken 
by existing WTO LDC Members."  If this was take n to mean the average tariff levels of existing 
WTO LDC Members, then the average bound agricultural tariff would be 76.1 per cent, binding coverage for NAMA would be 51.6 per cent and the bound NAMA tariff would be 42.9 per cent.  
However, the new benchmarks, i.e. the average bound agricultural tariff of 50 per cent, the binding 
coverage for NAMA of 95 per cent, and the av erage bound tariff for NAMA of 35 per cent, were 
much more onerous for acceding LDCs.  The GA TT 1947 recognized the need to treat poor countries 
differently and more favourably.  This principle was also emphasized in Paragraph 2 of the Doha 
Declaration.  However, acceding LDCs had got an unfavourable package which might set a bad 
precedent, whereby in future they would all be  asked to heed to th ese new Guidelines.   
120. Uganda did not wish to challenge the adoptio n of the recommendations.  However, it noted 
that in WTO practice, many Committee decisions , such as those of the TBT and SPS Committees, 
were not necessarily adopted by the General C ouncil.  However, these Decisions were being 
implemented by Members.  Examples were the Equivalency Decision of the SPS Committee and the TBT Committee Decision on Principles for Developmen t of International Standards.  Even the LDC 
Sub-Committee's Work Programme on LDCs (WT/CO MTD/LDC/11) did not appear to have been 
adopted by the General Council.  Nevertheless, it ha d been implemented by Members.  The Rules of 
Procedure of the General Council, the CTD and the Sub-Committee on LDCs did not appear to 
require adoption of their decisions by the General C ouncil in order for them to come into force.  
Uganda had no objection to the Gene ral Council’s action, but hoped that the adoption of this Decision 
did not prejudice the possibility of improving on these Guidelines, which were not fair to the acceding 
LDCs. 
121. The representative of India said his delegation had been associated with the discussions on 
developing benchmarks for accession of LDCs.  Indi a had taken note of the statements by Haiti for 
the LDC Group, Lesotho for African Group, Nepal and Uganda.  The MC8 Decision to achieve an 
outcome on LDC accession benchmarks had b een aimed at making the 2002 Guidelines less 
burdensome for acceding LDCs.  Only time would tell whether the Guidelines, with the present 
Addendum, would prove to be less burdensome.  India stood by the Decision just taken, but wished to 
make it clear that should the Addendum be consid ered ineffective in reduc ing the onerous burden on 
acceding LDCs, Members would need to review it.  Ultimately, it was a General Council Decision, 
and if it failed to achieve the desired obj ective, Members should revisit this issue.  WT/GC/M/137 
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  122. The representative of Switzerland said his delega tion fully agreed with the Sub-Committee 
Chair's statement.  Switzerland was very pleased that a consensus had been able to be reached on this 
important matter and welcomed that Members, with the help of the Sub-Committee Chair's 
leadership, had been able to conclude these negotiations  in such a short time.  This showed that with a 
pinch of goodwill and constructive engagement, the membership could deliver results even within 
limited timeframes. 
123. The representative of the European Union said th at the Ministers' 2011 mandate to review the 
2002 Guidelines had sent a clear message as to the importance they attached to the integration of 
LDCs into the multilateral trading system, taking acc ount of their specific needs and constraints.  He 
recalled that this issue had been a priority for the EU for a long time, and the EU was among those 
who had tabled proposals in this regard back in 1 999.  Still, it could be said that the task since MC8 
had amounted to a challenge.  In a very short time frame, Members had had to ensure that the best 
conditions were in place for the LDCs to become  members of the WTO and for them to make the 
most of their accession path while maintaining a so lid and reliable framework.  A robust compromise 
had been reached, which the EU supported.  The D ecision was an important doc ument in its own right 
and an encouragement to acceding LDCs.  It was al so evidence of Members' ability to achieve results 
when they joined efforts.  The EU and others  had shown a great degree of flexibility and openness 
throughout these negotiations.  On the goods side, LDCs  would be able to have a number of tariff 
lines unbound while enjoying the benefits of  transitional periods, should they undertake 
comprehensive binding coverage.  On the servi ces side, Members had gone beyond the MC8 mandate, 
as they had not only explored, but also found comm on ground on, benchmarks.  Also important were 
improvements in the areas of transparency in  accession negotiations, S&D treatment, transitional 
arrangements and technical assistance, all of which would help acceding LDCs and improve the 
framework for their accession negotiations.  Over all, this was a good outcome that improved the 
current guidelines in line with the MC8 mandate, and a very good framework for LDC accessions.  The work done over the past few months and the f act that it had come to fruition after Members' 
shared efforts was encouraging.  This was a clear message that the multilateral trading system could 
deliver for LDCs, but also that priorities supported by political will and engagement could lead to 
tangible results.  The EU looked forward to seeing the same spirit in other negotiating areas. 
124. The representative of the United States welcom ed the adoption of the Decision to further 
operationalize the 2002 Guidelines.  Members could take  pride in the fact that they had achieved this 
result while meeting the deadline set by Ministers at  MC8, and that this feat had been accomplished 
through an open and inclusive process.  These ne gotiations had been noteworthy for the level of 
engagement and the spirit of give -and-take shown by participants, and it was hoped that this success 
would set an example and inspire Members to make further achievements in other areas.  The Decision offered real increased flexibility for LD C accession applicants and clearer guidelines for 
negotiating Members on how these negotiations should be  approached.  Particularly significant were 
the benchmarks for tariff-binding levels and rates, th e provisions related to increased transparency and 
the application of technical assistance.  The accession process was important for LDCs as a framework for the adoption of trade regime provi sions that would enhance the business climate for 
domestic and foreign investors, provide consumer s with a wider choice of goods and services, and 
offer a forum for negotiation and consultation to reduce LDCs' economic isolation.  These Guidelines 
would facilitate LDC accessions.  The US had al ways approached LDC accessions as a development 
tool, and the Guidelines supported these objectives.   
125. The representative of Ecuador said that despite  the approval of the recommendations, Ecuador 
shared the concerns put forward by Bolivia, Cuba , Uganda and Nepal, particularly regarding the 
burdensome requirements being put on LDCs with regard to tariff binding, services commitments and 
other trade issues.  Ecuador called on Members who ha d been party to these negotiations to take into 
account existing asymmetries and the particular econom ic and social needs of LDCs, which could be 
better reflected in future recommendations and in the accession negotiations themselves. WT/GC/M/137 
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  126. The representative of the Plurinational State of Bolivia said that his delegation had already 
expressed its concerns and doubts with regard to the adoption of these recommendations.  The 
benchmarks set out in the text seemed to be far more burdensome for acceding LDCs than the 
previous ones.  Therefore, Bolivia associated itself with the concerns expressed by India, Uganda and 
Ecuador, and welcomed a possible review of the text. 
127. The representative of Ethiopia, speaking as an ob server, said the LDCs deserved special status 
due to the structural weaknesses of their economies manifested in their low levels of development, 
and in the significant number of their populations  living below the poverty line.  Most of their 
populations depended on s ubsistence farming and enjoyed only limited amounts of manufacturing and 
value addition in their external trade.  They had very low levels of human-resource development, and 
rudimentary institutional and regulatory capacities to en able them to benefit from modern trading, and 
further lagged behind in new frontiers of commerce, in particular Services.  These and other difficult 
circumstances meant that they were treated differently  within the WTO.  This special status had been 
meant to allow them enough space to enhance th eir productive capacities.  These challenges were 
further exacerbated for acceding LDCs lacking knowledge of the WTO system.  Thus, it had been 
logical for Members to introduce the 2002 Guidelines to  facilitate the LDC accessi on.  The first set of 
guidelines had been so general that Ministers at MC8 had decided to strengthen, streamline and 
operationalize them.  The LDC Group' s proposal referred to in that Decision had been meant to 
encourage the WTO to adopt more specific and impl ementable parameters that could enable acceding 
LDCs to build their productive capacities and comp etitiveness, expedite their integration into the 
global economy, and ultimately b ecome active trading partners. 
128. Ethiopia hoped that the Decision just taken, as a supplement to the 2002 Guidelines, would be 
a step in the right direction.  The improvements co uld usefully be applied in the accession processes 
in line with the development needs and capacities of  acceding LDCs.  It was hoped that the principle 
of S&D treatment would inform Members in seeking reasonable commitments from acceding LDCs.  The agreed benchmarks for goods and important  indications in services would provide some 
predictability regarding the standa rds to be applied in the accession process.  It was only appropriate 
for the WTO, as an organization synonymous with a rules-based global trading system, to guide the 
entry of LDCs based on clearly agreed rules with  enhanced transparency and accompanied by the 
necessary technical and capacity-build ing support.  The central issue was fair treatment in terms of 
equitable and reasonable demands and terms of entry into the WTO.  The benchmarks for agricultural 
and industrial goods and the parameters for servi ces should be considered as a starting point for 
approximating them with the average of commitmen ts undertaken by LDC Members, as underlined in 
the MC8 Decision.  Ethiopia hoped that the Addendum to the 2002 Guidelines would lessen the hardship and hasten the accession process of all LDCs. 
129. The Decision could also help to change the pr otracted and resource-consuming nature of the 
accession process into a more considerate process fo r acceding LDCs, commensurate with their levels 
of development and their priorities.  Ethiopia hoped that the Decision would inform and guide 
Members regarding the accession process, and that all would abide by them and thus lend their 
support to LDCs' efforts to meet the Millennium  Development Goals – to eradicate poverty and 
achieve rapid, broad-based and sustainable development.  The WTO accession process, if handled with the necessary care, had the capacity to be supp ortive of LDCs' development endeavours in line 
with their development, financial and trade n eeds.  Ethiopia also hoped that Members would 
continuously review these guidelines and oversee their implementation.  It was happy to learn of the 
progress made in the accession processes of Lao PDR and Yemen.  As an acceding LDC, Ethiopia's focus and priority remained moving the work in its accession Working Party forward with the active 
engagement of Members, and implementing the di fferent measures required for membership.  Under 
the able leadership of the Workin g Party Chair, and with the support  of the Director-General and the 
Secretariat, Ethiopia was making important progress.  The country was working hard to submit the 
necessary documentation for the upcoming fourth session of the Working Party.  In that process, the  WT/GC/M/137 
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  Decision just adopted could further facilitate Et hiopia's accession to th e WTO with terms that 
provided the necessary flexibility for policy implemen tation and longer adjustment periods.  Ethiopia 
was actively engaged with the Secretariat, the EI F and bilateral partners for further technical 
assistance to build its capacity to trade and for th e implementation of its obligations under the WTO 
Agreements. 
130. The General Council took note of the statements. 
(b) Accession of Lao PDR and Yemen – Reports by the Facilitators 
131. The Chairperson said that as she had mentioned at the start of the meeting, she understood 
that there had been new developments with rega rd to the accession processes of Lao PDR and Yemen, 
and invited Mr Yi (China), Chairman of the Work ing Party on the Accession of Laos, and Mr Smidt 
(Denmark), Chairman of the Sub-Committee on LDCs, to speak. 
132. Mr Yi (China), Chairman of the Working Party on the Accession of Lao PDR, said he was 
pleased to report that the outstanding bilateral market access negotiations on goods between Ukraine 
and Lao PDR had been concluded on the margins of  the 2012 Beijing Roundtable.  He could confirm 
that this accession was on track for completion in  2012, after the summer break.  At the Working 
Party meeting on 12 July, he had mandated the Secr etariat to prepare the draft accession package.  
The final meeting of the Working Party to adopt this package had been scheduled for 14 September 
2012, subject to finalization of the few remaining is sues.  He wished to reconfirm the long-standing 
WTO practice that decisions at the Working Party level were agreed ad referendum  and that final 
formal decisions were taken by the General Council or the Ministerial Conference.  Further to his 
consultations with Members, Lao PDR and the Secr etariat, he was also pleased to report that the 
initial deadline for the circulation of the draft acces sion package had been brought forward from mid-
August to the end of the following week.  This woul d provide Members with more time for review.  
As one of the facilitators, he was glad that, w ith joint efforts, Yemen and Ukraine had reached 
consensus on concluding their bilateral market  access negotiations.  This would be another 
achievement for the accession of LDCs, in addition to the adoption of recommendations for the 2002 
Guidelines and Lao PDR's envisaged accession in 2 012.  He wished to commend Ukraine, Lao PDR 
and Yemen for the flexibility and compromise that  had made these agreements possible.  He also 
wished to thank the members of the Working Part y on the Accession of Lao PDR for their continued 
support and the Secretariat for its technical and policy support. 
133. Speaking on behalf of China, he wished to place on record, on behalf of his Government and 
himself, the honour of the opportunity to serve as a facilitator in WTO accessions and thanked the 
Members and his co-facilitators fo r their support and cooperation. 
134. Mr Smidt (Denmark), Chairman of the Sub-Committee on LDCs, underlined that his 
statement should be considered an integral part of  the agreement reached by the parties involved on 
24 July.  On behalf of his co-facilitators, the Ch airs of the Working Parties on the Accessions of 
Yemen and Lao PDR, he was pleased to report  that the outstanding bilateral market access 
negotiations on goods between Ukrain e and Yemen had been concluded.   The final bilateral market 
access agreement to be signed by Ukraine and Yeme n would be subject to a technical verification 
exercise to be chaired by the Director of the Accessions Division and overseen by the three 
facilitators.  To this end, he wished to refer the General Council to the Joint Communication initialled 
by Ukraine, Yemen and the facilitators, circulated  on 24 July 2012, as a document of the Working 
Party on the Accession of Yemen (WT/ACC/YEM/40).  In addition to this Joint Communication, he 
also wished to clarify, on behalf of the co-facilita tors, that the technical verification exercise would be 
undertaken on the basis of the 19 June revised offer by Yemen and its updated compromise proposals of 23 July 2012.  He also wished to clarify that any questions that arose in the verification exercise 
should be addressed through the application of th e Beijing "Understanding" regarding benchmarks WT/GC/M/137 
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  agreed by Ukraine and Yemen, in the presence of the facilitators and the Director of the Accessions 
Division representing the Secretariat.  It had also b een agreed that the signature of the verified and 
initialled bilateral market access agreement on goods  between Ukraine and Ye men should take place 
on the margins of the next and final Working Party Meeting, after the summer break, at the latest in 
October.  The facilitators thanked Members for their patience, and Ukraine and Yemen for their 
flexibility and the compromise that had made this  agreement possible.  They also thanked the 
Secretariat for its technical and policy support thro ughout the process.  As agreed, this statement 
would be issued as an Addendum to document WT/ACC/YEM/40. 
135. The Chairperson invited the General Council to  take note of these two statements, and in 
doing so, noted that, in accordance with the lo ng-standing practice of accession Working Parties, 
agreements at the level of the Working Party were ad referendum  until formal decisions were taken 
by the General Council or the Ministerial Conference. 
136. The General Council so agreed. 
137. The representative of Ukraine said that during the past few days Ukraine, Yemen, the 
facilitators and the Secretariat had spent many hours in discussions to pave the way to what had been 
achieved.  They had moved considerably forward.  Consultations in Beijing in May, where Ukraine 
had made another flexible proposal to Yemen,  Yemen's constructive response to it and recent 
additional meetings had allowed th em to conclude the negotiations ad referendum .  This had been 
possible due to cooperation of the Yemeni team le d by H.E. Minister Talib, whose leadership and 
willingness to finalize the deal had been greatly a ppreciated.  She also expressed appreciation for the 
work of the facilitators, who at times had worked  as communication specialists, translating to the 
parties their valuable experience of the WTO.   She also thanked the Accessions Division for 
providing advice on technical aspects of accession pa perwork and for their commitment to staying 
engaged throughout the process.  There was still some work to do in terms of verification, procedural 
and technical steps.  The Parties had agreed upon a Memorandum laying out very practical steps to be taken in the coming weeks. 
138. The representative of Haiti, on behalf of the LDC Group, said that since the Group's 
communication to the Chair of the General Counc il on 22 June 2012 requesting the inclusion of an 
item concerning the accession of Lao PDR and Yemen on the agenda of the present meeting, two very favourable events had occurred – at the meeting on 12 July 2012 of the Working Party on the Accession of Lao PDR, it had been officially anno unced that the endgame had been reached, and the 
consolidation by the Secretariat of the paperwor k was now under way, so that the protocol of 
accession could be submitted for approval at the October 2012 General C ouncil.  All bilateral 
negotiations had been concluded with all Member s, including Ukraine, in May 2012.  On the 
multilateral front, Lao PDR had put all its efforts in to passing the additional necessary legislation to 
ensure that it was in line with WTO requirement s.  Notably, Customs Valuation, SPS and TBT, 
import and export licensing systems and transparency of its legislation were well advanced, and Lao 
PDR was working hard to prepare and adopt th e relevant TRIPS instructions.  The LDC Group 
reiterated its support for Lao PDR's accession process.  
139. The Group also welcomed the statement by the Chair of the Sub-Committee on the bilateral 
negotiations between Yemen and Ukraine and was pleased with the conclusion of the bilateral 
agreement.  The Group urged Ukraine and Yemen to sign Yemen's consolidated Goods Schedule 
formally before the final Working Party meeti ng on Yemen's Accession, which should be convened 
well before the end of October 2012.  The LDCs requested that the fac ilitators continue their excellent 
effort to supervise the full implementation of this  agreement.  Yemen's bilateral agreements had 
provided significant market access opportunities to Members, a commendable sign of Yemen's 
commitment to the multilateral trading system.  The LDC Group believed that Yemen's final 
accession package was completed and that the country  should be welcomed as a full-fledged ember  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 39 
 
 
  well before the end of 2012.  These two events were good news, and the Group congratulated the 
parties involved and hoped that the two Protocol s of Accession would be approved at the October 
General Council meeting.  The LDC Group congratula ted all involved in the favourable outcome of 
these two accession processes. 
140. The representative of Cambodia, on behalf of  ASEAN, congratulated its fellow ASEAN 
member, Lao PDR, and Yemen for successfully conc luding all bilateral negotiations with their 
negotiating partners, in particular most recently w ith Ukraine.  The signing of the bilateral market 
access agreements between Lao PDR and Ukrain e and between Yemen and Ukraine should be 
expedited in order to allow the Secretariat to  consolidate the goods and services schedules and 
circulate them to Members for verification.  This would pave the way for these two countries' 
membership before the end of 2012.  ASEAN than ked all the negotiating partners for the flexibility 
and cooperation extended to the two acceding LDCs, and took note of the progress the latter had made 
on their multilateral tracks.  Lao PDR's ninth and Yemen's tenth Working Party meetings had been 
held successfully on 12 and 23 July, respectively, to review the remaining technical work with a view 
to holding their final Working Party meetings after the summer break, in order to finalize and approve 
the Working Party reports.  ASEAN was pleased that the accessions of Lao PDR and Yemen were on 
track to be finalized before the end of 2012, in line with the priority set, and urged Members to 
cooperate closely with the Secretariat to pave th e way for their formal accession.  ASEAN thanked the 
facilitators for their progress reports and for th eir tireless efforts in facilitating and steering the 
accession negotiations of the two LDCs towards th eir successful conclusion.  This was another 
important achievement for the WTO. 
141. The representative of Lesotho, on behalf of the African Group, welcomed the Minister of 
Industry and Trade of Yemen, acknowledged the re ports of the facilitators and commended the LDC 
Group for providing document WT/GC/145.  The African Group fully supported the accession of both Yemen and Lao PDR to the WTO.  As LDCs, these c ountries should be treated  in accordance with the 
2002 Decision on LDC accession.  Lao PDR had signed  its last bilateral agreement and Yemen had 
also reached an agreement with Ukraine, although at the present stage, these were ad referendum .  
These developments were welcome, as they would facilitate the speedy rea lization of both Yemen's 
and Lao PDR's aspirations to become full-fle dged Members.  The African Group called on the 
Secretariat to facilitate the convening of the last Working Party meetings on the accession of these countries at the earliest opportunity.  Those meetings should facilitate the sealing of bilateral agreements between Yemen and Ukraine and guara ntee the end of Yemen's and Lao PDR's long and 
challenging accession processes before the end of 2 012.  It was hoped that Members would desist 
from demanding commitments from acceding least-d eveloped and developing countries that they 
could not possibly deliver.   
142. The representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on behalf of the Arab Group, welcomed 
the statement by the Chair of the Sub-Committe e on LDCs on the bilateral negotiations between 
Yemen and Ukraine, as well as the conclusion of  Yemen's outstanding bilateral agreement with 
Ukraine.  The Group congratulated both countries on reaching this agreement that would enable the 
Secretariat to finalize the consolidated Goods Sc hedule of Yemen very soon, and looked forward to 
seeing the agreement formally signed before the final Working Party meeting on Yemen's accession.  Therefore, it called on the three facilitators to c ontinue to oversee the full implementation of this 
agreement, in accordance with Yemen's final o ffer and the timeline agreed between Yemen and 
Ukraine.  Yemen had engaged cons tructively with all interested Members during its more than ten-
year accession process.  Its bilateral agreements ha d provided substantial hi gh-quality market access 
opportunities to Members, and its commitment to th e multilateral trading system was commendable.  
With this agreement in sight, the Arab Group cons idered Yemen's accession process in its final stage, 
and Yemen should become a full-fledged Member we ll before the end of 2012.  The Group thanked 
all who had made this possible, namely the three facilitators, the delegations of Ukraine and Yemen, 
and the Secretariat. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 40  
 
  143. The representative of Nepal said his delegation endorsed the statement by Haiti for the LDCs.  
Nepal congratulated Lao PDR, a fellow LDC, for successfully completing bilateral negotiations, and 
called for early completion of the remaining formal ities.  Likewise, it appreciated the understanding 
reached between Yemen, another fellow LDC, and Ukraine, which would move Yemen's accession package towards finalization.  It was hoped that  both Lao PDR and Yemen would soon be formally 
welcomed as new Members.  Nepal admired the co nstant and rigorous enga gement of both countries 
in their negotiation processes, despite significant constraints, as a manifestation of their firm commitment to the multilateral rules-based trading sy stem.  His delegation thanked the Chairs of the 
Working Parties and the facilitators for their important  role in this process, as well as the Secretariat 
for its support.  Nepal would continue to show solidarity  with all acceding LDCs.   
144. The representative of Pakistan said hi s delegation had witnessed convergence on 
strengthening, streamlining and ma king operational the 2002 Guidelines.  Members had worked hard 
to make the commitments binding, which would fa cilitate LDC accession to the WTO.  A directive 
given by Ministers at MC8 was about to be fu lfilled.  After the summer break, Members should 
continue to work hard to develop consensus on deve lopment-related issues by the end of the year.  
Pakistan welcomed the statement by China, and not ed with satisfaction that the process of accession 
for Lao PDR and Yemen was no more in the red territo ry.  His delegation hoped that all arrangements 
would be finalized before the next Working Party me eting.  It was now apparent that the WTO would 
be welcoming two more Members by the end of 2012.   
145. The representative of Yemen, speaking as an ob server, expressed his delegation's pleasure at 
the inclusion of two sub-items under agenda item 4,  which confirmed the high priority that Members 
placed on LDCs accession to WTO, including the two most advanced acceding LDCs – Lao PDR and 
Yemen.  He congratulated Members, and in par ticular acceding LDCs, on the timely decision by the 
General Council on implementing the MC8 Decision on LDCs accession to WTO.  He sincerely 
hoped that this landmark decisi on would truly facilitate and accelerate LDC accessions, as mandated 
by trade Ministers back in November 2001.  Within that spirit, he hoped that 2012 would be as good 
as the previous year, accession-wise, and foresaw this decision making that "mission possible" in 
2012 and beyond. His delegation welcomed the Gene ral Council decision on re-opening the Protocol 
for Acceptance by Vanuatu until 31 December 2012 and congratulated Vanuatu, as a fellow LDC, on 
this important step with a view to becoming a full -fledged WTO Member before the end of the year.  
His delegation equally congratulated the Russian  Federation on the successful conclusion of its 
ratification process to become the 156th WTO Member.  
146. As far as agenda item 4(b) was concerned, he  wished to confirm the news on the marathon-
like two day negotiations between Uk raine and Yemen that had successfully led to an agreement, as 
presented by Ambassador Smidt.  As many Member s would recall, Ukraine and Yemen had had very 
intensive bilateral talks, especially  since May this year.  The previous day, the two parties had finally 
reached an agreement that would be signed on the ma rgin of the next and, hopefully, final Working 
Party meeting, so as to formally announce the good news, at the latest by next October.  His 
delegation would like to sincerely thank the thr ee distinguished Facilitators, Ambassador Smidt, 
Ambassador Yi, and Mr Roben, for ably leading th e two day talks to a successful conclusion.  Their 
facilitation role would continue in  the coming weeks until a final form al agreement was signed, based 
on the statement Ambassador Smidt had just presented to the present meeting. That was how they had got by, with a little help from their friends.  Hi s delegation equally woul d like to thank Madam 
Zaitseva, Ukraine negotiator, for her dedication and spirit of cooperation that had made this 
agreement possible.  Along the previous lines, he wi shed also to extend his sincere gratitude to China 
for convening the "Round Table meeting on LDCs accession", in Beijing from 29 May to 1 June 
2012.  That particular meeting had not only ga thered acceding LDCs and some Members under one 
roof to share and learn from lessons during accession process to WTO, but more importantly to 
Yemen it had actually witnessed the real break-throug h in the Yemen-Ukraine bilateral negotiations.  
A "gentleman's understanding” had been reached betw een Mr Paintinsky and himself, which had been  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 41 
 
 
  witnessed by two Facilitators, the Ambassadors of China and Denmark, as well as the Accessions 
Division Director.  That understanding had later been  referred to as the "Beijing Understanding" in the 
Memorandum of Understanding, signed the previous da y and distributed to the present meeting.  In 
Arab culture there was a famous proverb that would translate in this case as "seek solutions as far as 
China". This case was a real application of that proverb.  
147. Last, but never least, he wished to thank the S ecretariat, represented by the Director-General 
and Accessions Division Director, for their continued support and assistance to see that this agreement 
reached the present interim phase.  He was confiden t that such assistance would continue during the 
technical verification exercise that would be done  on 2 and 3 August, as agreed, until the day the 
bilateral agreement was formally signed between the two friendly governments. 
148. The General Council took note of the statements. 
5. Work Programme on Electronic Commerce – Review of progress 
(a) Report by the Deputy Director-General 
and 
 
(b) Reports by Chairmen of subsidiary bodies of the General Council (S/C/38 and G/C/49) 
149. The Chairperson proposed, and Members agreed , to take up these two sub-items together.  
She recalled that at MC8, Ministers had adopted a Decision on the Work Programme on Electronic 
Commerce (WT/L/843), in which they decided to con tinue the reinvigoration of the Work Programme 
on Electronic Commerce, and inst ructed the General Council to emphasize and reinvigorate the 
development dimension in the Work Programme.  Mi nisters had also instructed the General Council 
to hold periodic reviews, starting in July 20 12, based on the reports submitted by the WTO bodies 
entrusted with the implementation of the Work Programme.  She invited Deputy Director-General 
Singh, who had been dealing with the Work Progr amme since 2005 on her behalf and that of her 
predecessors, to report on work in this area. 
150. Deputy Director-General Singh said that as th e Chairperson had indicated, Ministers had 
adopted in December 2011 a Decision that called for continuing the reinvigoration of the Work 
Programme on Electronic Commerce and instructed the General Council to hold periodic reviews of the progress, inter alia , at its meeting in July 2012.  Sin ce the beginning of the year, work on e-
commerce had continued in the Council for Trade in Services, Council for Trade in Goods and the 
Committee on Trade and Development.  The Counc il for Trade in Services had discussed the Work 
Programme on Electronic Commerce at its meetings  of 23 May and 29 June 2012.  Discussions had 
focused particularly on three proposals relating to e-commerce:  (i) by the EU and US on certain 
trade-related principles to enhance networks and de velop e-commerce (S/C/W/338); (ii) by the US on 
trade rules supporting innovative advances in comput er applications and platforms (S/C/W/339); and 
(iii) by Switzerland on e-commerce by small and medium enterprises (S/C/W/345).  The Council for Trade in Goods had met on 30 March and 22 June  2012 and had discussed several issues under the 
Work Programme, e.g. the moratorium and the importance of keeping the electronic delivery of 
digital products free of customs duties, the re lationship between e-commerce and development and 
the full participation of developing countries and LD Cs in e-commerce as a means to combat poverty.  
The discussion had also referred to the work of some other organizations. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 42  
 
  151. Regarding the CTD, he recalled that the 2011 Ministerial Decision on Electronic Commerce 
instructed the General Council to emphasise and rein vigorate the development dimension in the Work 
Programme, particularly through the CTD.  The CT D Chair had held informal consultations on the 
CTD's work on e-commerce.  At an informal mee ting of the CTD on 27 June , Ecuador and Cuba had 
emphasized the development aspect of e-commer ce and had introduced their proposal on a 
"Workshop on E-Commerce, Development and SMEs " (JOB/DEV/16).  The workshop would focus 
on access and facilitation of access to e-commerce by small and medium enterprises, including small producers and suppliers, and the re lationship between e-commerce and development.  The proponents 
had suggested that this workshop be held in the last  quarter of 2012, preferably back-to-back with the 
CTD's meeting.  The proposal had been circul ated in document WT/COMTD/W/189 and discussed at 
the formal meeting of the CTD on 16 July.  The discussion and consultations had shown a good 
possibility for moving ahead on the proposed worksh op, which the proponents sought to hold as soon 
as possible, preferably by the end of 2012. 
152. On 2 July, on behalf of the General Council Chai r, he had held an informal consultation open 
to all Members, with the specific purpose of considering the follow-up to Ministers' 2011 Decision on 
Electronic-Commerce.  Delegations had spoken on each of the proposals he had mentioned at that 
meeting.  Much of the discussion had been on th e proposal by Cuba and Ecuador for a two-day 
Workshop on e-commerce under the CTD, to which he had just referred.  In addition, some 
delegations who had spoken on their own proposals had raised the possibility of an overlap with 
certain issues raised in their proposals and in the proposal by Cuba and Ecuador.  Overall, Members 
had reiterated their support for the Work Progra mme and had expressed appreciation for efforts to 
reinvigorate work on e-commerce the CTD.  Further, some Members had stressed the need to have a 
holistic and coordinated approach on e-commerce, given that it was a cross-cutting issue covering 
goods, services and development.  In that respect, some  had highlighted the need to ensure that issues 
of interest to other Members, which did not fall w ithin the realm of the CTD,  such as the moratorium, 
services and customs duties, were not lost.  They had also encouraged continuation of the discussions 
of the proposals submitted in the Council for Trade in  Services.  This recent activity and the Chairs' 
reports showed a much more substantive engagement on this issue than had been seen for quite some 
time, and he was sure that such engagement would give positive impe tus to implementing the 
Ministerial Decision on Electronic Commerce. 
153. The Chairperson drew attention to the reports  of the Chairs of the Council for Trade in 
Services and of the Goods Council, contained in documents S/C/38 and G/C/49, respectively.  In 
addition, she understood that the Chairman of the CTD wished to make an oral report. 
154. Mr Maruping (Lesotho), Chairman of the Committee on Trade and Development, said that 
work on e-commerce in the CTD was taking pl ace in the context of the 2011 Decision on E-
Commerce.  Several informal open-ended CTD meeti ngs had been held to further discuss work on e-
commerce, and Cuba and Ecuador had submitte d a proposal for a "Workshop on E-Commerce, 
Development and SMEs".  This proposal had been  considered at an informal open-ended CTD 
meeting on 27 June and had then been further refi ned and circulated in WT/COMTD/W/189.  It had 
also been discussed at the formal CTD meeting on 16 July.  The proposal called for a workshop on e-
commerce to be held at the end of November 2012, back to back with the final CTD meeting of the year.  It would have a particular focus on issues related to "access and facilitation of access to e-commerce by small and medium-sized enterprises, in cluding small producers and suppliers".  While 
several Members had supported the proposal, some ha d said it would be more useful if the workshop 
was structured as a broader event – rather than simply  a CTD event – in order to take into account the 
e-commerce work taking place in other WTO bodies, su ch as the Council for Trade in Services.  He 
had encouraged Cuba and Ecuador to consult further with delegati ons, and now understood that after 
further consultations, a way forward had been found.  There now appeared to be clear widespread and 
strong support for the workshop proposed by Cuba and Ecuador to take place at the end of 2012, with 
the programme and other details to be defined as soon as possible.  Thus, the proposal had reached a  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 43 
 
 
  level of maturity.  The CTD was making steady prog ress on other fronts in the effort to comply with 
instructions from MC8 to make the CTD a fo cal point on development issues in the WTO. 
155. All delegations who spoke thanked DDG Singh as well as the Chairs of the relevant 
subsidiary bodies for their repor ts on progress on e-commerce.   
156. The representative of Cuba said that Cuba and Ecuador had carried out a process of 
consultations over the past few months on the proposal they had submitted on 10 July.  There was 
now a consensus to move this workshop forward, and it was hoped it could be held by the end of 
2012.  Cuba thanked Deputy Director-General Singh and the CTD Chair for their guidance, and all delegations that had participated with such great in terest in these consultations.  An effort had been 
made to accommodate all interests in the propo sal, and Cuba hoped the workshop would be held 
before the end of the year and would be a success. 
157. The representative of Ecuador said his country wi shed to underscore the extensive work it had 
been doing on the issue of electronic commerce.  Pu rsuant to the Ministerial mandate to intensively 
reinvigorate the Work Programme on Electronic Commerce, in July 2011 his delegation, along with Cuba and Nicaragua, had submitted a proposal on th e relationship between e-commerce, SMEs and 
poverty-reduction in developing countries (WT/GC /W/635).  This had served as a basis for the 
negotiations that had led to the Ministerial De cision of December 2011 (WT/L/843), which not only 
reiterated the need to intensively reinvigorat e the Work Programme through the CTD but also 
established the following objectives:  to examine acce ss to e-commerce by micro, small and medium 
sized enterprises, including small producers and s uppliers; to facilitate access to e-commerce by 
micro, small and medium sized enterprises, incl uding small producers and suppliers, of developing 
countries and particularly of least-developed c ountries; to address the relationship between e-
commerce and development in a focused and comprehensive manner;  and to examine and monitor development related issues such as technical assistance, capacity building, and access to telecommunication technologies. 
158. On the basis of the foregoing and after hol ding numerous comprehensive consultations 
between January and June 2012 with  both developed and developing- country Members, in June 2012 
Ecuador and Cuba had prepared and submitted to the CTD a working document (JOB/DEV/16) which 
had received broad support.  However, in order to accommodate the final comments received, Ecuador had nonetheless undertaken a new round of consultations with de veloped and developing-
country Members.  The outcome of this systematic  and informed process of technical exchanges had 
been the circulation of a revised document (WT/CO MTD/W/189) to the CTD, with the aim of holding 
a workshop on "E-Commerce, Development and SM Es" which would fulfil the objectives in the 
Ministerial mandate.  He recalled that the proposal submitted by Cuba and Ecuador was structured in 
such a way as to maintain suffici ent flexibility to accommodate the in terests and concerns of Members 
regarding the issue of electronic commerce and devel opment.  He stressed that Ecuador and Cuba had 
been working extremely hard for over a year and a half on the Work Programme and had a 
comprehensive and constructive insight into the issu e that had allowed them to consult all Members, 
while obviously giving development issues the importance they were given in the WTO Agreement itself.  Regarding the report by the CTD Chair, th is reflected the discussions held and recognized the 
broad convergences and substantia l support the proposal had el icited among both developed and 
developing-country Members.  As the CTD Chair had rightly said, the proposal had reached a sufficient level of maturity to warrant its adoptio n.  Ecuador thanked Members for their constructive 
participation and would pursue th e consultations so that by mid- August, all details concerning the 
event would be settled.  It also thanked Deputy Di rector General Singh for his dedicated work aimed 
at fully implementing the Work Programme on Electronic Commerce and the Ministerial mandates. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 44  
 
  159. The representative of Lesotho, on behalf of the African Group, said that the importance of 
electronic commerce to developing countries, especially African countries, could not be overstated.   
E-commerce permitted development in application of methods and techniques that were adaptable to 
the unique trade-related challenges and circumst ances of developing countries.  Taking into 
consideration the importance of e-commerce, the African Group encouraged Members to favourably 
consider the current process of reinvigoration of th e Work Programme, in particular, its development 
dimension.  In this vein, the African Group urged relevant WTO bodies to continue carrying out their 
work on e-commerce in accordance with their mandate.  In particular, the Group encouraged the 
Committee on Trade and Development to continue a dvancing its work on the development dimension 
of e-commerce in accordance with its mandate.  The report of the CTD Chair in this regard was most 
welcome.  The proposal by Cuba and Ecuador in the CTD, which enjoyed wide support and had 
virtually reached maturity, was a step in the right direction and should be strongly supported until fruition. 
160. The representative of Chinese Taipei said that  given the importance of e-commerce to the 
economies of developing countries, his delegation wa s pleased that discussions in the Services and 
Goods Councils and the CTD had been re-invigorated, fo llowing the instructions of Ministers at MC8.  
The proposals currently under discussion in the Serv ices Council deserved more detailed attention in 
order for the impact of modern technology on  the business environment to be properly addressed, 
particularly in relation to trade in services.   Moreover, Chinese Taipei had always favoured 
strengthening the CTD's role in e-commerce, in or der to help least-developed and developing-country 
Members participate more effectively in e-commerc e activities, thus narrowing the digital divide and 
promoting sustainable development.  In this regard , it welcomed the proposal for a "Workshop on E-
Commerce, Development and SMEs" submitted by Ecua dor and Cuba in the CTD, and would work 
closely with the proponents and others on fine-tuning the agenda for it. 
161. The representative of the European Union said the EU remained a strong supporter of a 
reinvigoration of the Work Programme on El ectronic Commerce and welcomed the various 
communications and initiatives taken in this context.  As previously indicated , the EU was ready to 
work on any proposal, especially from Members which had pleaded in favour of a strong agenda on e-
commerce at the WTO.  It welcomed the initiativ e from Cuba and Ecuador to hold a workshop on e-
commerce and development and SMEs, and was ready to work with them in order to make this 
workshop a success.  There were also other issues of interest for the EU that were of critical 
importance for the development of e-commerce, and his delegation encouraged active continuation of 
the discussions on those topics.  The EU would revert to those issues at a later stage in all relevant 
WTO bodies. 
162. The representative of the Plurinational State of Bolivia thanked Lesotho for its statement for 
the African Group.  His delegation had been follo wing developments in this area and greatly 
welcomed the proposal in the CTD by Ecuador and Cuba to hold a "Workshop on E-Commerce, 
Development and SMEs".  As already mentioned, th is proposal fell entirely within the scope of the 
MC8 Decision on the Work Programme on Electr onic Commerce, which instructed that the 
development dimension of electronic commerce be reinvigorated through the CTD.  The holding of the workshop in the second half of 2012 would be a few small steps in the right direction towards a 
gradual integration of SMEs of developing countries into the world of electronic commerce, as 
provided in the Work Programme, and Bolivia therefor e supported the proposal.  On the other hand, it 
noted that a few countries had not welcomed this proposal with equal enthusiasm, in spite of the 
proponents' flexibility in accommodating all the con cerns of Members.  Members therefore ran the 
risk once again of failing to make any progress on the Work Programme.  However, there was still 
time to remedy this, and Bolivia was confident that the workshop would be able to take place, within 
the framework of the CTD and pursuant to the MC8 Decision, in November 2012 as originally 
proposed.  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 45 
 
 
  163. The representative of Switzerland said his country  was is an active participant in these 
discussions.  It had made a contribution to in th e Services Council in March 2012 on "SMEs and their 
activities related to E-Commerce: The case of Switzerland" (S/C/W/345).  Switzerland supported the 
idea of holding a seminar on e-commerce by the end of 2012 dedicated to the development dimension.  
The precise details would need to be elaborated in further consultations after the summer break.  
However, discussions on e-commerce could not be li mited only to the development aspect.  Members 
needed to look at the broader picture as a whole.   A lot of work on e-commerce was done across the 
organization.  Switzerland was convinced that there could only be fruitful outcomes in the WTO when 
the activities on e-commerce in the various bodies a nd fora in this organization were closely 
coordinated.  This was how his country underst ood the mandate from Ministers at MC8.  Members 
should therefore revert to this item at a future date. 
164. The representative of Australia said the area of e-commerce was also of great interest to 
Australia.  It supported a development-focussed workshop under the auspices of the CTD and 
encouraged further refinement of the proposal  from Ecuador and Cuba.  E-commerce had great 
potential to assist and improve the success of small, medium and micro-sized businesses in 
developing countries.  Such businesses in devel oping countries also faced both opportunities and 
challenges in using this relatively new trading medium  to best effect.  His delegation noted that there 
were many other issues to be addressed in this area, right across the spect rum of the extensive e-
commerce Work Programme and mandate, and also across the broader membership.  In that light, and taking inspiration from Ecuador's and Cuba's proposal, Australia wa s also considering how those 
issues might be examined in a broader context. 
165. The General Council took note of the reports by  the Deputy Director-General and by the 
Chairmen of the subsidiary bodies and of the statements. 
6. Waivers under Article IX of the WTO Agreement 
(a) Philippines – Request for a waiver relating to special treatment for rice of the Philippines 
(G/C/W/665) –Statement by the Chairman of the Council for Trade in Goods 
166. The Chairperson drew attention to the request  for a waiver by the Philippines on special 
treatment for its rice (G/C/W/665).  In accordance with Article IX:3 of the Marrakesh Agreement, 
Mr Mboya Okeyo (Kenya), Chairman of the Good s Council, wished to make a statement on the 
Council's consideration of this matter. 
167. Mr Mboya Okeyo (Kenya), Chairman of the Council for Trade in Goods, said that at the CTG 
meeting on 30 March 2012, the delegation of the Ph ilippines, pursuant to Article IX:3 of the 
Marrakesh Agreement, had introduced document G/ C/W/665 requesting a waiver of the Philippines' 
WTO obligations under Article 4.2 and paragrap hs 8 and 10 of Annex 5 of the Agreement on 
Agriculture, in order to further extend its special tr eatment for rice from 1 July 2012 to 30 June 2017.  
At that meeting some delegations had indicated that  there had been a number of concerns and that 
further clarifications and consu ltations were required.  Thus, they had expressed their willingness to 
continue further consultations on the issue with the Philippines.  At the Goods Council meeting on 
22 June 2012, the Philippines had informed the Counc il that, since the submission of the request, it 
had intensified consultati ons with Members, but that these had not been completed.  Delegations who 
had taken the floor at that meeting had indicated that  concerns remained with regard to the waiver as 
currently drafted, that written comments had been pr esented and that they had continued interest in 
the negotiations with the Philippines.  As a result of the requests for further consultations, the Goods 
Council had not been able to complete its consider ation of the waiver request within the 90 days 
stipulated in Article IX:3, and therefore requested  that the General Council agree to allow it to 
continue with the consideration of the waiver re quest and report back to the General Council once it 
had completed its work. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 46  
 
  168. The Chairperson proposed that in light of th is statement and the request by the Goods 
Council, the General Council agree to allow the Goods  Council to continue consideration of this 
request and to report back to the Genera l Council once it had completed this work. 
169. The General Council so agreed. 
170. The representative of the Philippines thanked the CT G Chair for his report on the status of the 
its waiver request.  This issue was of critical im portance for ensuring livelihood and food security in 
the Philippines.  First, the displacement effects of the expected rice import surges in a fully liberalized 
environment were expected to have significant ne gative effects on the incomes and livelihood security 
of 2.4 million farming households.  Second, the Phi lippines could not afford, at this time, to rely 
mainly on the private sector for the food security of  nearly 100 million Filipinos.  It needed adequate 
time to transition into a fully market-based rice trad ing regime, especially after its experience during 
the global food crisis in 2008.  Third, the developm ent of the Philippines rice sector had been affected 
by extreme natural calamities in the past few years, and more time was needed to reinvigorate the rice 
sector's resiliency programme, through produc tivity improvements, competitiveness, and 
diversification.  The resiliency programme was al so now being put back in place with appropriate 
improvements, including in technology to address cl imate-change impacts.  In this regard, his 
delegation regretted the inability to  reach consensus at the last CTG meeting, which otherwise might 
have allowed the approval of the waiver at the cu rrent meeting.  However, the Philippines greatly 
appreciated the CTG's positive endorsement for the negotiations to continue and for Members to 
remain fully engaged.  It fully understood that ne gotiations as important as this would take time, and 
would continue to work with others in looking fo r a workable solution that was fair, balanced and 
mutually advantageous.  The Philippines was please d to report that it had continued to make steady 
progress.  The momentum that had been built up prio r to the 22 June CTG meeting – through bilateral 
and plurilateral engagements – had been maintained.  Likewise, th e Philippines continued to make 
progress with Members on the technical aspects of finalizing the text of the proposed waiver.  It hoped that these efforts, as well as its shared re solve to expeditiously c onclude these negotiations, 
would lead to a consensus in the CTG at the ear liest possible opportunity, in time for the October 
meeting of the General Council.  Thus, the Philippi nes called on Members to remain substantively and 
constructively engaged in the negotia tions and to work expeditiously. 
171. The representative of Australia said his country  was one of the interested parties on this 
matter, and it encouraged the Philippines to continue  to engage constructively and expeditiously with 
interested parties in order to secure a mutually  acceptable outcome as soon as possible.  This was 
important, given that the Philippines' access to sp ecial treatment under Annex 5 of the Agriculture 
Agreement had expired on 30 June 2012. 
172. The General Council took note of the statements.  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 47 
 
 
  (b) Review of waivers pursuant to Ar ticle IX:4 of the WTO Agreement 
(i) LDCs – Article 70,9 of the TRIPS Agreement with respect to pharmaceutical products, 
granted on 8 July 2002 until 1 January 2016 (WT/L/478) 
(ii) Preferential tariff treatment for Least-devel oped countries, granted on 27 May 2009 until 
30 June 2019 (WT/L/759) 
(iii) European Union – Application of autonomous p referential treatment to  Moldova, granted on 
7 May 2008 until 31 December 2013 (WT/L/722, WT/L/861) 
(iv) United States – Former Trust Territory of the Pa cific Islands, granted on 27 July 2007 until 
31 December 2016 (WT/L/694, WT/L/857) 
(v) United States – Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act, granted on 27 May 2009 until 
31 December 2014 (WT/L/753, WT/L/858) 
(vi) United States – African Growth and Opport unity Act, granted on 27 May 2009 until 
30 September 2015 (WT/L/754, WT/L/859) 
(vii) United States – ANDEAN Trade Preference Act, granted on 27 May 2009 until 
31 December 2014 (WT/L/755, WT/L/860) 
173. The Chairperson recalled that, in accordance w ith paragraph 4 of Article IX of the WTO 
Agreement, "any waiver granted for a period of mo re than one year shall be reviewed by the 
Ministerial Conference not later than one year af ter it is granted, and thereafter annually until the 
waiver terminates."  There were seven waivers before  the General Council for review.  With regard to 
the waiver in sub-item (i) for LDCs under the TRI PS Agreement, she noted that in connection with 
the approval of the draft waiver at the meeting of  the TRIPS Council in June 2002, the Chairman of 
that Council had noted that it was understood, in regard  to the review foreseen in paragraph 2 of that 
waiver, that the exceptional circumstances justifying  the waiver would continue to exist for least-
developed country Members until its e xpiry date of 2016.  She also noted that five of the waivers 
under review provided that an annual report should be submit ted by the Members concerned 
regarding the operation or implemen tation of those waivers, with a view to facilitating their annual 
review by the General Council.  The reports from these Members had been circulated in documents 
WT/L/857-861. 
174. The General Council took note of the reports in documents WT/L/857, 858, 859, 860, and 
861, and that the General Council would revert to th e review of multi-year waivers under Article IX:4 
of the WTO Agreement at its meeting in December 2012. 
7. Ninth Session of the Ministerial Conference – Date and venue 
175. The Chairperson recalled that in April 2012 she had received a communication (WT/GC/143) 
from the Minister of Trade of Indonesia offering to  host MC9 in Indonesia in December 2013.  On 
10 May she had sent a fax to delegations informing them that, in light of this communication, she 
would start a process of consultations on the matter of  the date and venue for MC9.  This was in line 
with what Ministers had agreed at MC8, namely "to request the General Council to hold consultations 
with a view to deciding the date and venue of the Ninth Ministerial Conference".  Since then, she had 
consulted widely with Members on Indonesia's offe r, and Members had taken up this matter at the 
informal HODs meetings on 7 June and 17 July, where she had reported on developments in the 
consultation process.  As a result of this process, sh e believed that Members were now in a position to 
take a decision on this matter.  Therefore, she pr oposed that the General Council agree that the Ninth WT/GC/M/137 
Page 48  
 
  Session of the Ministerial Conference be held in Bali,  Indonesia in the first week of December 2013.  
She also proposed that Members come back to th e matter of the precise dates after the summer break. 
176. The General Council so agreed. 
177. She warmly thanked Indonesia for its kind offer,  which was a clear sign of its commitment to 
the organization, and was sure that Indonesia could count on the support of the whole membership in 
working together towards a successful Ministerial Conference. 
178. The representative of Indonesia expressed his de legation's gratitude to the Chair for her 
efforts during the consultations with Members con cerning Indonesia's offer to host the MC9 in 2013, 
and to all Members who had placed so much confid ence in Indonesia to host  MC9.  Indonesia was 
prepared to cooperate closely with all Member s and the Secretariat to convene MC9 successfully, 
both in terms of organization and logistical arrangements, as well as producing fruitful and 
meaningful Ministerial decisions for all Members.  In a situation where the current crisis was still 
hampering the global economy, Indonesia continued to  believe that the multilateral trading system 
had a significant role in fostering fair global tr ade, sustaining world economic growth, eradicating 
poverty and creating job opportunities.  In this regard , the next Ministerial would be very important to 
re-energize the negotiation process and the progress achieved thus far, and to strengthen the 
multilateral trading system.  Finally, Indonesia ferven tly hoped that the exotic ambiance, the warm 
weather and the hospitality of the people of Bali would rejuvenate and re new the constructive and 
collective spirit of the DDA negotiations. 
179. The representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , on behalf of the Arab Group, thanked the 
Chairperson for her informal consultations on Indone sia's offer to host MC9, which the Arab Group 
appreciated and welcomed.  Hosting a Ministerial Conference was a challenging task.  However, the 
Group had full confidence in the Indonesian Governme nt to provide the necessary arrangements for a 
successful Ministerial Conference.  It hoped that MC9 would deliver a fair, equitable and balanced 
outcome. 
180. The representative of Haiti, on behalf of the LDC Group, welcomed the Council's decision to 
hold MC9 in Bali, Indonesia, presented its compliments to the host country and hoped that sufficient 
time would be allowed for Indonesia to prepare such an important event. 
181. The representative of Lesotho, on behalf of the African Group, welcomed and supported the 
generous offer by the Government of Indonesia to host MC9.  As a fellow developing country, 
Indonesia would certainly be an ideal location for the Members to underline trade as a key tool and 
credible vehicle for development.  The ASEAN s ub-region was also setting an example of the high 
potential of success of regional approaches to develo pment, through trade as a building block of the 
multilateral trading system.  The African Continent, which was aspiring to thriving intra-Africa trade, would benefit from observing the region at close range during MC9. 
182. The representative of China expressed his dele gation's sincere appreciation to Indonesia for 
its offer to host MC9, which demonstrated Indon esia's confidence in and support for the multilateral 
trading system.  China fully supported the decisi on to convene MC9 in Bali in the first week of 
December 2013.  Considering that Indonesia had considerable experience in hosting international 
conferences, China had every reason to believe that th is country and the Secretariat would be able to 
organize a successful and fruitful MC9.  China stood ready to make its own contributions to this 
common end. 
183. The representative of Panama, on behalf of GR ULAC, echoed the words of thanks extended 
to the delegation of Indonesia and its G overnment for its offer to host MC9.  WT/GC/M/137 
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  184. The representative of Turkey welcomed Indonesia's offer to host MC9. 
185. The General Council took note of the statements. 
8. Guidelines for appointment of officers to  WTO bodies – Statement by the Chair 
186. The Chairperson recalled that at its meeting on 14 February 2012, the General Council had 
agreed that she, as the incoming General Council Chair, would initiate a process of consultations to 
review the Guidelines for Appointment of Officers to WTO Bodies adopted by the General Council in 
December 2002 (WT/L/510).  She also recalled that a number of views had been expressed on how the process for the Appointment of Officers had b een operating under these Guidelines, both at the 
informal HODs meeting in February and the 1 May m eeting of the General Council.  In May, she had 
initiated a process of consultations on the Guidelines for Appointment of Office rs and had met with a 
wide range of delegations in vari ous configurations, including in a number of small-group meetings.  
The informal HODs meeting the previous week had b een the last phase of this consultation process.  
Before she set out what she had drawn from the c onsultations, she wished to  thank delegations for 
their constructive engagement and productive discussi ons on this matter.  She then set out the points 
of convergence which had emerged from her consultations, as follows. 
187. First, she wished to set out a few general poi nts.  The existing guidelines were in general 
adequate and were reaffirmed.  However, some practical steps should be taken to improve their 
implementation, while avoiding a prescriptive appro ach.  Respecting Members' sensitivities should be 
a guiding principle.  The selection process should be characterized by transparency, and at the same 
time, recognize the need to provide the General Counc il Chair and his/her colleagues, i.e. the selection 
committee, with a certain degree of flexibility an d to preserve trust in the selection committee.  
Turning to some specific aspects in  the process for appointment of officers, she said that in terms of 
the process itself, it was clear that this should be set  in motion more carefully and allow for sufficient 
time to develop, including through timelines.  In this respect, more comprehensive information about 
the process should be provided to delegations, in par ticular to group coordinators, at an early stage, 
including through early meetings.  The selecti on committee should make names of candidates 
available to Members at different stages of cons ultations, including at an open-ended informal 
meeting, as appropriate.  In addition, the General Council Chair and the Secretariat should ensure that 
adequate information regarding the process was provi ded to the Chairs of the Goods and Services 
Councils prior to the selection processes they had to undertake. 
188. Other aspects of the process that were discussed  included overall bala nce, rotation and how 
consensus was developed.  Here, a couple of points ha d emerged.  First, for the purposes of paragraph 
7.1(d) of the Guidelines, groups – meaning deve loped countries, Latin America and the Caribbean, 
Asia and Africa – had a role in putting forward nam es of candidates for the slots available to them.  
Second, Members should exercise restraint in bloc king consensus on a candidate and should explain 
to the selection committee the reasons why, if they were doing so.  Finally, a possible conflict of interest in the selection committee was highlight ed as needing attention. Here, two points had 
emerged.  First, if a member of the selection committee whose name was being put forward for a 
particular chairmanship was considering accepting th at nomination, he/she should consider recusing 
him/herself from the selecti on committee, at least for the considerat ion of that particular post. Second, 
in connection with the first point, for the particular  case of the Chair of the DSB becoming the Chair 
of the General Council, there was a clear and established tradition. WT/GC/M/137 
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  189. This concluded her statement on these consulta tions, which would be duly reflected in the 
minutes of the present meeting.
9  She wished to stress clearly th at Members were not at the present 
stage revising the existing Guidelines, which had b een reaffirmed.  They were simply putting into 
place a number of practical steps to improve the way the process operated under the existing Guidelines.  Her intention was to put these practical  steps into practice in the next slate of names 
exercise starting at the end of the year. 
190. The representative of Ecuador said his delega tion had reiterated the need to explore 
mechanisms that allowed the process of appointment  of officers of WTO bodies to be conducted to 
the satisfaction of all Members, in order to comply  in the best possible way with the principles of 
transparency and inclusiveness that should be embodied  in the organization.  It was also necessary to 
review and improve these mechanisms because, as  stated in the Concluding Statement of the 
Chairman of MC8, achieving effective forward m ovement in the organization's work, both in the 
regular WTO bodies and in the DDA negotiating bodies, called for the adoption of processes geared precisely towards greater transparency and inclusiven ess of the membership as a whole.  In order to 
contribute proposals aimed at responding to this need , Ecuador had carried out an analysis of the 
process of appointment of officers of WTO bodies over recent years and had noted a number of 
salient points.   
191. First, with regard to inclusiveness and rota tion/representation, many Members were of the 
opinion that the system for the appointment of officers achieved a balance in terms of each regional group, but the fact remained that over the years, so me Members had been unabl e to participate as they 
would have wished or thought was necessary.  In th is connection, Ecuador to ok note of the Chair's 
statement that the next appointment process would allow for more time and provide more 
comprehensive, regular information about the deve lopment of the process, and that the names of 
candidates would be disclosed in at least one inform al meeting for that purpose.  When the time came 
to initiate consultations on the appointment of o fficers for each group, Ecuador had underscored that 
this process should be based on consultations with  all Members using a bottom-up, not a top-down, 
approach, so as to take account of everyone's inte ntions, needs and interests.  Second, Ecuador had 
considered it necessary to question the practice of  blocking consensus that seemed more like the 
exercise of a right of veto, which, as mentioned ear lier, should not exist in th is organization.  Based 
on previous experiences marked by a lack of clarity,  Ecuador was of the view that mechanisms were 
needed to prevent legitimate and su itable candidates from being vetoed without sufficient justification 
in the future.  Accordingly, it acknowledged the Chai r's efforts to urge the membership that restraint 
should always be exercised in blocking consensu s on a legitimate candidate who met the minimum 
requirements.  In any event, those having opted to block consensus should explain, not only to the appointment committee but also to all Members, why they were doing so.  Th is type of explanation 
would not only make the system more transparent, but there would be no need to call the matter into question.  To the contrary, the explanation woul d serve to settle whatever doubts any Member might 
have at the end of the appointment process.   
192. Third, regarding the appointment of officers based  on country of origin or professional skills, 
Ecuador agreed that the key criterion for selecting a candidate should be the person's suitability for the 
post.  Nonetheless, rotation of nationality am ong candidates should be taken into account as a 
component of suitability, so as to allow the inclus ion of other Members.  As stated on previous 
occasions, the process involved selecting officers within  an intergovernmental organization, where the 
membership was made up of countries, which meant that the country factor should be taken into 
consideration as a component of suitability.  On th e question of conflict of interest, Ecuador agreed 
that in principle, a candidate should not be part of the selection committee, at least for the committee's 
consideration of the position for which his or her na me had been put forward.  This was a simple 
matter of ethics, because a Member should not be bot h judge and jury in a process.  By avoiding this 
                                                      
9 The Chairperson's statement was subs equently circulated  in JOB/GC/22.  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 51 
 
 
  situation, there was more room for others that ha d not had the opportunity to participate and had the 
means and the will to cooperate actively in the WT O bodies.  Ecuador appreciated the Chair's efforts 
in the informal consultations and took note of her report.  It hoped that the elements of convergence 
summarized by the Chair would ensure that the next appointment process would be smoother and 
more transparent.   
193. The representative of El Salvador thanked the Ch air for her report on her consultations on this 
matter, in which El Salvador had participated.  His delegation considered the report to be faithful to 
Members' discussions and hoped that the progress ma de would streamline the process of appointment 
of officers in the future and enhance its transparency, inter alia , with the provision of further 
information on the process to regional coordinators.  Furthermore, his delegation wished the principle 
of rotation to be developed further in future ap pointment processes in order to reflect the true 
representativeness of the membership.  El Salvador  understood that these consultations were not 
going to result in any changes to the Guidelines set out in document WT/L/510, but hoped that these 
informal discussions would lead to an improved a ppointment process.  El Salvador also reserved the 
right to request further consultations on this issue the following year if it felt there was a need to 
discuss other improvements to the process. 
194. The representative of Haiti, on behalf of the LD C Group, expressed the hope that the current 
review of the Guidelines for appointment of o fficers would result in more transparency, better 
accountability and wider and more diverse particip ation of the membership at all levels of 
responsibility within the organization.  The LD C Group reaffirmed its support for the Chair. 
195. The representative of Cuba thanked the Chai r for her report on the consultations.  Her 
delegation was pleased to hear that the practical steps that would be implemented in the upcoming 
months to improve these Guidelines reaffirmed the pr inciple of transparency.  Cuba also endorsed the 
statement by Ecuador, which had clearly been taken into account in the Chair's statement. 
196. The representative of the Plurinational State of Bolivia thanked the Chair for her report.  
Bolivia saw considerable merit in Ecuador's sugges tions and believed it was im portant that they be 
taken into account in future c onsultations on this matter.  
197. The General Council took note of the Chair's statement and of the other statements. 
9. Improving the guidelines for granting in tergovernmental organizations permanent 
observer status in the WTO – Statement by the Chair 
198. The Chairperson recalled that at its November  2011 meeting, the General Council had agreed 
to initiate a process of consultations to consider th e issue of Observer Status  for IGOs in the WTO, 
following a communication by the Arab Group en titled "Improving the Guidelines for Granting 
Observer Status to Intergovernmental Organizati ons in the WTO" (WT/GC/W/643).  At the May 
meeting of the General Council, she had reported on the consultations she had held in light of a new 
communication from the Arab Group (WT/GC/W/654).  Since then, she had continued her consultations and intended to take up this process again after the summer break and report back to the 
General Council as appropriate. 
199. The representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Ar abia, on behalf of the Arab Group, expressed 
the Group's sincere thanks to the General Council Chai r for her constructive engagement on this issue, 
and for the encouraging views expressed by most of the delegations during various rounds of her 
consultations.  As all knew, the issue of granting ob server status to IGOs in the WTO was not specific 
to any particular organization, but rather was a larger  systemic issue.  In this context, the Arab Group 
had taken the initiative to propose an improvement  to the Guidelines in document WT/GC/W/643.  
The group had also elaborated on its earlier pr oposal in document WT/GC/W/654, which contained WT/GC/M/137 
Page 52  
 
  specific suggestions to improve a nd fine–tune Annex 3 of the Genera l Council's Rules of Procedure. 
The Group considered that this communication la id the basis for a constructive dialogue, and hoped 
that all would contribute positively to the improvement  of these guidelines.  In this regard, the Arab 
Group supported the way forward proposed by the Ch air to tackle this issue, and hoped that the 
consultations would be inte nsified in order to expedite the process and to find a solution to this matter.  
The Arab Group was open to discussing any proposal that advanced the way forward and unblocked 
the current situation.  It wished to re-affirm  its view that the responsibility for improving the 
Guidelines fell equally on each Member, and was in no way specific to any group.  The Arab Group 
looked forward to positive engagement from th e whole membership to resolve this issue. 
200. The representative of Turkey said the importance attached to the universality of the WTO had 
been stressed by many delegations at the present meeting under the item on accessions.  This was also 
valid for the issue of permanent observer status.  The WTO was the highest rule-setting platform of 
the multilateral trading system, and sought universality .  This required being inclusive.  Therefore, 
Members should further encourage the participation of  IGOs in the work of the WTO.  With this 
understanding, the requests of rele vant IGOs for permanent observer status to the WTO should 
receive due and favourable consideration, as well as c onstructive and fair treatment.  In this context, 
Turkey looked forward to an early and positive out come to the consultations on this matter. 
201. The General Council took note of the statements. 
10. Measures to streamline the production of documents and the conduct of meetings – 
Statement by the Director-General 
202. The Chairperson recalled that at its Nove mber 2011 meeting, the General Council had 
approved the WTO's Budget for 2012-13.  In so doin g, and to achieve the necessary level of austerity, 
the General Council had endorsed a number of measu res to streamline the organization's operations, 
including in the areas of translation, printing and do cumentation, and scheduling of meetings.  At the 
General Council meeting in February, the Director -General had reported on the work the Secretariat 
was undertaking to implement the decision.  She i nvited the Director-Gener al to update the Council 
on the latest developments. 
203. The Director-General recalled that the WT O's 2012-2013 budget approved by the General 
Council in December 2011 provided for zero nominal growth in 2012 and zero real growth in 2013.  
A number of recommendations contained in the Budget Committee's report (WT/BFA/128) 
concerning savings and more efficient use of resour ces with respect to documentation, scheduling and 
management of meetings were also approved.  At  the February 2012 Genera l Council, he had reported 
on the work undertaken by the Secretariat to implement that decision, and had stated that the 
organization needed to adapt its habits and pr ocesses so as to further improve the use of scarce 
resources and make use of technology to pursue a dditional efficiency gains, and that established 
practices needed to be changed.  Since then, th e Secretariat had continued its review of possible 
improvements in the areas covered by the decision.  Significant progress had already been made and 
several initiatives were under way.  However, there was still scope for improvement.  This internal 
review, which had involved all the secretaries of  WTO bodies, would continue over the coming 
months.  He drew attention to the WTO B udget and Finance Report submitted to the Budget 
Committee on 17 July 2012 which provided a comp rehensive update on the streamlining of the 
organization's operations, and said he wished to briefly highlight the principal achievements and 
remaining problems in the areas of translation, printing and distribution, and scheduling and 
management of meetings.  WT/GC/M/137 
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  204. In the area of translation, the 2011 Decision required WTO bodies to achieve a 5 per cent 
reduction in the overall volume of official documen ts in 2012 and a further 5 per cent reduction in 
2013.  The input volume for the first semester, base d on translation requests received, had been 10.9 
million words – lower than the target volume of 11.4 million words.  This translated into savings of 
approximately SF250,000.  In short, this was on track.  This reduction had been achieved partly due to 
a lower level of activity compared to the same peri od in 2011.  The key now was to ensure structural 
changes resulting from cha nges in working methods.  There was a n eed to be less wordy and generate 
shorter documents – of course, without sacrificing th e quality of work, and to begin further exploring 
a number of ideas, including on how records of me etings were done.  He also asked Members to 
consider the need for translation of certain docum ents, which might not be required for all working 
documents.  In adapting these practices, one needed to be mindful of the constraints on certain 
Members, particularly LDCs.  He was certain one c ould find ways to record and reflect delegations' 
messages in a shorter way than was currently done.  It all started with everyone making an effort in 
their statements – more often than not, brevity was not an enemy of clarity. 
205. In the area of printing and distribution, he c ould report a downward tr end and some concrete 
results.  For 2012, the Secretariat was on track to  achieve a net reduction of 6 million print runs 
compared to 40 million in 2011, i.e. a 15 per cent re duction in the number of printed copies of official 
documents, which translated to savings of approx imately SF250,000.  This result had been achieved 
through a combination of measures, including the di scontinuation of printing and distributing certain 
document series in committees.  In addition, a survey  form had been prepared and dispatched to all 
delegation coordinators to review the list of subscr ibers to official documents in print form and the 
number of copies dispatched to each subscriber.  The WTO expected to move towards an electronic 
subscription model in the last quarter of the year.  In the area of scheduling of meetings and interpretation, the General Council had requested a ll Chairs to systematically seek to reduce the 
number and length of meetings requi ring interpretation and optimizi ng the use of existing resources 
supporting official meetings.  Interpretation costs due to cancellations, badly planned meetings, late 
changes of dates and meetings starting late amounted  to almost half a million Swiss francs in 2011. Of 
course, one had to take into account the preparati ons for MC8 and the large number of last-minute 
meetings.  Nevertheless, this number was far too high.   In the first half of 2012, the costs of requested 
and unused interpretation services had amounted to around SF100.000 – still a very high number.  To 
streamline operations and reduce costs in this area,  the WTO had started putting in place a number of 
measures.  These included streamlining the interprete rs' recruitment practice and raising awareness of 
the problem within the Conference Office, interpre tation services and secretaries of all committees.  
The Secretariat would continue to monitor use of its resources on this front, but needed to work 
together with the Chairs, and with all Members, to make sure that meetings were not cancelled at the 
last minute, that they started on time, and that  there was good planning before making a reservation 
for a full day of interpreters when thei r services were used for only a short time. 
206. Overall, there was further scope for improve ment in the drafting and overall volume of 
documentation, printing and distribution and in the scheduling and management of meetings.  At a 
bare minimum, he urged delegati ons to be conscious of the need for each one to accept collective 
responsibility in the budgetary area.  All had to make a contribution by collectively reviewing their procedures and habits.  He would convene a meeti ng with all Chairs following the summer break to 
further explore ways in which one could fulfil th e General Council Decision and make WTO work 
more efficient in the area of documentation and mee tings.  He would, of course, report back to the 
membership on developments later in 2012.  
207. The General Council took note of the statements. WT/GC/M/137 
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  11. Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration – Report on meeting of May 2012 
(WT/BFA/130) 
208. The Chairperson drew attention to the report of the Budget Committee in document 
WT/BFA/130 and invited Mr Zananavi čius (Lithuania), Chairman of the Committee, to introduce the 
report. 
209. Mr Zananavi čius (Lithuania), Chairman of the Committee on Budget, Finance and 
Administration, said that at its meeting on 9 May, the Committee had reviewed and examined several 
reports covering the WTO budgetary and financial situation, the management of human resources and 
the WTO pension plan.  The execution of the budg et was overall moving according to plans.  The 
receipt of voluntary contributions by the DDA Globa l Trust Fund remained at a level lower than 
expected. The Committee had also reviewed the annual report on diversity in the Secretariat, and had 
welcomed the progress achieved and sought further info rmation in order to further enhance diversity.  
The Committee had been updated on progress on the building project, and the Secretariat had 
emphasized that the building project remained overall within the budget and schedule.  The Committee had approved the funding for the equippi ng and installation of the new building with 
catering facilities and furniture.  The Committee ha d been informed of the accessions of Montenegro 
and Samoa and had agreed to recommend to the Gene ral Council that a pro rata contribution to the 
2012 budget amounting to CHF 21,038 be assessed on the Government of Montenegro, as well as a 
contribution to the Working Capital Fund amounting to CHF 50,649 as an advance to the Fund.  It had also agreed to recommend that a pro rata contribution to the 2012 budget amounting to CHF 18,844 be assessed on the Government of Samoa, as  well as a contribution to the Working Capital 
Fund amounting to CHF 50,649 as an advance to the Fund.  The Committee had been updated on 
progress in the Working Group on Administrative Measu res, which was in the process of finalizing its 
report and a proposal to review existing Administ rative Measures.  He ha d informed the Committee 
that he would make the present the report on this short, efficient and consensual meeting to the 
General Council. 
210. The General Council took note of the statem ents, approved the Budget Committee's specific 
recommendations in paragraphs 23 and 25 of its report in document WT/BFA/130, and adopted the 
report. 
12. Legal status of the Cuban brand "Havana Club" in the United States – Statement by 
Cuba 
211. The representative of Cuba, speaking under "O ther Business" said her delegation had 
requested inclusion of this item on the Agenda in order to express its great concern over the 
infringement of the IPRs of the owner of the Cuban rum trademark "Havana Club" in the United States.  In 1976, the Cuban company Cubaexport ha d obtained ownership of this trademark on US 
territory in accordance with the procedures estab lished by the US Patent and Trademark Office 
(USPTO).  The registration had been renewed without any hindrance, in 1986 and 1996, under a 
general licence permitting payment of the rene wal fee, until Section 211 of the Omnibus 
Appropriations Act of 1998 had been adopted.  Upon  the adoption of this measure, the Cuban Assets 
Control Regulations – known as Title 31, Part 515, of the Code of Federal Regulations – established 
under the unilateral economic, commercial and financ ial blockade imposed on Cuba by the US, had 
been amended to bring them into line with the ne w legislation by incorporating the restrictions 
contained therein.  Under this amendment, in 20 06 the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US 
Department of the Treasury had denied Cubaexport a licence permitting payment of the trademark 
registration renewal fee, and consequently the U SPTO had not been able to  process the application 
submitted.  At this point, the US should have al ready implemented the recommendations of the DSB, 
which in 2002 had ruled that Section 211 was inc onsistent with the TRIPS Agreement and the Paris 
Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property.  However, not only had Section 211 remained in  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 55 
 
 
  force and intact, but the US Government had also deci ded to apply it to the detriment of an owner that 
had held the trademark for 30 years.  During years of court battles between Cubaexport and the Office 
of Foreign Assets Control, the US civil courts had upheld the decision of the Department of the 
Treasury, thereby legitimizing the application of a measure that violated the basic principles of 
multilateral trade in the industrial property area – m.f.n. and national treatment. 
212. As recently as 14 May 2012, the US Supreme C ourt had rejected Cubaexport's petition for the 
case to be reviewed, thereby depriving the Cuban en tity of its legitimate right  to ownership of the 
trademark.  With the refusal to grant a licence to Cubaexport, compliance with the criteria referred to 
in Section 211(a)(1), regarding the alleged re lationship of the Havana Club trademark with 
nationalized property in Cuba and the absence of consent of the original owner, had been pre-
established.  However, the question was what orig inal owner this referred to.  The company José 
Arechabala, which owned the Havana Club tradem ark in the US, of its own volition had allowed 
trademark registration to lapse, and it had been more than two years fo llowing abandonment that 
Cubaexport had obtained registration of this tr ademark in its favour from the USPTO.  The US 
Government itself had stated during the dispute in  the WTO that in cases of abandoned trademarks, 
there was no original owner whose consent was requi red under Section 211.  This requirement would 
therefore not be applicable in the case of Havana  Club.  In this respect, it should be noted that 
Section 211 was also inconsistent with the Lanha m Act on intellectual property protection in the 
United States, which attached particular importa nce to the abandonment of trademarks by their 
original owners and afforded third parties the possib ility of registering such trademarks at a later date 
if the trademarks had not been used for two years or if there was no intention of using them. 
213. Moreover, Cuba asked with what legitimacy the US Government claimed the right to defend a 
national from another country allege dly affected by the process of nationalization in Cuba.  During 
the judicial proceedings that had now reached th eir unjust conclusion, the Office of Foreign Assets 
Control had stated that it had not issued th e licence required by Section 211 because it was under 
State Department orders not to do so, since that w ould be inconsistent with US foreign policy towards 
Cuba.  The US Government was entirely responsi ble for everything that had happened.  The WTO 
legal texts, in this case the TRIPS Agreement, had to prevail over the political interests of individual 
countries.  What had happened was a serious violation of multilatera l intellectual property 
commitments by the US, a country that paradoxically  had played a leading role in building the new 
multilateral system of rights and obligations in that  area.  This dispute, together with other ongoing 
lawsuits against Cuban patents and trademarks in US courts, left no doubt as to the underlying 
objective – to destroy, by any means, Cuba's in tangible goods, which we re important competitive 
resources for the country's sustainable development.   In contrast, Cuba had always respected its 
obligations under international indus trial property legislation without the slightest discrimination, and 
in doing so had ensured that more than 5,000 US trademarks and patents continued to benefit from 
registration in Cuba, in spite of the fact that no u se was made of them in Cuban territory, given the US 
blockade against Cuba.  It was shameful that the US should maintain measures contrary to the TRIPS 
Agreement in place for more than 14 years, when th ey had been declared inconsistent by the DSB 
over 12 years earlier. 
214. The implementation of Section 211 had resulted not only in the usurpation of Cubaexport's 
rights to the Havana Club trademark, but also in  protection of the unlawful misappropriation of this 
trademark by Bacardi, a company which, in a flagrant  act of piracy, was using it on US soil to market 
rum that was not of Cuban origin, thereby also d eceiving the consumer.  In light of the foregoing, 
there was a need for clear answer s from the US Government to the following questions:  (i) what 
prevented the US from issuing Cubaexport with th e licence required to renew the trademark that 
rightfully belonged to it before the USPTO, ta king into consideratio n compliance with its 
international intellectual property commitments; (ii)  how these actions could be defended before the 
General Council from the perspective of the commitment the US had been required to fulfil before the 
DSB in relation to Section 211 for ten years; (iii) how the US could endorse the validity and WT/GC/M/137 
Page 56  
 
  recognition of a misnamed "original owner" who had abandoned the trademark for more than two 
years when, in accordance with the Lanham Act, an y third party could have registered the Havana 
Club trademark after two years if it had not been used  or there was no intention of using it; (iv) given 
all that had happened in the case of Cubaexport, what  IPR guarantee did the US afford in its territory 
to Members, in particular Cuba.  If the US Gove rnment failed to act and to reverse its decision and 
issue the licence required to renew the trademark by its legitimate owner, for which it had full 
authority, it alone would be responsible for any ne gative consequences that might arise in respect of 
the reciprocal protection of industrial property. 
215. The representative of the Plurinational State of  Bolivia expressed his delegation's support for 
Cuba's statement.  As Bolivia had repeatedly stated  in the DSB, it was a matter of concern that, for 
more than a decade, a Member should divorce itself from its undertakings in the organization and fail 
to comply with the DSB's decisions.  This not  only had very adverse consequences for the 
organization from a systemic standpoint, but also  caused actual harm to a developing-country 
Member.  Bolivia was also struck by the fact that  the Member failing to comply with the DSB ruling 
in question should be a country that was promoti ng IPR enforcement initiatives in various fora while 
infringing, without the slightest compensation, the trademark rights of a Cuban firm, as Cuba had 
explained.  In view of the foregoi ng, Bolivia urged the US to comply with the DSB decisions and take 
the necessary action to return the Havana  Club trademark to its rightful owner. 
216. The representative of Ecuador said that Cuba's statement regarding the lack of compliance 
with and respect for the IPRs of this developing-co untry Member gave much cause for concern.  More 
than ten years had passed since the WTO Appellate Body had ruled that Section 211 of the Omnibus 
Appropriations Act of 1998 was inc onsistent with the TRIPS Agreem ent and the Paris Convention for 
the Protection of Industrial Property, but these re commendations had still not been implemented by 
the US.  The legal effect of this legislation a nd the US non-compliance with the Appellate Body's 
recommendations had essentially been to prevent th e IPR holders from obtaining recognition in the 
US of their rights to recognized Cuban trademarks  and trade names, such as the "Havana Club" rum 
trademark.  Ecuador thus endorsed Cuba's concern that there were still violations of IPRs within the 
WTO framework and that those breaches were not be ing rectified.  Furthermore, his delegation 
requested that the questions raised by Cuba be offici ally answered in full and in a timely manner.  The 
crux of this matter was that the US had not only a mo ral but also a legal obligation to comply with the 
Appellate Body's decisions and to repeal Section 211. 
217. The representative of Angola thanked Cuba for the information provided.  Angola supported 
Cuba's position and urged the US to bring itself in to conformity with its obligations under the WTO 
Agreements. 
218. The representative of Viet Nam said the Disput e Settlement Mechanism was at the heart of 
the rules-based multilateral trading system under th e WTO.  The full compliance of Members with 
recommendation and rulings of the DSB would provide transparency and credibility to the system.  
Therefore, Viet Nam, apart from the objective of DSU reform mandated at MC8, urged all Members 
to reaffirm their strong commitment to the full implementation of DSB recommendation and ruling. 
219. The representative of Zimbabwe said the issue ra ised by Cuba was very important, not only to 
Cuba and the US, but to all Members, as it went to th e core of the issue of the respect all gave to the 
decisions of institutions that formed the pillars of the WTO, in this particular case, the DSB.  Ten 
years earlier, the DSB had ruled on the incompatibility of Section 211 of the US Omnibus 
Appropriations Act of 1998 with th e TRIPS Agreement and the Paris Convention for the Protection of 
Intellectual Property.  Ten years later, in open cont empt of its commitments to the WTO, the US had 
still not abided by the DSB decision.  Zimbabwe joined Cuba and others  who had spoken on this 
issue, in urging the US to comply with the DSB rulings, as no country was exempt from the  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 57 
 
 
  obligations arising from its WTO membership.  Th is would not only enhance respect for and the 
integrity of the DSB, but also the credibility of the decisions of this august body. 
220. The representative of the Dominican Republic said that his country, an SVE in the Caribbean 
region, had been attending the monthly discussions of the case at hand in the DSB.  Its interest and 
concerns were systemic in nature.  This was a long-standing case and the longer a solution took, the 
more the credibility of one of the most important  bodies of this organization would be affected, 
particularly in the view of countries such as hi s own.  His delegation unde rstood that regulations 
within a country might temporaril y not be adapted to their multilate rally assumed obligations and that 
some time might be required for this.  It urged that  in the case at hand, which had been on the table for 
ten years, there be prompt compliance w ith the DSB's recommendations and rulings. 
221. The representative of Nicaragua said that as he r delegation had done on numerous occasions, 
Nicaragua wished to express its concern regarding the United States' failure to comply with the 
recommendations of the DSB to bring Section 211 of the Omnibus Appropriations Act of 1998 into 
conformity, in spite of the fact that this body had declared it inconsistent with WTO rules and 
principles.  Her delegation once again emphasized that deferment of compliance with the DSB's 
decisions in this case undermined the efficacy and credibility of the DSB and the multilateral trading 
system and could set a precedent affecting other Members, in particular developing countries.  
Nicaragua's understanding was that all Members we re required to fulfil their obligations.  Her 
delegation supported the just claims of Cuba and urged the US to bri ng its legislation into compliance 
with the rulings and recommendations of the DSB,  which in February 20 02 had determined the 
inconsistency of Section 211 of the Omnibus Appropriations Act of  1998 with the TRIPS Agreement 
and the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property. 
222. The representative of China said that as stipulat ed clearly in the DSU, the dispute settlement 
system of the WTO was an essential element in  providing security and predictability to the 
multilateral trading system.  Prompt compliance wi th recommendations and rulings of the DSB was 
essential to ensure effective resolution of disputes to the benefit of all Members.  However, ten years 
after the adoption of the Panel re port and Appellate Body report on this dispute, the US had not 
implemented the DSB rulings.  This prolonged non- compliance was incompatible with the prompt 
compliance requirement under the DSU, especially wh en a developing-country Member's interest was 
involved.  China urged the US to implement the DSB's rulings and recommendations without further 
delay. 
223. The representative of Brazil said this issue had b een raised before by Cuba, most recently at 
the 5 June 2012 meeting of the TRIPS Council.  Brazi l's concern with the systemic implications of 
this issue had been expressed on that occasion, a nd Brazil wished to reiterate it at the present 
meeting.10 
224. The representative of Argentina said this wa s a longstanding discussion and his country had 
supported Cuba's position in the DSB, where his dele gation had said on repeated occasions that failure 
to comply with the DSB's recommendations and ru lings by one of the Members with the greatest 
relative economic weight was a threat to the sy stem, particularly when a developing country's 
interests were affected. 
225. The representative of the European Union said hi s delegation wished to add its voice to others 
urging the US to implement the Panel and Appellate  Body reports and rulings and to follow their 
recommendation. Ten years was a very long time.  
                                                      
10 The statement is reproduced in Annex III to the present records. WT/GC/M/137 
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  226. The representative of Uruguay said that as his delegation had emphatically stated on many 
occasions, it shared the systemic concerns expr essed by previous speakers.  The WTO was going 
through a critical period, given its  evident inability to conclude th e DDA and the need to preserve the 
acquis  of the multilateral trading system, the most valu able asset of which was the DSU.  Now, more 
than ever, it was extremely important that Members st rove to protect that system by ensuring prompt 
compliance with DSB recommendations.  This was essential if Members were to ensure the smooth 
operation and credibility of the dispute settlement system, as well as the legal certainty and the 
effective balance of rights and obligations provide d under the multilateral trading system, which had 
to be defended with the utmost de termination.  For this reason, Uruguay once again urged the parties 
to this dispute to make every effort to end ten years of non-compliance, using one of the solutions set 
forth in the DSU. 
227. The representative of Mexico supported Cuba and expressed concern at the systemic 
implications in this case. 
228. The General Council took note of the statements. 
13. Director-General's report on trade-related developments during the period 
October 2011 - May 2012 – Statement by India 
229. The representative of India, speaking under "Oth er Business", said this issue concerned the 
Director-General's report on trade-related devel opments during the period October 2011- May 2012 
(WT/TPR/OV/W/6), and the need to have the comple te calculation sheets for arriving at the figure in 
the report of 2.9 per cent of trade-restrictive measures being accounted for by the G20 alone since October 2008.  The present statement was a continuati on of India's statement at the informal meeting 
of the Trade Policy Review Body on 18 July 2012, at which this report had been discussed.  His 
delegation appreciated the hard work by the Secr etariat, and especially the Director-General, in 
raising awareness around the world on the issue of rise of protectionism.  India and many other delegations had participated activel y and constructively in the detailed discussion of this subject at the 
informal meeting of the TPRB on 18 July.  India wi shed to apprise all delegations at the present 
meeting of the concerns it had raised at that meeti ng.  In order to avoid repeating the points made in 
that statement, he asked that it be incl uded in the record of the present meeting.
 11  In order to continue 
the discussion and make the process productive for the en tire membership, he also  wished to reiterate 
India's request on 18 July that the Secretariat i mmediately share the complete worksheets referred to, 
on the basis of which the figures of 2.9 per cent and 3.8 per cent overhang of global and intra-G20 trade had been arrived at. 
230. The Chairperson said she understood that this  issue was under consideration in the TPRB, 
which was one of the functi ons of the General Council. 
231. The General Council took note of the statements. 
14. Chairmanship of the Working Party on the Accession of Algeria – Statement by the 
Chair 
232. The Chairperson, speaking under "Other Bu siness", informed Members that following 
consultations with Members of the Working Party and the authorities of Algeria, and in keeping with 
usual WTO practice, it had been agreed that Mr  Alberto D'Alotto (Argentina) would serve as 
Chairman of this Working Party. 
                                                      
11 The statement is reproduced in Annex IV to the present records.  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 59 
 
 
  233. The representative of Argentina said that in th e absence of his Ambassador, he wished to 
express his thanks for the confidence placed in hi m and to convey his full commitment to working 
with all Members for a successful accession process for Algeria. 
234. The representative of Algeria, speaking as an  as an observer, thanked Members for the 
appointment of a new Chairman for the Working Part y on the Accession of Algeria, and congratulated 
and thanked Mr D'Alotto for having agreed to take  on this responsibility.  Algeria committed to work 
closely with him.  This was not the first time  Argentina had chaired this Working Party, as 
Mr Sánchez Arnau (Argentina) had been its firs t Chairman from 1994 to 1998.  Algeria hoped that 
this appointment would be a positive signal, and that  Argentina had returned to conclude the work it 
had begun 18 years earlier.  He also wished to th ank all individuals who had served as Chairs of this 
Working Party, and also the Secretariat, par ticularly DDG Jara for his consultations, which had 
speeded up the appointment of the new Chair.  This appointment meant that his country would be able 
to hold its 11th Working Partying meeting in the fourth quarter of 2012.  Algeria was working hard to meet the request made by Members following the in formal meeting of the Working Party on March 
2012. 
235. The General Council took note of the statements. 
15. Chairmanships of the Working Group on Trade, Debt and Finance and of the 
Negotiating Group on Market Access 
236. The Chairperson recalled that as announced to dele gations in her fax of 3 July, she had been 
holding consultations on the chairmanship of the Working Group on Trade, Debt and Finance.  In 
addition, she had been informed that Mr Wasecha (S witzerland) would soon relinquish his post, and it 
would therefore be necessary to hold consultations to appoint a new Chair for the Negotiating Group 
on Market Access.  She intended to take up bot h appointments after the summer break, with the 
assistance of Mr Shahid Bashir (Pakistan), Chai rman of the Dispute Settlement Body and Messrs 
Matus and Agah, former Chairmen of the General C ouncil.  On behalf of all Members, she thanked 
Mr Badr for his work as Chairman of the Working Group on Trade, Debt and Finance and 
Mr Wasecha for his work and leadership as Chairman of the Negotiating Group on NAMA. 
237. The General Council took note of the statement. 
16. Administrative Measures for Members in arrears – Statement by the Chair 
238. The Chairperson, speaking under "O ther Business", recalled that at its meeting in May 2006, 
the General Council had approved a recommendati on from the Committee on Budget, Finance and 
Administration regarding revised Administrative M easures for Members in arrears.  Among these was 
a requirement that at each meeting of the Genera l Council, the Chairman of the Committee on Budget, 
Finance and Administration should provide informat ion with regard to which Members were under 
Administrative Measures in Categories II through IV.  She wished to begin by inviting the Chairman 
of the Budget Committee, Mr Zananavicius (Lithuania) , to provide the Council with this information. 
239. Mr Zananavicius (Lithuania), Chairman of the Committee on Budget, Finance and 
Administration, said that as at 23 July 2012, the Members under Categories II through IV were the 
following:  in Category II – Grenada; in Cate gory III – Dominica and the Bolivarian Republic of 
Venezuela; in Category IV – Guinea-Bissau, Centra l African Republic, Congo, Democratic Republic 
of Congo.  The last three Members were following payment plans but had substantial arrears on their 
2011 payment schedules and were therefore subject to Administrative Measures. WT/GC/M/137 
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  240. The representative of the Democratic Republic of Congo said that concerning the arrears for 
the WTO budget, his country was aware of the diffi culties this situation caused and the implications 
on the implementation of its programmes.  Measur es had been taken for an appropriate solution, 
which his country hoped to implement before the end of the year.  A cumbersome bureaucracy had caused some delays, but these had been overcome. 
241. The Chairperson said that under the revised Ad ministrative Measures, she was also required 
at each Council meeting to request those Members in  Categories III and IV of the Measures to inform 
her, before the next meeting of the General Counc il, as to when their payment of arrears might be 
expected. 
242. The General Council took note of the statements. 
 
_______________  WT/GC/M/137 
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  ANNEX I 
Statement by Lesotho on behalf of the African Group 
 at the informal Heads of Delegations meeting on 17 July 2012 
 
 
Your report and updates regarding your consulta tions with members on some crucial issues to 
date are highly appreciated. Equally allow me to e xpress gratitude to the Director General as well for 
his illuminating report and updates.  Before going into th e heart of this intervention, allow me to state 
that the statements that the A frican Group delivered in this year ’s General Council and Informal 
HODs’ meeting still hold relevant fo r today’s meeting. On this b asis, the African Group wishes to 
reiterate some of the issues and build upon them by sharing the following issues with Members:  
 
The negotiations principles 
 
In previous meetings, the African Group consis tently reiterated the importance of honouring 
the principles that have kept the integrity of th e negotiation process unblemished. In this regard, the 
Group is grateful that the chairperson of the Genera l Council has so far adhered to such principles in 
her consultations with Members, especially the pr inciples of inclusiveness and bottom-up approach as 
well as transparency. These principles should cont inue to guide members’ own initiatives in their 
quest to find solutions to hitches encountered and in mapping the way forward in the Doha Round 
negotiations. In this context, caution is advised to  those Members undertaking consultations that are 
devoid of these accepted and well established negotiati ons principles. Negotiations agenda set outside 
the WTO mechanisms and processes or  introduced at the last minute on the rest of the Members may 
complicate matters. Let me state The African Group w ill not be in a position to accept any agenda or 
solution that has not gone through set WTO mechanisms and processes.    
The Principle of Early Harvest 
 
The Group has noted with concern different inte rpretations rendered on the principle of early 
harvest subsequent to a formal endorsement by th e MC8 which stated that members may conclude 
parts of negotiations on a provisional basis. Fo llowing this endorsement there are signals of 
considerable pressure building up on several fronts pr essing for some select files to form early harvest 
provisional agreement. Given these unsettling circ umstances Members are cautioned not to be 
corralled in an early harvest agenda set outside th e WTO mechanisms, as already stated. The Group is 
of the view that if credible early harvest agre ement is to be a reality, it should be preceded by 
multilaterally agreed parameters and processes. Th is will guarantee that individual preferences of 
members do not prejudge the fate of what the Gr oup considers to be a just and pro-development 
provisional agreement.  Currently multiple ideas ar e being tossed regarding which elements, within 
the Doha Agenda, should form part of an early harvest agreement . Meantime, close to nothing is 
being said about the ultimate destiny of the prin ciple of single undertaking and Multilateral Trading 
System as a whole. In chronic short supply are c onvincing assurances that if members were to agree 
on a provisional agreement, other pending issues w ill also be negotiated. This is a fundamental 
substance and process question that should not be underestimated in a race to contrive some early 
harvest provisional agreement.  
 In this context, allow me, Madam Chair, dare to  be more specific on one area which is in the 
lips of most if not all members; that is, trade facilitation.   
The importance of Trade Facilitation cannot be overemphasised, more especially by African 
Countries. However, given the strong positions by  some Members that trade facilitation should be 
harvested early as a win-win and self-balancing file, the Group is concerned that development 
linkages which any early harvest outcome should be contingent upon have not been made clear by WT/GC/M/137 
Page 62  
 
  demanders of trade facilitation agreement. The African Group invites members to pay the utmost 
attention to the fact that Trade Facilitation is not a monolithic file in respect of its composition which 
has to be internally balanced and beneficial to a ll members.  There is a disturbing silence on the fate 
of the rest of the Doha Agenda and hence on deve lopment in particular and the multilateral trading 
system in general. This remains a matter  of great concern to the African Group.  
 
Other Negotiations Issues following the outcome of the MC8 
 
The African Group continues to be concerne d that development issues under the Doha 
Agenda suffer a progress deficit since the outcome of the MC8. This concern is further exacerbated by 
the fact that, over and above the impasse in th e Doha Round, the WTO’s 2012 World Trade Report 
that was launched yesterday reported that Non-Tariff Measures are on an upward trend especially those of the G 20 members. This development is an added element to development concerns which 
when considered in conjunction with the imp asse in the Doha Round, send a message that 
development mandate of the Doha Round is as relevant today as it was at the beginning of the Round. 
In this connection, the African Group considers that any follow up to the MC8 outcome in relation to 
the negotiations, must result in a balan ced and a pro- development outcome.   
 
LDC Accession Decision 
 
As noted in the formal statement of the African  Group that was delivered at the adoption of a 
recommendation on LDCs accession by the Sub-Co mmittee on LDCs, the African Group wishes to 
bring to the attention of the members that it is its  considered view that upon formal adoption by the 
General Council, a guarantee should be  provided that the interpretation of LDCs accession text as an 
addendum to the 2002 guidelines shall be limited to the ministerial mandate of the MC8 on accession adopted on 17 December 2011.  
 
Madam Chair let me conclude by noting that  the African Group will provide its graphic 
appreciation of the current environment as it pertai ns to the Doha Agenda in the formal General 
Council meeting next week.  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 63 
 
 
   
ANNEX II 
Statement by Paraguay on behalf of the landlocked developing countries 
at the meeting of the Negotiating Group on Trade Facilitation on 9-13 July 2012 
 
 
I am making this statement in my capacity as Coordinator of the Landlocked Developing 
Countries and wish to make it clear that we do not in tend to propose any particular paragraph at this 
time.  The landlocked developing countries are a heterogeneous group of  developing countries 
belonging to different regions of the world market , with specific vulnerabilities which are inherent in 
their geographical location and which affect their competitiveness.  Their situation makes them highly 
vulnerable to external shocks.  They suffer from their distance from global markets and as a result are 
very often unattractive to foreign investment.  We face high transport costs and depend on the 
prevailing economic and social circumstances in our c ountries of transit.  We therefore have to make 
considerable efforts to integrate in to the international economy.  In this connection, we would like to 
emphasize the importance that we attach to the o ngoing Article 11 negotiations in the framework of 
the negotiations on trade facilitation and to the ma ndate to clarify and improve Article V of the 
GATT.  It is in our interest to achieve clear a nd binding rules that do not go back on what exists in 
GATT Article V.  We believe that we will benefit from clarification and improvement of the freedom 
of transit guarantees already enshrined in the GA TT 1947.  These are of help in our endeavours to 
minimize the effects of our unfavourable geographical  situation and also further the Membership's 
interest in maintaining and strengthening a rules ba sed global trading system.  We therefore thank the 
Facilitator for working to make h eadway in these negotiations and urge  all Members to continue to 
participate actively in the negotiating process. WT/GC/M/137 
Page 64  
 
  ANNEX III 
Statement by Brazil at the meeting of the TRIPS Council 
on 5 June 2012 
 
 
Very briefly I would like also to support the statem ent just made by the delegation of Cuba.  It 
is the view of Brazil that respect for enforcement of decisions of the DSB by all Members is a key 
condition for the proper functioning of the rules-base d international trading system that is embodied 
in this organization. 
  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 65 
 
 
  ANNEX IV 
Statement by India at the 
informal meeting of the TPRB on 18 July 2012 
 
 
We welcome this opportunity to review the recent trade-related developments based on the 
Director-General’s report of 28 June 2012.  We ha ve had useful meetings over the last two weeks 
where Members had the opportunity to discuss the report at length both amongst themselves and with 
the Secretariat to understand the basis for arriving  at the conclusions mentioned in the report.  
However, the interaction with the Secretariat, though useful, has not provided answers to the 
questions that we had raised earlier.  Emanating from the Secretariat, th is biannual report is of 
immense importance because of the role it plays in shaping and influencing in ternational perceptions 
on the state of the global economy. The conclusions of this report are cited in major international fora 
and in public debates as a significant reference not ju st by the media, civil society, think tanks and 
policy makers, but by high-ranking officials like the Director-General and other senior functionaries 
of the WTO.  We therefore need to view the conten ts and conclusions of the report with a great deal 
of care and objectivity.  This is because what we say here, notwithstanding Footnote 1 of the report, 
which states that it has been issued under his sole  responsibility, is going to be picked up and used 
widely as a WTO document reflecting the internationa l trade scenario and Members’ trade policies in 
general.  In this context, I would like to quote a few sentences from a speech delivered by a senior 
WTO official at a UN agency meeting in New York on 3 July 2012, and I quote, “Consider that 3% of 
world merchandize trade has been lost to trade r estricting measures introduced since 2008. This is 
equivalent to the trade of the entire African continen t….  For the first time, we believe that there is 
serious cause for alarm.” We need to consider  in–dep th if we have arrived at this figure of 3% on the 
basis of adequate analysis.  It is primarily because of this reason that we are raising our concerns relating to the contents and presentation of the report.  While the report claims to be purely factual, to 
our mind it is judgmental and subjective, arriving at  conclusions based on inadequate and incomplete 
information.  It is important that the report gives a complete and holistic picture.  At the same time 
subjectivity has to be minimized as far as possible with no selective picking of facts to support some 
pre-judged conclusions. 
 Before I get into the specifi cs for making the above observations, I would like to talk on a 
related issue.  Some delegations today have stated  that the G20 membership has been lax in abiding 
by its commitments to “standstill” and “rollback” su ch protectionist measures.  They have alluded 
time and again to the figure of 2.9% coverage of international trade and 3.8%  coverage of G20 trade 
by G20 countries’ protectionist measures, for which they have demanded a “ro llback”.  Here, I would 
like to refer to the MC8 elements for political guida nce.  Para 4 of the document states, “ Ministers 
fully recognize WTO rights and obligations of Members and  affirm their commitment to firmly resist 
protectionism in all its forms”.  In the Chair’s summary of key issues raised in the discussions at 
MC8, a large number of Ministers stressed, and I quote, “ They stressed that in these challenging 
times, the right of Members to use existing WTO- consistent policy space to achieve economic and 
development objectives should not be curtailed.”  Th e G20 Ministers have clarified this further in 
paragraph 5 on page 6 of the Los Cabos Growth and Job Action Plan, where it has been stated, “ We 
reaffirm our commitment to resist protectionism in all forms and promote open trade, and will take 
active measures to reduce the number of WTO incons istent trade-restrictive measures and resist 
financial protectionism”.  Therefore, the intenti on of the G20 is clearly to reduce and rollback WTO-
inconsistent trade-restrictive measures. 
 
A delegation has just raised the question as to  who is to judge whether a measure is WTO-
consistent or not.  In terms of legal interpretation, until a measure  has been challenged and set aside 
by a competent court, it has to be considered valid.  If a Member has a concern about any trade 
measure being in violation of a WTO agreement,  the affected Member could go to the DSB.  WT/GC/M/137 
Page 66  
 
  However, if Members are taking trade measures which are not challenged in the DSB, it implies that 
these measures are WTO consistent.  As far as tariff me asures are concerned, raising of applied tariffs 
within bound levels or taking trad e-defense measures are WTO consis tent and cannot be termed trade 
restrictive in the WTO sense.  Thus, the calculation of trade coverage of so-called trade-restrictive 
tariff measures is based on flawed logic. 
 
Coming to the methodology adopted in compiling the report, our first concern is about the 
database that has been taken into account.  If we l ook at the list of non-verified measures in Annex 1, 
out of 26 unverified measures, four have some reference to WTO documents.  Of the remaining 22, 
ten are from just one source, emanating from the world’s largest economy. This selective use of 
“other sources”, to our mind, is not justified.  If “other sources” are to be relied upon, documents of 
all WTO Members should be scanned and measures re ported in these documents should be included. 
The perception of bias needs to be reduced on this acc ount in future.  We agree with the views of the 
Director-General that the Secretariat faces resource and capacity constraints.  However, it is necessary 
that the reports presented by the Secretariat or on the Director-General’s own responsibility are as 
broad-based as possible in order for them to be considered unbiased. 
 Our second and much more serious concern is about the extremely shaky foundation on the 
basis of which the report states that 2.9% of world trade and 3.8% of G20 trade is covered by G20 trade-restrictive measures.  This is a fundamental problem that needs to be discussed.  These figures 
have been calculated using some methodology, that is still not clear to us, and only on the basis of 
tariff measures, leaving subsidies and NTMs out  completely.  Subsidies and SPS/TBT measures, 
which are both used disproportionately by the ri cher countries, have well known trade-distorting 
effects and even trade-restricting effects in the sen se used in the report.  The section on Agricultural 
Support Measures relies primarily on OECD Pro ducer Support Estimates (PSE).  Brazil has 
mentioned the infirmities of following this path and I do not want to repeat the arguments put forward 
by it, with which I am in agreement.  It needs to  be remembered that very few developing countries 
are members of the OECD.  Thus, the lacuna of leaving out subsidies needs to be addressed.  WTO 
notifications could be used to calculate agricu ltural support and industrial subsidies.  What is 
happening in agricultural subsidies is roughly what is  happening in tariffs, i.e. if there is enough water 
between the bound and applied rates, countries have the right to raise tariffs or subsidies within bound 
limits.  If the trade-distorting effect of subsidies ca nnot be quantified, then I am afraid 2.9% or 3.8% 
overhang of protectionism on global tr ade, calculated solely on the basis of so-called trade-restrictive 
measures, does not provide either a fair or unbiased picture. 
 SPS and TBT measures also have a negative trade impact on trade, as brought out amply in 
the WTO World Trade Report on Non-tariff Measures circulated on 16 July 2012.  The WTO Trade 
Report implies that NTMs are going to be used more and more as barriers to trade and, therefore, they 
also need to be quantified.  If we extend the logic of accepting the methodology of calculating the 
trade-restrictive coverage of tariff measures, then  all six-digit tariff lines against which either a 
subsidy is being given or an SPS/TBT measure has been notified, should also be included in the 
calculations on a similar footing.  With regard to the methodology used by the Secretariat, we 
perceive a few problems, which are as follows.  Pa ragraph 29 of the report states that 48% of the 342 
trade and trade-related measures recorded during th e period are trade-facilitative measures.  To get a 
balanced picture, the impact of trade-facilitative measures should be subtracted from the impact of 
trade-restrictive measures, and the latter should not just be blindly cumulated, because then we would 
only get an increasing figure with the passage of time.  We have done some calculations using the same methodology as that apparently used by the S ecretariat, which show a net reduction of 0.49% in 
the trade-restrictive measures instead  of the increase projected in the Director-General’s report for the 
period October 2008 to September 2011.   We would be happy to share our calculations with the 
Secretariat, because this has to be a collective exercise, especially when these numbers are used to 
draw wide-ranging conclusions a nd make public speeches which border on the alarmist.  To quote  WT/GC/M/137 
 Page 67 
 
 
  some figures publicly to support a particular view, wh en the facts at our disposal do not substantiate 
that view, appears to be unwarranted. 
 Another problem relates to the so-called “potentially restrictive trade measures”.  The criteria 
used to identify measures in this category is uncl ear.  The Secretariat has explained that the mere 
initiation of anti-dumping or anti-subsidies or safeg uard action can have a chilling effect on imports, 
and thus they need to be taken into account as being “potentially trade restrictive”.  To our mind, this 
is not justified.  By stretching the logic, if a dom estic industry in a country were to go to its Trade 
Minister and complain about dumped or subsidised imports and the Minister states that this is a 
serious matter and would need to be examined, this could also be construed to have the same effect.  
There would be no end of subjectivity if we were to accept such a basis for our calculations.  Future 
reports must remove such distortions.  The Secretaria t also appears to have used a very broad brush in 
making its calculations, because UNCTAD Comtrade data  used in the report is only available at the 
six- digit tariff line level.  Thus, if a country im poses an anti-dumping measure at the product level, as 
it usually does, the potential trade coverage is bei ng magnified and calculated at the much broader six-
digit level.  The figures of coverage would, theref ore, be overstated as there would be many products 
coming under a single six-digit tariff line. This is a generalization that needs to be avoided.  
 Another problem is that the effect of 5% anti-dumping duty and 50% anti-dumping duty is 
being treated in exactly the same manner, and the total bilateral trade falling under the relevant six-
digit tariff line is being considered as equally aff ected by the two trade-restrictive measures.  In 
conclusion, we would like to emphasise that be fore getting down to calculating the figures of 
protectionist or trade-restrictive or potentially trad e-restrictive measures, we need to be clear about 
our objectives, the accuracy of our database, our resource constraints, the agreed definitions and 
assumptions and then the methodology to be adopted.  First, we need to agree on what is to be 
covered under “protectionism” or “trade-restric tive measures” or “potentially trade-restrictive 
measures”.  Some of the questions that we n eed to answer are whether we should use these 
expressions to include tariffs only and if so, shou ld the tariff liberalisation or trade-facilitative 
measures not be treated on a par with trade-r estrictive measures to arrive at the net trade-
restrictive/liberalising effect?  Also, should subsid ies and NTMs be left out completely and if not, 
should we not use the same approach used for tariff measures, e.g. covering the six-digit line 
corresponding to a measure and calculating its shar e in global trade?  We are willing to engage 
intensively with other Members and with the Secret ariat in improving the next report before it comes 
out, because it is a valuable tool for our delegations  and our capitals in assessing the real impact of 
protectionism on the global economy.  For this we would request that the Secretariat, as a first step, make available the complete worksheets on the b asis of which the cumulative figures of 2.9% and 
3.8% have been arrived at. 
 
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