WT/WGTTT/19  
 
8 November 2017  
(17-6064) Page: 1/2 
   
 
REPORT (2017 ) OF THE WORKING GRO UP ON TRADE AND  TRANSFER  
OF TECHNOLOGY TO THE GE NERAL COUNCIL  
 
1. INTRODUCTION  
1.1.  Ministers agreed, a t the Fourth Ministerial Conference in Doha in November 2001 , to "an 
examination, in a Working Group under the auspices of th e General Council, of the relationship 
between trade and transfer of technology, and of any possible recommendations on steps that 
might be taken within the mandate of the WTO to increase flows of tec hnology to developing 
countries" .1 Since then, the Worki ng Group has reported on its work at each WTO Ministerial 
Meeting. The last such report was made at the Nairobi Ministerial Conference in 2015. 
Subsequently, the Ministers had  time and again reaffirmed their ' commitment to advance the work 
of the Working G roup and instructed the General Council  to further report to the Ministerial 
Sessions . 
1.2.  Since the 2015  Report made to the Ministers at Nairobi, the Working Group has held [six] 
sessions during the period 2016 to 2017 . The reports of the meetings are cont ained in documents 
WT/WGTTT/M/51, WT/WGTTT/M/52, WT/WGTTT/M/53, WT/WGTTT/M/54 , WT/WGTT T/M/55  and 
WT/WGTTT/M/ 56. At these meetings, Members continued the analysis of the relationship between 
trade and transfer of technology, as well as considered any possible recommendations on steps 
that might be taken within the  mandate of the WTO to increase  flows of technology to developing 
countries.  
2. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN  TRADE AND TRANSFER O F TECHNOLOGY  
2.1. During the year 2016 , work on the  analysis of the relationship  between trade and transfer of 
technology  proceeded primarily on the basis of the discussion that Members  had the year before , 
on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) . 
In addition, the Working Group  benef itted from a presentation made by the delegation of Chinese 
Taipei  on its experience with innovation, technology generation and its transfer . The presentation 
highlighted their journey on the path to industrial and technological advancement over  the past 
60 years - beginning with a labour -intensive light engineering base to a high-tech knowledge -
based industry.  
2.2. In the ensuing discussion , Members found the presentation by Chinese Taipei informative 
and useful in enhancing a better understanding of the k ey role played by various actors and 
factors in innovation and technology generation. In that context, Members highlighted the crucial 
role of supportive governmental policies, availability of finance, investment flows, research and 
development, educationa l institutes, human resource and infrastructure development.  
2.3. In underlining  the importance of technology and technical know -how in improving 
productivity, promoting export growth and attaining the development aspirations of the developing 
countries a nd least developed countries,  the proponents reiterated  their request for sharing of 
national experiences, particularly by those Members that have undergone rapid development in 
the last few decades. It was felt that such experience -sharing would not only enrich the discussion 
in the Working Group but would also help t echnology -deficient countries  make more informed 
choices in their purs uit on the path to development.  
                                                
1 Paragraph 37 of document WT/MIN/(01)/DEC/1.   WT/WGTTT/1 9 
 
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  2.4. During the year 2017 , Members continued their discussion on the relationship between trade 
and transfer of technology, albeit at a lacklustre pace and with a low level of engagement.  
Members that engaged felt  that the  key component of any technology -transfer process was the 
effective transfer of the skills and intangible know -how, successf ul learning and the effective 
application of such knowledge in  enhancing production capability , securing economies of scale and 
achieving improvement in product quality. Economies, in their efforts to harness development , 
were putting greater emphasis on attracting  foreign direct investment  (FDI) and technology.  
 
2.5. At one o f the meeting s, one Member suggested  that a presentation by the Secretariat on the 
work thus far undertaken in the Working Group might possibly  rejuvenate the discussions. This 
sugges tion did not, however, gather support from the other Members.  
 
2.6. In addition, in efforts to stimulate substantive discussions in the Working Group, the 
Chairpe rson held a series of bilateral and plurilateral  consultations.  
 
2.7. At the October 2017 meet ing, the discussion  underscored the role that technology can play 
as a driver of trade and economic development. Some Members felt that the p ath to innovation 
and technology could lead  to development and industrialization creating wealth, jobs and 
improvin g standards of living.  They felt  that rapid technological advances and increasingly 
information -driven global economy were impacting on the competitiveness and market 
opportunities of specific groups and regions – a problem  which a number of countries were  
struggling to address. Constructive and meaningful work in the Working Group could help address 
these challenges. For this to happen , the Group needed to target discussion on specific and 
practical ways to address the needs and challenges faced by develop ing countries, in particular the 
LDCs. In this context , it was very important to share experiences and concrete examples on how 
Members , which  had made  rapid advances on the technology frontier , had overco me similar 
difficulties. The crucial role of techno logy transfer in preserving the eco -system was also 
underlined.  
3. ANY POSSIBLE RECOMME NDATIONS ON THE STEP S THAT MIGHT BE TAKE N 
 WITHIN THE MANDATE O F THE WTO TO INCREAS E FLOWS OF TECHNOLOG Y TO 
 DEVELOPING COUNTRIES  
3.1. During 2016 , Members continued  to discuss a submission  made earlier  by India, Pakistan 
and the Philippines entitled "Facilitating Access to Information on Appropriate Technology 
Sourcing  - A Step to Increase Flows of Technology to Developing Countries ". A number  of 
Members commented and ra ised questions on certain  elements that were contained in  the 
document.  The proponents , on their part, indicated that they were reviewing their proposals and 
hoped to  develop a revised submission which they would  table in the Working Group .  
3.2. Continuin g to discuss this submission i n 2017, the proponents informed  the Group  that they 
were still in the process of revising their submission and that they intended to table it in the near 
future.  The Chair encouraged the proponents to do so at the earliest so as to enable the Working 
Group to engage in a productive discussion on the recommendations with a view to fulfilling its 
mandate.  
4. FUTURE WORK  
4.1. Members have continued their examin ation of  the relationship between trade and transfer of 
technology and  have also considered  possible recommendati ons on steps that might be made  
within the mandate of the WTO to increase flows of technolo gy to developing countries. The 
ongoing work  has covered a number of issues and has  helped to enhance Members' understandi ng 
of the complex nexus between trade and transfer of technology. With that in mind, Members felt 
that progress would require enhanced active engagement from the Membership.  
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