RESTRICTED  
  
WT/COMTD/LDC/M/77  
 
8 June 2016  
(16-3128)  Page: 1/13  
Sub-Committee on Least Developed Countries 
Seventy-Seventh Session    
 
 NOTE ON THE MEETING OF 13 APRIL 2016 
Chairperson: Ambassador Roderick Van Schreven (Netherlands) 
 
A. ADOPTION OF TH E AGENDA .................................................................................... 1  
B. MARKET ACCESS FOR LEAST DEVELOPED CO UNTRIES ............................................. 2  
-  Market Access for Products and Services of Export Interest to Least Developed 
Countries (WT/COMTD/LDC/W/60): Update by th e Secretariat on Recent Trends in LDC 
Trade  ........................................................................................................................ ..... 2 
-  Annual Review of the Developments in Preferential Rules of Origin for LDCs in the 
Committee on Rules of Origin (G/RO/77): Oral Report by th e Secretariat .................................. 5  
C. TRADE-RELATED TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND CAPACITY-BUILDING 
INITIATIVES FOR LEAST DE VELOPED COUN TRIES ........................................................... 7  
-  Study on Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Issues in Diagnostic Trade Integration 
Studies (DTIS): Briefing by the Secretariats of the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) 
and the Standards and Trade Deve lopment Facility  (STDF) ..................................................... 7  
D. FOLLOW-UP TO MINISTERIAL DE CISIONS/DECLAR ATIONS .................................. 10  
-  Follow-up to Ministerial Declarations and Decisions Taken in Favour of Least 
Developed Countries (WT/COMTD/LDC/W/62) ...................................................................... 10 
E. OTHER BUSINESS .................................................................................................. 12  
 
 
A. ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA 
1. The Chairman thanked Members for re-electing him. He, and his Government, attached high 
importance to development issues. He believed that the WTO could provide enhanced 
opportunities to LDCs to expand their trade and accelerate economic growth. 
2. The Chairman informed Members that the agenda for the Sub-Committee on Least 
Developed Countries (hereinafter Sub-Committee) was contained in document 
WTO/AIR/COMTD/LDC/4 and that a change in the date of the meeting had been communicated in 
document WTO/AIR/COMTD/LDC/4/Corr.1. 
3. The representative of the United Nations Indu strial Development Organization (UNIDO) said 
that, under the Agenda item on "Other Business", he wished to report on the 2015 LDC Ministerial 
Conference organized jointly by UNIDO and the UN Office of the High Representative for Least 
Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Co untries and Small Island Developing States 
(UN-OHRLLS). 
4. The agenda was adopted as amended. WT/COMTD/LDC/M/77 
 
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  B. MARKET ACCESS FOR LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES 
- Market Access for Products and Services of Export Interest to Least Developed 
Countries (WT/COMTD/LDC/W/60): Update by the Secretariat on Recent Trends in LDC Trade 
5. The Chairman recalled discussions on the Secretariat Note contained in document 
WT/COMTD/LDC/W/60 at the 76th Session of the Sub-Committee. Members had expressed 
appreciation for the study, in particular for its historical perspective on LDC trade starting from 
1995. Suggestions had been made to include addition al statistics in future editions of the Note 
such as on the evolution of LDC exports by product-group vis-à-vis  the world and on market 
destinations of LDC services exports. Some Memb ers had suggested carrying out a deeper analysis 
on certain issues such as export diversification, and suggestions had been made for thematic 
discussions. He noted that the Sub-Committee had been reflecting on how to make best use of the 
wealth of information provided in the Note. He invited the Secretariat to provide an update on the most recent trends in LDC trade. 
6. The representative of the Secretariat (Chief St atistician) said that the value of world trade 
had fallen by 12% in 2015. Merchandise export s had dropped by 13.5% and service exports, 
which had a much smaller value, had decreased by 6.5%. The decline in prices for primary 
commodities, by about 50% in less than two years,  explained a lot of the drop in the value of 
merchandise exports. In the case of services trad e, there were no comparable price indices. The 
unit cost of transport and travel might have decr eased due to lower fuel prices and a lower value 
of the Euro relative to the US dollar, respective ly. In terms of volumes, trade growth had been 
2.8% in 2015, similar to the growth of GDP. Whil e the world trade to income elasticity had fallen 
from 1:3 in the 1990s and early 2000s to 1:1 recent ly, the world trade to gross domestic product 
(GDP) ratio remained at 25%, which was high from a historical perspective. 
7. He went on to elaborate on trends in commodity prices, which were of particular importance 
for the LDCs. The year 2015 had seen a steep reduct ion in commodity prices, especially of fuels. 
For exporters, this decline had been partially co mpensated by an increase in the dollar exchange 
rate. He pointed out that the reasons for the decline in commodity prices included lower demand 
by China and increased world supply of commodities. Financial volatility was also responsible for higher uncertainty and lower investment, further re ducing demand for minerals and oil. Regarding 
trade forecasts, he mentioned that trade was estimated to grow 2.8% in 2016, the same rate as in 
2015, and 3.6% in 2017. He believed that slower demand from developing Asia would be 
compensated by higher demand from developed countries. 
8. He went on to mention that LDC exports had increased faster than world trade since 2005. 
However, the value of LDC merchandise exports had decreased by 25% in 2015 as compared to a 
13.5% fall of world merchandise exports. The decrease in LDC merchandise exports had been mainly due to a price effect, as preliminary data pointed to an increase of exports in volume 
terms. He expressed concern on the widening tr ade deficit of LDCs, which stood at US$130 billion 
in 2015. 
9. He said that LDCs had continued their positive  trend in manufacturing exports, despite some 
short-term fluctuations. This growth was driven by  a few Asian LDCs involved  with labour-intensive 
manufacturing products such as apparels. It was encouraging to see that the LDCs were able to 
gain market share in manufacturing, which had positive social and development impacts. Another positive trend was the increasing participation of LDCs in commercial services trade. While 
merchandise exports had declined in 2015, LDC services exports had increased by 3% to 
US$36.1 billion. He mentioned that the 2.7% declin e in LDC services imports might have reflected 
lower transport costs. The positive growth in LDC services exports was driven by transport services 
(2.9%) and particularly travel (13.9%), while exports of other commercial services witnessed a 
decline (-11.7%). 
10. He continued by saying that market access granted by developed country Members had 
remained stable. Tariffs on agricultural products were low. The average tariff on clothing remained 
higher as one large importer excluded Asian LD Cs from preferences. A number of developing 
country Members had also taken concrete steps to provide duty-free access to LDCs. He said that 
the Secretariat had been facing difficulties in elaborating the relevant indicators vis-à-vis WT/COMTD/LDC/M/77 
 
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  developing country Members. He encouraged de veloping country Members to notify trade and 
preferential tariff data in order to allow the calc ulation of preferential market access indicators for 
LDCs. He also mentioned that the Secretariat was collaborating with UNCTAD to support LDCs and other developing countries in adapting the custom s administration software Automated System for 
Customs Data (ASYCUDA) to produce better trade statistics. 
11. Following the presentation of the Chief Statisti cian, another representative of the Secretariat 
informed the Sub-Committee about a forthcoming capacity-building course on trade in services 
statistics for LDCs. The course would be sponsore d by the WTO and would take place at the WTO 
from 14 to 18 November 2016. It would be conducted in English. A French course was also considered for 2017. She said that statisticians in LDCs would be invited to submit examples of difficulties they faced with data collection with a view to find possible solutions. 
12. She further said that an informal roundtable discussion, as part of the course, with delegates 
and statisticians from LDCs would provide a unique opportunity to exchange information on services data needs. The course was a first st ep towards a more comprehensive approach to 
capacity building in the area of trade in services statistics, which was currently developed by the 
Secretariat in cooperation with the Inter-Agency Task Force on International Trade Statistics. She noted that the development of trade in services statistics was listed among the priority areas 
under the WTO Technical Assistance and Training Plan for 2016-2017. She informed Members that 
invitation letters for the course would be issued soon. 
13. The Chairman thanked the Secretariat for the pr esentation. He underlined the implications of 
a continuing trade deficit for debt repayments, in particular regarding the risks associated with 
increasing interest rates and costlier debt in the long term. He also inquired whether the decrease 
in the value of agricultural exports reflected only a fall in price or also a fall in volume. He reiterated the call by the Secretariat for notifications by developing country Members on 
preferential market access. He highlighted the importance of credible statistics for drawing 
conclusions and developing policies. 
14. The representative of Guinea thanked the Secretariat for the report on the trends in LDC 
trade. A large number of LDCs had been reliant on exports of primary commodities. She expressed 
an interest in learning more about the effect of the Ebola epidemic on the exports of primary 
commodities and agricultural products by the three affected LDCs, namely, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. She asked the Secretariat whether the statistics had taken this into account and 
whether the Secretariat planned to conduct an impact study of this particular epidemic on these 
three economies.  
15. The representative of Bangladesh thanked the Chairman for taking leadership of the 
Sub-Committee for another year. He thanked the Secretariat for the update. He pointed to the 
dependence of LDC exports on oil and other primary commodities. He stressed the need for separating primary commodities from LDC trade statistics to better understand the overall trends 
in LDC trade. He mentioned that, despite steady growth, LDC exports of manufactures were still 
too low, accounting for less than 1% of world ma nufacturing exports. He pointed out that the 
merchandise trade deficit had been only US$13 billion in 1995 as compared to US$130 billion in 2015. He asked how the LDCs could develop their manufacturing sectors to reduce their trade 
imbalance in manufactures. He also remarked on the high duties that the LDCs faced in clothing 
items. Tariffs had continued to be high on items that the LDC could export. Referring to the increase in exports of transport services, he indicated that he had difficulties in understanding 
what type of exports the statistics on transport services exports actually measured. He thanked 
the Secretariat for organizing the workshop on services trade statistics. He thought it would be useful to assist the LDCs to identify what the se rvices preferences actually were and how the LDCs 
could use them. 
16. The representative of Haiti thanked the Secretariat for the useful presentation. Supporting 
the intervention of Bangladesh, he said that due to the high level of aggregation of services trade 
statistics, policymakers would find it difficult to understand their implications and identify 
appropriate measures. Referring to the example of transport services, he mentioned that 
disaggregated statistics by transport sub-category would help policymakers determine where efforts needed to be made. He welcomed the course on trade in services statistics as the collection 
of services trade statistics constituted a challe nge for the LDCs. He hoped that French-speaking 
LDCs would be able to participate in the English course. WT/COMTD/LDC/M/77 
 
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  17. The representative of the United States thanked the Secretariat for the interesting 
presentation. She mentioned that the update high lighted some worrying trends, though there were 
some positive trends such as the growth in LD C services exports. She underscored the need for 
LDCs to diversify their economies. She recalled the Nairobi Ministerial Declaration where Ministers 
committed to redouble their efforts to assist LDCs in securing a beneficial and meaningful 
integration into the multilateral trading system (MTS) and reaffirmed the importance of work in 
WTO regular bodies to facilitate meaningful exchan ge of information and sharing of experiences. 
She noted that her delegation agreed to reinvigorate that work and was committed to working 
closely with the LDC Group, other Members and the Chairman to further deepen the discussion in the Sub-Committee on how LDCs could harness trade to promote their economic development. 
18. The representative of China congratulated the Chairman on his re-election. He thanked the 
Secretariat for the update. He recalled that the WTO had reduced the forecast of world trade 
growth from 3.9% to 2.8% for 2016. While the global economy and trade were experiencing a 
difficult time, the needs of LDCs, which were more vulnerable to global market fluctuations, should 
be given special attention. He noted that China was the largest export destination for LDCs, and 
had been taking all possible measures to expand market access for LDCs in both goods and services. China would continue to explore ways to expand imports from LDCs, including taking 
trade facilitation measures. Pointing to strong Chinese trade growth in March 2016 and a rebound 
in China's external trade pioneering index, he expressed hope that the LDCs would benefit from that positive trend. He said that China was ready to work closely with the LDCs and other Members with a view to integrate LDCs into the MTS in a more effective manner. 
19. The representative of Nepal congratulated the Chairman on his re-election and thanked the 
Secretariat for the comprehensive presentation. He was encouraged to note that, despite the 
decline in global trade, LDC trade was growing gradually though at a slow pace. However, given 
that the LDCs' share in global trade still hovered around 1%, he stressed the need to strengthen 
manufacturing and services exports. Referring t o  t h e  d e p e n d e n c e  o f  s o m e  L D C s  o n  p r i m a r y  
commodities and the recent decline in prices of those commodities, he stressed the need for more 
substantive support to help LDCs diversify their exports, which could help reduce their trade 
deficit. 
20. The representative of the Secretariat (Chief St atistician) expressed his appreciation for the 
interest of Members in trade statistics. He noted that the Secretariat faced the challenge of 
working with limited resources. Referring to the intervention by Haiti, he said that it would be 
possible to provide more details for products and sectors. He suggested having a general study every two years with detailed statistics. For the years in-between, he suggested that specialized 
studies could be undertaken on particular subjects according to the demands and interests of 
Members. He indicated that Members could select a particular subject of interest for a future report. He explained that falling agricultural expo rts could also be explained by growing incomes in 
LDCs, which were leading to higher demand for agricultural products in terms of both quantity and 
quality. While a higher quality of life and demand for processed products were positive developments, it also implied that LDCs might find it more difficult to produce enough to meet this demand. He indicated that this could be the focus of a thematic study, perhaps in collaboration 
with the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO).  
21. He agreed with the representative of Banglade sh that the growing trade deficit constituted a 
challenge that needed to be addressed. He ment ioned that remittances, which were an important 
factor in financing trade deficits, might be adversely affected by the decline in oil prices as many 
expatriate workers worked in the Gulf States. He mentioned that it would be possible to prepare a study on the vulnerability of LDC exports to natural disasters if Members requested it. He 
remarked that the Ebola virus did not only affect agricultural exports but also tourism, which 
constituted an additional factor of vulnerability for these countries.  
22. He pointed out that in order to support LDCs in  fostering their manufacturing exports, it was 
important to lower transport costs and improve trade facilitation, including by implementing the 
Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA). He explained that diversification into manufacturing required 
broader efforts, including joining global value chains (GVCs). In the case of clothing, this meant that one would be able to supply to lead firms and to satisfy quality criteria, which included 
just-in-time delivery. WT/COMTD/LDC/M/77 
 
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  23. The Chairman noted the progress made in the Sub-Committee's discussion on statistics, 
including the quality information on the LDCs. This allowed for discussions on the obstacles faced 
by the LDCs. He trusted that the analysis of LDC trade and market access conditions was making an important contribution to the Sub-Committee's efforts to review the different factors that 
shaped LDC trade.  
24. He noted that developments in the world economy posed significant challenges for the LDCs. 
The decline in the prices of primary commodities  and lower demand from developing economies 
had resulted in negative growth in the value of  LDC merchandise exports in 2015. LDCs faced an 
increased need to diversify their exports. An encouraging sign was therefore the continuing positive trend in services exports and the progre ss made on the operationalization of the LDC 
services waiver. Since the last Sub-Committee meeting, eight Members had notified services 
preferences, bringing the total number of notifications to 23. 
25. He proposed that the Sub-Committee take note of the update provided by the Secretariat, 
as well as the statements made. 
26. It was so agreed.  
- Annual Review of the Developments in Pref erential Rules of Origin for LDCs in the 
Committee on Rules of Origin (G/RO/77 ): Oral Report by the Secretariat 
27. The Chairman recalled that according to the Ministerial Decisions taken in Bali and Nairobi, 
the Secretariat was to provide the Sub-Committee with a report on the outcome of the annual 
review undertaken by the Committee on Rules of Origin (CRO). He indicated that a report to the General Council on the annual review held on 15 October 2015 by the CRO was contained in 
document G/RO/77. He invited the Secretariat to provide a report on the deliberations of the CRO. 
28. The representative of the Secretariat (Direc tor, Market Access Division) recalled that 
pursuant to the Bali Ministerial Decision, the CRO was required to annually review the 
developments in preferential rules of origin applic able to imports from LDCs and submit a report to 
the General Council. In addition, the Decision required the Secretariat to annually provide the Sub-Committee with a report on the outcome of such review. 
29. She recalled that the CRO had conducted a review of developments in the area of 
preferential rules of origin for LDCs during its m eeting on 15 October 2015. A report of such review 
had been submitted to the General Council in document G/RO/77. She highlighted three elements from the 2015 review. First, Members had considered the rules of origin applicable to imports from 
LDCs under the new preferential scheme by Thailand (G/RO/N/130/Corr.1). Second, Members had 
considered the rules of origin applicable under  the preferential scheme being implemented by 
China (G/RO/N/132). Finally, Members had heard a presentation from Japan concerning 
modifications made to the rules applicable to LDC preferences (G/RO/N/131). These modifications 
related mainly to the simplification of the origin requirements applied to certain articles of apparel in HS Chapter 61. For such products, the rules had changed from a double transformation to a 
simple transformation requirement. 
30. She went on to say that at the review, the Chairman of the CRO had reminded all 
delegations to notify any new or modified pr eferential rules, including aspects such as 
product-specific rules, rules on cumulation and any certification or administrative requirements. He 
had also underlined that rules of origin were an essential element in order to enhance trade and 
had invited all Members to develop or build their individual rules of origin in accordance with 
provisions contained in the Ministerial Decision. 
31. The representative of Uganda, on behalf of th e Coordinator of the LDC Group, congratulated 
the Chairman on his re-election. His period of Chairmanship had come at a time when there would 
be focus on the implementation of the LDC Decisions in Nairobi as well as monitoring of all LDC 
Decisions taken since Hong Kong. 
32. He mentioned that the Tenth WTO Ministerial Conference (MC10) outcomes were of critical 
importance to the LDCs. The first meeting of th e Sub-Committee was therefore important to help WT/COMTD/LDC/M/77 
 
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  set the tone and pace for implementing those decisi ons to ensure that the LDCs fully integrate into 
the MTS. 
33. He expressed appreciation to those Members that had notified preferences for LDCs, in 
particular in the area of services trade. The LDCs were examining these notifications and had 
started bilateral consultations with some Members to clarify certain elements. He also appealed to 
Members to provide assistance to LDCs to enable  them to benefit from the preferences provided. 
In order to ensure the effectiveness of these measures, it was necessary that Members informed 
their national regulators on the preferential tr eatment that was granted to LDCs services and 
services suppliers. In view of the need and effect iveness of the implementation of the preferences 
for duty-free and quota-free (DFQF) market access, he urged the Sub-Committee, in conjunction with the LDC Group, to consider the develo pment of a commercial profile for each LDC. 
34. He said that the LDC Group welcomed the Nairobi Decision on preferential rules of origin and 
invited developed country Members, and developing country Members that were in the position to do so, to make the necessary internal reforms to facilitate the implementation of that Decision. He 
took note of the report of the CRO in the session of the General Council and echoed the call of the 
Chairman of the CRO to all Members to develop or expand their individual rules of origin in accordance with the Nairobi Decision. He informed Members that the LDCs had made a submission 
to the CRO to be considered at the session of 22 April 2016, with a view to contributing to a rapid 
implementation of the Nairobi Decision. 
35. The representative of Tanzania thanked the Secretariat for the report and associated himself 
with the statement made by the representative of Uganda. He remarked that rules of origin played 
a facilitative role in trade and that a continued improvement in the rules of origin applicable to 
products from LDCs was important to better integrate LDCs into the MTS. He welcomed the efforts by preference-granting countries to improve or si mplify their rules of origin with a view to 
implement the Nairobi Decision. Regarding the m eeting of the CRO on 22 April 2016, he looked 
forward to receiving responses from Members regard ing the questions that the LDCs had raised on 
how the CRO would carry forward some of the remaining work which emanated from the Nairobi 
Ministerial Decision. 
36. The representative of Nepal thanked the Secretar iat for the report on preferential rules of 
origin. He also thanked all Members for adopting the Decision on preferential rules of origin in 
Nairobi, which constituted a milestone. He called upon all preference-granting Members to pay 
special attention to revise their existing preferential rules of origin in line with the Nairobi Decision. 
He expressed hope that the implementation of the Nairobi Decision would support the LDCs to enhance their exports and reduce their trade deficit. 
37. The Chairman said that preferential rules of origin was an area where considerable progress 
had been made in recent years. The Decision on pr eferential rules of origins for LDCs constituted a 
key element of the Nairobi package. It provided Members with concrete guidance regarding the 
assessment of substantial transformation, cumulation possibilities and documentary requirements. 
The Decision had also strengthened transparency . Members had introduced new preferential rules 
of origin or had modified existing ones in the recent past. He encouraged Members to continue their efforts to make preferential rules of origin  as transparent and simple as possible to further 
facilitate the utilization of preferences by LDCs.  
38. He suggested that the Sub-Committee take note of  the report provided by the Secretariat as 
well as the statements made. 
39. It was so agreed. WT/COMTD/LDC/M/77 
 
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  C. TRADE-RELATED TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND CAPACITY-BUILDING INITIATIVES 
FOR LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES 
- Study on Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Issues in Diagnostic Trade Integration 
Studies (DTIS): Briefing by the Secretariats of the Enhanced Integrated Framework 
(EIF) and the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF) 
40. The Chairman recalled that the Work Programme for the Least Developed Countries 
mandated the Sub-Committee to monitor capacity-building initiatives taken in favour of LDCs to 
promote information flows and coordination. He said that the Secretariats of the Enhanced 
Integrated Framework (EIF) and the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF) would brief 
the Sub-Committee on a joint study, which analysed the coverage of sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) issues in Diagnostic Trade Integration Studies (DTISs).  
41. He remarked that compliance wi th SPS measures related to agricultural exports constituted 
a challenge for many LDCs. The STDF was a capacity-building initiative to help developing countries enhance their capacity to comply with these measures. The purpose of DTISs was to 
identify trade opportunities and to recommend actions to address particular challenges, including 
those related to compliance with SPS measures. He invited the two Secretariats to brief the Sub-Committee on the findings of the joint study. 
42. The representative of the STDF Secretariat expl ained the reasons that made it important to 
analyse and improve the coverage of SPS issues in DTISs. The analysis of obstacles to trade could 
allow the EIF to play its role as a planning tool for LDCs to promote trade as a driver of economic growth. It also allowed developing appropriate recommendations and mobilizing necessary 
resources to this effect.  
43. She mentioned that, while the volume of world trade of agricultural products had increased 
by 60% between 2000 and 2012, the market share of  LDCs had been declining, except for fresh 
fruit and vegetables. She stressed that non-ta riff measures, particularly SPS measures, were 
among the main challenges for agricultural products from LDCs. The ability of the LDCs to control this risk was therefore important to obtain access to foreign markets. She explained that the 
rejection of cargo due to violation of SPS measur es resulted in stricter controls by importing 
countries, higher transaction costs for exporting LDCs and loss of trust in the competent authorities of the exporting LDCs. Referring to a recent study by UNIDO, she mentioned that the 
rejection of cargos due to non-respect of SPS rules in four agricultural sectors between 2000 and 
2012 by the US affected US$80 million worth of cargo per year. She also highlighted the 
importance of the SPS system for the productive ca pacity of countries in terms of exports, food 
safety and biodiversity, by protecting the ecosystem against the arrival and the propagation of 
exotic species, which could destroy the production capacities of a country.  
44. She went on to explain the rationale of the collaboration between the STDF and the EIF on 
this study. This study related to the role of the STDF as a platform for information exchange, for 
disseminating good practices and strengthening collaboration in SPS capacity building. She pointed 
to the tradition of cooperation between the STDF and the EIF, where the STDF provided advice and comments on draft DTISs and SPS-related Tier II projects. She mentioned that it was important to enhance this cooperation to harness the benefits that the LDCs could draw from the two 
mechanisms.  
45. The representative of the EIF Secretariat noted that the EIF Programme had entered its 
second phase in 2016 (2016-2022). He invited Members to attend a DTIS workshop on 
19 April 2016 and the EIF Steering Committee meeting on 21 April 2016. He highlighted the 
importance of agriculture and SPS issues for the LD Cs. More than half of the EIF Tier II projects 
dealt with agriculture, agribusiness or standards. He mentioned that the EIF was linking to key 
agricultural stakeholders through the global donor platform on rural development and was 
collaborating with organizations such as the FAO on the mainstreaming of trade into agricultural programming.  
46. Regarding the methodology of the study, he said that a consultant had produced a 
comprehensive report, based on a preliminary revi ew of 43 DTIS reports and 12 DTIS updates as 
well as an in-depth analysis of DTIS in 20 countries, which included 19 first-generation DTISs as WT/COMTD/LDC/M/77 
 
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  well as 11 DTIS updates. In addition, intervie ws had been conducted with eight international 
agencies and at the national level for three country-case studies. 
47. He went on to describe the key findings of the study. He mentioned that SPS issues were 
r e f e r e n c e d  t o  s o m e  d e g r e e  i n  a l m o s t  a l l  o f  the 30 DTISs and updates reviewed. He was 
encouraged to see that DTIS updates had an improved coverage of SPS issues; six of 11 updates 
had been rated as having a good to excellent analysis of SPS issues. However, the comprehensiveness and manner in which SPS matters  were analysed varied across DTISs. Eleven 
DTISs had a self-standing chapter or detailed section on SPS issues. While this was useful in 
drawing attention to SPS issues, he stressed the n eed to better integrate SPS sections with other 
sections in the DTISs. SPS issues had also been found in DTIS sections on trade facilitation, sector studies, value chains and non-tariff barriers.  
48. He mentioned that gaps existed in the coverage of certain SPS issues, including regarding 
fish health, export certification as well as tourism linkages with domestic supply chains. While regional issues were increasingly featured in DTIS s, insufficient attention was paid to regional SPS 
policy and cooperation such as the pooling of resources and diagnostic infrastructure. 
49. He went on to mention that policy coherence was often not evident between SPS 
recommendations in the DTISs and national strategies on agriculture, industrial development or 
investment. The linkages between agriculture an d trade ministries could be improved, both 
systematically as well as in the DTIS process by  consulting the right stakeholders and improving 
the linkages with SPS committees in countries. The report had also found a strong private sector engagement in the DTISs process and also potentially in filling the resource and capacity gap by 
providing SPS-related services. The DTIS Action Matr ix had been found to be useful as a planning 
tool, which balanced SPS issues vis-à-vis  other national trade related priorities. 
50. In conclusion, he said that agriculture and SPS issue were critical to the EIF. The EIF funded 
27 agribusiness projects with a value of US$53 m illion. Ten of the twenty focus countries had 
agribusiness- and standards-related Tier II projects. Another finding was that key SPS analysis tools such as phytosanitary capacity evaluation (PCE) by the International Plant Protection 
Convention (IPPC) and the performance of veterinary  services (PVS) by the World Organization for 
Animal Health (OIE) were rarely used in the DTISs. In summary, the study highlighted a number 
of good practices and lessons learned to inform SP S analysis in future DTIS reports and processes. 
51. The representative of the STDF Secretariat continued the briefing by presenting the 
recommendations of the study, which had been gr ouped under three pillars to facilitate their 
implementation and monitoring. 
52. She mentioned that the first group of recommendations sought to strengthen the analysis of 
SPS issues in the DTIS report. Specific recommendations included making use of relevant 
SPS-related evaluations and explicitly referring to them in the DTIS report. It was also recommended to combine horizontal and vertical analysis of SPS issues. Horizontal analysis 
allowed obtaining an overview of the SPS syst em in terms of needs, responsibilities and 
institutions, while vertical analysis took account of sectoral SPS needs. Another recommendation highlighted the importance of linking SPS investments to economic and development impacts. The report also recommended improving policy coherence, to consider opportunities to strengthen SPS 
capacity at the regional level and to actively enga ge SPS expertise during the entire DTIS process. 
53. She went on to elaborate on the second group of recommendations, which sought to 
enhance the national capacity to implement SPS-related recommendations in the DTISs. Specific 
recommendations included the development of SPS Action Plans to complement the DTIS Action 
Matrix, to measure progress in addressing SPS capacity-building needs and to develop skills to design and leverage sound and bankable SPS projects to implement DTIS recommendations. 
Regarding the latter, she stressed that being awar e of problems was not enough and that there 
was a need to strengthen the project design capa city and fundraising skills of SPS authorities. 
54. She went on to explain the third group or recommendations, which called for exploiting 
synergies in EIF and SPS-related processes. One recommendation was to enhance the 
effectiveness of SPS stakeholders' engagement in EIF processes at the country level. Another 
recommendation was to provide more practical guidance on how to effectively address SPS issues WT/COMTD/LDC/M/77 
 
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  in the DTIS process. That included the developm ent of a checklist by the STDF and the EIF to 
guide the DTIS teams to identify the right stakehol ders for particular sectors and to ask the right 
questions in the analysis. It was also recommended to consider ways to engage other international organizations and standard-setting bodies involved in SPS capacity building in EIF processes. In 
conclusion, she informed Members that the full study would be published on the website in the 
month of June. 
55. The representative of Bangladesh considered the briefing useful. He underscored that 
addressing SPS issues was important for LDCs since they were heavily dependent on agricultural 
exports. LDCs lacked human and infrastructural ca pacities. He asked the Secretariats of the EIF 
a n d  S T D F  w h e t h e r  t h e y  w e r e  c o n s i d e r i n g  a d d r e s s i n g  g a p s  i n  h u m a n  c a p a c i t i e s  a s  w e l l  a s  i n  physical infrastructure. He was of the view that improvement of infrastructure, including standards 
infrastructure, was essential for the implementation of any policy recommendation on SPS. 
56. The representative of Chinese Taipei congratulated the Chairman on his re-election. He 
mentioned that as a staunch supporter of the STDF, Chinese Taipei had recently donated 
US$80,000 to the STDF to help developing countries and LDCs establish and implement SPS 
standards. This donation was part of a three-year contribution programme totalling US$240,000 and came on top of the CHF305,745 which Chinese Taipei had contributed to the STDF between 
2010 and 2015. He hoped that the LDCs could apply to SPS projects sponsored by the STDF. 
57. The representative of Tanzania said that SPS issues remained a key subject to be given 
special attention to improve LDC exports of agricultural and food products. Tanzania attached high 
importance on progressively addressing SPS-related challenges. He identified infrastructure 
facilities and human resource capital as the main challenges for LDCs. He expressed his gratitude 
to the EIF for its support and looked forward to continuing to benefit from the Programme. As SPS issues were well-featured in most DTIS Action Matrices, he would like to see that special 
consideration would be given to the implementation of these SPS issues.  
58. Regarding technical assistance for LDCs initiatives and building trade capacity, the 
representative of Uganda, on behalf of the Coor dinator of the LDC Group, welcomed the effective 
holding of the 5th Global Review of Aid for Trade and the elaboration of the 2016-2017 Work 
Programme of Aid for Trade, as well as the implementation of Phase Two of the EIF. He 
commended the partners that had made pledges amounting to US$70 million to Phase Two of the 
EIF Programme. He also noted that this was only one third of the budgeted amount of 
US$270 million for Phase Two. He urged Members, which had not been able to do so during the 
Pledging Conference in Nairobi, to contribute to Phase Two of the EIF Programme for predictable 
support to trade-related activities undertaken by LDCs. He urged other partners to support the 
efforts of LDCs to achieve the fundamental objective of integrating into the MTS. 
59. The representative of the STDF Secretariat mentioned that private standards were not 
analysed within the scope of the study. She recogn ised that the issue of private standards needed 
to be taken into account by the sector analyses in the DTISs. Referring to the intervention by 
Chinese Taipei, she mentioned that the STDF dedicated 60% of its resources to the LDCs. 
60. Referring to the interventions of the repres entatives of Bangladesh and Tanzania, the 
representative of the EIF Secretariat highlighted that a core role of the DTISs was to identify 
human and infrastructure capacity constraints relating to SPS systems and operations. He said 
that one of the recommendations of the study was the development of specific SPS Action Plans, 
which helped put these aspects into context. He said that the DTIS was a tool to leverage 
resources in a coordinated way and to assist LDCs in addressing these capacity constraints. He 
mentioned that the EIF looked forward to working together with the STDF and SPS-related stakeholders to access a larger pool of support for this area. 
61. The Chairman expressed his confidence that the joint study would help LDCs towards 
overcoming their SPS-related challenges. The study provided guidance on how to improve the 
analysis of SPS issues in the DTIS process and on how to enhance the capacity of LDCs to implement SPS-related recommendations identified in  the DTIS. He also believed that the project 
would enhance the collaboration between the EIF and the STDF in the best interest of the LDCs. WT/COMTD/LDC/M/77 
 
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  62. He suggested that the Sub-Committee take note of the joint briefing made by the 
Secretariats of the EIF and the STDF as well as the statements made. 
63. It was so agreed. 
D. FOLLOW-UP TO MINISTERIAL DECISIONS/DECLARATIONS 
- Follow-up to Ministerial Declarations and Decisions Taken in Favour of Least 
Developed Countries (WT/COMTD/LDC/W/62) 
64. The Chairman recalled that at the previous Sub-Committee Meeting, Members had agreed to 
a request by the LDC Group for the Secretariat to prepare a factual report on the progress made in 
the implementation of Ministerial Declarations and Decisions taken in favour of LDCs. The Note by the Secretariat was contained in document WT/COMTD/LDC/W/62.  
65. He explained that the Note was structured pursuant to the item "Follow up to Ministerial 
Decisions/Declarations" of the Work Programme for the Least Developed Countries. It contained 
brief sections on developments in relation to the High-Level Meeting on Integrated Initiatives for the LDCs' Trade Development held in 1997, and in relation to the two Programmes of Action 
adopted at the UN Conferences on the LDCs in Brussels (2001) and in Istanbul (2011). The 
subsequent sections of the Note provided, by theme, a chronological account of Declarations and Decisions that had been taken in the context of WTO negotiations and regular work, respectively. 
The Note also indicated relevant follow-up work in  WTO bodies and provided references to relevant 
documents. He opened th e floor for discussion.  
66. The representative of Uganda, on behalf of the Coordinator of the LDC Group, stated that 
the LDC Group took note of the report. He thanked the Secretariat for the relevant information 
contained therein. The Group was of the view that  the effective monitoring and implementation of 
the Bali and Nairobi Decisions as listed in the Note, including on DFQF market access and cotton, would improve their integration in the MTS and help them in meeting the Sustainable Development 
Goals (SDGs). These were mandates given by Ministers and should therefore be achieved. He said 
that the LDC Group urged Members to work towards the realization of these comprehensive objectives. 
67. The representative of Bangladesh thanked the Secretariat for the comprehensive report. He 
said that a number of decisions had been taken at the WTO and in other UN Fora, which were 
directed towards helping LDCs mitigate the challe nges they faced in their economic development. 
He expressed his gratitude to all Members for agreeing to those decisions. He noted that while 
actions had been taken by Members to implemen t those decisions, there were shortfalls in 
implementation. He believed that the implementation of the Decision with regard to DFQF market access and cotton, as well as support for developing  quality infrastructure were needed to reverse 
the recent decline in exports from LDCs. He hoped that Members, which were yet to implement, 
would take initiatives to implement those Decisions to support the LDCs in their efforts to graduate from the LDC category by 2020, the goal set by th e Istanbul Programme of Action (IPoA). In this 
regard, his delegation, through the LDC Coordinator, requested Members to inform them about the 
steps that had been or were taken to implement those Decisions. 
68.  The representative of the United States thanked the Secretariat for developing a factual 
report on Ministerial Declarations and Decisions related to the LDCs. She highlighted that there 
had been several such important decisions at th e last two WTO Ministerial Conferences. She was 
pleased that the Nairobi package included two LDC-sp ecific decisions relating to preferential rules 
of origin and the LDC Services Waiver. She said that her delegation had been an active participant 
in the negotiations on both Decisions and was committed to their implementation. Regarding 
preferential rules of origin, she looked forward to discussing the implementation of that Decision at 
the CRO on 22 April 2016. She stressed that the implementation of the TFA would benefit LDCs by 
easing trade and making it less costly for their exporters. It would also help LDCs diversify their 
exports and help them tap into GVCs. She encouraged Members, which had not yet done so, to ratify the TFA. 
69. The representative of Canada thanked the Secretariat for the useful report and mentioned 
that Canada had been able to positively contribute in a number of areas. Canada had provided WT/COMTD/LDC/M/77 
 
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  preferential market access for LDCs for over 30 years and strongly supported the Hong Kong and 
Bali Ministerial Decisions on DFQF market access. She noted that Canada's LDC tariff had been widely praised as meeting the needs of the LDCs, especially in respect of its comprehensive product coverage and its liberal rules of origin. She was encouraged by the progress made in this 
area, including the more recent contributions from developing countries, which were important 
with the rise of South-South trade. She encouraged Members to fulfil their notification requirements in this respect.  
70. She welcomed the Nairobi Decision on preferential rules of origin for LDCs and 
acknowledged the commitment and flexibility demons trated by Members in order to reach this 
Decision. She looked forward to continued work in this area with the LDC Group and other Members in the CRO. With respect to TRIPS, as one of the two users of the Paragraph 6 System, 
Canada was pleased that the WTO was approaching the two-thirds threshold for acceptance of the 
amendment. While much remained to be done for LDCs, the Note was illustrative of the progress 
Members had made in providing special and differ ential treatment to the LDCs and that Members 
remained committed to make further progress. 
71. The representative of Bangladesh sought clarification from the Secretariat regarding the 
observation made on the Nairobi Decision on Preferential Rules of Origin. The last sentence of 
paragraph 4.8 gave the impression that the Nairobi Decision represented a set of suggestions. In 
his understanding, the Decision contained commitments in a number of areas by the preference-granting Members. He asked the Secretariat to clarify this point.  
72. The Secretariat mentioned that the Nairobi Decision on preferential rules of origin was 
issued as an addendum to the Bali Decision, the latter containing a set of guidelines on preferential 
rules of origin. The Nairobi Decision built on the Bali Decision and provided more detailed directions to Members regarding preferential rules of origin. He mentioned that the Secretariat 
would discuss bilaterally with Bangladesh on how best to reflect the Nairobi Decision in future 
notes by the Secretariat.  
73. The representative of Guinea thanked the Secretariat for the report, which recapitulated all 
the major decisions taken in favour of LDCs at the 2011 UN Conference in Istanbul and at WTO 
Ministerial Conferences. She suggested that the Se cretariat consider creating a compilation on the 
specific outcomes that had been obtained on th e various subjects. She mentioned that the report 
was a compilation of decisions, and that her delegation would be more interested to know what 
Members had done to benefit LDCs, for example in terms of market access and in the area of 
services. She wondered whether it was possible to create summary tables, which would give a c l e a r e r  v i s i o n  o n  w h a t  h a d  b e e n  d o n e  i n  f a v o u r  o f  L D C s  i n  t e r m s  o f  t h e  o u t c o m e s  o f  t h e  
Conferences. 
74. The representative of Chad congratulated the Chairman on his re-election. He mentioned 
that while all Ministerial Conferences had highlighte d that priority be given to the LDCs, there was 
a certain timidity in the way that this was made operational and effective. He cited paragraph 24 
of the Nairobi Ministerial Declaration: "We strongly commit to addressing the marginalization of LDCs in international trade and to improving their effective participation in the multilateral trading system. Towards that end, we shall ensure that al l issues of specific interest to LDCs shall be 
pursued on a priority basis, with a view to strengthening them, making them commercially 
meaningful and, when appropriate, legally binding". He appealed to Members to follow-up on this pledge and to implement this provision. 
75. The representative of Tanzania reiterated  the point made by Bangladesh regarding 
paragraph 4.8 of the Secretariat Note.  
76. The Secretariat recalled that the mandate given to the Secretariat was to put in place a 
compilation of the decisions that had been taken in favour of LDCs. The Secretariat had not been 
asked to review the implementation of those decisi ons. He expressed the view that such a review 
might replicate discussions in the respective Committees of the WTO. 
77. The representative of Benin said that as the title of the document mentioned "Follow-up … 
taken…", he expected that for each decision th e follow-up action would be stated. He suggested 
having a table with the decisions and the various follow-up steps taken. Such a table should also WT/COMTD/LDC/M/77 
 
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  include information on what constraints were pr eventing the implementation of those decisions 
and what needed to be done. After all, the IPoA intended for LDCs to graduate by 2020. He wished to see concretely how the various measures ta ken in favour of LDCs  were followed up. 
78. The representative of the United States said that her delegation would not be comfortable 
with the Sub-Committee getting into the specifics of the implementation of decisions that fell 
under the jurisdiction of other Committees. At the last Sub-Committee meeting, her delegation 
had agreed to a collection of data, and not an analysis or scorecard of decisions. That remained 
the preference of her delegation. 
79. The Chairman noted that some Members were asking for more information regarding the 
implementation of decisions, where one would come  into the area of qualifications. Other Members 
preferred to have a technical overview on what had been decided without qualifications on the 
effectiveness of the implementation of decisions. Another part of the discussion was that a number 
of issues were not dealt with by the Sub-Committee. He suggested that one possible way forward was to explore areas where factual statements with  respect to implementation could be provided. 
He proposed that the Secretariat undertake consultations with concerned Members with a view to 
finding a common ground. 
80. The representative of Benin said that the suggested way forward by the Chairman was 
acceptable. He stressed that the report was of little interest to the LDCs in its current form as 
Members knew the decisions that had been taken. It was essential to cover the implementation status of those decisions. That would be beneficial to the LDCs.  
81. The Chairman reiterated that the Note should remain factual in nature. He regarded the 
Note as useful as it provided an overview of what had been decided and gave a summary of a 
whole range of decisions as well as issues of interest to LDCs in the MTS. He was open to the idea of how to further enhance information on what had been achieved in favour of LDCs. 
82. The representative of the United States pointed out that the LDC Work Programme asked 
the Sub-Committee to establish an agenda item entitled: "Follow-up to Ministerial 
Decisions/Declarations" where Members would be invited to report on measures taken in fulfilment 
of these Decisions and Declarations. Her delegation was uncomfortable moving in a direction 
where the Secretariat would be asked to summarize measures taken by Members that would go into the realm of making judgments. She proposed that Members observe the mandate, which was for Members to provide reports on the measures they were taking to implement the decisions. Her 
delegation stood ready to meet in any configuration with the LDCs to discuss what the 
United States had been doing to implement the decisions that been outlined in the Note.  
83. The Chairman proposed that the Sub-Committee take note of the document 
WT/COMTD/LDC/W/62 as well as the statements made. He said that the Secretariat would hold 
consultations with concerned Members and that the Sub-Committee would come back to this issue at its next session. 
84. It was so agreed. 
E. OTHER BUSINESS 
85. The Chairman invited the representative of the UNIDO to take the floor. 
86. The representative of the UNIDO congratulated the Chairman on his re-election. He said that 
UNIDO, in cooperation with UN-OHRLLS, had organized the 6th LDC Ministerial Conference in 
Vienna from 26 to 27 November 2015. The Co nference had been held under the theme 
"Operationalizing Inclusive and Sustainable Industrial Development in LDCs—the path to 
graduation and beyond". The IPoA laid out a nu mber of development priorities, such as the 
strengthening of productive capacities, private se ctor development, trade, investment, technology, 
energy, South-South cooperation as well as the need for a sound and efficient structural 
transformation process. 
87. He said that the Conference had brought together over 300 participants, including a large 
number of Geneva-based Permanent Representatives. The WTO had been represented by WT/COMTD/LDC/M/77 
 
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  Deputy Director-General Agah. Participants had ag reed that export-led growth based on primary 
commodities had failed to lift millions out of pove rty and had led to growth without development. 
Acknowledging the close interlinkages between inclusive industrial development and trade, participants had stressed the need for industrial and trade policies to be aligned to help LDCs 
diversify their production and export base. Among other recommendations, the Ministers had 
declared that the collaboration between UNIDO an d WTO as well as other trade-related agencies 
should be strengthened – particularly by intensifying trade-related technical assistance and 
capacity-building initiatives that would facilitate the implementation of the trade-related objectives 
of the IPoA and Agenda 2030, through mechanisms under the Aid-for-Trade Initiative, including the EIF. 
88. In addition to reporting on the Ministerial Conference, he also mentioned that the G-20 
economies had invited UNIDO to contribute to the discussions on issues such as the Fourth 
Industrial Revolution and inclusive and sustainable economic development in Africa and LDCs. UNIDO was leading the preparation of a report on industrialization in Africa and LDCs to be 
adopted at a Heads of State meeting in early September. UNIDO's Director-General had presented 
the draft report at the second G20 Sherpa meeting in China the previous week. UNIDO intended to organize a discussion on the report and its trade-related implications later in the year. 
89. H e  i n f o r m e d  M e m b e r s  t h a t  U N I D O  w o u l d  o f f e r  a  l i v e  v i d e o  l i n k  a t  t h e  W T O  t o  a  b r i e f i n g  
being organized on 15 April 2016 in Vienna on UNIDO's Programme for Country Partnerships, an innovative approach to achieving SDG 9 on infrastructure, inclusive and sustainable industrialization and innovation. He mentioned that these programmes, which were currently 
piloted in two LDCs, namely Ethiopia and Senegal, focused on building productive and trade 
capacity. 
90. The Chairman expressed appreciation for the support provided by UNIDO to the LDCs. He 
informed Members about a few forthcoming events. First, the LDC Group would meet for a retreat 
in Montreux on 18 April 2016. Second, the Midterm Review Conference on the Implementation of 
the IPoA for the LDCs for the Decade 2011-2020 would take place in Antalya, Turkey, from 27 to 
29 May 2016. During the Conference, on 28 May, the WTO Secretariat would organize a side-event 
to discuss measures and initiatives taken to assist the LDCs' integration in global trade. Finally, he drew Members' attention to the Cycling Festival Europe, an initiative by the Dutch EU Presidency, which would be held in Geneva on 14 April 2016.  
91. He said that the next meeting of the Sub-Committee was tentatively scheduled for late June. 
92. In the absence of any other business, the meeting was adjourned. 
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