WT/MIN(13)/ST/3  
4 December 2013  
(13-6639)  Page: 1/3  
Ministerial Conference 
Ninth Session 
Bali, 3-6 December 2013  Original: French  
 
 STATEMENT BY H.E. MR MOHAMMED ABBOU 
MINISTER ATTACHED TO THE MINISTRY  OF INDUSTRY, TRADE, INVESTMENT 
AND THE DIGITAL ECONOMY, RESPONSIBLE FOR FOREIGN TRADE 
MOROCCO AS COORDINATOR OF THE AFRICAN GROUP 
On my own behalf and on behalf of my delegation , I would like to begin by conveying my sincerest 
thanks to the Government and people of Indonesia for the excellent organization of this Ninth Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and for the warm reception 
and hospitality extended to us since our arrival in your beautiful country. 
 I would also like to thank the WTO Secretariat for their efforts in preparing this Conference. 
 
In particular, I would like to commend Mr Roberto Azevêdo, Director-General of the WTO, for the dedication and skill he has shown at the head of this Organization, and to assure him of our full 
support in carrying out his missions.  
 On behalf of the African Group, I wish to report to the Conference that the African Ministers of Trade met in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) on 24 an d 25 October 2013, and adopted the Addis Ababa 
Declaration on WTO Issues. In this Declaration, African trade ministers stressed their commitment 
to the multilateral trading system and expressed th eir desire to conclude the Doha Round with a 
fair and balanced outcome that focuses on gains for development. 
 
For several months, an intensive preparatory process for the Bali Conference has been under way in Geneva. In this arduous task, we were careful to reconcile the concern for transparency with the 
need for efficiency. Thanks to our work, we were able to come to Bali with a solid basis on which 
we are now working intensively to reach a consensus that reflects the interests of all WTO Members.  
I take this opportunity to pay tribute to all of our Ambassadors in Geneva, who have been working 
tirelessly for months to prepare for these new negotiations.   
In our view, the draft texts before us today, which are the outcome of arduous work, brilliantly led 
by the Director-General, form a solid basis that has made allowances for the various sensitivities.   
Let us seize this opportunity to shape the contours of a bright future for the well-being 
of our peoples.  In the present situation, the tasks that lie ahead will require WTO Members to renew their efforts 
to adjust and change, and above all to show solidarity in order to avert any divisions that could 
jeopardize the cohesiveness of our Organization. We cannot afford a failure, as that would undoubtedly damage the credibility of our Organizati on and would cast doubts on the future of an 
open multilateral trading system cond ucive to growth and development.  
 The African Group is committed to the preservation  and strengthening of a rules-based multilateral 
trading system that guarantees the right of all co untries to participate and benefit from the basic 
decisions that affect trade.  WT/MIN(13)/ST/3 
 
- 2 - 
 
  In 12 years of negotiations, the Doha Developmen t Round has not progressed enough to meet the 
development aspirations of our countries. We reiterate our commitment to a rapid conclusion of the Doha Round. In our efforts to advance the negotiations we must respect the primacy of development and the single undertaking. To th at end, we must ensure that the principles 
of transparency and inclusiveness are fully respected in the process. 
 We underscore the need to move forward on the basis of the progress already made and preserve 
the flexibilities agreed for developing countries  and least developed countries in particular. 
 It is our common responsibility to preserve what we have achieved in the different areas of negotiation, and we are committed to pursuing our work in a spirit of greater understanding 
and flexibility, working actively together to wards a successful outcome of the Doha Round. 
 Secondly, we must acknowledge that any delay in concluding the current round will negatively 
affect the prospects for world economic growth. 
 While it is true that this growth is supported by the development of exports and the elimination 
of barriers to trade in goods and services, it is  also dependent on the mobilization of foreign 
investment and assistance for the developing countries.   The Doha Development Agenda (DDA) that we launched in 2001 must remain the basis for 
our work. The African Group is not in favour of any attempt to address non-trade issues or add 
new issues to the DDA before development issues such as agriculture, LDC issues, special and differential treatment (S&DT) and implementation-related concerns have been 
satisfactorily addressed and the DDA has been  fully exhausted and successfully concluded. 
 We stress the importance of ensuring that the po st-Bali agenda gives high priority to the DDA 
issues that have not yet been resolved, in partic ular in the areas of agriculture, flexibilities, 
and special and differential treatment with regard to the LDCs, as well as implementation issues.  It is still our belief that the conclusion of the DDA is crucial to meeting the needs of Members, 
to strengthening the multilateral trading system, and to improving the Development Goals. 
 Moreover, we think that special attention should be paid to the WTO's regular work, in particular 
the important role of its regular bodies in monitoring and implementing the WTO agreements. 
 The African Group is firmly convinced that trade and development must remain an integral part 
of the WTO's work. Thus, the adoption of specific provisions on special and differential treatment 
must be reflected in all aspects of the WTO's work programme.  Similarly, in order to improve the effective participation of our countries in the multilateral trading 
system, the Aid-for-Trade Initiative must remain  at the heart of the WTO's work. Considerable 
resources have already been mobilized in that area, and we hope that additional and predictable resources are on their way. 
 
We would also like to express our appreciation fo r the support and assistance provided to the LDCs 
by the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) Se cretariat and emphasize the continued relevance 
of the EIF as highlighted by the mid-term revi ew conducted in 2012. We ask our partners to 
extend the EIF beyond 2015 and to scale up their support for the programme in a substantial and meaningful manner, so that all LDCs can continue to make use of the Framework's facilities.  
We are convinced that the WTO must resume its place on the international stage so that it can 
manage the stability of the world economy by defining and drawing up world trade rules.  
We all know that the alternative is the proliferat ion of regional trade agreements; but I am sure 
you will all agree with me that a multilateral approach holds out greater advantages for all of us. I think that the interests of all countries, and the developing countries in particular, are far better 
served by the multilateral trading system. We need a strong WTO. 
 In this regard, the African Group continues to favour an organization with a universal vocation which enshrines an equitable, rules-based multilat eral trading system. We therefore urge Members WT/MIN(13)/ST/3 
 
- 3 - 
 
  to show flexibility in order to facilitate and sp eed up the accession of the developing countries 
on terms and conditions that take account of their developing country status.  The accession process requires considerable efforts on the part of the acceding developing 
countries, and the necessary reforms are not always easy to implement. In this connection, 
the African Group stresses the importance of fully respecting the principles of special 
and differential treatment and non-reciprocity with respect to the acceding countries, and insists 
on the need to create new mechanisms to fast track the WTO accession process and to make the 
accession procedures transparent.  In conclusion, the African Group welcomes the accession of Yemen to our Organization and wishes 
it a warm welcome. 
 
__________