WT/MIN(15)/ST/42  
18 December 2015  
(15-6763)  Page: 1/2  
Ministerial Conference 
Tenth Session 
Nairobi, 15-18 December 2015  Original: French  
 
  STATEMENT BY H.E. MR MOHAMMED ABBOU 
MINISTER OF FOREIGN TRADE 
MOROCCO  
First of all, may I say how pleased I am to be participating in this Tenth Conference, the first to be 
held in an African country since our Organization was established in Marrakesh.  At the same time, I would like to congratulate Ms Amina MOHAMED, for the perfect organization, 
and Mr Roberto Azevêdo for his leadership and untiring efforts to ensure the success of our 
Conference.  
The Kingdom of Morocco remains convinced that a strong WTO is a vital component of a just and 
open multilateral trading system that offers an equitable means of integration into globalization.  
It is in this spirit that my country is making every effort to strengthen this institution by involving 
itself unreservedly in the search for compromise.  Thus, Morocco is ready to reaffirm the fundamental role of the WTO in world trade with a view to 
its further liberalization and the achievement of the development goals. 
 My country's main concerns relate to the establishment of a multilateral trading system based on 
fair and equitable rules that is capable of m eeting the challenges of economic growth and 
sustainable development faced by its Members.  
This implies the need for us to take clear decisions that reflect our commitment to the system, 
while underlining the pivotal and central role of the WTO as the leading institution responsible for the governance of world trade.  
In fact, the decision to include the Doha Round under the "Development" dimension was a move to 
correct the imbalances that characterize the multilateral trading system and penalize the developing countries. 
 
The objective of the Doha Round has been clea rly defined, namely, to improve multilateral 
disciplines and commitments so as to make them more transparent and equitable and so that they 
offer developing countries conditions which enable them to benefit from the opening up of trade. 
 Today, however, the path to achieving this goal is proving to be longer and more arduous than 
expected, since it must be acknowledged that, after 20 years of existence, the WTO has been 
unable to bring any negotiating round to a successful conclusion. 
 It should be stressed that since the Bali Conference we have been unable to come together on a 
precise and specific work programme. It now appears that the differences on several negotiating 
issues that divide us are threatening to widen the gaps between Members and compromise not only the Doha Round but also the very existence of our Organization. 
 
More than ever, it is our duty to summon up the political will to settle issues as sensitive as agriculture, industrial products, services and the comprehensive implementation of the Bali 
Package and to give concrete form to Members' commitments with respect to the LDCs. 
 WT/MIN(15)/ST/42 
- 2 - 
  Morocco is determined to make a positive contribution to the achievement of this objective in 
accordance with a transparent, flexible, fair an d balanced negotiating approach that must give 
priority to development, while upholding the prin ciples of a single undertaking and special and 
differential treatment. 
 
I cannot let this opportunity pass without reaffirming the need to allow Palestine to acquire the status of Permanent Observer Member and to reject  any attempt to politicize this issue. Likewise, I 
w i s h  t o  c o n f i r m  m y  c o u n t r y ' s  f u l l  s u p p o r t  f o r  t h e  r e q u e s t  t h a t  A r a b i c  b e  a d o p t e d  a s  a n  o f f i c i a l  
language of the WTO.  Finally, I cannot conclude without welcoming the ac cession of Afghanistan and Liberia to the WTO 
and wishing them every success. 
 
__________