RESTRICTED  
  
WT/ACC/YEM/43  
 
19 November 2013 
(13-6383) Page: 1/8 
Working Party on the  
Accession of the Republic of Yemen  Original: English  
  
   
 
 
ACCESSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF YEMEN  
SUMMARY OF THE ELEVENTH  MEETING OF THE WORKING PARTY  
 The present document contains the record of the discussion , which took place during the 
Eleventh  and Final Meeting of the Working Party on the Accession of Yemen  held on 
26 September  2013. 
 
_______________  
 
 
 
 
Subjects discussed  
Page 
 
A.  Opening Statements  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..... 2 
B.  Adoption of the Accession Package of the Republic of Yemen  ................................ ..............  7 
C.  Conclusion  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..................  7 
 
 WT/ACC/YEM/43  
 
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  A.  Opening Statements  
1. The Chairperson  said that, as set -out in Airgram WT O/AIR/ 4174 of 3 September  2013, the 
purpose of the Eleventh  and Final Meeting of the Working Party on the Accession of Yemen  was to 
consider the entire draft Accession Package  of Yemen  for adoption , ad referendum , and 
transmission to the Ninth  Ministerial Conference for approval.   
2. He said that this meeting was historic in many aspects.  WTO Members and Yemen should 
take pride in the fa ct that the Accession of Yemen was being concluded on one of the National 
Days of Yemen.   He thanked Members  of the Working Party  for their engagement and 
contributions .   
3. The Representative of Yemen ( H.E. Dr. Saadaldeen Talib, Minister of Industry and Tra de of 
Yemen ) expressed appreciation to the Chairperson of the Working Party, Members and the 
Secretariat for their constant support and assistance for Yemen throughout the accession process . 
4. He reported that the internal situation in Yemen ha d improved and  stabilized considerably, 
and the country was on the right track for recuperation.  An extensive and inclusive National 
Political and Public Dialogue, l aunched in March 2013, was due to be completed in weeks .  
The outcome of this National Dialogue would pr oduce a sound framework for the New Yemen.  
Yemen's WTO Membership would be an important contribution to the "new civil modern state of 
law and order ". 
5. The Government of Yemen considered WTO Membership as a development tool and an 
opportunity to mainstream  trade into its development plans.  He believed that membership should 
result in positive progress and would significantly contribute to domestic efforts to consolidate and 
stabilize the country, and establish a credible platform for further reforms to tac kle short  and long  
term development challenges .  Yemen's WTO Accession was a critical part of its development 
strategy , especially after going through a very painful transformation process as an Arab Spring 
country since the beginning of 2011.  He emphasiz ed that WTO Accession was only an interim goal 
for Yemen to achiev e sustainable development and incorporation into rapidly growing global value 
chains.  
6. Minister Ta lib said that Yemen had been making tremendous effort to fulfil all requirements 
for WTO Memb ership.  On the multilateral front, Yemen ha d met all systemic conditions; and in 
some areas more than anticipated from an acceding LDC.  The Working Party Report had detailed 
the profound and liberal commitments that Yemen had undert aken as part of the re form of its 
trade regime .  On the bilateral market access track, Yemen had concluded 10 Bilat eral Market 
Access Agreements.   It had tried its utmost to offer more than "reasonable" concessions and 
commitments on goods and services that had gone well beyond  the General Council Decision of 
2002 Guidelines on LDCs Accession and its July 2012 Addendum 1.  This was an added ambitious 
contribution of Yemen to the WTO system.  
7. He acknowledged with admiration the excellent assistance provided by the three 
distinguis hed Facilitators for the LDC Accession s of Yeme n and Lao PDR.  In this regard, he 
conveyed the appreciation of Yemen to  H.E. Mr.  Steffen Smidt  (Denmark) - Chairperson of the 
Sub-Committee  on LDCs ; H.E. Ambassador Yi (China) , Chairperson of the Working Par ty on the 
Accession of Lao PDR;  and Mr. Hartmut  Röben  (Germany) , Chairperson of Yemen's Working Party.  
The facilitation process conducted by them, had enabled the conclusion of the  Accessions of 
Lao PDR and Yemen at their respective critical final stage s. 
8. He acknowledged the technical assistance and capacity building provided by Yemen's  
development partners, in particular the European Union,  the United States, China, India and 
several other friendly WTO Member s, as well as assista nce from the UNCTAD, ITC  and other 
regional and multilateral organizations.  WT/ACC/YEM/43  
 
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  9. In total, 26 Members1 and 3 Observer s2 intervened to welcome and convey congratulations 
to the Delegation of Yemen .  Members also expressed their appreciation to the Chairperson of the 
Working Party; other  Members of the Working Party; and the WTO Secretariat, and in particular 
the Accessions Division, for their contribution s and support for convening the Eleventh  and Final 
Meeting of the Working Party on the Accession of Yemen . 
10. The representative of Egypt  delivered a statement on behalf of the Arab  Group.  
She acknowledged extraordinary efforts exerted by the Yemeni Government to meet the demands 
of its negotiating partners despite the constraints it faced as an LDC.  She expressed the Arab 
Group's belief t hat Yemen's accession would be a valuable addition to the WTO, and conveyed her  
sincere appreciation to the WTO  Secretariat, particularly to the Accessions Division, for the hard 
work and assistance on Yemen's accession.  She stated that the length, comple xity, and tough 
nature of Yemen's negotiations were clear proof that more flexibility and technical assistance 
should be provided by WTO Members for developing and least-developed countries in their 
accession  process .  She concluded by confirming her strong support  for the adoption of Yemen's 
draft Accession Package , ad referendum , and transmission to MC9 for formal approval.    
11. The representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,  on behalf of the Asian Group of 
Developing Members, commended Yemen on its relentless work over the past 13 years, and on its 
demonstrated commitment to adhere to the principles and rules that govern ed the world trading 
order.   The breadth of the reforms made by Yemen was evidenced, in particular, by the Legislative 
Action Plan that Yemen communicated to the WTO.  He stated that the Asian Group of Developing 
Members welcomed the assistance offered by international organizations and Members to Yemen 
throughout the accession process, and supported the provision of continuous assistance to support 
Yemen in its post-accession reforms.  The Group looked forward to the forthcoming accession of 
Yemen at the 9th Ministerial Confe rence in December of this year.   
12. The representative of Nepal , on behalf of the LDC s' Consultative Group,  congratula ted 
Yemen for having successfully completed the negotiation process for accession to the WTO .  He 
express ed deep admiration to the Government of Yemen and its entire negotiating team  for the  
relentless efforts, deep understanding and flexibility that had c ontributed to the conclusion of its 
WTO accession negotiations, despite confronting many challenges and constraints during the 
process.  
13. He said that t he Accession of Yemen  had systemic importance, as it would  add further 
dynamism to the LDC s' Consultative  Group in advancing their common agenda in future 
negotiations as wel l as on agenda for the Bali Package.  Furthermore, LDCs' WTO accession s would 
help achieve the goal of universality of the multilateral trading regime .  The LDC s' Consultative 
Group reiter ated the importance of  facilitating and simplifying  the procedures associated with the 
LDC accession to the WTO .  The Group believed that Members must exercise due restraint from 
seeking unreasonable commitments from LDCs .  Consolidated financial and technical assistance 
needed to be extended to LDCs , that were acceding to the WTO .   
14. The LDC s' Consultative  Group expressed appreciation to the Chairman of the Working Party 
for his continuous  stewardship  and guidance throughout Yemen's A ccession process, and a lso 
appreciated  the catalytic and facilitating role of the Accessions Division  in helping LDCs to join the 
WTO.  Finally, they called upon the Working Party to adopt Yemen's draft A ccession Package,  
ad referendum , with a view for final fo rmal decision at MC9 in Bali .   
15. The representative of the Kingdom of Bahrain , on behalf of the Gulf Cooper ation Council 
(GCC) countries, appreciated the efforts by Yemen to conclud e its accession negotiations, including 
10 bilateral market access negotiations with WTO Me mbers.  He extended appreciation to the 
Chairperson of  the Working Party and the Secretariat  for their outstanding effort s during Yemen's 
accession process.  He believed that the accession would contribute to achieving economic 
prosperity and social developme nt in Yemen .  He also recalled the Decision adopted by the General 
 
1 Australia; Bahrain, Kingdom of (on behalf of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries); Canada; 
China; Colombia; Dominican Republic; Egypt (on behalf of the Arab Group) ; the European Union; Honduras; 
India; Japan; Jordan; Korea, Republic of; Lao PDR; Mexico; Morocco (on behalf of the African Group); Nepal 
(on behalf of the LDC Group); Oman; Pakistan; Qatar; Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of (on behalf of the Asian  Group 
of Developing Members); Chinese Taipei; Tunisia; Turkey; Ukraine; and the United States.  
2 Ethiopia, Iraq and Sudan.  WT/ACC/YEM/43  
 
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  Council to facilitate and ac celerate LDC accession s, and stressed that GCC countries strongly 
support ed the adoption of the draft Accession Package of Yemen and look ed forward to the 
forthc oming a doption of Yemen's Accession Package  at MC9.   
16. The representative of India congratulated Yemen on the successful conclusion of its 
accession negotiations and expressed the full support of her delegation for the adoption of the 
draft Accession Packag e of Yemen, ad referendum .  She applauded Yemen's commitment to the 
accession process as demonstrated by the extensive reforms implemented by Yeme n.  She 
conveyed her Government's readiness to extend support to Yemen as  it makes the transition to 
WTO Membe rship.  She also expressed her  thanks to the Chair person of the Working Party for his 
active engagement, and to the Secretariat team led by the Director of the Accessions Division for 
their diligent work in facilitating this accession.  
17. The representative o f Pakistan  commended the Delegation of Yemen for its hard work and 
unflinching commitment to its integration into the Multilateral Trading System.   He stated that 
Pakistan welcomed Yemen's accession to the WTO and strongly supported the conclusion of its 
accession to the WTO.    
18. The representative of Chinese Taipei  congratulated Yemen on reaching the final stage in its 
accession process.  He commended Yemen on its policies of economic reform and liberalization 
that had resulted in its greater integration int o the Multilateral Trading System .  He conveyed his 
wishes that Yemen's accession to the WTO would lead to rising living standards, higher 
employment, and sustained growth in real income.  He was  convinced of the greater potential for 
economic relationship  between Yemen and Chinese Taipei .  He requested more information from 
Yemen regarding its commercial environment so that the business community could further 
engage with its counterpart in Yemen on increasing the trade flows and investment.   He joined 
other Members in welcoming the adoption, ad referendum , of the draft Accession Package of 
Yemen and sending it for approval at MC9.    
19. The representative of Lao PDR  congratulated Yemen on the completion of its long journey  of 
WTO accession .  She emphasized th at despite the challenges of long, intensive and comprehensive 
work done over the past 13 years, Yemen ha d been able to implement across -the-board reforms 
to bring its legislation and foreign trade regime into compliance with WTO requirements.   She 
conveye d her appreciation for the efforts made by the Chairman of the Working Party, the 
WTO Secretariat and the Members and hoped that Lao PDR along with Yemen and other LDCs 
would mutually contribute to strengthening the Multilateral Trading System . 
20. The represe ntative of Turkey  commended the Delegation of Yemen for its efforts and 
dedication to reach this successful conclusion.  He expressed his appreciation to the Chairman of 
the Working Party as well as the Secretariat for their valuable contribution to the pr ocess.  
He confirmed Turkey's strong support for the accession of Yemen and the adoption of the draft 
Accession Package , ad referendum .  
21. The representative of Ukraine  welcome d and congratulated  the Delegation of Yemen. 
She conveyed that Ukraine strongly be lieved in the universality of the WTO , and regarded Yemen 
not only as a trading partner, as it had been for years before, but also as a partner in  guardianship 
of the system of rules for which they share d responsibility.   She expressed appreciation to the 
Chairperson  of the Working Party, the WTO Secretariat and three Facilitators3 for their assistance  
in Yemen 's accession.   She also conveyed  special appreciation  to H.E. Minister Talib, Dr. Al-Najar , 
Mr. Hamim and all Yemeni colleagues in Sana 'a, whose dedi cation to the process was outstanding 
through the years of accession.  She confirmed Ukraine's support for Yemen's accession and the 
adoption, ad referendum , of the draft Accession Package of Yemen.   
22. The representative of Oman  welcomed Yemen as one of the  closest neighbours of Oman and 
yet anoth er Arab country to join the WTO .  He stated that the accession of Yemen was a win -win 
situation not only for  Yemen but also for WTO Members .  Oman looked forward to working closely 
with Yemen in the Arab Group and i n various fora of the WTO.    
 
3 Facilitation  exercise by Ambassador Steffen Smidt (Denmark, Chairman of the LDCs' Sub -Committee); 
Ambassador Yi Xiaozhun (China); and, Mr. Hartmut Röben (Germany, Non -Resident Chairman of the Working 
Party on the Accession of Yemen)  WT/ACC/YEM/43  
 
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  23. The representative of the European Union  congratulated Yemen on its unwavering 
commitment to join the WTO despite having to cope with the deep impact of the security and 
political crisis.  The EU had made Yemen's accession a pr iority and was ready for the adoption of 
the draft Accession Package , ad referendum .  He commended Yemen for its commitment in 
passing reforms and modernising its institutional, administrative and legislative framework.  
The EU, for its part, had been at Y emen's side in this process and would continue to lend its 
support with assistance – pre- and post -accession – amoun ting to some €8 million.  Yemen had 
already benefited from the "Everything But Arms" regime and this benefit w ould continue under 
the new GSP regime start ing in January 2014.  The EU  would provide assistance through Aid for 
Trade which amount ed to €1 milli on to support Yemen's  post-accession phase.    
24. The repr esentative of  Jordan  commended Yemen for the ha rd work done during the past 
13 years to complete its accession to the WTO.  He expressed his strong support for the Accession 
of Yemen and the adoption of  its draft Accession Package , ad referendum .  He hoped to welcome 
Yemen as a full -fledged  Member to the WTO very soon . 
25. The representative of Qatar  conveyed his appreciation  to the Se cretariat for the 
documentation  and arrangements for the meeting and welco med the Delegation of Yemen to the 
final meeting of the Working Party .  He commended the hard work by Yemen .  He confirmed that 
his delegation strongly supported the adoption of the draft Accession Package of Yemen  by this 
11th formal Working Party Meeting  with a view to recommend ing the same for MC9.   
26. The representative of Tunisia  welcomed the Yemeni Delegation.   He commended  the strong 
efforts made by Yemen to meet the commitments  throughout the accession process.   He reiterated 
the excellent cooperative relation ship between Tunisia and Yemen, and confirmed that Tunisia 
supported the adoption of Yemen's draft Accession Package for submission to MC9 for approval.  
27. The representative of  Japan  welcome d the Delegati on of Yemen, and expressed his  
delegation's appreciation for the strong commitment and effort made by Yemen th roughout the 
accession process.  He stated that Japan would also like to extend its gratitude to Mr. Röben for 
his leadership and guidance throughout the process, as well as the Director of th e Accessions 
Division and his team for their support.  He confirmed that Japan  looked forward to the adoption of 
the Accession Package , ad referendum , at this meeting, and the formal adoption at the Ministerial 
Conference in  Bali. 
28. The representative of Australia congratulated Yemen on its impending accession to the WTO, 
and commended it for arriving at the finish line with a Draft Accession Package , which reflect ed the 
extensive reforms and commitments undertaken to meet t he expectations of WTO Members .  
He thanked the Chairman of the Working Party, the Facilitators, Ambassador Smidt of Denmark 
and Ambassador Yi of China, and the Secretariat for their invaluable assi stance throughout the 
process.   He stated that Australia was looking forward to approving thi s accession in Bali and 
welcoming Yemen in the WTO in the very near future.   
29. The representative of China  congratulated Yemen on its successful conclusion of the 
accession process, and commended it for the tremendous efforts and unwavering commitmen t to 
the WTO accession process.   He reiterated China's consistent support to Yemen throughout the 
accession process.  China was glad to have played a constructive part during Yemen's accession 
process, especially in  facilitating the emergence of the "Beijing Unde rstanding"  together with 
Chairman  Röben  and Ambassador Smidt on the margin s of the Beijing Round Table for LDCs under  
the China Programme in 2012.   He also highlighted that Yemen's success would send a signal of 
encouragement to those economies waiting out side the WTO for their chance to join, particularly 
the eight LDCs among them.   China looked forward to formally welcoming Yemen at MC9 in Bali 
and remained committed to working with Yemen as a full -fledged Member in various WTO 
activities.  Finally, he th anked Mr. Hartmut Rö ben for his strong leadership as Chairman of the 
Working Party and thanked the Secretariat for its dedication . 
30. The representative of Canada  thanked the Secretariat, Members, and the Chair person  of the 
Working Party, both past and presen t, for their hard work and welcomed the Yemeni Delegation .  
He noted that the WTO Membership could play an important role in the development  of a country , 
and was therefore encouraged that Canada could play a usef ul role in the Working Party.   Canada WT/ACC/YEM/43  
 
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  was p leased to support the draft Accession Package and looked forward to welcoming Yemen as 
the newest Member  of the WTO. 
31. The representative of the United States  stated  that his delegation  was pleased to join others 
in approving Yemen 's Accession Package on an ad referendum  basis, with a view to adopting it at 
the Mini sterial Conference in December.   He stated that Yemen was not the first LDC to accede to 
the WTO since 1995, but it had done so on terms that demonstrate d its dedication to economic 
and trade refor m as well as to WTO provisions.  The U nited States believed tha t the trade regime 
established , based on rules and principles that encourage d trade and investment, would benefit 
Yemen and its citizens.  
32. In its approach to  the accession  of Yemen , as with all LDC applicants, the US had ensure d a 
consistent approach with the Guidelines  on LDC Accessions.  The U S was deeply committed to the 
notion that adoption of WTO provisions c ould and did  build strong economic institutions that ha d a 
long term positive impact  on trade, economic growth and domestic devel opment for LDCs.  The 
accession  process was an amazing tool through which LDCs , like Yemen,  could  carefully c onsider 
the way in which trade could  advance the prosperity of their citizens.   
33. He commended Minister  Talib, Dr. Al-Najar, Mr. Hamim and the entire Yemeni Delegation , 
for the ir hard work which had been necessary to complete its negotiations and the skill and 
flexibility with which they had crafted this final Accession Package .  The United States looked 
forward to working wi th Yemen when it became  a WTO Member.    
34. The r epresentative of  the Republic of Korea  welcomed the Delegation of Yemen, led by 
Minister Talib and applauded the Secret ariat for its hard work.  She hoped that Yemen would be 
able to enjoy the  benefit s of the Multilateral Trading System and further liberaliz e and modernize  
its economy.   She stated that Korea welcomed the successful conclusion of the accession process 
and supported the adoption ad referendum  of the Accession Package . 
35. The represe ntative of the Dominican Republic  welcomed the Delegation of Yemen headed by 
Minister Saadaldeen Talib, and supported the approval ad referendum  of Yemen's Draft Accession 
Package , in view of  its final approval at the forthcomi ng WTO Ministerial Conference .  She stated 
that as the coordinator of the Informal Group of Developing Countries, the Dominican Republic had 
always supported the Accession of Yemen to the WTO, as well as  those of other LDCs aspiring in 
becoming a Member of this Organization.  
36. The repre sentative of Colombia  congratulated Yemen for bringing this long accession 
process to its conclusion, and also congratulated the WTO Accessions Division for its excellent 
work.  She stated that it would also be the first LDC to benefit from the operational ization of the 
2002 Guidelines on which Members worked so constructively last year.  She hoped the accession 
of Yemen would have a positive impact on the eight LDC accession procedures still under way.  
37. The representative of Mexico  welcomed H.E. Dr. Saadald een Talib  and his Delegation .  
He conveyed appreciation to Yemen, to the Chairman of this Working Party, and to the entire 
Secretariat team  for the enormous efforts through the years.   He confirmed that Mexico supported 
the ad referendum  approval of the Accession's Protocol of Yemen, and hence the recommendation 
for adoption at the Ministerial Conference.  
38. The representative of Honduras  welcomed the Yemeni  Delegation .  She commended  Yemen 
for the flexibility, energy and determination that it had shown throug hout the bilateral negotiations 
with Honduras .  She thanked the Chair person and the WTO Secretariat for their hard work.   
She confirmed the support of Honduras for the ad referendum  approval of the draft accession 
documents and their submission to MC9 in B ali for formal adoption.  
39. The representative of Iraq, an Observer and a country in its accession process, conveyed h er 
delegation's appreciation to the Chair person and the Secretariat team for the ir efforts throughout 
Yemen's accession process .  She congrat ulated Minister Talib and his team for the ir success in 
Yemen's WTO  accession.   She expressed her  admiration for the achievement of the Government of 
Yemen in streamlin ing its national legislation to pave the way for its  accession.   WT/ACC/YEM/43  
 
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  40. The representative of Ethiopia  associated himself with the statement made by the 
representative of Nepal on behalf of the LDC s' Consultative G roup.  He congratulated Yemen for 
completing its accession process and looked forward to follow ing Yemen in joining the WTO.  
He commend ed Yemen for its perseverance , displayed over the years in the process of its 
accession and , hoped that Yemen's Accession Package would be adopted ad referendum  today and 
would be subsequently endorsed at the Ninth Ministerial Conference of the WTO in Bali . 
41. The representative of Sudan  conveyed his ap preciation to the Chairman and the Secretariat 
team.  He congratulate d Minister Talib and underlined his leadership role in the successful 
completion of Yemen's accession to the WTO .  He hoped that Yemen would further integrat e into 
the world economy and make more progress economically, socially and politically.   
B.  Adoption of the Accession Package  of the Republic of Yemen  
42. The Chairperson  proposed that the Working Party consider each of the items of the draft 
Accession Package  of Yemen for adoption, ad referendum :  (i) the Draft Re port of the Working 
Party on the Accession of Yemen to the World Trade Organization ; (ii) the Draft Schedule of 
Commitments a nd Concessions on Goods; (iii) the Draft Schedule of Speci fic Commitments on 
Trade in Services and the Draft List of Article II (MFN) Exemptions ; (iv) the Draft Decision on the 
Accession of the Yemen; and, (v) the Draft Protocol of Accession.  
43. The Chairperson  proposed that the Working Party adopt , ad referendum , the Draft Report of 
the Working Party (WT/ACC/SPEC/YEM /5/Rev. 5). 
44. The Working Party so agreed . 
45. The Chairperson  proposed that the Working Party adopt , ad referendum , the Schedule of 
Concessions and Commitments on Goods (WT/ACC/SPEC/ YEM/8). 
46. The Working Party s o agreed . 
47. The Chairperson  proposed that the Working Party adopt , ad referendum , the Draft Schedule 
of Specific Commitments on Trade in Services and the Draft List of Article II (MFN) Exemptions 
(WT/ACC/SPEC/ YEM/6/Rev.2 ). 
48. The Working Party so agreed . 
49. The Chairperson  proposed that the Working Party adopt , ad referendum , the Draft Decision 
on the Accession of Yemen  (Appendix of document  WT/ACC/SPEC/YEM/5/Rev.5 , on page 135 of 
the English version ). 
50. The Working Party so agreed . 
51. The Chairperson  proposed that the Working Party adopt , ad referendum , the Draft Protocol 
of Accession of Yemen  (Appendix of document WT/ACC/SPEC/YEM/5/Rev.5 , on pages 136 138 of 
the English version ). 
52. The Working Party so agreed . 
C.  Conclusion  
53. The Chairperson  concluded that the Working Par ty had adopted , ad referendum , the 
Accession Package  of Yemen .  Therefore, the  Working Party had successfully fulfilled its mandate.   
54. Following standing practice, the WTO Secretariat would undertake the necessary technical 
updates to the Accession Package , adopted , ad referendum .  The Accession Package  of Yemen  
would be re-issued and circulated with a triple document symbol s, WT/ACC/ YEM and WT/MIN(1 3), 
for transmission to the Ninth  Ministerial Conference.   WT/ACC/YEM/43  
 
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  55. The Chairperson  would request the Chairperson of the G eneral Council and the 
Director -General to place Yemen's Accession Package on the agenda of the Ninth Ministerial 
Conference for formally action by Ministers.   
56. The Chairperson paid t ribute to Minister Talib and his team  for their commitment to pursu e 
to conclusion Yemen's accession . He praised the Government of Yemen for its admirable work in 
responding promptly and constructively to Members' requests and in putting into place 
WTO-consistent legislation.  The Chairperson  thanked Members  of the Working  Party for their 
direct engagement, goodwill  and spirit of compromise, which had enabled the successful 
conclusion of the accession process  of Yemen .   
57. He highlighted that the Accession of Yemen was a strong, positive and clear signal of 
Yemen's commitment  to engage in the global  economy .  For the WTO, the Accession of the 
Republic of Yemen meant a warm welcome for another Least -Developed Country into th e 
Multilateral Trading System.  This had systemic benefits, such as improving market access for the 
whole  WTO Membership , expanding the coverage of the multilateral trading rules, and bringing the 
WTO closer to universality of Membership .   
58. The representative of Morocco , on behalf of the African  Group , congratulated Yemen for the 
successful conclusion  of its accession process .  He commended Yemen for the remarkable 
achievements that had led this process to its final phase.  He conveyed appreciation to  the 
WTO Secretariat, in particular the Accessions Division and its Director, Mr . Chiedu Osakwe for the 
excelle nt work, and also thanked  the Chairman of the Working Party, Mr. Hartmut Röben for their 
leadership.    
59. He emphasized that Yemen's accession, together with all other LDCs' accessions , was of 
particular systemic value in the development dimension of the WTO .  He underlined that the 
complexity and difficulty of the accession negotiations clearly indicate d that WTO Members must 
provide more flexibilities for developing countries, in particular for LDCs, during their accession 
process es.   
60. In his concluding rema rks, Minister Ta lib of Yemen  expressed his sincere appreciation and 
that of the Government of Yemen to the Members of the Working Party , for their support .  
He stated that this final meeting of the Working Party marked a milestone for Yemen's accession 
to the WTO.  It  would be a new beginning and fresh start for Yemen, as a WTO Member, to 
integrate its economy into th e Multilateral Trading System.  Yemen was looking forward to the 
Ninth Ministerial Conference, where  Ministers would take a formal decision to  accept Yemen as a 
WTO Member.   
61. The Working Party took note  of the statements made.  
 
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