JOB/AG/ 142 
 
26 July 2018  
(18-4741) Page: 1/3 
Committee on Agriculture  
Special Session    
 
REPORT BY AMB. J. R. D. (DEEP) FO RD, CHAIR OF THE COA SPECIAL SESSION , 
TO THE INFORMAL TNC AND HOD S MEETING  
24 JULY 2018  
 
1.   Thank you Director General.  
 
2.   I would like to make a brief report on the state of play in the agriculture negotiations.  
 
3.   Since my last  report to the informal meeting of the Trade Negotiation Committee on 7 May, I 
held: (i) several consultations in various formats , (ii) two informal open -ended meetings of the 
Committee on Agriculture in Special Session on 24 May and more recently on 16 Ju ly and (iii) a 
Dedicated Discussion on trade -related developments for cotton on 19 June. The 16 July CoA 
Special Session  meeting was followed by the two dedicated sessions on PSH and SSM.  
 
4.   My reports to the CoA S pecial Session  meetings were circulated in two sets of documents 
JOB/AG/136 dated 24 May and JOB/AG/140 dated 20 July. I also held a series of consultations 
with Members and group coordinators and was invited to participate in the activities of some 
groups.  
 
5.   My key take -aways before the summer recess can be summarized as follows:  
 
6.   The importance of agriculture reforms and the centrality of agriculture in the WTO negotiations 
was emphasised by almost all Members, who said essentially that disciplines are needed to 
prevent  those subsidies that distort agricultural trade.  
 
7.   Members engaged actively in the discussions. This engagement was reflected in the number of 
submissions put forward in advance of the meeting on 16 July and I was very encouraged by the 
intensity and the q uality of the subsequent exchange of views amongst Members.  
 
8.   Transparency was considered crucial and emphasised by many Members. It was thought that 
adequate and up -to-date information, including th rough up -to-date notifications, complemented by 
adequate analysis and impact studies were necessary to enhance the understanding of issues on 
the table and to inform the discussions.  
 
9.    Several Members considered that it would be advisable to ensure sufficient time for 
preliminary technical work amongst experts t o discuss and analyse the data. However, some  
Members emphasized that this should not be done at the expense of the negotiations.  
 
10.   Several Members considered that the June symposium organized by the S ecretariat had been 
very use ful due in part to the parti cipation of external experts. It was noted by some Members 
that it would be useful to continue to have access to the views, opinions and analysis of external 
experts as inputs into the negotiations.  
 
11.    Several Members stressed that the agriculture negotiati ons should be approached in the 
broader context of the UN sustainable development goals, including those relating to "No poverty" 
or "zero hunger", while some noted such an approach should not be given precedence over WTO's 
own objectives, mandates and agr eements.  
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  12.   On substance, Domestic Support remains the priority issue for most Members and the centre 
piece of the agriculture negotiations, but views differ on how this topic should be approached. 
There were many requests for more information and data to enable Members to focus on the 
divisive  issues in the Domestic Support negotiations. The divide here evolves around issues such 
as: (a) potential for  AMS reductions , (b) the treatment of other types of trade -distorting support , 
and (c) linkages to other ar eas such as Market Access and Public Stockholding . 
 
13.   Cotton is also an area of prime interest for many delegations. It was identified as a high 
priority by the C4 and several other delegations. There was also broad agreement on the need for 
updated informat ion and data to inform the cotton negotiations. The divide here was mainly 
around : (a) whether there can be a stand -alone outcome on cotton Domestic Support and (b) the 
type of approach to address trade -distorting support for cotton.  
 
14.   With respect to PSH . Many Members stated that it was a priority issue for them and should be 
addressed expeditiously given that the MC11 deadline had not been respected. The key divide here 
evolves around: (a) linkages between this issue and other issues and (b) the willingness of 
different Members to get into substantive discussions. Whereas some Members called for a 
standalone outcome, others stated that progress on this issue would only be possible if 
corresponding progress was made on domestic support gener ally. A few Members even cast 
doubts on the possibility of reviving the debates surrounding the Public Stockholding issue.  
 
15.   Regarding Market Access . The discussions seemed to reveal an emerging willingness within 
the Membership to explore engagement on the  relevant issues related to Market Access. Some 
Members believed that the inclusion of market access in the negotiations would provide the 
necessary balance to the negotiating basket. It was suggested to focus on specific issues, like tariff 
peaks, tariff escalation, s pecial agricultural safeguard and  reducing tariff overhang with a view to 
achieving incremental outcomes . The divide here revolves around: (i) the appetite to engage and 
progress in agricultural market access prior to making progress in the do mestic support pillar; (ii) 
linkage with negotiations  in NAMA and trad e in services. Some also shared the view  that the 
proliferation of regional trade agreements doesn't facilitate Members' engagement in multilateral 
market access negotiations.  
 
16.   With resp ect to the creation of a Special Safeguard Mechanism  for developing countries . This 
is also considered to be a priority issue by some Members . The key to making progress continues 
to depend on Members' overcoming the fundamental divide on the issue of link age between SSM 
and broader market access reforms. In the absence of parallel improvement in market access, an 
SSM is seen by some Members as compromising the fundamental principle of WTO tariff bindings 
by way of regressing on the existing market access c ommitments; this perc eption has constrained 
the engagement among Members on this topic.  
 
17.   Export Competitio n is still being considered as "unfinished business"  by some Members, and 
there may be work to be done in the areas of export finance, international F ood Aid and STEs.  
 
18.   Export Restrictions was again highlighted as a possible deliverable by several Members while 
some Members reiterated their concerns, notably in relation to any additional compulsory 
transparency requirements such as the advance period fo r notification.  
 
19.    Finally, the divide remains with regards to how SDT should be addressed and also when it 
should be addressed in the agricultural negotiation . 
 
20.   Discussions also continue on how the negotiations should proceed, whether different issues 
should be taken up simultaneously or sequentially, which issues should be addressed as a matter 
of priority and which issues should or should not be linked within and outside agriculture. While 
several Members consider that progress can only be envisaged throu gh incremental steps, views 
differ on how this could be achieved in practice.  
 
21.    Members generally recognize the need for more flexibility, however it is my reading that this 
recognition has not translated sufficiently on substance. It is also recognized th at the current 
political and policy -making environment may be limiting the room for manoeuvre.  
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  22.   Nevertheless, several Members highlighted the increasing urgency to restore the credibility of 
the WTO insofar as it is the principal international trade negoti ations forum. In that regard, there 
were several calls for Members to redouble their efforts and find solutions to the challenges being 
faced in the agriculture negotiations.  
 
23.   I committed in my last report to you in May:  
 
a. To engage much more interactively;  
b. To engage sooner rather than later;  
c. and to p rovide, share  and use information in ways that help to forge a consensus.  
 
24.   I will continue to uphold this commitment and urge Members to be proactive, innovative and 
flexible and to engage with each other in a c onstructive manner . 
 
25.   After the summer break, m y intention is to hold more issues -specific agriculture negotiation 
meetings on a monthly basis alongside continued consultations in several formats.  
 
26.   Over the coming days  I will send Members a schedule to guid e work after the summer break . 
This will give Members the necessary ti me to prepare their submissions .  
 
27.    This ends my report.  
 
 
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