WT/MIN(17)/ST/68  
 
4 January 2018 
(18-0014) Page: 1/2 
Ministerial Conference  
Eleventh Session  
Buenos Aires, 10 -13 December  2017  Original: French  
 
  
STATEMENT BY MR  PAUL BATIBONAK  
DIRECTOR OF AFRICAN AFFAIRS IN THE MINIS TRY OF EXTERNAL RELA TIONS  
CAMEROO N 
Cameroon believes in the values, principles and rules of multilateralism, which  is why , after 
gaining independence,  it participat ed in the trade negotiations under  the GATT, and why it joined 
the World Trade Organization.   
However, it must be acknowledged  that our Organization has been at a crossroads  for several 
years  now, as it str uggles to conclude a negotiating round which raised many hopes in our 
countries  when it was launched in Doha, Qatar, in 2001. Sixteen long years have passed since 
Doha. The world has changed  greatly . Yet, the populations of developing countries in general and 
that of my country, in particular, wonder whether the negotiations under the Doha Development 
Agenda will retain all of their original substance , at a time when new non -negotiating demands , 
which should be put on hold, seem to be overloading our agenda, and even downgrading our initial 
objective . "Delaying could mean denying".  
Will the WTO be able to ensure  its relevance  for the developing countries? How will it achieve this 
without placing the c oncerns of the majority of its Members at the heart of its deliberations ? Will 
the WTO remain passive and let the majority of its Members continue to export products without 
value added in the 21st century? This issue, broken down into a few words, sums up the real 
challenge that our Organization must overcome if it wants to remain relevant for its Members hip. 
In this regard, this Conference constitutes a genuine test. The issues selected to become  a 
potential part of the Buenos Aires pa ckage, such as fisheries, agriculture, development, cotton, 
and all of the other topics which Cameroon put forward, together with the African Group and the 
African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) Group , are of utmost importance for my country, which relies  
on trade for the achievement of its development objectives.  
Hence , we call for a balance in favour of development in the outcome s of this Ministerial 
Conference. This balance must be respected  not only in terms of the implementation commitments 
freely under taken at previous conferences, but also with regard to all other issues that are 
regularly placed on our work agenda, and are therefore likely to be the subject of an agreement.  
It is necessary to insist once again, as my delegation has done in the past, that special and 
differential treatment be truly taken into account in all of our deliberations  and outcomes. The 
WTO will be relevant for the developing countries when its rules make it possible to use the 
flexibilities  serving to  formulat e and implement domestic policies aimed at  achieving the objectives 
of industrialization, structural transformation and diversification of our economies. In this regard, 
the Cameroonian Head of State, His Excellency Mr Paul B iya, President of the Republic , has 
engaged our country  in a programme targeted at  making  Cameroon  an emerging country by 2035. 
The WTO is therefore invited to support this kind of initiative, so that new success stories  can be 
written as a result  of its involvement . 
Furthermore, we  believ e that the Aid -for-Trade initiative should  be expanded  by placing an 
emphasis on financing the real needs  of our countries, namely and as a priority, infrastructure, 
supply capacity, and specifically, the development of value chains.  Failure to do so would  make it WT/MIN(17)/ST/68  
 
- 2 - 
 
  essential to safeguard  a policy space. Any restriction of th is already constricted  space would risk  
dampen ing our countries' development hopes.  
Recent global developments, particularly the digital economy, and the resulting digital divide, of 
which we are the main witnesses, should not obscure  the need to reduce inequalities in the world. 
Is it not time to return to the source, and recall the spirit of the Kennedy Round, which enabled us 
to see how to use trade as a tool for development ? To solve  the prob lems that we are facing , we 
need to reconsider  this part of our co llective  history, w hich should remain in our memories , if we 
want to write a positive shared  future. It is on this note of hope that I conclude my statement.  
__________