RESTRICTED  
  
WT/COMTD/M/89  
 
29 November 2013  
(13-6522)  Page: 1/17  
Committee on Trade and Development 
Eighty-Ninth Session    
 
NOTE ON THE MEETING OF 24 OCTOBER 2013 
 
Chairperson: H.E. Ms. Marion Williams (Barbados) 
A. ADOPTION OF TH E AGENDA .................................................................................... 2  
B. OBSERVERS ............................................................................................................. 2  
(i) Request for attendance of ad hoc observers  ................................................................. 2  
(ii) Further consideration of requests for observer status by the League of Arab States, 
the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the Gulf Organization for 
Industrial Consulting, the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, the Common 
Fund for Commodities, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) 
and the Groupe de la Banque Africaine de Developpement  ...................................................... 2  
C. TECHNICAL COOPERATION AND TRAINING ............................................................. 3  
-  Biennial Technical Assistance and Training Plan for 2014 and 2015 
(WT/COMTD/W/200) ......................................................................................................... 3  
D. TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT - WORK IN THE COMMITTEE ON THE BASIS OF 
THE CHAIRMAN'S CONCLUDING STATEMENT FROM THE EIGHTH MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE (WT/MIN(11)/11) ..................................................................................... 5
 
(i) Special and differential treatment provisions in WTO Agreements and Decisions 
(WT/COMTD/W/196) - updated note by the Secretariat  .......................................................... 5  
(ii) Proposals by Members  .............................................................................................. 6  
-  Operationalization of the CTD's mandate: a proposal to deliver outcomes based on 
the MC8 mandate - proposal from China, Cu ba, Ecuador, India and the African Group 
(WT/COMTD/W/192) ......................................................................................................... 6  
-  Strengthening of the Committee on Trade and Development - revised proposal 
from Barbados on behalf of the Group of Small, Vulnerable Economies 
(WT/COMTD/W/195 /Rev.1) ................................................................................................ 6  
-  A proposal that the Committee on Trade and Development reports to the General 
Council on development work in the WTO in compliance with Ministers' request issued at 
MC8 - proposal from Barbados, Belize, Beni n, Botswana, Kenya, Lesotho and Mauritius 
(WT/COMTD/W/202) ......................................................................................................... 7  
E. MINISTERIAL COMMUNIQUÉ FROM THE 12TH ANNUAL MINISTERIAL 
MEETING OF THE GROUP OF LANDLOCK ED DEVELOPING COUNTRIES - NEW 
YORK, 30 SEPTEMBER 2013 (WT/L/ 894) ....................................................................... 10  
F. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE ENABLING CLAUSE .................................................. 11  
-  Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) notifica tion of Customs Union – communication 
from China, Egypt and In dia (WT/COMT D/W/175) ................................................................ 11 
-  Notification of the Agreement on Trad e in Goods between the Association of 
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Korea ........................................................................ 13 
-  Notification of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement  between India 
and Korea (Goods) ........................................................................................................... 13 WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  G. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE TRANSPARENCY MECHANISM FOR 
PREFERENTIAL TRADE ARRANGEMENTS ........................................................................ 13  
H. ANNUAL REVIEW OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE HONG KONG 
DECISION ON DUTY-FREE AND QUOTA-FREE MARKET ACCESS FOR LEAST-
DEVELOPED CO UNTRIES ................................................................................................ 13  
I. PARTICIPATION OF DEVELOPING CO UNTRIES IN THE MULTILATERAL 
TRADING  SYSTEM (W T/COMTD/W/ 201) ...................................................................... 14  
J. DRAFT ANNUAL REPORT FOR 2013 (WT/COMTD/W/203) ..................................... 16  
K. OTHER BUSINESS .................................................................................................. 17  
 
A. ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA 
1. The Chairperson informed delegations that the Secretariat intended to set up an emailing 
list with respect to communications concerning the work of the Committee on Trade and 
Development (CTD) and the Sub-Committee on Least-Developed Countries (LDCs). While faxes 
remained the official method of communication, it was envisaged that fax communications 
regarding the CTD and the Sub-Committee would also be sent by email to the addresses in the emailing list. Delegates wishing to be included in the emailing list were invited to inform the 
Secretariat. She went on to say that the draft agenda for the 89
th Session of the CTD was 
contained in document WTO/AIR/4213 circulated on 14 October 2013 and a subsequent corrigendum contained in document WTO/AIR/4213/Corr.1. She said that she wished to raise a matter under "Other Business" concerning Members'  review of the Transparency Mechanism (TM) 
for Preferential Trade Arrangements (PTAs), as mandated in the Decision which established the 
TM.   
2. The agenda was adopted as amended. 
B. OBSERVERS 
(i) Request for attendance of ad hoc observers 
3. The Chairperson recalled that, at previous sessions of the CTD, Members had agreed to 
invite a number of intergovernmental organizati ons on an ad hoc, meeting-by-meeting basis. 
These included the Arab Maghreb Union, the Econ omic Community of Central African States, the 
Economic Community of West African States, the Economic Cooperation Organization, the Inter-Arab Investment Guarantee Corporation, the Islamic Development Bank, the African Union, 
the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, the South Centre, the Pacific Islands Forum, the 
United Nations Environment Programme, the West African Economic and Monetary Union, and the World Intellectual Property Organization. These organizations had been invited to the present 
meeting. She proposed that the same organization s be invited to the next formal meeting of the 
CTD. 
4. It was so agreed. 
(ii) Further consideration of requests for observer  status by the League of Arab States, the 
Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the Gulf Organization for Industrial Consulting, the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, the Common Fund for Commodities, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) 
and the Groupe de la Banque Africaine de Developpement 
5. The Chairperson said that the positions of delegations were on the record. She indicated 
that if there were no changes in positions to extend observer status to any of the applicants, the 
Committee would take note and revert to the requests at the next meeting.  
6. It was so agreed. WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  C. TECHNICAL COOPERATION AND TRAINING 
- Biennial Technical Assistance an d Training Plan for 2014 and 2015 
(WT/COMTD/W/200)  
7. The Chairperson invited the Director of the Institute for Training and Technical Cooperation 
(ITTC) to introduce the Biennial Technical Assistance and Training Plan (TA Plan) for 2014 and 
2015, which had been circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/200. 
8. The Director of the ITTC said that the ITTC had held consultations with Members in April 
and May 2013 in order to establish technical assistance (TA) priority needs for 2014 and 2015. The 
new TA Plan had been prepared on the basis of  these consultations and the lessons drawn from 
implementing previous TA Plans. The Plan therefore responded to id entified national and regional 
needs and priorities, in addition to outlining the key targeted results. It also identified the strategic 
context in which the activities would be implemente d, as well as the funding sources. As such, the 
Plan had been recast to incorporate the renewed emphasis on accountability, monitoring and evaluation, and contained a mix of traditional and new products. The main purpose was to 
enhance beneficiaries' capacity to benefit from the multilateral trading system and deal with 
emerging challenges. The specific areas of focus of  national activities would be determined at the 
time a request was made through the online requ est form. A number of regional activities had 
been specifically identified based on needs and pr iorities, though some flexibility had also been 
built in to accommodate the changing needs of beneficiaries and to take into account a possible outcome at the Ninth Ministerial Conference (MC9). Training would continue to be delivered through both e-learning and face-to-face activities. 
9. She went on to outline the four main targeted results or outcomes that were sought from 
the implementation of the Plan. The first was that government officials would implement WTO Agreements and make full use of Members' rights. The second was that acceding governments 
would participate in accession negotiations, in line with WTO accession processes and procedures. 
The third was that Members would access and use WTO-related information to raise awareness of WTO matters with their stakeholders, while the fourth was that WTO-supported academic 
institutions would include trade policy and WTO-related topics in their courses and research. She 
said that these targets, which had been established in light of the need to build on the achievements of 2012 and 2013, would be tr acked and closely monitored during the 
implementation of the activities laid out in the Pl an. She explained that the matrix of activities in 
the Plan was presented accorded to the four key results or outcomes. The first outcome accounted 
for 73.6% of the budget, the second for 2.3%, th e third for 4.5% and the fourth for 5.1%. The 
details were presented in Annex 2 of the document. 
10.  The implementation of the activities would be  guided by four strategic actions. The first 
strategic action was concerned with managing for results and ensuring full implementation of the results-based management (RBM) approach in an incremental and systematic way. The second 
strategic action was to ensure progression and a ccumulation of knowledge through the application 
of the Progressive Learning Strategy (PLS). In this regard, she informed the Committee that benchmarks would be introduced and that PLS levels had been allocated to activities where feasible. She said that the third strategic action was to promote the use of e-learning as the most 
cost-effective training method, while the fourth was to promote the use of partnerships to leverage 
resources and build on synergies. On the subject of e-learning, she recalled a request from Oman 
for the translation of e-learning courses into Arabic. She said that the Secretariat had recently met 
with the delegations of Egypt, Oman and Saudi Arab ia on this matter, and it had been agreed that 
the Secretariat would explore the possibility of part ners from the region translating the e-learning 
courses. Members would be kept informed of developments in this regard.  
11. She said that the effective implementation of the Plan would also depend on sufficient 
resource availability. A total of Sw F 21.2 million was required, of which 21.4% would come from the regular budget and 10.7% from other trust funds. The remaining 67.9% needed to come from voluntary contributions.  As of 30 September 2013, the Secretariat had received contributions for 
2013 amounting to Sw F 4.6 million, which was less than what had been expected. However, it 
had still been possible to implement activities in  2013 due to a carry forward of Sw F 12.4 million 
from 2012. Since most of the contributions for 2013 had been received quite late in the year, a 
large proportion would be carried forward to 2 014. She added that the outlook for 2014 was more 
positive than for 2013. Pledges from a number of  traditional donors had been received, which WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  would be multi-year contributions. The fact that donors were making multi-year contributions 
made the receipt of funds more predictable. If this trend continued, it would be possible to fully implement all the planned activities for 2014. 
12. The representative of El Salvador expressed appreciation for the consultations that the 
ITTC had held in the preparation of the TA Plan. She indicated her delegation's intention to work 
with the ITTC to increase the number of activiti es available in Spanish. She also stressed the 
usefulness of national activities and of WTO Reference Centres.  
13. The representative of Nepal, on behalf of the LDC Group, said that the WTO's TA activities 
were a core element of the development dimension of the multilateral trading system. He 
expressed appreciation to donors for the WTO's TA activities, which were helping LDCs to build capacity and enhance their understanding of WTO issues. Capacity-building activities at global, 
regional and national levels had all proved to be relevant and productive for government officials 
and others working on WTO issues. Both e-learning and face-to-face activities had been effective. He expressed appreciation to the ITTC for prep aring the TA Plan for the 2014-2015 period in a 
demand-driven manner and for incorporating the RBM approach to TA management and delivery. 
He was encouraged to note that LDCs would receive priority in TA activities and that special attention would be given to LDCs in the process of accession. He went on to say that the timely 
and effective implementation of the Plan would depend on the availability of funding. In this 
context, he indicated that the shrinking num ber of donor countries and the decreases in 
contributions to the Doha Development Agenda Global Trust Fund were matters of serious concern to beneficiaries, and in particular LDCs. He urge d donors to increase, or at least maintain, their 
level of support in order to ensure the smooth im plementation of TA activities. He acknowledged 
that some improvements and interventions were needed at the level of the beneficiary countries in order to increase the effectiveness of TA, including through the involvement of various 
stakeholders. He also stressed the importance of monitoring and evaluating TA activities, and of 
ensuring transparency and accountability.  
14. The representative of Egypt indicated his delegation's appreciation for the consultations 
that the ITTC had held in the preparation of the TA Plan. He said that his delegation looked 
forward to being kept updated on the possibility for e-learning courses to be translated into Arabic. 
15. The representative of the Dominican Repu blic emphasized the importance of the 
consultations that had taken place in the preparation of the TA Plan, which had allowed 
delegations to express their views and concerns an d identify priorities. She emphasized the need 
for more courses to be delivered in Spanish. She also expressed hope that the necessary financial resources would be available to implement the Plan. 
16. The representative of China appreciated the consultations held by the ITTC. He recalled 
that, during the consultations, China had noted the evolving situation with regard to the TA Plan. 
There was firstly the financial constraint. The renewed momentum with respect to the Doha Round 
of negotiations in the run-up to MC9 was another factor. There was additionally a need for TA on 
newer issues, while demands for TA also arose from the accession process. He invited the Secretariat to be proactive in engaging donors and South-South partners in mobilizing new funds. He also encouraged the Secretariat to make room for a possible outcome at MC9, so that 
developing countries could have assistance in implementing the results. He indicated that China 
supported the PLS, but wished to see a more clear-cut formulation of programmes at different levels. He also expressed support for the WTO Chairs Programme. Finally, while noting the 
Secretariat's efforts to put in place the RBM approach, he observed that efforts to mobilize 
financial resources and provide demand-driven TA were equally important.   
17. The representative of Oman thanked the ITTC  for the meetings that had been organized 
with his delegation and the delegations of Egypt and Saudi Arabia on the subject of the translation 
of e-learning courses into Arabic. His delegation looked forward to being kept updated on this matter. 
18. The representative of Turkey expressed supp ort for the intervention by Oman and said 
that he looked forward to a positive outcome on the matter.  WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  19. The representative of the United States said that his delegation recognized the 
participatory approach that had been taken in the preparation of the TA Plan and appreciated that 
t h e  P l a n  r e m a i n e d  r o o t e d  i n  b e n e f i c i a r i e s '  n e e d s .  H e  n o t e d  t h a t  d o c u m e n t s  o f  t h i s  t y p e  w e r e  necessarily summaries of several activities in many different countries. Given the limited detail, his 
delegation encouraged the WTO to continue to reach out to other donors and institutions in each 
country before implementing a project, so as to coordinate and link specific activities and assistance. The US understood and supported the greater emphasis on e-learning and blended 
learning, and recognized that donors and TA provid ers needed to keep websites light in order to 
facilitate access by those with limited facilities. Noting that the TA activities mainly targeted government officials, he indicated that it was equally important to organize outreach activities for various stakeholders and other donors. His delegation looked forward to monitoring the 
implementation of the Plan. Turning to the request for e-learning courses to be provided in Arabic, 
he indicated that his delegation was not in a position  to support the request, particularly in light of 
the budgetary implications of translating courses into languages that were not official WTO 
languages. 
20. The Committee adopted the TA Plan for 2014 and 2015.  
D. TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT - WORK IN THE COMMITTEE ON THE BASIS OF THE 
CHAIRMAN'S CONCLUDING STATEMENT FROM THE EIGHTH MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE 
(WT/MIN(11)/11) 
21. The Chairperson recalled that, at the Eighth Ministerial Conference (MC8), Ministers had, 
inter alia , reaffirmed the positive link between trade and development and called for focused work 
in the CTD. Ministers had called on Members to fully operationalize the mandate of the CTD as a 
focal point for development work.   
22. She said that the MC8 mandate had been discu ssed at each of the formal CTD meetings 
since the beginning of 2012. In addition, several in formal consultations had been convened to hear 
Members' views and suggestions on what specif ically could be done by the CTD under this 
mandate. She recalled that she had particularly encouraged Members to consider submitting 
written proposals on concrete areas of work for the CTD, since written proposals were more 
conducive to a focused discussion and would also ensure a Member-driven process. On the agenda for the present meeting were two submissions fo r work under the MC8 mandate which had been 
previously discussed by the Committee at both form al and informal meetings. One submission - by 
China, Cuba, Ecuador, India and the African Group - was contained in document 
WT/COMTD/W/192. Another submission - by Barb ados, on behalf of the Group of Small, 
Vulnerable Economies (SVEs) - was contained in document WT/COMTD/W/195/Rev.1. There was 
also a new proposal that was reflected on the agen da. This proposal - by Barbados, Belize, Benin, 
Botswana, Kenya, Lesotho and Mauritius - wa s contained in document WT/COMTD/W/202.  
23. She recalled that, at the 87
th Session, the Committee had agreed to one of the proposals 
in document WT/COMTD/W/192. The proposal was fo r the Secretariat to prepare an update to its 
document on the implementation of special and di fferential treatment (S&D) provisions in the WTO 
Agreements and Decisions. The updated Secretariat note, circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/196, had been considered at the 88
th Session. The updated note was once again 
reflected on the CTD's agenda - as the first sub-item under the present agenda item - as she 
wished to give Members the opportunity to have another discussion on it. The Committee would subsequently turn to the second sub-item, which concerned the other proposals by Members.  
(i) Special and differential treatment provisions in WTO Agreements and Decisions 
(WT/COMTD/W/196) - updated note by the Secretariat 
24. The Chairperson said that the updated Secretariat document was divided into a number of 
sections. In addition to the Introduction, the document contained sections on the Multilateral 
Agreements on Trade in Goods, the General Agr eement on Trade in Services, the Agreement on 
Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Righ ts and the Plurilateral Trade Agreements. There 
was also a final section on Ministerial, General Council and other relevant Decisions. She opened 
the floor for comments by Members on the updated document. WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  25. The representative of Ecuador said that the Preamble to the Marrakesh Agreement 
Establishing the WTO recognized the need for positive efforts designed to ensure that developing 
countries, and especially the least-developed am ong them, secured a share in the growth in 
international trade commensurate with the need s of their economic development. The CTD had 
been established to serve as a focal point for the consideration and coordination of work on 
development. More specifically, the CTD was to  take responsibility for the review of the 
implementation of S&D provisions and the consideration of any issue raised in that regard. The 
minutes of CTD meetings held between April 1995 and early 2002 showed that this subject had 
been considered regularly in the Committee. Particular attention was paid to the review of the application of special provisions in the Multilateral Trade Agreements and related Ministerial Decisions in favour of developing country Members. After listing several Secretariat notes that had 
been prepared in the context of these discussions,  he went on to say that, since 2002, the item 
concerning the review of S&D provisions had disappeared from the CTD's agenda. The Committee had tended to concentrate on matters relating to notifications and transparency. He suggested 
that the CTD commence a substantive discussion in 2014 on the basis of the information provided 
in document WT/COMTD/W/196. Regular meetings could be held to consider S&D provisions on an Agreement-by-Agreement basis.  
26. The representative of El Salvador indicated that the Committee on Technical Barriers to 
Trade (TBT) would shortly be holding a thematic session on S&D. She emphasized the importance 
of S&D in the TBT area.   
27. The Committee took note of the updated Secr etariat paper and of all interventions. 
(ii) Proposals by Members 
- Operationalization of the CTD's mandate: a proposal to deliver outcomes based on the 
MC8 mandate - proposal from China, Cuba, Ecuador, India and the African Group 
(WT/COMTD/W/192) 
28. The Chairperson recalled that there were three proposals contained in document 
WT/COMTD/W/192. The request in the first prop osal had already been satisfied through the 
preparation of the updated Secretariat paper on the implementation of S&D provisions. The two 
remaining proposals had been discussed in the informal, open-ended meetings that she had convened on 19 September and 30 September 2013.  One of the remaining proposals was for the 
CTD to make a recommendation for parties to regional trade agreements (RTAs) to submit their 
notification and information requirements jointly. The other remaining proposal was for a sentence 
to be added to document WT/L/105 - which was co ncerned with procedures for an annual overview 
of WTO activities and for reporting under the WTO - in order to instruct the CTD to report on 
development-related activities and issues raised in other WTO bodies. On the basis of the 
discussion in the informal meetings, her underst anding was that the proponents intended to 
consult with Members, particularly on the proposal relating to RTAs. She invited the proponents to 
brief the Committee on the status of their consultations. 
29. The representative of Egypt said that the proponents did not have any updates to share 
with the Committee at the present time. He requested that the submission under consideration 
remain on the CTD's agenda for its next meeting.   
30. The Committee took note of the interventions.   
- Strengthening of the Committee on Trade and Development - revised proposal from 
Barbados on behalf of the Group of Small, Vulnerable Economies 
(WT/COMTD/W/195/Rev.1) 
31. The Chairperson said that the proposal by Barbados, on behalf of the SVE Group, was for 
the CTD to organize periodic workshops on tr ade and development issues. In the informal 
meetings of the CTD that she had convened, the pr oponents had indicated that they would consult 
with Members on the proposal. She invited the prop onents to brief the Committee on the status of 
their consultations.  WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  32. The representative of Barbados said that the SVE Group did not wish to pursue the 
proposal any longer. She indicated that the Group was exploring other alternatives, which would 
be presented to the Committee at a future meeting.  
33. The Committee took note of the interventions.  
- A proposal that the Committee on Trade and Development reports to the General 
Council on development work in the WTO in compliance with Ministers' request issued at MC8 - proposal from Barbados, Belize , Benin, Botswana, Kenya, Lesotho and 
Mauritius (WT/COMTD/W/202) 
34. The Chairperson invited the proponents of document WT/COMTD/W/202 to introduce their 
proposal.   
35. The representative of Barbados said that, according to the CTD's terms of reference 
contained in document WT/L/46, the Committee served as a focal point for the consideration and 
coordination of work on development in the WTO and its relationship to the development-related activities in other multilateral agencies. She also  referred to the CTD's reporting function to the 
General Council as described in paragraph 3 of the CTD's terms of reference as well as in 
document WT/L/105 concerning procedures for an annual overview of WTO activities and for reporting under the WTO. She explained that the proposal was for the CTD to report to the 
General Council on development work in the WTO, in accordance with its mandate and in fulfilment 
of the instructions from Ministers at MC8 that  the CTD fully operationalize that mandate. 
36. The representative of Argentina said that th e proposal was a useful one which would allow 
Members to become familiar with the WTO's work on development. 
37. The representative of India indicated that his comments would be preliminary, as his 
capital was still reviewing the proposal. Referring in particular to paragraphs 1 and 3 of document 
WT/L/46, he said that the CTD's terms of referenc e were clear. His delegation's view was that the 
CTD should periodically report to the General Council on development-related work in other WTO 
bodies. 
38. The representative of the Dominican Repub lic expressed support for the proposal. Her 
delegation believed that it would be useful to have an overarching view of development-related 
work in the WTO. 
39. The representative of the United States said that his comments would be preliminary. His 
delegation was unclear as to what precisely the proposal sought to do. The CTD reported annually 
on its activities, in accordance with its terms of reference, and his delegation believed that the 
report was appropriate. The US was of the view that the CTD was a focal point for development work in the WTO. He requested that the propon ents explain why they believed that the CTD had 
not fully operationalized its mandate. He also indicated his delegation's interest to hear from the 
proponents as to what they meant by the CTD re porting on development work in the WTO, since 
arguably all work undertaken by the WTO to im prove the trading system was development work. 
He went on to say that his delegation did not ag ree that the CTD's terms of reference permitted it 
to review the development work being undertaken in other WTO bodies. The CTD did not have the mandate or the expertise to report on activities in other bodies. It was up to each individual WTO Committee to handle its own reporting. He also indicated that paragraph 3 of the CTD's terms of 
reference was narrower in scope than what had been suggested by Barbados and India. He 
explained that paragraph 3 was what Members were working to develop through the Monitoring Mechanism on S&D. 
40. The representative of the European Union said that the EU sought further clarification as to 
what the proponents were seeking in their proposal. She recalled that her delegation had 
previously indicated that it would not be practica ble or appropriate to delineate development work. 
Furthermore, her delegation did not believe that  paragraph 3 of the CTD's terms of reference 
mandated the Committee to report on the development-related work of other WTO bodies. Rather, this paragraph related to a review of S&D provisions. She added that the Committee needed to work to implement the MC8 mandate, and not to mo dify or enlarge it. The EU's view on how to WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  implement the mandate was to hold focused discussions in the CTD on clearly identified topics 
concerning the link between trade and development. 
41. The representative of China said that his capital was still studying the proposal and that his 
comments would be preliminary. He indicated that, at the informal CTD meeting held on 
19 September 2013, a representative of the Legal Affairs Division had shared the view that the 
CTD, as the focal point for development-related work, was entitled to report on development work in the WTO. In this light, China was supportiv e of the proposal and called on the Committee to 
take the necessary action as  soon as possible.     
42. The representative of Venezuela said that, while her delegation was still studying the 
proposal, the feeling was that the proposal was an appropriate one, given that the CTD was the 
focal point for development-related work in the WTO. 
43. The representative of El Salvador indicated that her delegation viewed the proposal in a 
positive light. She stressed that the CTD was the focal point for development-related work in the 
WTO. 
44. The representative of Japan said that his comments would be preliminary. He indicated 
that his delegation, like the US and the EU, sought clarification from the proponents on the 
proposal. In particular, he said that he did not understand what the added value of the proposal 
was. 
45. The representative of Australia said that his delegation shared similar concerns to those 
raised by the US, the EU and Japan. He indicate d that Australia supported the implementation of 
all aspects of the CTD's terms of reference. However, his delegation did not see the added value of 
the proposal under consideration. 
46. The representative of Canada said that his delegation required clarification as to what the 
proposal sought to change relative to the current practice. 
47. The representative of St. Lucia said that her delegation and other members of the 
Organization of Eastern Caribbean States were currently reviewing the proposal. However, she 
indicated that her delegation generally supported  any proposal that sought to strengthen the 
implementation of the CTD's terms of reference.  
48. The representative of South Africa said that the proposal was still being studied in her 
capital but the initial reaction was that this was a positive proposal. Appreciating the simplicity of 
the proposal, she said that her delegation believed that the solution to operationalizing the CTD's 
terms of reference lay in simplicity. South Africa believed that the proposal was very much in line 
with the MC8 mandate. 
49. The Chairperson said that the proposal sought to operationalize the instructions from 
Ministers at MC8. She noted that some Members ha d raised questions on the proposal and in this 
light observed that the CTD was not in a position to follow Ministers' instructions. She recalled that, in the informal CTD meeting that had been held on 19 September 2013, a representative of 
the Legal Affairs Division had shared the view th at the CTD could report on development work in 
the WTO. However, it appeared that there was no consensus on the implementation of the MC8 
mandate with respect to the CTD reporting on development work in the WTO, in line with its role as the focal point on development work.  
50. The representative of Australia said that he disagreed with the Chairperson's observations. 
He recalled that Australia, along with Chile, Colombia and Singapore, had also made a proposal for 
work under the MC8 mandate. While consensus on  this proposal had not been achieved, the 
proponents did not take this to mean that the CTD was unable to fulfil its mandate from MC8. It 
was for Members to consider each proposal that was made. He did not believe that the proposal under consideration should be vi ewed differently from others. 
51. The representative of Canada indicated his disagreement with the Chairperson's 
observations and stressed that Canada was comm itted to implementing the MC8 mandate. With WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  regard to the proposal under consideration, he recalled that he had simply requested further 
information from the proponents. 
52. The representative of the United States expressed his disagreement with the Chairperson's 
observations. He made a distinction between the instructions from Ministers at MC8 and the 
proposal under consideration. The questions raised by his delegation were on the proposal, and 
not on the MC8 mandate. Turning to the Chairperson's reference to the discussion at the informal CTD meeting held on 19 September 2013, he said that he wished to clarify that there had been no 
indication from the representative of the Legal Affa irs Division that the CTD was unable to fulfil its 
mandate from MC8. Furthermore, the representative  of the Legal Affairs Division had not indicated 
that the Committee was entitled to report on development work in the WTO.  
53. The representative of Jamaica enquired what had happened in the past that had prevented 
the CTD from reporting on development work in the WTO, and what had prompted the proponents 
to see the need to submit the proposal under consideration.  
54. The Chairperson responded that it was Ministers at MC8 who had seen the need for the 
work that was laid out in the proposal. The proponents were simply following Ministers' 
instructions. 
55. The representative of the European Union expressed her delegation's concern with the 
Chairperson's comments. While there was no consensus on some proposals that had been 
submitted by Members, this did not mean that there was no consensus to implement Ministers' 
instructions from MC8. 
56. The representative of Turkey said that th e CTD's draft annual report, which would be 
discussed under agenda item J, contained info rmation on the CTD's discussions on the MC8 
mandate. To this extent, the CTD had fulfilled the mandate, as it was reporting to Ministers at MC9 on its work on this matter. He urged Members to focus on the positive aspects of the CTD's 
discussion on the MC8 mandate. 
57. The representative of India said that a clear in terpretation of the terms of reference of the 
CTD had been provided by the representative of the Legal Affairs Division at the informal CTD 
meeting on 19 September 2013. Ministers' instruct ions at MC8 had to be implemented by tasking 
the CTD to report on development-related work in the WTO. 
58. The representative of Pakistan said that her delegation agreed with the intervention by 
Turkey. She did not believe that the Committee ha d failed to fulfil its mandate from MC8. A 
number of proposals had been made for work to be undertaken under this mandate, and Members 
had participated actively in the discussion. Furt hermore, the establishment of the Monitoring 
Mechanism on S&D would have a positive impact on the CTD's work.    
59. The representative of Barbados noted that some Members supported the proposal, while 
others had sought further clarification. The proponents were willing to work with Members to make 
progress on the proposal and to fulfil the CTD's mandate from MC8. 
60. The Chairperson said that there was no consensus on the means by which Members would 
implement the instructions from Ministers for the CTD to report on development work in the WTO. 
61. The representative of China said that it was important to highlight the positive aspects of 
the work that had been done, and not come to any conclusions at this stage. While regretting that 
there were not many concrete results that could be reported to Ministers, he was nevertheless of 
the view that the work that had been undertaken was worthwhile and that Members had had useful discussions. He believed that Members wo uld continue to work to strengthen the CTD. 
62. The representative of Mexico indicated that Members should focus on the positive aspects 
of the discussion in the Committee. While there was no consensus on a number of proposals that 
had been made in the context of the MC8 mand ate, this did not mean that Members had not 
discussed the proposals. On the contrary, much of the CTD's time had been devoted to these 
discussions. WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  63. The representative of Japan expressed suppor t for the interventions by China and Mexico. 
64. The representative of Australia supported previous speakers in their call to highlight the 
positive aspects of the CTD's discussion on the MC 8 mandate. He also recalled that there was one 
tangible outcome to the discussion, which was the updated Secretariat paper on the 
implementation of S&D provisions. His delegation was interested in taking work forward in the CTD 
on the basis of that paper. 
65. The Chairperson said that there were two aspects to the MC8 mandate. The first related to 
more focused work, and on that front she believe d that some progress had been made. However, 
progress had not been made on the CTD's report on development work in the WTO. There was no consensus on what the CTD should do in this regard. She indicated that the Committee could continue its discussion on these issues in the future. 
66. The representative of Pakistan expressed support for the interventions by China and 
Mexico. Her delegation wanted a positive message to be conveyed to Ministers. She emphasized 
that many discussions had been held on the MC8 mandate, and that Members would continue to 
discuss relevant issues. 
67. The Chairperson indicated that there was a difference between the CTD's activities and the 
CTD's report on development work in the WTO. Th ere was no consensus on the latter, but the CTD 
would continue to report to the General Council on its activities.  
68. The Committee took note of all interventions.  
E. MINISTERIAL COMMUNIQUÉ FROM THE 12TH ANNUAL MINISTERIAL MEETING OF 
THE GROUP OF LANDLOCKED DEVE LOPING COUNTRIES - NEW YORK, 
30 SEPTEMBER 2013 (WT/L/894) 
69. The Chairperson said that the 12th Annual Ministerial Meeting of the Group of Landlocked 
Developing Countries (LLDCs) was held in New York on 12 September 2013. At the request of 
Paraguay, the Coordinator of the LLDC Group, th e Ministerial Communiqué from this meeting had 
been circulated to Members in document WT/L/894. Paraguay had also requested that the Communiqué be reflected on the agenda of the present meeting. She invited Paraguay to 
introduce the Communiqué. 
70. The representative of Paraguay, on behalf of  the LLDC Group, said that the geographical 
situation of LLDCs distinguished them from other countries. In particular, LLDCs had no direct 
access to maritime ports and were far from major consumer markets. Higher transport costs and 
the resulting decrease in production profits had marginalized the LLDCs, which were highly 
dependent on international cooperation, particularly with their transit countries. International trade was an important means of boosting the development of LLDCs and was therefore an essential 
part of the agenda of this group of countries . At the present time, LLDCs' participation in 
international trade was limited. However, there was great potential for this to change, particularly if the LLDCs became focal points and hubs in their regions through greater participation in global 
value chains (GVCs). Consequently, the LLDCs were looking towards diversification, structural 
transformation and economic sustainability. In the Ministerial Communiqué under consideration, considerable emphasis had been placed on the wo rk of the WTO. The LLDC Ministers had attached 
particular importance to the adoption of an Agreement on Trade Facilitation with binding 
commitments. The Ministers were also calling for a successful conclusion to the Doha Round. For 
progress to be made in the negotiations, it was important to achieve positive and concrete results at MC9. The Communiqué additionally highlighted the LLDCs' needs with respect to Aid for Trade. 
He indicated that the LLDC Group was currently preparing for a review of its work programme. The 
review would be conducted in the first half of 2014 and would lead to the adoption of a new plan for the coming decade. In this endeavour, the LLD Cs hoped to benefit from support in the various 
forums that promoted their objectives. 
71. The representative of Turkey said that th e Ministerial Communiqué provided a succinct, 
factual and objective picture of the challenges  faced by LLDCs. He hoped that the Communiqué 
would be taken into account by Members in the context of work in the relevant WTO bodies.  WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  72. The representative of the United States indicated his delegation's support for several of the 
elements that had been raised by the LLDCs. He took particular note of the LLDCs' call for the 
adoption of an Agreement on Trade Facilitation wi th binding commitments. The US looked forward 
to continuing to work with Members towards this objective. 
73. The Committee took note of the Ministerial Communiqué.  
F. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE ENABLING CLAUSE 
74. The Chairperson said that she wished to provide Members with a brief update on the RTAs 
notified under the Enabling Clause that were to be considered in the CTD's Dedicated Sessions on 
RTAs. With regard to the India-ASEAN Agr eement, she informed the Committee that the 
Secretariat was in the process of drafting the factual presentation, which would be sent shortly to the parties for comments. For a number of other RTAs - namely, RTAs between India and Nepal, 
India and Afghanistan, and India and Bhutan - the full set of data needed to complete the factual 
presentations had not been submitted by the part ies. The Secretariat was also still waiting to 
receive some data relating to the accession of Rwanda and Burundi to the Protocol on the 
Establishment of the East African Community Customs Union. She urged the parties to these 
agreements to provide the data as soon as possible.  
75. She went on to say that there remained one RTA notified under the Enabling Clause that 
had not been ratified by all the parties. This was the Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement 
(PICTA). Following the procedures of the Commi ttee on Regional Trade Agreements (CRTA), a 
factual presentation of an RTA falling in this ca tegory would only be dr afted after the Agreement 
had been ratified by all the parties. The parties to PICTA were urged to inform the Secretariat as 
soon as all ratifications were complete. Finally, she informed Members that the delegation of 
Uruguay had submitted to the Secretariat a report concerning the Latin American Integration Association, which contained information on instruments signed under the 1980 Treaty of 
Montevideo in 2010 and 2011. The delegation of Uruguay had requested that the report be 
circulated to Members and placed on the CTD's agenda. In light of current workloads, it had not been possible to circulate the report before the present meeting. However, the original Spanish 
version of the report would be circulated soon, and the English and French translations would 
follow shortly thereafter. The report would be reflected on the agenda of the next meeting. 
- Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) notification of Customs Union – communication from 
China, Egypt and India (WT/COMTD/W/175) 
76. The Chairperson said that the first sub-item under the present agenda item concerned the 
GCC Customs Union notification. The sub-item also referred to the communication from China, 
Egypt and India which was circulat ed in document WT/COMTD/W/175. 
77. The representative of India said that there were clear similarities between the three RTA 
notifications listed as sub-items under the pr esent agenda item. His delegation had common 
concerns about the three notifications and he appr eciated that they were being taken up together. 
He noted that in the past years, Members' discussions had largely focused on procedure.  In an 
effort to promote constructive and substantive engagement, the delegations of China, Egypt and India had made a formal submission in September 2010 contained in document WT/COMTD/W/175, which highlighted a number of systemic and specific concerns. He regretted 
that some Members were not ready to engage substantively to resolve this matter.  His delegation 
wished to keep the matter on the CTD's agenda fo r the next meeting, and until it was resolved. 
78. H e  w e n t  o n  t o  s a y  t h a t  t h e  m a t t e r  w a s  o f  c r i t i c a l  i m p o r t a n c e  f o r  d e v e l o p i n g  c o u n t r y  
Members. The systemic issues impinged on the En abling Clause and the terms of reference of the 
CTD, as well as on the TM for RTAs. The specific concerns that had been highlighted emanated not only from suggestions by some Members regarding the consideration of the GCC Customs Union in 
a certain procedural way, but also from the notification, re-notification and withdrawal of 
notifications, as well as the efforts to deny developing countries the right to notify their RTAs under the Enabling Clause. His delegation wanted an early resolution of the matter so that the process of enhancing transparency in all RTAs coul d keep advancing. In its present form, the RTAs 
TM did not provide procedures for RTAs with a dual notification under GATT Article XXIV and the 
Enabling Clause. Given that some Members had refrained from holding substantive discussions on WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  this matter, his delegation saw clear attempts to undermine the role of the CTD and to 
circumscribe the right of developing countries to notify their RTAs under the Enabling Clause. There was a need to resolve the matter at the ea rliest so that the flexibilities available to 
developing countries to better integrate into the multilateral trading system were not constrained. 
79. The representative of Egypt expressed su pport for the intervention by India.  
80. The representative of the United States sought clarification from the Chairperson as to 
whether the three sub-items listed under the present agenda item were being taken up separately 
or together. He recalled that he had sought the same clarification at the 87th Session, after the 
intervention by India. 
81. The Chairperson responded that the three sub-items were being taken up separately. 
82. The representative of the United States said that his delegation continued to have 
concerns with the present sub-item being listed on the agenda. This sub-item had fulfilled its 
purpose of informing Members of the notification made, and needed to be removed from the agenda. The GCC Customs Union had been incorrectly  notified as an Enabling Clause Agreement. 
This had been subsequently corrected, and the GCC Customs Union was in the pipeline to be 
reviewed in the CRTA, in line with the procedures  of the RTAs TM. The US considered this matter 
closed, and continued to request that it be removed from the CTD's agenda. The US wished to be 
very clear that it had no quarrel with any developing country notifying a qualifying Agreement 
under the Enabling Clause. However, this was not what the GCC Customs Union notification issue was about. The GCC Customs Union notification concerned a customs union, which made it different from non-customs union RTA notifications. With regard to the content of document 
WT/COMTD/W/175, his delegation had not seen any specific issues related to the GCC Customs 
Union notification. The paper appeared to be seeking a systemic discussion of RTAs, particularly with regard to the issue of dual notifications. Given that the GCC Customs Union had been 
incorrectly notified as an Enabling Clause Agreement, and that this was subsequently corrected by 
the notifying Members, the GCC notification was not a dual notification. His delegation had explained its arguments in detail in previous meetings and found it unfortunate to have to rehash 
those points.  
83. The representative of China associated his de legation with the interventions by India and 
Egypt. While this sub-item had been on the CTD's agenda for a substantial amount of time, it was 
not his delegation's intention to prolong the discussion. China was willing to work to find a 
solution, provided that its concerns were appropriately addressed. The submission by China, Egypt 
and India was designed to help Members to e nhance their understanding of the systemic and 
specific issues arising from the dual notificati on of the GCC Customs Union, with a view to 
facilitating an expeditious resolution of the ma tter. He requested that the present sub-item be 
retained on the CTD's agenda until the matter was resolved. 
84. The representative of Australia said that his delegation continued to have the same 
concerns that had been expressed in previous meetings. He stressed that Australia had no 
argument with any developing country notifying a qualifying agreement under the Enabling Clause. 
His delegation also supported the proper implementation of the RTAs TM. While the communication from China, Egypt and India raised systemic issues  relating to the implementation of the RTAs TM, 
it was not possible for a discussion on these issues to be held in the CTD, as the Committee was 
not the only body that had been tasked with  the implementation of the Mechanism.   
85. The representative of the European Union indi cated that her delegation's views on this 
matter had been previously expressed. She believed that it was necessary for Members to have a 
discussion in the appropriate body, which was the Negotiating Group on Rules (NGR), or otherwise 
in an informal setting. A repetition of statements in formal CTD meetings would not allow Members 
to move forward.  
86. The representative of Brazil associated his delegation with the interventions by China, 
Egypt and India. He indicated that the mandate of the CTD was broad enough to accommodate a 
discussion on the issues that these delegations had raised. He requested that the present sub-item 
be retained on the CTD's agenda.   WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  87. The Committee took note of all interventions.   
- Notification of the Agreement on Trade in  Goods between the Association of Southeast 
Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Korea 
88. The Chairperson said that the second sub-item under the present agenda item concerned 
the notification of the ASEAN-Korea Agreement. 
89. The representative of the United States said  that his intervention related to both the 
second and third sub-items. He said that his delegation continued to have concerns with these 
sub-items being listed on the agenda. The sub- items had fulfilled their purpose of informing 
Members of the notifications made, and should have already been removed from the agenda. The issue of dual notifications was directly linked to  the functioning of the RTAs TM and went beyond 
the CTD alone.  
90. The representative of Korea expressed support for the intervention by the US. He said that 
the present sub-item needed to be removed from the CTD's agenda, as the dual notification issue 
could not be resolved in the CTD. In order to move forward on the matter, a discussion needed to 
take place in the NGR, or in an informal setting.    
91. The Committee took note of all interventions. 
- Notification of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement  between India 
and Korea (Goods) 
92. The Chairperson said that the third sub-item under the present agenda item concerned the 
notification of the India-Korea Agreement. 
93. No Member took the floor under this sub-item. 
G. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE TRANSPARENCY MECHANISM FOR PREFERENTIAL 
TRADE ARRANGEMENTS 
94. The Chairperson said that she wished to provide Members with a brief update on the PTAs 
that were to be considered in the CTD's Dedicate d Sessions on PTAs. Starting with the EU's trade 
preferences for Pakistan, she informed the Committ ee that the factual presentation on this PTA 
had been circulated on 18 October 2013 in document WT/COMTD/PTA/1/1. Members had been 
requested by fax to submit any written questi ons on the PTA by 22 November 2013. The PTA 
would be considered at the CTD's 1st Dedicated Session on PTAs in the early part of 2014. With 
regard to the four other PTAs that had been noti fied since the establishment of the TM for PTAs - 
PTAs being implemented by China, Chinese Taipei , India and the Russian Federation - there had 
been no significant developments since her last repo rt.  In particular, the full set of data required 
for the preparation of the factual presentations of the four PTAs had not yet been provided to the Secretariat. She urged the notifying Members to provide the data as soon as possible.    
H. ANNUAL REVIEW OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE HONG KONG DECISION ON 
DUTY-FREE AND QUOTA-FREE MARKET ACCESS FOR LEAST-DEVELOPED COUNTRIES 
95. The Chairperson said that an item concerning  the Hong Kong Decision on duty-free and 
quota-free (DFQF) market access for LDCs had been on the CTD's agenda since early 2006. Under 
this item, delegations had provided information on the steps they were taking, or had already taken, to provide DFQF market access to LDCs. Written communications by some Members had also been considered. At the present meeting, th e Committee was to undertake its annual review 
of the implementation of the Hong Kong Decision, as mandated in Annex F of the Hong Kong 
Ministerial Declaration.   
96. The representative of Australia said that his country had been providing 100% DFQF 
market access for LDCs' products since 2003. Australia's imports of products from LDCs had 
increased on average by 10.6% per annum si nce the introduction of the DFQF scheme. WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  97. The representative of Canada said that his country had met its DFQF commitment for LDCs 
in 2003. The percentage of tariff lines that were provided on a DFQF basis to LDCs changed 
periodically when Canada's customs tariff schedule was revised, but the product coverage remained the same. At present, 98.6% of tariff lines were provided on a DFQF basis to LDCs' 
products.   
98. The representative of China said that
 his country had comprehensively realized zero-tariff 
treatment on 95% of tariff lines for LDCs having diplomatic ties with China. The proportion would 
be increased to 97% in 2015. 
99. The representative of the United States said that  there were three sets of US trade 
preference programmes that benefited LDCs. Thes e were the Generalized System of Preferences 
(GSP) scheme, the African Growth and Opportunity  Act (AGOA), and the Haiti Trade Preference 
Programmes - which included the Haiti Economic Lift Programme (HELP) Act, the Haitian 
Hemispheric Opportunity through Partnership Encouragement (HOPE) Act and the Caribbean Basin 
Trade Partnership Act (CBTPA). Each trade pref erence programme provided duty-free access to 
beneficiary country products entering the US ma rket under specific tariff lines covered by the 
respective programme.  According to recent analys is, 97.5% of US tariff lines were provided on a 
DFQF basis to LDCs in Sub-Saharan African. Th rough AGOA, one-way access to the US market had 
been provided for the past 13 years. As preparations were being made for AGOA’s seamless 
renewal, the US was engaging in a review of the programme to determine how to ensure that it 
best met its objectives. 
100.  The representative of Korea said that, on 25 November 2011, Korea had decided to 
expand to 95% of tariff lines the DFQF market a ccess offered to LDCs' products.          
101.  The Committee took note of all interventions. 
I. PARTICIPATION OF DEVELOPING COUNTR IES IN THE MULTILATERAL TRADING  
SYSTEM (WT/COMTD/W/201)  
102.  The Chairperson said that the CTD had a mandate to keep under continuous review the 
participation of developing country Members in the multilateral trading system. She recalled that it 
had been agreed at the 87th Session that the CTD's discussion under this agenda item would take 
place at the present meeting, based on a background paper prepared by the Secretariat. She 
invited the Chief Statistician to introduce the paper, which had been circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/201. 
103.  The Chief Statistician provided a broad summary of the information contained in the 
Secretariat paper. As part of his presentation, he indicated that the participation of developing 
economies in world trade had risen particularly fast during the 2000s, including during the 2008-2009 global economic crisis. In the lacklustre  global economic context that prevailed in 2011 
and 2012, developing economies' share in world trade had continued to rise. Their share in world 
exports of goods and commercial services stood at 41% in 2012, while their share of imports was 39%. Turning specifically to merchandise trade, he said that developing economies' exports 
accounted for 44% of the world total and their imports for 41%. South-South trade was one of the 
main driving forces of developing economies’ merchandise trade. In 2010, the share of South-South trade accounted for 50% of developing economies' exports and continued rising in 2011 and 2012. However, intra-developing Asian trade grew significantly less than other South-
South trade flows. One reason for this was that developing Asian economies were strongly 
interconnected within GVCs that were sensitive to the drop in demand from developed markets. In 2013, developing economies' exports and imports were forecasted to grow by 3.8% and 5.8% 
respectively, while developed countries were expected to experience a 1.5% increase in exports 
and a 0.1% decrease in imports.  
104.  With regard to commercial services, the share of developing economies' trade was also 
rising, mainly due to developing Asia. In 2012, developing economies' export share was 32% and 
their import share was 38%. Travel accounted fo r over one third of the group's exports of 
commercial services, while transport accounted for close to 23% of their exports. The share of South-South trade in developing economies' total exports of services rose from an estimated 
16.5% in 2000 to about a third in 2010. He next briefly introduced the Trade in Value Added WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
- 15 - 
 
  (TiVA) database, which had been released in January 2013 by the Organization for Economic 
Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the WTO.  Noting the growing importance of trade in 
intermediate goods within GVCs, he said that the database provided access to trade in value added 
indicators for 57 economies, 20 of which were developing economies. He observed that the value 
added approach to analyzing trade flows highlighted the significant role of services in world trade. 
For example, developing economies' exports of  manufactures included close to 28% of value 
added from the services sector. Finally, he referred to the information on the domestic 
environment for trading across borders which was contained in the Annex to the Secretariat paper. 
He noted that, since 2010, developing economies had continued to reduce their delays for exporting and importing, by about one day on  average. Although the gap was narrowing, 
developing economies' procedural requirements were still considerably longer than in developed 
countries. He highlighted the particular difficulties faced by LLDCs in this regard. 
105.  The representative of El Salvador appreciate d the information provided in the Secretariat 
paper and indicated that her delegation would study the document in more detail. 
106.  The representative of Paraguay expressed appr eciation to the Secretariat for highlighting 
the difficulties faced by LLDCs. 
107.  The representative of the United States said that the Secretariat paper provided an 
insightful analysis of the trade profiles of develo ping countries. His delegation was pleased to note 
that developing economies' share in world trade ha d continued to rise in recent years, and that 
increased participation in world trade in goods and commercial services had been seen across nearly all developing regions of the world. South-South trade had grown by 33% between 2010 
and 2012, which was markedly higher than the 20 % growth in developing economies' trade with 
developed and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries.  
108.  The representative of Colombia believed that the Secretariat paper provided the basis for 
constructive discussions in the CTD. She indicated that recent discussions in some areas had made 
it difficult for the Committee to move forward in its work. 
109.  The representative of China said that his delegation was pleased to note the growing 
participation of developing economies in international trade. He believed that developing 
economies needed to continue to expand their share of world trade commensurate with their 
development needs. He highlighted aspects of China's involvement in international trade and indicated that China wanted to continue to work to expand the share of developing economies, and 
particularly LDCs, in global trade flows. In light of the information on the domestic environment for 
trading across borders presented in the Annex to the Secretariat paper, he emphasized the importance of trade facilitation. 
110.  The representative of Argentina registered his delegation's interest in all discussions on the 
link between international trade and economic growth. 
111.  The representative of Costa Rica noted the gr owing importance of South-South trade. With 
regard to the participation of developing economies in GVCs, he highlighted the potential of 
services. He also emphasized the importance of collecting data that demonstrated the benefits of trade facilitation. 
112.  The representative of Canada indicated that the Secretariat paper provided a clear analysis 
on which to base discussions.    
113.  The representative of the European Union note d that developing economies had registered 
trade growth above the world average and that South-South trade continued to increase. 
However, trade performance varied considerably between regions and individual developing 
countries. In this light, she explained that a pr iority in the EU's trade and development policy - 
including through the revised GSP scheme which would enter into force in January 2014 - was to 
provide support to LDCs and other developing coun tries most in need to address the challenges 
they faced in expanding their trade. She expressed particular appreciation for the section on GVCs 
in the Secretariat paper. WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  114.  The representative of Pakistan said that services trade and participation in GVCs were 
areas where further integration of developing economies was required. She also noted that some 
developing economies and regions lagged behind others in terms of their participation in global trade, and called for particular efforts in this regard.     
115.  The Committee took note of the Secretariat paper and of all interventions. 
J. DRAFT ANNUAL REPORT FOR 2013 (WT/COMTD/W/203) 
116.  The Chairperson said that  a fax had been sent to Members on 16 October 2013 to inform 
them that the CTD's draft annual report had been  circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/203. It 
was noted that the draft contained a number of square brackets relating to items under consideration at the 89
th Regular Session, as well as at the 26th Dedicated Session on Small 
Economies which had met on 23 October 2013. The square brackets would be removed as part of 
the process of adopting the report. Members had been requested to submit in writing any 
comments on the draft annual report by 21 October 2013. In this regard, some comments had been submitted by the US. She said that, befo re opening the floor, sh e wished to make an 
observation concerning Section 4 of the report, which concerned the Dedicated Session on Small 
Economies. She recalled that, during the 26
th Dedicated Session on 23 October, a workshop was 
held on the effects of non-tariff measures (NTMs) on  the exports of small economies. In this light, 
the square brackets could be removed around th e sentence in paragraph 4.2 which read: "During 
the Workshop Members heard presentations on recent research conducted by NTMs by representatives from the ITC and UNCTAD". She added that the 26
th Dedicated Session would 
need to resume in order to adopt the Dedicated Session's report to the General Council. The CTD's 
annual report would correctly reflect the dates of the 26th Dedicated Session.   
117.  The representative of the United States indi cated that his delegation had a request with 
respect to Section 5 of the draft report which was on Aid for Trade. He referred to paragraph 5.4, 
and in particular the second sentence of that paragraph which summarized the thoughts of the 
former Director-General and which read: "The Director-General outlined his thoughts on moving to a broader initiative encompassing aid and investment for trade and recommended that a robust 
Aid-for-Trade Work Programme be prepared for Bali with resource mobilization and expanded 
monitoring remaining at the core of the initiative".  The US requested that the sentence be deleted, 
given that the current Director-General had more recently laid out a different direction for Aid-for-Trade work. He added that if any Member had a concern with the deletion of that sentence, the US 
could also accept a modification of the sentence to read: "The Director-General outlined his 
thoughts for broadening the initiative and possible work for Bali".   
118.  The representative of Barbados referred to paragraph 2.10 in the draft report concerning 
the work of the CTD under the MC8 mandate, and in particular to the last sentence in that 
paragraph which read: "Also at the 89th Session, the Committee considered a proposal by 
Barbados, Belize, Benin, Bots wana, Kenya, Lesotho and Mauritius (WT/COMTD/W/202)". She 
requested that the sentence be modified to read: "Also at the 89th Session, the Committee 
considered a proposal by Barbados, Belize, Be nin, Botswana, Kenya, Lesotho and Mauritius 
(WT/COMTD/W/202) to give effect to the instruction of Ministers at MC8 for the CTD to operationalize its mandate as the focal point for development work in WTO, and to report on 
development work in the WTO".  
119.  The representative of Australia said that the annual report should provide a minimal 
factual summary of the discussions that had taken place in the CTD. Members could refer to the 
minutes of the meetings for any further details. He  indicated that the suggestion from Barbados 
would require the re-opening of the whole of pa ragraph 2.10 for discussion, since an explanation 
of each individual proposal discussed would need to be reflected in order for the text to be 
balanced.   
120.  The Chairperson observed that the draft report contained descriptions for some of the 
documents that were discussed in the CTD.  
121.  The representative of the United States said that the section of the draft report 
summarizing the discussions relating to the MC8 mandate contained a description of the proposal WT/COMTD/M/89 
 
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  for the Secretariat to update its paper on the implementation of S&D provisions, because that 
proposal had been agreed to by Members. He expressed support for the intervention by Australia.  
122.  The representative of Barbados indicated that her delegation was willing to withdraw its 
proposed amendment to paragraph 2.10 in order to go with the consensus.  
123.  The Chairperson noted that Barbados had withdrawn its proposed amendment. She invited 
the Committee to adopt the report with the deletion of the second sentence in paragraph 5.4 as 
requested by the US.  
124.  The Committee adopted its annual report for 2013.1    
K. OTHER BUSINESS 
125.  The Chairperson said that she wished to raise a matter concerning Members' review of the 
TM for PTAs. The TM was being implemented by the CTD, as per the provisions contained in 
document WT/L/806, which was the General Council Decision of 14 December 2010 which 
established the Mechanism. Paragraph 26 of the TM  indicated that the Mechanism would apply on 
a provisional basis until Members approved its permanent application. The paragraph also 
indicated that Members would review the Mechanism after three years and if necessary modify it in 
light of the experience gained from its provisional operation. She went on to say that, in December 2013, three years would have elapsed since the General Council Decision which established the 
TM. Members would, therefore, soon need to consider the question of the review of the 
Mechanism. Whether enough experience had been gained yet to conduct a review would also be 
for Members to determine. At the present time, she was bringing the matter to the Committee's attention. She informed the Committee that she intended to hold consultations with Members in 
the early part of 2014 to hear views concerning the timing and the nature of a review of the TM.  
126.  The meeting was adjourned. 
 
 
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1 The report was issued in  document WT/COMTD/83.