WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  RESTRICTED 
WT/COMTD/M/85 
10 September 2012  
 
(12-4821) 
Committee on Trade and Development 
Eighty-Fifth Session  
 
 
 
NOTE ON THE MEETING OF 16 JULY 2012 
 
Chairman: H.E. Dr. Anthony Mothae Maruping (Lesotho) 
  
A. 
ADOPTION OF THE 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 th e Groupe de la Banque Africaine de 
Developpement ................................................................................................................. ........... 2 
C. 
REPORT OF THE 46TH SESSION OF THE JOINT ADVISORY GROUP ON THE 
INTERNATIONAL TRADE CENTRE UNCTAD /WTO (ITC/AG(XLVI )/248) .......................................... 3  
D.  TECHNICAL COOPERATION AND TRAINING  .................................................................................. 5  
(i)  Annual Report on Technical Assistance and Training (1 January to 31 December 
2011) (WT/COMTD/W/186) ....................................................................................................... 5 
(ii)  Technical Cooperation Audit Repor t for 2011 (WT/COMTD/W/187) ........................................ 5  
E.  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) ............................................................................................................... ........ 8 
-  WORK UNDER THE MC 8 MANDATE : PROPOSAL TO UPDATE S &D PAPER - 
COMMUNICATION FROM CUBA AND ECUADOR (WT/COMTD /W/188  AND 
WT/COMTD /W/188/ ADD.1) ......................................................................................................... 10  
F.  ELECTRONIC COMMERCE - DECISION OF 17 DECEMBER 2011  (WT/L/843) ............................... 12  
-  TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR "WORKSHOP ON E -COMMERCE , DEVELOPMENT AND SMES " 
- COMMUNICATION FROM CUBA AND ECUADOR (WT/COMTD /W/189) ....................................... 13  
G.  NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE ENABLING CLAUSE  ....................................................................... 16  
-  GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL (GCC) NOTIFICATION OF CUSTOMS UNION – 
COMMUNICATION FROM CHINA , EGYPT AND INDIA (WT/COMTD /W/175) .................................. 17  
-  NOTIFICATION OF THE AGREEMENT ON TRADE IN GOODS BETWEEN THE ASSOCIATION 
OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS (ASEAN ) AND KOREA  .............................................................. 18  
-  NOTIFICATION OF THE COMPREHENSIV E ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT 
BETWEEN INDIA AND KOREA (GOODS ) ...................................................................................... 18  
-  GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF PREFERENCES - NOTIFICATION BY THE UNITED STATES 
(WT/COMTD /N/1/ADD.8) ............................................................................................................ 19  WT/COMTD/M/85 
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  H. 
NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE TRANSPARENCY MECHANISM FOR PREFERENTIAL TRADE 
ARRANGEMENTS  ........................................................................................................................ 21  
I.  REVIEW OF STEPS T AKEN TO PROVIDE DUTY -FREE AND QUOTA -FREE MARKET ACCESS 
TO LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES  ............................................................................................ 21  
J.  OTHER BUSINESS  ....................................................................................................................... 22  
 
A. ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA  
1. The Chairman said that the draft agenda for the 85th Session of the Committee on Trade and 
Development (CTD) was contained in document WTO/AIR/3977 circulated on 6 July 2012.  He said 
that he wanted to add a matter under "Other Busi ness" concerning the reduction of documentation 
costs in the CTD.  
2. The agenda was adopted as amended. 
B. OBSERVERS  
(i) Request for attendance of ad hoc observers 
3. The Chairman recalled that, at previous sessions of the CTD, Members had agreed to invite a 
number of intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) on  an ad hoc, meeting-by-meeting basis.  These 
included the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU), the Economic Community of West African States 
(ECOWAS), the Economic Cooperati on Organization (ECO), the Inter-Arab Investment Guarantee 
Corporation, the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), the African Union (AU), the Organization of the 
Islamic Conference (OIC), the South Centre, th e Pacific Islands Forum, the United Nations 
Environment Programme (UNEP), the West Afri can Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) and 
the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).  He said that, following the decision taken at 
the previous meeting of the Committee, the organizati ons had been invited to the present meeting.  He 
proposed that these organizations  be invited to the next formal meeting of the CTD. 
4. It was so agreed.  
(ii) Further consideration of requests for observer st atus by the League of Arab States, the 
Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the Gulf Organization for 
Industrial Consulting, the Organisation Int ernationale 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 Chairman said that the positions of delega tions were on the record.  He informed the 
Committee that, further to OAPEC's initial request  in 2005, the organization had submitted another 
request, dated 5 July 2012, for observer status in the CTD.  
6. He went on to say that he was aware that th e Chair of the General Council had been holding 
informal consultations on issues relating to requests for observer status in the WTO.  That being the 
case, some Members were of the view that the CTD should undertake work to resolve issues relating 
to requests for observer status in the Committee.  Therefore, at the last formal CTD meeting, the 
Committee had been informed that he would hold informal consultations in this regard.  On 
27 June 2012, he had convened an informal open-e nded CTD meeting, at which one of the issues for 
discussion concerned requests for observer status in  the CTD.  He noted, however, that no dialogue 
had taken place on this matter between Members at the informal open-ended meeting.  Only Egypt 
had taken the floor to indicate that the position of  the Arab Group remained unchanged.  He expressed  WT/COMTD/M/85 
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  his hope that it would soon be possible for Memb ers to find convergence on a way forward for the 
CTD.  He encouraged Members to consult amongst th emselves in this regard.  In opening the floor, he 
inquired whether there were any developments on th is matter that Members wished to share, or 
whether there were any changes in Members' positions  with regard to the requests for observer status 
from the organizations in question.   
7. The representative of Egypt said that the CTD's ru les of procedure allowed it to take decisions 
concerning requests for permanent observer status by IGOs.  This was the Arab Group's position.  He 
requested the Chairman to continue holdi ng informal consultations on this matter. 
8. The Chairman invited the Committee to take no te of the intervention by Egypt.  He also 
proposed that the Committee revert to this matter at its next meeting.  
9. It was so agreed.     
C. REPORT OF THE 46TH SESSION OF THE JOINT ADVISORY GROUP ON THE INTERNATIONAL TRADE 
CENTRE UNCTAD /WTO (ITC/AG(XLVI )/248) 
10. The Chairman said that the report of the 46th Session of the Joint Advisory Group (JAG) on 
the International Trade Centre UNCTAD/WT O (ITC) was contained in ITC document 
ITC/AG(XLVI)/248.  He welcomed Ambassador Fran cisco Pírez Gordillo of Uruguay, the Chairman 
of the 46th Session of the JAG, and Ms. Patricia Franci s, the Executive Director of the ITC.  He 
invited Ambassador Pírez Gordillo to introduce the report. 
11. The Chairman of the JAG said that the Group had held its 46th Session on 21 and 
22 May 2012.  The meeting was convened to di scuss the ITC's Annual Report for 2011 and the 
Strategic Plan for 2012-2015.  Government re presentatives had also announced their voluntary 
contributions to the ITC's trust fund, and had pa rticipated in the general discussion on the ITC's 
activities and the future of the organization.    
12. He went on to say that the Director-General of WTO and the Secretary General of UNCTAD 
had in their opening statements re iterated the importance of the ITC's work in supporting the private 
sector in least-developed countries (LDCs).  They had confirmed their endorsement of the ITC's new 
Strategic Plan and Corporate Logframe.  The Di rector-General of the WTO had identified four 
priorities for the ITC, which were trade facilitation, Aid for Trade and global and regional value chains, issues concerning LDCs, and regional integr ation.  The Director-General had commended the 
ITC for its efforts to embed results-based manageme nt (RBM) and had encouraged the organization to 
continue to deliver value for money.  The S ecretary General of UNCTAD had urged donors to 
provide support to ensure that the ITC could continue  to develop projects that were significant in scale 
and contributed to achieving sustained inclus ive growth to develop the real economy.  
13. In her update of the ITC's activities, the Execu tive Director of the ITC had informed the JAG 
that mainstreaming inclusiveness and sustainabilit y had remained a key focus area for the ITC in 
2011.  The ITC's Women and Trade programme was ac ting as a catalyst to generate opportunities for 
businesswomen in developing countries.  With the help  of six pilot countries, the ITC had developed a 
benchmarking scheme to strengthen trade promotion organizations.  In 2011, the ITC had exceeded its 
delivery target of US$44 million.  The final deliv ery was US$47.8 million, as the large programmes 
launched in 2008 and 2009 reached their peak.  The ITC would require additio nal support of at least 
US$14 million in 2012 and 2013 to re plenish funding for large projects.  The Executive Director had 
also noted that the allocation to LDCs, landloc ked developing countries (LLDCs), small island 
developing states (SIDS) and sub-Saharan Africa in the last biennium had grown faster than overall 
delivery, making up 55 per cent of project alloca tion and 78 per cent of country-specific or 
region-specific project allocation.  The Deputy Executive Director of the ITC had then given an WT/COMTD/M/85 
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  overview of the roadmap for the progressive implemen tation of the ITC's new corporate strategy.  The 
Deputy Executive Director had stressed that the St rategic Plan for 2012-2015, which included the 
ITC's new Corporate Logframe, engaged the organiza tion in a significant leap forward to meet the 
highest standards of stakeholder expectations for RBM. 
14. The Group had broadly welcomed the Annual Repo rt and the fact that 2011 had seen more 
technical assistance than ever before.  The ITC's ro le in Aid for Trade was recognized.  The Strategic 
Plan for 2012-2015 and the new Strategic Framework were endorsed, with particular support for the 
ITC's commitment to move towards socio-economic impact measurement.  Efforts with regard to 
transparency and communication were acknowledged as integral parts of the ITC's contribution to 
better governance of the organization.  Support was expressed for the ITC's initiatives to promote 
regional integration and intraregional trade.  The strong emphasis on non-tariff measures and on 
developing trade intelligence for LDCs, LLDCs and sub-Saharan African countries was appreciated.  
Many beneficiary countries expressed their thanks to the donor community for their continuing support in difficult economic times.  Some dele gates from other developing countries expressed the 
hope that donors would also consider their countries' needs for support from the ITC.  
15. Delegations expressed their wish to see the ITC further expand its activities in the field of the 
green economy - and more generally in the promo tion of an inclusive and sustainable model of 
development, focusing on poverty reduction and th e empowerment of women and youth.  Discussion 
confirmed the strategic importance of large pr ogrammes for the sustainability of the ITC's 
impact-oriented strategy.  There was a wide call for renewed support from donors for the regeneration 
of the ITC's large-scale project pipeline.  Finally, on behalf of the Group, he  thanked the Governments 
of Australia, Canada, China, Denmark, Finlan d, Germany, Norway and Switzerland for their 
expressions of financial support to the organization.  
16. The representative of the European Union said th at the ITC was fundamentally a focal point 
within the UN system for trade-related techni cal assistance.  Its mission was to focus on small 
businesses and their capacity to trade.  The organiza tion was also building bridges between the private 
sector and policy makers.  These fundamental objectives were of high importance to the EU as well, 
as set out in the EU's recent Communication on Trade, Growth and Development.  The priority areas in the ITC's Strategic Plan for 2012-2015 were area s that the EU supported and considered important, 
particularly in light of the ch anging global economic landscape and its impact on trade, investment 
and development policies.  He noted that the ITC ha d been asked to prioriti ze its work in the most 
vulnerable countries.  His delegation believed that th is was the right strategy.  Development efforts 
needed to increasingly focu s on the countries most in need and where efforts would yield the biggest 
impact, notably with a view to attaining the M illennium Development Goals.  The EU followed a 
similar approach in trade and development,  as well as in its development policies.  
17. He said that the EU and its member States we re important contributors to the ITC's project 
and programme budget.  The EU was the lead donor in the launch of the ITC's new Market Access 
Map, and was contributing to the ITC's Standards Ma p.  The EU was also in discussion with the ITC 
concerning contributions to other projects, for exampl e projects targeted at small traders in developing 
countries.  Through its increasing cooperation with the ITC, the EU was demonstrating its support for 
the ITC's objectives and ambitions.  
18. The representative of Canada said that her dele gation continued to support the ITC's efforts in 
assisting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from developing countries gain access to 
regional and global markets.  She noted that Cana da was a major ITC donor, and pointed to the strong 
progress in Canadian-funded ITC programming in three African regional economic communities and in five Arab countries.  She congratulated the ITC and the beneficiaries for making these programmes 
a success.  She also welcomed the ITC's on-going efforts in RBM, through which the institution was 
positioning itself to demonstrate good practice in showing results in Aid for Trade.    WT/COMTD/M/85 
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  19. The Committee took note of the report of the 46th Session of the JAG and forwarded it to the 
General Council for adoption. 
D. TECHNICAL COOPERATION AND TRAINING  
(i) Annual Report on Technical Assistance and Training ( 1 January to 31 December 2011) 
(WT/COMTD/W /186) 
(ii) Technical Cooperation Audit Report for 2011 (WT/COMTD/W /187) 
20. The Chairman said that there were two reports  for consideration under this agenda item, 
namely the Annual Report on Technical Assistance and Training (TA Report) for 2011 - circulated as 
document WT/COMTD/W/186 - and the Technical C ooperation Audit Report for 2011 - circulated as 
document WT/COMTD/W/187.  He invited the representatives of the Institute for Training and 
Technical Cooperation (ITTC) to introduce the reports. 
21. The Director of the ITTC said that she would introduce the TA Report and would also take 
the opportunity to repeat some of the points that she had made at the informal open-ended CTD 
meeting of 27 June 2012.  The Audit Report would subsequently be introduced by the Head of the 
ITTC's Monitoring and Evaluation.  
22. She observed that 2011 had been a year of challe nges.  The incoming funds at the start of the 
year had been insufficient to cove r all the expenses related to the full implementation of the Biennial 
Technical Assistance and Training Plan (TA Plan) for 2010 and 2011.  The overall number of activities implemented decreased by a quarter, as a large number of activities had to be cancelled or 
postponed.  Turning to an overview of the ac tivities implemented in 2011, she said that the 
Progressive Learning Strategy (PLS) had been develope d further.  The complementary introduction of 
the RBM concept had enabled the ITTC to be in a position to report on outputs.  The e-learning 
programme had been revamped, with the incorpora tion of the PLS.  The ITTC had worked closely 
with regional secretariats and other partners to deliver regional activiti es, and had continued to deliver 
outreach programmes for Parliamentarians and others, as laid out in the TA Plan.  There was a further 
consolidation and strengthening of the internship pr ogrammes.  Ten interns had participated in the 
Netherlands Trainee Programme (NTP), seven had participated in the WTO Regional Coordinator 
Internship Programme (RCIP) and twelve had partic ipated in the Mission Intern Programme (MIP).  
23. The delivery of national activities had experienced  a 25 per cent decrease, and regional events 
were reduced by 21 per cent.  Late disbursements of extra budgetary contributions and preparations 
for the Ministerial Conference at the end of 2011 contributed to these decreases, particularly in the last quarter of the year.  A total of 142 nationa l activities and 71 regional activities were implemented 
in 2011. An additional 53 global activities, whic h included the Geneva-based activities, had been 
organized. A total of 266 activities had therefore been held. Secretariat staff had also participated in 
74 conferences.  This led to a total of 340 activ ities funded from the regular budget and from the Doha 
Development Agenda Global Trust Fund (GTF).   
24. She went on to say that the insufficient funds at the end of 2011 had had an impact on the 
design of the 2012-2013 TA Plan.  In particular, ba sed on the lessons learned in 2011, the ITTC had 
taken the decision to postpone the implementati on of activities funded from the GTF to the second 
quarter of 2012, thereby allowing time for 2012 contribu tions to come in.  The first quarter of 2012 
had therefore focused on national activities funded from the regular budget.  From January to June 2012, 19 regional workshops and 65 national activities were held .  A mid-term review of the 
Academic Programme was carried out, and the WTO Ch airs annual meeting was held in June.  The 
WTO Chairs meeting had identified the need to st rengthen follow-up processes and reporting, and to 
put more emphasis on assessing Chair outputs.  The Se cretariat had been requested to enhance support WT/COMTD/M/85 
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  and guidance to the Chairs.  The need for e nhancing the links between policymakers and the 
universities receiving WTO support had been identified.  Discussion had also taken place on ensuring the sustainability of the WTO Chairs Programme.  
25. Turning to e-learning, she said that there were  currently 3,512 partic ipants registered, of 
which 769 had successfully completed their training.  With regard to the internship programmes, she 
informed the Committee that there were presently 46  interns, 17 of which were being funded by the 
NTP, five by the RCIP and 20 by the MIP.  There were an additional four interns funded by China's 
LDC accession programme.  She said that the numbers had increased relative to the previous year due 
to increased financial support for the internship progr ammes.  She also indicated that the Secretariat 
had participated in 36 conferences thus far in 2012.  A total of 51 regional activities and 79 national 
activities were planned for 2012.  The Secretariat was expected to participate in about 40 conferences 
by the end of the year, which was a significant re duction relative to the 74 conferences attended in 
2011.  
26. She said that the GTF represented about 80 per cent of the total budget for the WTO's 
technical assistance activities.  The declines in contributions over a number of years were now 
beginning to show.  The Secretariat had used up its buffer and the lack of predictability over when to 
expect contributions made planning very difficult.  Presently, the Secretariat had about 77 per cent of the total funds required to implement all the pl anned GTF-funded activities for 2012.  This amount 
was in large part obtained from the resources carried  forward from 2011.  As of the end of June 2012, 
about CHF4.6 million had been received from seven Members.  Pledges of a further CHF4 million 
had been made by two Members.  To mitigate the situation, the Secretariat was implementing a 
number of measures.  For example, there was an increasing focus on partnerships.  The intention was 
to leverage resources while building on synergies.  Cost saving measures that would not compromise 
on quality were being explored.  E-learning was being repositioned and further thought was being 
given to the sequencing and context of technical a ssistance.  She observed that there was additionally 
a need for rationalizing and reprioritizing technical assistance.  In this regard, the ITTC intended to 
hold consultative meetings with Members to review  the activities planned for 2013.  She also invited 
emerging economies not already contributing to the GTF to consider doing so.  
27. Finally, she said that she wished to share information on the implementation of RBM.  She 
informed the Committee that the Technical Coopera tion Audit Unit (TCAU) had been merged with 
the ITTC and was carrying out a monitoring and ev aluation function.  The ITTC had defined its 
outputs, had reviewed the tools to capture data for monitoring and evaluation, and was working to 
develop a monitoring and evaluation system.  On the evaluation of possible outcomes, the ITTC had 
developed a pilot programme which was to be implemented in three or four countries. 
28. The Head of the ITTC's Monitoring and Evalua tion said that the Audit Report focused on the 
main components of the logical framework presented to Members as part of the TA Plan for 2012 and 
2013.  It dealt with output before addressing the immediate and longer term outcome of the activities 
for beneficiary countries.  With regard to the WT O's technical assistance output, the statistics on the 
various training methods used in the activities showed  marginal evolutions towards more interactivity 
in the activities relative to 2010.  In light of reduc ed resources available for technical assistance, 
efforts were being made to improve the coordinatio n, coherence and management of resources.  He 
said that the immediate outcome of a technical assi stance activity was traditionally measured through 
the self-evaluation presented by the trainers in a back-to-office report (BTOR).  Most such reports 
simply presented the views of the participants on the activity, even when objective indicators such as 
results of quizzes or exercises were available.  The Secretariat had undertaken to improve this as part of its move to RBM.  As in previous years, an in itial analysis of the longer term outcome of technical 
assistance in a limited number of countries showed so me very positive effects, in particular with 
regard to compliance with WTO obligations.  Th e introduction of RBM in 2012 would lead to more 
solid evidence in this area.  WT/COMTD/M/85 
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  29. In 2011, the TCAU had reviewed the follow-up of the recommendations contained in BTORs 
and had performed an ex-post evaluation of th e Geneva Weeks for non-resident Members and 
Observers.  The TCAU had recommended the implem entation of a formal mechanism to follow up on 
BTOR recommendations.  With regard to Geneva Weeks, he said that these had been reasonably 
successful.  The evaluation of the most recent Ge neva Week indicated that the modifications 
introduced had been very well received by participants.    
30. The representative of the European Union emph asized the importance of the WTO's technical 
assistance activities for developing countries.  Th e introduction of RBM was a welcome development 
which would allow a thorough monitoring of each progr amme.  Noting the current financial situation, 
he said that the EU was a longstanding donor to the GTF.  His delegation was in discussion with the 
WTO about the launch of a new contribution agreement for the 2012-2013 period.  The EU's 
contributions were an indication of its satisfacti on with the WTO's technical assistance activities and 
with the improvements in the TA Plan that had been introduced followi ng consultations with 
stakeholders. 
31. The representative of Australia expressed support for the WTO's technical assistance 
activities.  He welcomed the early signs of progr ess in the implementation of more effective RBM of 
the ITTC's activities and encouraged the ITTC to co ntinue to brief Members on further progress.  He 
noted that financial constraints were presenting a ch allenge to the ITTC in the delivery of technical 
assistance.  In this light, Australia had recently  committed AUD6 million over the coming three years 
to the GTF.  Noting that the prioritization of activ ities was one approach that the ITTC was taking in 
response to the financial situation, he underlined  the importance of activities being driven by needs 
and beneficiary demand.  He encouraged the ITTC  to continue its outreach to those Members - 
particularly non-resident Members - that faced challenges in this regard. 
32. The representative of Ecuador expressed appreci ation for the technical assistance that his 
country had received from the WTO.  He called on d onors to continue to support the WTO's technical 
assistance activities.   
33. The representative of Bangladesh welcomed e- learning and the PLS.  He also noted the 
introduction of RBM and hoped that it would provide mo re value for money.  He said that LDCs had 
a serious dearth of capacity in multiple sectors.  While the internship programmes were proving useful 
for LDCs in building their capacity, he indicated that there was a need for a greater intake of interns.  
In addition, the selection criteria were someti mes burdensome for candidates from LDCs.  He 
expressed appreciation for the regional approach an d also highlighted the importance of facilitating 
the participation of LDCs in as many technical assistance activities as possible. 
34. The representative of Canada said that his de legation continued to support the GTF through 
an annual contribution of C$500,000.  He regretted that the full  amount necessary to implement the 
TA Plan for 2012 and 2013 was not yet available and we lcomed the ITTC's efforts at cost saving.  His 
delegation supported the initiative to incorporate th e TCAU into the ITTC as an in-house monitoring 
and evaluation unit.  It was hoped that this would contribute to on-going improvements in the roll-out 
of robust RBM within the ITTC.  While much wo rk remained to be done on RBM, early signs were 
encouraging.  He urged the ITTC Director to ensu re that a focus on impacts remained a priority. 
35. The representative of Nigeria said that tec hnical assistance was a core element of the 
development dimension of the multilateral trading syst em.  Noting the decline in contributions to the 
GTF, he urged donors to continue to fund the WTO's technical assistance activities.  
36. The representative of Cuba said that her c ountry had greatly benefitted from the WTO's 
technical assistance activities, including the e-lear ning courses, the national activities and the regional 
activities.  She encouraged the ITTC  to continue its useful work.  WT/COMTD/M/85 
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  37. The representative of Iran expressed appreciation for the technical assistance that had been 
provided to his country.  He hoped that the co llaboration with the ITTC would continue.  
38. The Director of the ITTC thanked Members for their support for the ITTC's work.      
39. The Committee took note of the two reports and of all interventions. 
E. 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) 
40. The Chairman recalled that, at the Eighth Ministerial Conference (MC8), Ministers had, 
inter alia , reaffirmed the link between trade and de velopment and called on Members to fully 
operationalize the mandate of the CTD as a focal point for development work.  The CTD had been directed to report the results of its work under th e MC8 mandate to Ministers at the Ninth Session.  
41. He went on to say that in the past few mont hs he had been consulting informally with 
delegations in various formats in order to hear views and suggestions on what specifically could be 
done by the CTD under the MC8 mandate.  Most r ecently, the matter had been discussed at the 
27 June 2012 informal open-ended CTD meeting.  At  that meeting, he had informed the membership 
of two possible areas in which there had appeared  to be some convergence among those delegations 
present in his earlier small-group cons ultations.  The first area of wo rk was in relation to the CTD's 
terms of reference, contained in document WT/L/46.  In particular, the idea that had been suggested 
was to look at how the Committee could address aspect s of trade and development in the different 
paragraphs of the terms of reference.  The sec ond suggested area of work was in the sharing of 
country experiences on trade and development, po tentially from both deve loped and developing 
country Members.  However, he recalled that he  had also indicated at the informal open-ended 
meeting that it was important to c oncretize the nature of the work to be undertaken by the CTD in 
these two areas.  Furthermore, he had observed th at the scope of the linkage between trade and 
development was much broader than just these two areas.    
42. In light of the need to move the discussion on the MC8 mandate decisively forward, he 
recalled that he had sent a fax to Members on 14 June 2012, inviting the submission of written 
proposals on concrete areas of work for the CTD.  He said that, in his view, written proposals would 
be more conducive to focused discussion, and w ould also ensure a Member-driven process.  One 
written proposal had since been circulated as a fo rmal CTD document.  Th is was a proposal from 
Cuba and Ecuador, circulated in document WT /COMTD/W/188 and WT/COMTD/W/188/Add.1.  His 
understanding was that the proposal was made in relation to paragraph 3 of the CTD's terms of 
reference.  It called for an upda te to a Secretariat document on the implementation of special and 
differential treatment (S&D) provisions.  A prelim inary discussion on the proposal, which was listed 
as a sub-item for discussion under the present age nda item, had taken place at the 27 June 2012 
informal open-ended meeting.  He added that Eg ypt had requested the Secretariat to forward to 
Members the statement it had made on behalf of the African and Arab Groups in relation to the work 
that the CTD could undertake under the MC8 mandate .  This statement was faxed to Members on 
18 June 2012.  In addition, he informed Member s that a non-paper by the African Group had been 
placed in the meeting room at the request of Egypt.  
43. He said that he once again wished to invite Members to consider submitting written proposals 
on possible areas of work for the CTD under the MC8 ma ndate.  For his part, he  intended to continue 
his informal consultations so that Members could id entify and agree to some concrete areas of work 
that could be started in the CTD.  He emphasize d that starting work in some areas under the MC8 
mandate would not prevent the Committee from subse quently bringing in other areas of work, if 
Members so wished.  He encouraged Members to begin concrete work in the CTD as soon as 
possible, so that there would be enough time to  make progress before the Committee reported to the  WT/COMTD/M/85 
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  Ninth Ministerial Conference.  He opened the floor for any interventions on the MC8 mandate, after 
which he indicated that the Committee would look sp ecifically at the proposal by Cuba and Ecuador. 
44. The representative of Egypt, in introducing the non-paper by the African Group, explained 
that the non-paper had its roots in previous comm unications and statements by the African and Arab 
Groups.  He emphasized that the non-paper was work  in progress, and that it could be refined and 
modified to accommodate the views of Members.  Excerpts from the Elements  for Political Guidance, 
which formed part of the concluding statement of  the Chairman of MC8, were included in the 
non-paper.  The proposals in the non-paper were presented in tabular form, so that each proposal 
could be related to elements of the CTD's manda te.  The table also allowed the African Group to 
elaborate on each of the proposals, which were grouped into six areas.  
45. He said that the first paragraph of the CTD' s terms of reference required the Committee to 
serve as a focal point for the consideration and c oordination of work on development in the WTO, and 
its relationship to development-related activities in  other multilateral agencies.  The second paragraph 
of the terms of reference called on the CTD to k eep under continuous review the participation of 
developing country Members in the multilateral tr ading system and to consider measures and 
initiatives to assist developing country Members, and in particular the least-developed country 
Members, in the expansion of their trade and i nvestment opportunities, including support for their 
measures of trade liberalization.  The first two areas of the non-paper were  concerned with these 
elements of the CTD's terms of reference.  In particular, it was firstly proposed that analytical papers be prepared by the Secretariat in collaborati on with UNCTAD and other development-oriented 
intergovernmental institutions on the participation of developing and least-developed countries in the 
multilateral trading system.  As part of the second area, the non-paper proposed that consolidated 
reports be prepared on all development-related issues and development work undertaken by other 
WTO bodies. 
46. The third area of the non-paper contained a prop osal relating to a development review of 
S&D provisions, including a report on the utilizati on of S&D provisions.  Proposals were also made 
concerning the preparation of follow-up reports on the implementation of Decisions in favour of 
LDCs, as well as the preparation of reports to the General Council for appropriate action.  He 
explained that these proposals were linked to the th ird paragraph of the CTD's terms of reference, 
which called on the CTD to review periodically, in  consultation as appropria te with the relevant 
bodies of the WTO, the application of special pr ovisions in the Multilateral Trade Agreements and 
related Ministerial Decisions in favour of de veloping country Members, and in particular 
least-developed country Members, and report to the General Council for appropriate action.  Turning 
to the fourth area of the non-paper, he said that the proposal was for a consideration of the systemic 
and specific issues related to the application and use of the Enabling Clause.  This proposal was 
related to the fourth paragraph of  the CTD's terms of reference, requiring the Committee to consider 
any questions which may arise with regard to either the application or the use of special provisions in 
the Multilateral Trade Agreements and related Minister ial Decisions in favour of developing country 
Members, and to report to the General Council for appropriate action.  
47. Turning to the fifth area of the non-paper, he focused his intervention on a proposal relating to 
regional trade agreements (RTAs).  The proposal, wh ich had a link to the CTD's role in implementing 
the 2006 General Council Decision on the Transparen cy Mechanism (TM) for RTAs, was for a report 
to be prepared on cross-cutting elements, trends and practices in RTAs among developing and least 
developed Members.  Finally, he said that the si xth area of the non-paper was concerned with a 
proposal for the preparation of a special report on accessions.  It was envisaged that this report would be prepared on the basis of information already ava ilable in the reports pro posed in relation to the 
second and third areas of the non-paper.  In closing,  he indicated that the African Group was ready to 
engage constructively with Members on the proposals in the non-paper. WT/COMTD/M/85 
Page 10  
 
  48. The representative of the European Union said that the key elements of the MC8 mandate 
were that the CTD must be the focal point on tr ade and development in the WTO, and that the 
Committee needed to carry out focu sed work in line with its mandate.  The EU believed that an 
important role of the CTD was to further explor e the positive link between trade and development.  
Since the CTD's terms of reference were very broa d, and since a mandate had been given to the CTD 
to carry out focused work, the EU was of the vi ew that the Committee should focus on a limited 
number of clearly identified items.  Such a realistic  and pragmatic approach would be conducive to 
producing concrete results, thus strengthening the CTD' s added value.  This approach would also be 
conducive to boosting trust and confidence among Memb ers in the CTD.  His delegation wished to 
hear from Members on this proposed approach.  He  added that his delegation had already made 
proposals on concrete areas of work in past meetings  and stood ready to put these ideas in writing, as 
per the request by the Chairman.  He also indicated  that his delegation would study the proposals that 
had been made by other Members, and would provide reactions.   
49. The representative of India said that his delegation's comments on the African Group's 
non-paper would be preliminary, since the non-paper ha d just been circulated.  He observed that the 
non-paper highlighted six useful elem ents that could guide the CTD's work on trade and development.  
The proposals were comprehensive, and could ad dress the issues relating to the integration of 
developing countries into the multilateral trading system.   
50. The representative of Nigeria said that the elements of the African Group's non-paper were on 
the whole self-explanatory.  He highlighted in par ticular the importance of the second, third and fifth 
areas.  He noted that there might be a need for further elaboration of some of the proposals, for 
example in the context of their relationship with the proposal by Cuba and Ecuador which was listed 
as a sub-item under the present agenda item.  He sugg ested that the non-paper could form the basis of 
discussions in the CTD on work with respect to the Committee's terms of reference.   
51. The representative of Kenya said that the non-paper by the African Group was 
complementary to the proposal by Cuba and Ecua dor which was listed as a sub-item under the present 
agenda item.  He hoped that Members could build on the two submissions.  
52. The representative of Cuba said that the Afri can Group's non-paper merited further analysis 
and was a good starting point for discussions on the future work of the CTD.  
53. The representative of China said that his delega tion could only make preliminary comments 
on the African Group's non-paper at this stage, since the non-paper had just been circulated.  China's 
preliminary reaction was that the non-paper included ma ny useful elements for the future work of the 
CTD.  China had touched upon some similar elements  in previous CTD meetings, for example on the 
need to improve intra-consulting and reporting procedures.  He indicated that the African Group's non-paper would be transmitted to his capital. 
- 
WORK UNDER THE MC 8 MANDATE : PROPOSAL TO UPDATE S &D PAPER - 
COMMUNICATION FROM CUBA AND ECUADOR (WT/COMTD /W/188 AND 
WT/COMTD /W/188/ADD.1) 
54. The representative of Ecuador recalled that his delegation had proposed at several informal 
consultations convened by the Chairman that the Committee resume its review of the implementation 
of S&D provisions.  The communication from Cuba  and Ecuador, which took into account the MC8 
mandate as well as the CTD's terms of reference, had been circulated in resp onse to the Chairman's 
request for Members to submit written proposals on substantive work for the CTD.  His delegation 
believed that the proposal that had been submitted was concrete.  In particular, it called for an update 
to the Secretariat's 2001 paper on the implementati on of S&D provisions, circulated in document 
WT/COMTD/W/77/Rev.1.  The proposal was also prag matic, to the extent that it had a factual basis  WT/COMTD/M/85 
 Page 11 
 
 
  in existing S&D provisions in the WTO Agreem ents.  Finally, the proposal was realistic. 
Consultations had demonstrated that it enjoyed the br oad support of Members.  He indicated that the 
proposal was also in line with the CTD's role as th e focal point for development-related work in the 
WTO. 
55. The representative of Cuba said that her de legation had decided to co-sponsor the proposal 
under consideration, which had originally been made by Ecuador.  This was in  light of the importance 
that her delegation attached to all questions rela ting to S&D.  She urged Members to consider the 
proposal favourably.  She believed that an update to  the Secretariat paper would provide a complete 
and up-to-date picture of the situation with respect to S&D.  It would also provide direction for the 
future work of the CTD and contri bute to the integration of develo ping countries into the multilateral 
trading system. 
56. The representative of Nigeria said that the proposal under consideration was linked to the 
terms of reference of the CTD.  He noted that the proposal was similar to one of the proposals in the 
African Group non-paper, and that it would be desirable to avoid a duplication of efforts.  In this light, 
there was scope for the African Group to work with  Cuba and Ecuador to see how the proposal could 
be fine-tuned. 
57. The representative of Egypt, noting the interven tion by Nigeria, said that the African Group 
had indeed seen the commonalities between the pr oposal by Cuba and Ecuador and one of the 
proposals in the non-paper.  The Group had, therefor e, recognized the usefulness of coordinating with 
Cuba and Ecuador in order to refine the proposal.    
58. The representative of Australia said that the pr oposal by Cuba and Ecuador aimed to make a 
practical contribution to the CTD's work.  His de legation was ready to work with the proposal as 
circulated by these two delegations.  Australia hoped that Members could also agree to other practical 
proposals to follow through on the MC8 mandate.   
59. The representative of the United States welcom ed the proposal by Cuba and Ecuador.  His 
delegation could support the proposal as circulated by these two delegations.  With regard to the 
African Group's non-paper, he said that a number of the proposals in the non-paper had already been 
discussed in the Chairman's info rmal consultations, and there had not been a consensus.  His 
delegation nevertheless looked forward to further constructive engagement with the African Group 
and with other Members on the MC8 mandate.     
60. The representative of Kenya said that the proposal by Cuba and Ecuador was pragmatic and 
realistic.  He noted the desirability of merging this  proposal with the similar proposal by the African 
Group.   
61. The representative of India said that Ministers at  MC8 had expressed the need to mainstream 
development issues into the architecture of the WT O.  They were aware that the WTO Agreements 
did not have the necessary flexibility to take into account the lack of human, institutional, resource 
and export capabilities of developing countries.  He believed that the proposal by Cuba and Ecuador 
was consistent with the mandate given to the CTD at MC8.  However, in view of the commonalities 
between this proposal and the African Group's proposal , he indicated that it would be desirable for 
these Members to work together on a single proposal.    
62. The representative of Argentina expressed support for the proposal by Cuba and Ecuador.  He 
said that he would transmit the non-paper by the African Group to his capital for further analysis. 
63. The representative of Canada welcomed the propo sal by Cuba and Ecuador and indicated that 
his delegation was prepared to work with the proposal as circulated by these two delegations. WT/COMTD/M/85 
Page 12  
 
  64. The representative of Mexico expressed his dele gation's support for the proposal by Cuba and 
Ecuador. 
65. The representative of Brazil indicated that  his delegation was supportive of the ideas 
contained in the proposal by Cuba and Ecuador.  He  encouraged these delegations to work with the 
African Group in order to refine the proposal.  He also indicated that the non-paper by the African 
Group would be transmitted to his capital.         
66. The Chairman noted that Members had welcomed  the proposal by Cuba and Ecuador, but had 
also pointed to the commonalities between this pr oposal and a proposal cont ained in the non-paper by 
the African Group.  He encouraged Cuba, Ecuador and the African Group to work together in this 
regard. He also noted that Members would need time to study the non-paper by the African Group. 
67. The Committee took note of all interventions.   
F. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE - DECISION OF 17 DECEMBER 2011  (WT/L/ 843) 
68. The Chairman said that the CTD's discussion on electronic commerce (e-commerce) since the 
beginning of 2012 had been in relation to the 17 December 2011 Decision taken at MC8, which was 
contained in document WT/L/843.  He recalled that, at the informal open-ended CTD meeting that he 
had convened on 29 March 2012, Members had been  provided the opportunity to discuss how the 
CTD could proceed on e-commerce on the basis of this  Decision.  The discussion had continued at the 
84th Session of the CTD on 11 April 2012.  At that meeting, it was noted that one suggestion that had 
been put forward was for a works hop on e-commerce to be held.  The delegations that had suggested 
holding a workshop were invited to come forwar d with a possible programme and structure.   
69. He went on to say that Cuba and Ecuador had subsequently submitted a written proposal for a 
workshop on e-commerce, development and SMEs, wh ich was circulated in document JOB/DEV/16.  
This proposal was considered at the informal ope n-ended CTD meeting held on 27 June 2012.  He 
recalled that, on the basis of the discussion that had taken place at that meeting, he had encouraged the proponents to fine-tune their proposal.  He wished to now inform Members that Cuba and Ecuador had circulated their proposal in document WT/C OMTD/W/189.  This document was listed as a 
sub-item for discussion under the present agenda item.   He also informed the Committee that he 
would be reporting to the General Council at its me eting on 25 July 2012 on what had transpired in 
the CTD in the area of e-commerce since the begi nning of 2012.  His brief report would summarize 
the main elements of the discussions in the CTD m eetings that had been held in 2012.  Having 
concluded his opening remarks, he opened the floo r for any interventions on the 17 December 2011 
Decision, after which he indicated that the Committ ee would look specifically at the proposal by Cuba 
and Ecuador. 
70. The representative of the European Union said th at his delegation remained a strong supporter 
of the reinvigoration of the Work Programme on E-Commerce.  The EU was ready to work on any 
proposal, especially proposals from those Members that were in favour of a strong agenda on e-commerce at the WTO.  He welcomed the initia tive from Cuba and Ecuador to hold a workshop on 
e-commerce, development and SMEs, and indicated that his delegation was ready to work with these 
delegations in order to make the workshop a su ccessful event.  He added that, from the EU's 
perspective, it was important to discuss the n ecessary enabling policies for the development of 
e-commerce in developing countries. 
71. The representative of Switzerland expressed appr eciation to Cuba and Ecuador for having 
addressed some of the concerns that his delegation had raised in earlier informal consultations on the 
proposal for a workshop on e-commerce, developm ent and SMEs.  He said that discussions on 
e-commerce could not be limited to the developmen t aspects only.  Members needed to look at the  WT/COMTD/M/85 
 Page 13 
 
 
  broader picture.  A significant amount of work on e-commerce was being done in the WTO, notably 
in the Council for Trade in Servi ces (CTS).  The Swiss contribution to  the discussion, which related to 
SMEs, was contained in document S/C/W/345.  Sw itzerland was convinced that there could only be 
fruitful outcomes when the activities of the vari ous bodies dealing with e-commerce were closely 
coordinated.  This was how his delegation unde rstood the mandate from MC8.  In line with these 
comments, he proposed that a seminar on e-commer ce be held jointly by the CTD, CTS and the 
Council for Trade in Goods (CTG).  He envisaged that the seminar could be coordinated by the 
Deputy Director-General responsib le for e-commerce.  In conclusion, he said that Switzerland 
supported the idea of holding a seminar on e-commerce w ith special attention to SMEs as well as to 
the development dimension.  The details regarding the terms of reference fo r the seminar would need 
to be elaborated through further consultations. 
72. The representative of Venezuela expressed support for the proposal by Cuba and Ecuador, 
which she believed was useful and relevant for anal yzing the link between trade and development.   
73. The representative of Canada said that other WT O bodies besides the CT D were also working 
on e-commerce.  He mentioned in particular the CT S, which was looking at issues relating to SMEs.  
In this light, he said that any formalized discussi on in the context of the CTD had to focus on trade 
and development-related aspects.  Hi s delegation felt that it would be useful to review what specific 
problems were being encountered by developing and least-developed countries, and where these 
countries had encountered difficulties in accessing funds  to address the problems that they faced.  The 
mainstreaming aspect was important to keep in mind in that regard.  He al so suggested that there 
could be merit in exploring how the Enhanced In tegrated Framework and si milar processes at the 
regional level might help affected Members to prioritize such issues in national and regional 
development strategies.  It was not fully clear how or whether the proposal by Cuba and Ecuador 
addressed these issues. 
74. The representative of Egypt said that his de legation supported the proposal by Cuba and 
Ecuador.  He observed that Members needed to ha ve an understanding of how  e-commerce could help 
developing countries achieve gr owth and development.  The proposed workshop would be the 
opportunity to have such a discussion. 
75. The representative of Nigeria acknowledged the relationship betw een e-commerce and 
development and welcomed the proposal by Cuba and Ecuador.  Noting that there were other WTO 
bodies besides the CTD that were working on e-co mmerce issues, he observed that it would be 
important to not duplicate work in fulfilling the terms of the 17 December 2011 Decision.      
- TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR "WORKSHOP ON E -COMMERCE , DEVELOPMENT AND SMES " 
- COMMUNICATION FROM CUBA AND ECUADOR (WT/COMTD /W/189) 
76. The representative of Cuba said that she had taken note of the interventions that had been 
made under the present agenda item.  She said that the proponents had circulated the proposal under 
consideration after consu ltations with several Members.  She believed that the proposal was well 
balanced, as it took into account Members' suggest ions.  She indicated that the proponents would 
continue to work on the proposal and would welcome any further comments. 
77. The representative of Ecuador said that Cuba a nd Ecuador had consulted with all interested 
Members on the proposal that was initially circul ated in document JOB/DEV/16.  The proponents 
believed that the updated proposal circulated in  document WT/COMTD/W/189 accurately reflected 
all the concerns and areas of interest that had been  discussed with Members.  He said that he wished 
to provide a brief overview of some of the salient points relating to the proposal. WT/COMTD/M/85 
Page 14  
 
  78. He began by noting that UNCTAD's 2010 Information Economy Report indicated that the 
scope for information and communication technologies (ICTs) to affect development and poverty had 
expanded in several respects.  There were many  opportunities for these technologies to contribute 
positively to development.  The involvement of de veloping countries - and more particularly of poor 
people and communities - as consumers and producer s of ICTs was also evolving.  In this 
environment, the report highlighted the importa nce of exploring all possibilities to boost the 
development impact of ICTs.  However, the report also mentioned that the opportunities provided by 
e-commerce had not yet had a major impact on small producers in low-income countries.  Furthermore, it was highlighted that there was little  evidence to show that producers in developing 
countries traded significant quantities of goods and services online.  In general, both 
business-to-business and business-to-consumer e-co mmerce had largely failed to deliver the 
considerable potential benefits that had earlier been  predicted.  The overall picture was one of slow 
progress for e-commerce in terms of its benefits  for small producers and micro-entrepreneurs. 
79. He said that the 17 December 2011 Decision specified that the Work Programme on 
E-Commerce would examine access to e-commerce by micro, small and medium sized enterprises 
(MSMEs), including small producers and suppliers.  Another objective was to facilitate access to 
e-commerce by MSMEs, including small producer s and suppliers, of developing countries and 
particularly of LDC Members.  Furthermore, the Decision called on Members to address the relationship between e-commerce and development in a focused and comprehensive manner and to 
monitor development-related issues including techni cal assistance and capacity building.  These and 
other aims of the Decision were highlighted in the fi rst footnote of the proposal under consideration.  
80. With regard to the subject matter for the proposed workshop on e-commerce, development 
and SMEs, he said that two issues had been identifie d.  The first issue, whic h was of gene ral interest, 
concerned access - and the facilitation of access - to e-commerce by SMEs.  The second issue, which 
was of a systemic nature, concerned e-commerce and de velopment.  With regard to the first issue, it 
was proposed that three specific areas be addressed.  The three areas concerned the lack of awareness 
of opportunities generated by ICTs and e-commerc e, the lack of information and knowledge on 
conducting e-commerce operations, and basic institutiona l and infrastructural requirements.  For the 
second issue, it was also suggested that three specif ic areas be addressed.  Th e three areas concerned 
the inadequate capacity of SMEs in developing co untries to benefit from e-commerce, their lack of 
awareness of e-commerce applications that could improve their performance, and ensuring the free 
flow of the relevant technologies.  He noted that the second footnote in the proposal under 
consideration provided an example of how the i ssue of the free flow of technologies could be 
addressed, namely through a process of identification. 
81. On the ways and means to address the issues, it  was proposed that there could be a sharing of 
experiences and best practices, addressing both su ccessful and unsuccessful policies and practices.  
An analysis could similarly be undertaken of public  support practices.  The creation of public goods - 
through the identification of common facilities such as an information database - was another way to 
address the issues, as was the provision of technical assistance.  With regard to the format of the 
workshop, three sectoral sessions were proposed , dealing respectively with international 
organizations, the private and research sectors, an d the public sector.  He added that the session 
dealing with the private and research sectors dis tinguished between the industrial, agricultural and 
services sectors.  This had been done on the basis of comments received by Members.  He noted that 
it was important to learn about the experiences of SMEs in developing count ries and LDCs engaging 
in these areas of trade.  He also indicated that the sessions aimed to maintain a balance in Members' 
participation in the workshop.  Specific dates for the workshop were also proposed. 
82.
 He went on to say that the CTD's terms of reference specified, inter alia , that the Committee 
served as the focal point for the consideration and co ordination of work on development in the WTO.  
The terms of reference also specified that the CT D was to consider measures and initiatives to assist  WT/COMTD/M/85 
 Page 15 
 
 
  developing country Members in the expansion of th eir trade and investment opportunities.  In this 
light, the CTD had the mandate to address the issue of  e-commerce and its benefits.  Furthermore, the 
Work Programme on E-Commerce instructed the CTD to examine and report on the development 
implications of e-commerce, taking into account the economic, financial a nd development needs of 
developing countries.  He also referred once agai n to the Decision of 17 December 2011, and pointed 
out that the Decision specifically mentioned the role of the CTD. 
83. In closing, he said that his intervention u nderscored the relevance and rationale of the 
proposal under consideration.  Without prejudging the merits of the e-commerce proposals made by Members in other WTO bodies, Cuba and Ecuador we re of the view that these proposals contained 
technical elements that related solely to the work done within these bodies.  Furthermore, these 
proposals likely did not reflect all the facets of the financial, economic and development situations of 
developing country Members.  Cuba  and Ecuador did not object in principle to a specific treatment of 
these proposals in the bodies to which they had been submitted.  However, the two delegations did not 
understand the reasons and arguments put forward by  a few Members that sought to group together 
the needs of both developed countries and developi ng countries.  He stressed the importance of not 
undermining the mandate and authority of the CT D to address the development-related needs of 
developing countries.  Finally, he noted that the proposal under consideration was structured in such a way as to allow a considerable degree of flex ibility in accommodating Members' interests and 
concerns regarding e-commerce.
1 
84. The representative of the United States welcomed  the proponents' work and the thinking that 
had gone into crafting the proposal.  He also expressed appreciation for the proponents' efforts to 
consult with Members in the lead-up to the present meeting.  The US was open to hearing ideas about 
ways to structure the workshop, including the possibility of a joint workshop as suggested by 
Switzerland.  His delegation was mindful of the mandate from MC8 for Members to identify areas of focused work, and wanted to see efforts come to fr uition in the CTD.  However, the US had also 
continuously maintained that e-commerce was a cr oss-cutting issue with many dimensions, including 
services.  To that end, coordination and consu ltation with other bodies working on e-commerce had 
always been encouraged. 
85. The representative of Brazil said that there were benefits to discussing e-commerce from a 
development perspective.  His delegation believe d that the proposed workshop should be held under 
the auspices of the CTD.  It was well known that SMEs in developing countri es - and particularly in 
LDCs - faced a vast array of constraints in ga ining access to e-commerce.  Members needed to 
explore ways to assist SMEs to take advantage of  the full potential of the internet to do business. 
86. The representative of Nicaragua said that her delegation supported the proposal by Cuba and 
Ecuador.  She believed that the proposed workshop  would be of benefit to SMEs in developing 
countries, particularly those with  small and vulnerable economies. 
87. The representative of Nigeria inquired whethe r the proponents would consider the possibility 
of having the proposed workshop organized jointly with the other WTO bodies dealing with 
e-commerce.  He noted in particular the relevance of the work of the CTS.  
88. The representative of Argentina expressed appreciation to the proponents for having taken 
into account the suggestions of Members.  His de legation supported the proposed workshop, which 
had the potential to contribute to the growth  and development of developing countries. 
                                                      
1 The representative of Ecuador delivered only parts of this intervention at the 85th Session but 
requested that the points made in the prepared statemen t submitted to the Secretariat be reflected in the minutes 
of the meeting. WT/COMTD/M/85 
Page 16  
 
  89. The representative of Australia said that the pr oposed workshop highlighted interesting issues 
and could make a positive contribution to th e implementation of the Work Programme on 
E-Commerce.  He went on to say that, in Australia's  view, it was important to consider the discussions 
that had taken place in other WTO bodies, including the discussion in the CTS on SMEs and e-commerce.  He recognized that the proposal unde r consideration was only a draft outline and would 
need to be refined further, including through the pr eparation of a more detailed annotated agenda.  He 
encouraged the proponents to continue to refl ect on which aspects of the Work Programme on 
E-Commerce related specifically to the CTD, and wh ich related to other WTO bodies.  His delegation 
welcomed further engagement with Cuba and Ecuador in this regard. 
90. The representative of China expressed support for the proposal under consideration.  He also 
expressed his delegation's hope that the proposed wo rkshop would help SMEs in developing countries 
overcome their difficulties and challenges in e-commerce. 
91. The representative of Pakistan said that her de legation supported the proposal by Cuba and 
Ecuador. Pakistan wanted the emphasis of the wo rkshop to be on the deve lopment dimension and on 
the constraints and challenges faced by SMEs. 
92. The representative of Kenya expressed support fo r the proposal by Cuba and Ecuador.  His 
delegation was particularly supportive of the focus on institutions and infrastructure in the context of 
SMEs, as well as the inclusion of the private se ctor and academia in the proposed programme for the 
workshop.  
93. The Chairman encouraged Cuba and Ecuador to  continue their consultations in order to 
further fine-tune their proposal, including examini ng the availability of resources needed for funding 
the event. 
94. The Committee took note of all interventions. 
G. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE ENABLING CLAUSE  
95. The Chairman said that he 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.  He firstly informed the Committee that fo r a number of RTAs – namely, RTAs between India 
and Malaysia, India and MERCOSUR, India and Nepa l, India and Afghanistan, and India and Bhutan 
– the full set of data needed to complete the factual presentations had not been submitted by the 
parties.  Of these Agreements, only data relating to India-MERCOSUR and India-Malaysia had been 
provided to date.  With regard to India-MERCOSU R, the Secretariat had received all the necessary 
data from MERCOSUR, but was still waiting to recei ve some data from India.  In the case of 
India-Malaysia, the delegation of Malaysia had provided the required data.  For India-Nepal, 
India-Afghanistan and India-Bhutan, the Secretaria t had not received any data.  He urged all the 
parties to these Agreements to pr ovide the data as soon as possible. 
96. He additionally drew Members' attention to  a notification concerning the ASEAN-India 
Agreement, which had been circulated on 31 May 2012 in document WT/COMTD/N/35/Add.1.  This 
notification concerned the entry into force of the ASEAN-India Agreement for Brunei Darussalam, 
Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR and the Philippines.  Now that the Agreement had entered into force 
for all the parties, the CTD could consider it in a De dicated Session.  For this purpose, the Secretariat 
had requested the parties to the Agreement to provide  the required data by 18 October 2012.  He went 
on to say that there remained two RTAs notified u nder the Enabling Clause that had not been ratified 
by all the parties.  Following the procedures of the Committee on Regional Trade Agreements 
(CRTA), an RTA falling in this category would only be considered by the CTD after it had been 
ratified by all the parties.  The two RTAs in  question were the Pacific Island Countries Trade  WT/COMTD/M/85 
 Page 17 
 
 
  Agreement and the South Asian Free Trade Agreemen t.  The parties to these two agreements were 
urged to inform the Secretariat as s oon as all ratifications were complete. 
97. He also recalled that Members were informed at  the last CTD meeting that, in order to begin 
the operationalization of paragraph 15 of the TM for RTAs in the context of the CTD, the Secretariat 
would circulate an informal list of RTAs notified under the Enabling Clause, along with the date of 
the end of the implementation period of each RTA.  This list had been circulated to Members on 
13 April 2012.  The parties to th e RTAs had been requested to check the dates of the end of the 
implementation periods in the list, and to inform the Secretariat of any discrepancies.  He said that he 
wished to inform Members in th is regard that the parties to the Pacific Island Countries Trade 
Agreement had indicated that the end of the implem entation period for their Agreement needed to be 
changed from 2012 to 2021, in light of revised im plementation timetables.  No other comments had 
been received on the list. 
98. With regard to the way forward on the implem entation reports, it was his understanding that 
the CRTA, at its 65th Session on 19 June 2012, had had a preliminary discussion on how to proceed 
with implementation reports for RTAs notified under GATT Article XXIV and Article V of the 
GATS.  Discussion would continue at the 66th Session of the CRTA.  He said that he wished to 
emphasize once again what had been indicated at the last CTD meeting, namely that it would be important for the CTD to monitor the outcome of the CRTA's discussion.  The CTD could then hold its own discussion on implementation reports for RTAs  notified under the Enabling Clause.  From a 
practical point of view, he believed that it was in Me mbers' interests to continue to maintain similar 
procedures between the two Committees when it ca me to implementing the TM for RTAs.    
- 
GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL (GCC) NOTIFICATION OF CUSTOMS UNION – 
COMMUNICATION FROM CHINA , EGYPT AND INDIA (WT/COMTD /W/175) 
99. The Chairman said that the first sub-item unde r the present agenda item concerned the GCC 
Customs Union notification.  The sub-item also re ferred to the communication from China, Egypt and 
India which was circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/175. 
100. The representative of Egypt recalled that his delegation, along with China and India, had 
made a joint submission in September 2010 on the systemic and specific issues relating to the GCC 
notification.  In addition, at the last CTD meeting,  his delegation had identified in detail a number of 
these issues.  He indicated his delegation's willingn ess to engage in constructive discussions on these 
issues, under the present sub-item.  He added that the present sub-item needed to remain on the CTD's 
agenda until the matter was resolved.   
101. The representative of India expressed support for th e intervention by Egypt.  He said that the 
first three sub-items under the present agenda item c ontinued to remain on the CTD's agenda because 
discussions had not been exhausted.  He hope d that the matter could be resolved soon. 
102. The representative of the European Union said that  his delegation wished to once again insist 
that the present agenda item served the purpose of  informing Members about the notifications of 
RTAs and preferential schemes under the Enabling Cl ause.  Members had already had the opportunity 
to take note of relevant notifications, to make  their comments on these notifications, and to even 
reiterate them on several occasions.  He noted, however, that the problematic arising from an 
Agreement being notified by each party on a different lega l basis needed to be further clarified.  It was 
in this spirit that related discussions had taken place in the Negotiating Group on Rules (NGR) in the 
context of the review of the RTAs TM.  While th e most appropriate forum to discuss this matter was 
the NGR, the EU was also ready to continue discu ssions in the informal consultations convened by 
the CTD Chairman.  He recalled that, during the Chairm an's informal consultations  in the early part of 
2012, his delegation had proposed that the Chairs of the CRTA and the NGR henceforth also be WT/COMTD/M/85 
Page 18  
 
  invited, together with the Secretariat's RTAs Section.   This would ensure that all relevant actors were 
present.  The EU was ready to engage in a constructive discussion in order to find a common 
understanding on the process ahead and to eventually find a solution.    
103. 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  
104. The Chairman said that the second sub-item under the present agenda item concerned the 
notification of the ASEAN-Korea Agreement. 
105. The representative of Viet Nam, on behalf of ASEAN, said that ASEAN had not requested 
that this sub-item be retained on the CTD's ag enda for the present meeting.  The sub-item had 
originally served to inform Members of the notifi cation of the ASEAN-Korea Agreement.  As this 
had now been done, from ASEAN's perspective there was no further need to maintain this sub-item 
on the CTD's agenda. 
106. The Committee took note of the intervention by Viet Nam.  
- NOTIFICATION OF THE COMPREHENSIV E ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT 
BETWEEN INDIA AND KOREA (GOODS ) 
107. The Chairman said that the third sub-item under the present agenda item concerned the 
notification of the India-Korea Agreement. 
108. The representative of the United States expr essed support for Viet Nam's intervention under 
the previous sub-item.  It was apparent that discussions under the previous sub-item, as well as under 
the present sub-item, had been exhausted.  He requ ested that these two sub-items be removed from the 
CTD's agenda.  He added that the sub-item con cerning the GCC Customs Union notification had also 
fulfilled its purpose. 
109. The representative of Canada indicated her dele gation's support for the requests by Viet Nam 
and the US to remove the sub-items concerning the ASEAN-Korea notification and the India-Korea 
notification from the CTD's agenda.  With respect to the GCC notification, Canada remained of the 
view that informal consultations were the most appropriate forum for discu ssions.  Until such a time 
as further rapprochement  on substance could be reached, her de legation strongly urged that the matter 
be addressed at the informal level in order to  allow the CTD to make progress in other areas. 
110. The representative of India said that he wanted to clarify that his delegation was requesting 
that the three sub-items concerning the GCC Customs Union notification, the ASEAN-Korea 
notification and the India-Korea notification be re tained on the CTD's agenda.  The view of his 
delegation was that discussions had no t been exhausted on these sub-items.  
111. The representative of China expressed support for the interventions by Egypt and India under 
the present agenda item.  His delegation wanted the three sub-items to remain on the agenda until the 
matter was resolved. 
112. The representative of Australia said that Viet Nam's intervention under the previous sub-item 
clearly indicated that ASEAN wanted that sub- item removed from the CTD's agenda.  Since ASEAN 
was a party to the Agreement listed in that sub- item, he believed that the Committee should act upon 
ASEAN's request rather than upon the request  by Members not party to the Agreement.  WT/COMTD/M/85 
 Page 19 
 
 
  113. The representative of Egypt said that there was a problem that Members needed to discuss.  
Even if discussions took place in an informal settin g, his delegation wanted the three sub-items to 
remain on the CTD's agenda until the matter was resolved. 
114. The representative of the United States said that it was unclear why some Members were 
requesting that the sub-items concerning the ASEAN-Korea notification and the India-Korea 
notification be retained on the CTD's agenda.  These sub-items had fulfilled their transparency 
purposes and discussions had been exhausted.  
115. The representative of Australia observed that a party to the ASEAN-Korea Agreement had 
requested that the sub-item concerning the notifica tion of the Agreement be removed from the CTD's 
agenda.  In line with the TM for RTAs, he did not see why an RTA should remain on the CTD's 
agenda when discussions had been exhausted.  He sought clarification on the appropriate practice in 
this regard. 
116. The representative of India urged Members to engage in a constructive discussion on the 
issues that had been raised by China, Egypt and I ndia so that the questions concerning RTAs notified 
under both the Enabling Clause and GATT Article XXIV could be resolved as soon as possible.       
117. The Chairman noted that Members had expressed different views on the retention of the sub-
item concerning the ASEAN-Korea notification on the CTD's agenda.  He explained that the CTD had 
been following the practice of retaining an item on th e agenda if any Member so requested.  Once a 
notification was made, Members could discuss the notification and could raise any issue or seek any clarification that they wished.  He indicated that he was open to continuing his informal consultations. 
118. The representative of Korea said that his delega tion shared the view that discussions under the 
sub-item concerning the ASEAN-Korea Agreement ha d been exhausted.  He observed that the 
ASEAN-Korea Agreement had also been notified to  the CRTA, but an agenda item relating to the 
Agreement was not continually appearing on the CRT A's agenda.  If the intention of some Members 
was to raise in the CTD the issues concerning RTAs notified under both the Enabling Clause and 
GATT Article XXIV, he believed that an appropriate ly titled item needed be inscribed on the CTD's 
agenda. 
119. The representative of the United States said that he had noted from the Chairman's 
intervention that the practice in the CTD was to retain an item on the agenda if any Member so 
requested.  In this regard, he indicated that it was also important for transparency purposes for 
Members to know which delegation or delegations had made the request.  He also supported the 
intervention by Korea, in particular since no questions had been raised on the ASEAN-Korea 
notification at the present meeting or at previous CTD meetings.  He encouraged those Members that 
had requested the retention of the item concer ning the ASEAN-Korea notification on the CTD's 
agenda to consider raising their concerns  in a more appropriate forum.     
120. The Committee took note of all interventions. 
- GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF PREFERENCES - NOTIFICATION BY THE UNITED STATES 
(WT/COMTD /N/1/ADD.8) 
121. The Chairman said that a notification had been received by the US concerning its Generalized 
System of Preferences (GSP) scheme.  The notification was contained in document 
WT/COMTD/N/1/Add.8.  He invited the US to introduce the notification. 
122. The representative of the United States said that  he wished to specify for transparency 
purposes that it was his delegation that had requested the present sub-item.  Turning to the notification WT/COMTD/M/85 
Page 20  
 
  under consideration, he said that fostering the furt her integration of developing countries into the 
multilateral trading system was a vital part of US trade policy.  The US' efforts to advance this 
objective spanned a number of fronts, including th e promotion of broad-based multilateral trade 
reforms conducive to further integr ation, supporting the integration of trade strategies into the 
development plans of national authorities, and providing significant amounts of capacity-building 
assistance.  A longstanding element in US efforts to  increase developing country participation in the 
global trading system was the provision of duty-fr ee access for products ente ring the US market from 
beneficiary developing countries.  The US GSP pr ogramme, in operation since 1976, was one of the 
main mechanisms for providing such duty-free access.  The US GSP programme currently provided preferential, duty-free treatment to nearly 5,000 products from 128 designated beneficiary countries 
and territories.  Duty-free benefits were the only preferential tariff treatment provided under the GSP 
programme, as the statute did not allow less-than-full tariff reductions.  A single, transparent, rules-of-origin regime governed all US imports under the GSP.  
123. In the 2009 Annual Review of the GSP prog ramme, the US had designated two additional 
products as eligible for duty-free treatment, as ou tlined in Annex I of the notification under 
consideration.  This had been done in response to petitions from interested stakeholders.  The US had 
also granted de minimis  waivers to the statutory competitive n eed limitations (CNLs) for 108 products 
from certain countries in order to ensure continue d GSP duty-free benefits to these products.  These 
were noted in Annex III of the notification.  Annexes IV and V identified products from specific 
beneficiary countries for which GSP eligibility was te rminated based on a determination that imports 
from those beneficiary countries could comp ete effectively in the US market.   
124. The notification also provided information on the October 2011 reauthorization of the GSP 
programme.  Although the ten-month lapse in GSP authorization in 2011 had led to a temporary 
disruption of the programme, the reauthorizatio n legislation authorized the programme through 
31 July 2013 and also made GSP benefits retr oactive to 1 January 2011.  The retroactive 
reauthorization enabled importers to seek refunds of du ties paid during the lapse.  In light of the lapse 
in statutory authorization for the programme, th e 2010 Annual Review had been truncated.  As a 
result, no actions were taken as part of the 201 0 Annual Review with respect to CNLs or CNL 
waivers.  Annex VI listed one product that was removed from GSP eligibility as a result of the 2010 
Annual Review.  He said that the notification un der consideration also provided information on 
changes to the lists of GSP beneficiaries over the p ast few years.  He highlighted in particular the 
designation of the Maldives and South Sudan as eligible for GSP benefits. 
125. He went on to say that the US had recently  concluded the 2011 Annua l Review of its GSP 
programme.  The results of this revi ew would be provided at a later da te, since they were not available 
in time to include in the notification under considerat ion.  He wished to nevertheless draw attention to 
one outcome of the 2011 Annual Review.  In par ticular, he informed Members that it had been 
determined that seven cotton fibre products would be  added to the list of GS P-eligible products for 
LDC beneficiaries of the programme.  This actio n implemented one element of the US' LDC trade 
initiatives that had been announced at MC8.  Cons ultations were presently taking place with the US 
Congress on the next steps to allow quota-free treatment to these imports for LDCs.  
126. In closing, he said that while the US rec ognized the successes of the US GSP programme – 
which covered over US$18.5 billion in  imports in 2011 – it was also committed to continue working 
to improve the effectiveness of efforts to integrate developing countries more fully into the global 
trading system.  Towards that end, the US continue d to work with GSP beneficiary countries in order 
to identify ways in which they could enhance thei r use of the programme to increase their exports and 
bolster economic development.  As part of th at effort, GSP programme information had been 
translated into several languages,  including French, Spanish, and Arabic. Meetings were regularly 
held with beneficiary government officials in Washington, and work was undertaken with 
non-governmental organizations a nd Chambers of Commerce.  Vide oconferences and teleconferences  WT/COMTD/M/85 
 Page 21 
 
 
  were organized, as were seminars in beneficiary co untries for exporters, artisans, government officials 
and others.  All of these initiatives aimed to help beneficiary countries improve their utilization of the 
GSP programme.  An official of the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) was presently visiting several Balkan countries for this purpose.   The US planned to continue such outreach 
activities and was open to working with any benefici ary countries that wanted to increase their usage 
of the GSP programme. 
127. The Committee took note of the notification by the United States.  
H. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE TRANSPARENCY MECHANISM FOR PREFERENTIAL TRADE 
ARRANGEMENTS  
128. The Chairman said that he wished to provide Members with a brief update on the preferential 
trade arrangements (PTAs) that were to be consid ered in the CTD's Dedicated Sessions on PTAs.  He 
recalled that Members had been informed at the last  CTD meeting that three notifications of PTAs to 
be considered in Dedicated Sessions had been made to the CTD since the establishment of the TM for 
PTAs.  These concerned PTAs being implemented by India, China and Chinese Taipei.  All three PTAs were notified in 2011 under pa ragraph 1(b) of the Transparency  Mechanism.  This paragraph 
concerned PTAs taking the form of preferential trea tment accorded by any Member to products of 
LDCs.  The Secretariat had been in contact with  the notifying Members regarding the provision of 
data for the preparation of the factual presentations of the three PTAs.  At the present time, the full set 
of data required for the preparation of the factua l presentations of the three PTAs had not yet been 
provided to the Secretariat.  He urged the notifyi ng Members to provide the required data as soon as 
possible. 
I. 
REVIEW OF STEPS T AKEN TO PROVIDE DUTY -FREE AND QUOTA -FREE MARKET ACCESS TO 
LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES  
129. The Chairman 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 we re taking, or had already taken, to 
provide DFQF market access to LDCs.  Written co mmunications by some Members had also been 
considered.  The CTD had to date undertaken  six of its mandated annual reviews of the 
implementation of the Hong Kong Decision. 
130. The representative of Bangladesh said that at the last CTD meeting his delegation had 
highlighted the critical importance of S&D and DFQF  market access in the WTO system.  It was well 
known that the LDCs relied on a limited export b asket and few destination markets.  Members 
recognized the vulnerability of LDCs - particularly  in times of global economic downturn - and the 
need for enhanced and meaningful market access fo r LDCs' products.  He called for the earliest and 
fullest implementation of the Hong Kong Decision by  developed Members, and also emphasized the 
importance of targeted supply-side assistance for LD Cs.  He expressed appreciation to the developed 
and developing Members that were already provi ding LDCs with a significant degree of DFQF 
market access and encouraged other Members to join  this effort.  Finally, he recalled that his 
delegation had sought information from a Member at the last CTD meeting on the outcome of an 
internal process relating to DFQF market access.  He indicated that Bangladesh would appreciate a 
constructive spirit of cooperation in this regard. 
131. The Committee took note of the intervention by Bangladesh. WT/COMTD/M/85 
Page 22  
 
  J. 
OTHER BUSINESS  
132. The Chairman said that he wished to raise a matter concerning the reduction of 
documentation costs in the CTD.  He recalled that discussions on cost savings in document production 
had taken place at the meeting of the Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration in October 
and November 2011.  The minutes of that meeting could be found in document WT/BFA/128.  
Members had agreed to a number of cost-cutting measures in the production of documents.  All WTO 
bodies were to undertake efforts to reduce the overall volume of official documents.  Efforts were also 
to be made to substantially reduce the printing and distribution of documents.  Thus, for instance, as 
of January 2012, the distribution of official docum ents in meeting rooms had been discontinued.   
133. He said that it was important for the CTD to do its part in reducing the volume of 
documentation and to encourage the electronic distribu tion of documents.  He recalled in this regard 
that two measures had been proposed at the last CTD meeting.  The first measure related to the 
minutes of CTD meetings.  It had been proposed that, wherever possible, the Secretariat look into putting the discussions taking place at CTD meetings in to summary form.  It had been indicated that 
the objective was for the main messages to get acro ss, and that summaries would be more feasible in 
some types of discussions or interventions - for ex ample a presentation using PowerPoint - than in 
others.  The second proposed measure was that th e CTD document series no longer be distributed in 
paper form.  It had been indicated that documen ts in the series would be available on the WTO's 
publicly available "documents online" system, and th at initially restricted documents would be placed 
on the Members' website until they were derestricted.  
134. He went on to say that the Committee had agreed  at the last meeting to the proposal for the 
CTD document series to be distributed electronically only.  This measure had therefore already been 
put into place.  However, some concerns had been  raised on the proposal for CTD minutes to appear 
in summary form, where possible.  Given the importance of reducing documentation costs, he said that he wanted to ask Members to on ce again consider this proposal.   
135. The representative of the United States expressed hi s hope that the CTD's decision to circulate 
Committee documents in electronic form only would help to reduce documentation costs.  However, 
his delegation had reservations a bout the proposed shift to summarized minutes of CTD meetings.  
The US believed that it was important for Member s' discussions to proceed on a shared understanding 
of what had occurred at prior meetings.  Detailed minutes would help to ensure that Members had a 
full record of previous discussions so as to help inform future discussions.   
136. The representatives of India, the European Union and Bangladesh expressed support for the 
intervention by the United States. 
137. In closing the 85th Session, the Chairman requested Members to submit any documentation 
for a CTD meeting sufficiently in advance of the m eeting.  He indicated that this would allow the 
Committee to function more efficiently.  
138. The meeting was adjourned.   
 
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