RESTRICTED  
  
WT/GC/M/158  
 
29 September 2015  
(15-5026)  Page: 1/49  
General Council 
27-28 July 2015    
 
 MINUTES OF THE MEETING 
HELD IN THE CENTRE WILLIAM RAPPARD ON 27-28 JULY 2015 
Chairperson: H.E. Mr Fern ando de Mateo (Mexico) 
The Chairman, on behalf of all WTO Member and Observer delegations welcomed H.E. President 
Nursultan Nazarbayev, President of the Republic of  Kazakhstan and his entire delegation. He also 
welcomed H.E. Ms Amina Mohamed, Cabinet Secretar y for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kenya; 
H . E .  M r  A x e l  A d d y ,  M i n i s t e r  o f  C o m m e r c e  a n d  I n d u s t r y  o f  L i b e r i a ;  a n d ,  M r s  N a t a l i i a  M y k o l s k a ,  Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine. 
 
Additionally, throughout the meeting, the Chai rman and several delegations bade farewell to 
Ambassador Angelos Pangratis (European Union), Ambassador Francisco Pirez (Uruguay), 
Ambassador Ado Elhadji Abou (Niger), Ambassado r Juri Seilenthal (Estonia), Ambassador John 
Adank (New Zealand), and Ambassador Choi Seokyoung (Korea) who were leaving their post at the WTO, and thanked them for their commitment and valuable contribution during their time as 
Permanent Representatives. 
  Subjects discussed:
1 
 
1   ACCESSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN — REPORT OF THE WORKING 
PARTY ......................................................................................................................... ..... 2 
2   REPORT BY THE CHAIRMAN OF THE TRADE NEGOTIATIONS COMMITTEE .................. 19  
3   AID FOR TRADE — REPORT BY THE DIRECTOR-GENERAL ON THE FIFTH 
GLOBAL RE VIEW ............................................................................................................ 25  
4   IMPLEMENTATION OF THE BALI  OUTCOMES — STATEMENT BY THE 
CHAIRMAN ..................................................................................................................... 27 
5   WORK PROGRAMME ON SMALL ECON OMIES — REPORT BY THE CHAIRPERSON 
OF THE DEDICATED SESSION OF THE COMMITTEE ON TRADE AND 
DEVELOPM ENT ............................................................................................................... 32  
6   WORK PROGRAMME ON ELECTRONIC COMMERCE — REVIEW OF PROGRESS ............. 33  
7   TENTH SESSION OF THE MINISTERIAL CO NFERENCE ................................................ 37  
7.1   ELECTION OF OFFI CERS ............................................................................................ 37 
7.2   ATTENDANCE OF OBSERVERS FROM INTERNATIONAL INTERGOVERNMENTAL 
ORGANIZA TIONS ............................................................................................................. 37 
8   COMMITTEE ON BALANCE-OF-PAYME NTS RESTRICTIONS — CONSULTATIONS 
WITH UKRAINE .............................................................................................................. 38  
9   IMPROVING THE GUIDELINES FOR GRANTING INTERGOVERNMENTAL 
ORGANIZATIONS PERMANENT OBSERVER STATUS IN THE WTO — STATEMENT 
BY THE CHAIRMAN ......................................................................................................... 38  
                                               
1 The proposed agenda was circulated in WT/GC/W/700. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 2 - 
 
  10   WAIVERS UNDER ARTICLE IX  OF THE WTO AGREEMENT ......................................... 39  
10.1   CANADA – EXTENSION OF THE WA IVER FOR THE CARIBBEAN INITIATIVE: 
CARIBCAN – DRAF T DECISION .......................................................................................... 39 
10.2   REVIEW OF WAIVERS PURSUANT TO  ARTICLE IX:4 OF THE WTO AG REEMENT ................. 40 
10.2.1   LDCs — Article 70.9 of the TRIPS Agreement with respect to Pharmaceutical 
Products, granted on 8 July  2002 until 1 Janua ry 2016 .......................................................... 40 
10.2.2   Preferential Treatment for Least-Developed Countries, granted on 27 May 2009 
until 30 J une 2019  ........................................................................................................... 40 
10.2.3   United States — Former Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, granted on 
27 July 2007 until 31 December 2016 ................................................................................. 40 
10.2.4   United States — African Growth and Opportunity Act, granted on 27 May 2009 
until 30 September 2015 .................................................................................................. 40 
10.2.5   Philippines — Spec ial Treatment for Rice ................................................................. 40 
11   COMMITTEE ON BUDGET, FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION — REPORT ON 
MEETINGS OF JUNE 2015 ............................................................................................... 40  
12   WTO PENS ION PLAN ............................................................................................... 42  
12.1   REPORT OF THE MANAGEMENT BOARD FOR 2014 AND REPORT OF THE 
INDEPENDENT EXTERNAL AUDITOR ON THE AUDIT OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS OF 
THE WT OPP .................................................................................................................... 42 
12.2   ELECTION OF TWO ALTERNATES — PROPOSAL BY THE CHAIRMAN OF THE 
GENERAL CO UNCIL .......................................................................................................... 42 
13   FOSTERING PARTICIPATION OF MICRO, SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES 
IN GLOBAL MARKETS – STATEMENT BY THE PHILIPPINES ............................................. 43  
14   ITA EXPANSION – STATEMENT BY THE EUROPEAN UNION ...................................... 44  
15   STATEMENTS DAMAGING TO THE REPUTATION OF SEVERAL 
INTERNATIONAL FINANCIA L CENTRES IN SMALL DEVELOPING COUNTRIES 
CONTRARY TO THE ASSESSMENT OF THE RESPONSIBLE AUTHORITIES – 
STATEMENT BY BARBADOS ............................................................................................ 46  
16   CHAIRMANSHIP OF THE COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE IN SPECIAL 
SESSION – STATEMENT BY  THE CHAIRMAN ................................................................... 47  
17   ADMINISTRATIVE MEASURES FOR MEMBERS IN ARREARS – STATEMENT BY 
THE CHAIRMAN .............................................................................................................. 48  
ANNEX 1 – STATEMENT OF THE UNITED STATES AT THE CLOSING PLENARY 
SESSION OF THE FIFTH GLOBAL REVIEW ON  AID FOR TRADE ON 2 JULY 2015 ............. 49  
 
1  ACCESSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN — REPORT OF THE WORKING PARTY (WT/ACC/KAZ/93 AND WT/ACC/KAZ/93/ADD.1 AND WT/ACC/KAZ/93/ADD.2) 
1.1.  The Chairman, on behalf of all WTO Member and Observer delegations, said that it was a 
great honour and a privilege for him to welcome to the session of the General Council H.E. 
President Nursultan Nazarbayev, President of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The presence of the 
President was a demonstration not only of his own commitment, but also that of the Republic of 
Kazakhstan to its domestic reform processes and to furthering their common goals as embodied in 
the multilateral trading system under the WTO. It was also an honour for him to welcome the other members of the delegation of Kazakhstan that were present that day. 
1.2.  He recalled that on 6 February 1996, the General Council had established a Working Party to 
examine the request by Kazakhstan for accession . On 22 June, the Working Party had approved, 
ad referendum, the accession package of the Repu blic of Kazakhstan. The Report of the Working 
Party was therefore before the General Council for consideration and adoption in documents 
WT/ACC/KAZ/93 and Addenda 1 and 2. Accordingly, he invited the Chairperson of the Working Party, Ambassador Vesa Himanen (Finland), to introduce the report. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 3 - 
 
  1.3.  Ambassador Vesa Himanen (Finland), Chairp erson of the Working Party on the Accession of 
Kazakhstan, was particularly honoured to join the General Council in welcoming H.E. President 
Nursultan Nazarbayev, the Presidential Delegation  of Kazakhstan and Members of the negotiating 
team.  
1.4.  He noted that the accession negotiations of Kazakhstan had been the toughest. With its 
Working Party established in 1996, the process had lasted for a period of nineteen years and six months minus two days.  The Working Party had held twenty formal meetings. He had been 
honoured to chair fourteen – five during his first five-year term and nine in his second three-year 
term, including the final Working Party meeting held on 10 and 22 June. The intensity of the accession negotiations had increased in his second term which started in 2012. For its last year, the Working Party had never stopped working, meet ing constantly in different formats until the 
very end. The results of the negotiations, constitu ting the "Terms of Accession", were contained in 
the following documents, with a total volume of 1,248 pages:    
a. The Report of the Working Party, ci rculated in document WT/ACC/KAZ/93; 
b. The Schedule of Concessions and Commitments on Goods, contained in document 
WT/ACC/KAZ/93/Add.1; and, 
c. The Schedule of Specific Commitments on Services, contained in document 
WT/ACC/KAZ/93/Add.2. 
1.5.  The Accession Package of Kazakhstan had been adopted at the twentieth and Final Working 
Party Meeting on 22 June on an ad referendum basis. By that action, the Working Party had 
completed its mandate and had forwarded the documentation to the General Council for decision. 
1.6.  The Appendix to the Report reproduced th e draft Decision for the General Council and the 
draft Protocol on the Accession of the Repub lic of Kazakhstan to the Marrakesh Agreement 
Establishing the World Trade Organization. The Acce ssion Protocol incorporated, by reference, the 
specific commitments undertaken by Kazakhstan in the Report of the Working Party.  
1.7.  Knowing how difficult the situation was in virtually all national legislatures, Kazakhstan had 
adopted more than 50 pieces of new national le gislation, and had introduced amendments to 
10 international agreements adopted within the framework of the Customs Union and the Eurasian 
Economic Union over the course of the negotiations.  
1.8.  In addition, over 350 pieces of legislation had been notified to the WTO for multilateral 
review. The progress on the legislative front, und er the guidance of President Nazarbayev, and in 
close coordination with Kazakhstan's partners in the Eurasian Economic Union, had contributed 
greatly to the forward momentum in their work over the past year. The Secretariat had told him that market access negotiations, the enactment of new legislation and the adjustment of prior 
WTO-inconsistent legislation were the toughest parts of accession negotiations.     
1.9.  Following his assessment of the Accession Pa ckage of Kazakhstan with the Secretariat team 
as Chairperson of the Working Party, he was in a position to report to Members that the Accession 
Package of Kazakhstan was high quality and made a significant contribution to improving market 
access opportunities, updating the rules of the multilateral trading system and strengthening the WTO. Concluding any accession was teamwork first and last and over a long period.   
1.10.  He acknowledged the contributions of his predecessors who had chaired the Working Party: 
Ambassador Hannu Himanen, Ambassador Huhtaniemi, and the late Ambassdor Ekblom – who had 
steered the proceedings in the earlier stages. On a personal note, it had been a real privilege for him to serve twice, as Chairperson, for eight of the nineteen-year long process; from 2003 to 2008 
for the first term, and then from 2012 for the second term. 
1.11.  He paid tribute to Kazakhstan's team of devoted and committed negotiators under the 
leadership of Minister Aitzhanova, who had personally led the process since 2004. Members had 
commended the Minister for her energy, calmness and skill in the negotiations. Her ability to 
engage and compromise at the right moment made the conclusion of those negotiations possible. The entire team had done an exemplary job, working diligently, often around the clock, including weekends, both in Astana and in Geneva. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 4 - 
 
  1.12.  Members deserved the highest tribute. They  had worked very hard with the Delegation of 
Kazakhstan, had demonstrated goodwill and had compromised – enabling them to overcome many difficulties encountered in the accession process.   
1.13.  He also commended the Secretariat, whic h provided stability in the system. He deeply 
appreciated the Director-General for his timely in tervention on some of the tough challenges on 
that accession. He also paid particular tribute to the Director of the Accessions Division, the 
Secretary and Co-Secretaries of the Working Party.  They had worked tirelessly, had consistently 
given sound advice and had taken care of some of the "rough business" that the system was 
confronted with in every accession.  
1.14.  In his capacity as Chairperson of the Wo rking Party, he had the privilege to forward the 
Protocol on the Accession of the Republic of Ka zakhstan for approval and the Draft Decision and 
the Report of the Working Party for adoption by the General Council. 
1.15.  The Chairman thanked Ambassador Himanen, on behalf of all delegations, for having served 
as Chairperson of the Working Party. In light of the report presented by Ambassador Himanen, he 
took up the package of Kazakhstan's accession do cuments one by one. In keeping with the usual 
practice, he began with the draft Protocol of Acce ssion of the Republic of Kazakhstan as contained 
in the report of the Working Party.  
1.16.  He invited the General Council to approve th e draft Protocol of Accession of the Republic of 
Kazakhstan as contained in the Report of the Working Party and in accordance with the Decision-Making Procedures under Articles IX and XII of the WTO Agreement agreed in November 1995 (WT/L/93), to adopt the draft Decision on the Accession of the Republic of Kazakhstan as 
contained in the report of the Working Party, an d the report of the Working Party as a whole in 
documents WT/ACC/KAZ/93 and Add.1 and 2. 
1.17.  The General Council so agreed.
2 
1.18.  The Chairman welcomed the Decision Members had taken on the Accession of the Republic 
of Kazakhstan to the WTO. He extended his congratulations to H.E. President Nursultan 
Nazarbayev and his team, together with the people and Government of Kazakhstan, on the 
successful completion of the WTO process. He also  p a i d  t r i b u t e  t o  H . E .  M s  Z h a n a r  A i t z h a n o v a ,  
Minister of Economic Integration of Kazakhstan, on  her efforts as Kazakhstan's Chief Negotiator.  
1.19.  Accession to the WTO was a long and comp licated process, but the final package reflected 
the constructive spirit with which the Members and Kazakhstan had brought in the process. He 
could not stress enough how fundamental this process was. Kazakhstan's accession to the 
Organization represented an essential step towards its further integration into world trade and into the world economy. Kazakhstan's entry took the WTO another step towards greater universality in 
its Membership. It added to the depth and diversit y of the Organization and further strengthened 
the WTO's role in providing stability and security for the global economy. On behalf of the General Council, he once again congratulated the Republic  of Kazakhstan on its accession and welcomed 
the delegation to the WTO family. He looked forward to working closely with them very soon. 
1.20.  With regard to the further steps towards Kazakhstan's formal entry as a WTO Member, he 
noted that the ceremony for the signature of the Pr otocol of Accession by the Director-General and 
President Nazarbayev would take place in the Council Room. The Government of the Republic of 
Kazakhstan would then submit the Protocol for ratification by its legislative assembly. In keeping 
with WTO provisions, the Republic of Kazakhstan would become a Member of the WTO thirty days following the date of the ratification of the Protocol.  
1.21.  He then invited H.E. President Nursul tan Nazarbayev, President of the Republic of 
Kazakhstan, to address the General Council. 
1.22.  H.E. President Nursultan Nazarbayev, President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, said that it 
was a truly historic day for his country. By signing the Protocol of Accession to the Marrakesh 
Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, Kazakhstan would complete the process of accession which had lasted nineteen years. During that period, Kazakhstan, together with the 
                                               
2 The decision was subsequently circulated in document WT/L/957. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 5 - 
 
  WTO, had done an impressive job. He was sincerely grateful to each of the WTO Members for their 
constructive approach and support throughout a very tough negotiation process. He thanked the Secretariat, represented by Director-General Robe rto Azevêdo, for their high professionalism and 
important contribution to the successful outcome of the negotiations. He also conveyed words of 
gratitude to the Government of Finland for chairing the Working Party throughout the entire 
process. 
1.23.   The configuration of Kazakhstan's economy had changed dramatically during the accession 
negotiations. First, it had become more robust and open. GDP per capita had registered an actual 
eighteen-fold increase and had reached the level of Central and Eastern European countries. The 
volume of foreign trade had reached 120 billion US dollars. WTO Members accounted for over 90% of its foreign trade turnover. It had significan tly broadened the geographic reach of its trade 
relations. While in the mid-1990s it had trade ties only with post-Soviet countries, at present it 
was doing business with 185 States worldwide. The European Union member States were its main economic partners accounting for over 40% of its trade. Commercial business with Russia, China, 
the United States, Canada and some other countries also made up a significant share of its trade 
volume.  
1.24.  Second, the structure of Kazakhstan's economy had undergone significant changes. The 
service sector, whose development was a top priority for Kazakhstan, accounted for some 54% of 
the country's GDP. It covered the financial, telecommunication, construction and energy transportation sectors. The liberalization of financial services within the framework of the WTO would take place concurrently with the establishment of an international financial centre "Astana". 
This was expected to become a pillar of the financial infrastructure in Kazakhstan and, in the 
future, a financial hub of the whole region. Within the framework of the WTO, it would also liberalize access to telecommunications, one of the highest-yielding sectors. He invited foreign 
investors to enter Kazakhstan's services market and hoped that their work would help bring down 
rates and improve the quality of services.  
1.25.  Kazakhstan was the largest landlocked country in the world making it vital to develop its 
transport infrastructure and transport and logisti cs services. It had been working hard to become 
part of global communications networks and had been establishing strategic transport corridors linking the largest markets. Building a highway linking Western Europe and Western China was an example of such efforts. Its total length was more than 8,000 kilometres, of which 
2,800 kilometres ran through the territory of Kazakhstan. Already at that stage, transit traffic in 
that direction had more than doubled. In 2014, Kazakhstan had adopted a new economic policy "Nurly Zhol" with the objective of putting in place a modern transport and energy infrastructure. It 
provided for building and upgrading roads stretchi ng more than 7,000 kilometres which had been 
intended to cut the travel time by a third between  major cities by 2019. As a whole, Kazakhstan's 
infrastructure projects would help to tap a unique transit potential, for the benefit of the domestic 
economy and international markets.  
1.26.  Third, Kazakhstan had significantly enha nced its investment capacity. Over the past 
10 years, the country's economy had attracted fore ign investments worth more than 200 billion US 
dollars. The biggest investors came from the Netherlands, the United States, Switzerland, France, 
the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, and the Repu blic of Korea. In its efforts to improve the 
investment climate, Kazakhstan had made diversification of its economy a priority. It had gone at great lengths to make sure that its investments were channelled not only to the oil and gas and 
mining sectors but also to the processing sectors of the economy. Investors in priority sectors 
were exempt from corporate income tax and land tax for a period of 10 years and from property 
tax for 8 years. The State was ready to reimburse up to 30% of capital expenses once a business 
was up and running. Investors had an opportunity to attract foreign labour without any quotas and 
permits. Besides, a visa-free regime had alread y been established for investors from twenty 
countries (the United States, the United Kin gdom, Germany, France, Italy, Malaysia, the 
Netherlands, the United Arab Emirates, the Republic of Korea, Japan, Australia, Hungary, Monaco, 
Belgium, Spain, Norway, Sweden, Si ngapore, Finland and Switzerland). 
1.27.  Kazakhstan was open to mutually beneficial cooperation. It had been the first among the 
post-Soviet countries to earn the right to host an  international specialized exposition – EXPO 2017. 
Its theme "Future Energy" reflected the most pressing challenge facing the human race – the issue 
of efficient use of energy resources. For the in ternational community, there was no alternative to 
the green economy and the transition to the princi ples of sustainable development. The holding of WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 6 - 
 
  EXPO 2017 was important for the whole world. Do zens of States had already confirmed their 
interest in the work within the framework of the exposition. He invited Members to take part in 
EXPO 2017 in Astana.  
1.28.  Kazakhstan had come a long way to integrate its economy into the global market and it had 
not been intended to stop there. Ambitious institutional reforms had been implemented on five 
tracks – provision of a modern public service, the rule of law, economic diversification, the shaping of a "Nation of Common Future" and increasing transparency and accountability of the State. 
Kazakhstan had worked out specific steps to implement all those reforms which included further 
development of international economic cooperation. Effective implementation of the reforms would help shape a brand new institutional environment. The next step would be to intensify cooperation with the OECD primarily within the framework of a country programme of cooperation between 
Kazakhstan and the OECD, launched in early 2015. The President hoped that the Members would 
support Kazakhstan's efforts in that direction. 
1.29.  Kazakhstan would soon start working under the WTO rules. Yet for a long time, its economic 
policies had already been shaped in the spirit of the WTO, by removing barriers, acting as an 
engine of regional integration and promoting the principles of open collaboration. The President 
thanked Members for their joint effort and assured them that Kazakhstan stood ready to continue 
working with the WTO, in the interests of all Members and for the benefit of their economies and 
nations. He wished them continued success in addressing strategic issues facing the WTO including the negotiations for the upcoming Tenth Ministerial Conference in Nairobi. 
1.30.  The Chairman, on behalf of the General Council, expressed his warmest appreciation to 
President Nazarbayev for his address. 
1.31.  The Director-General said that it was a great honour to welcome President Nazarbayev and 
his delegation. He congratulated them on Kazakhstan's important achievement. He particularly 
commended the President on the leadership that he had shown – without which he would not be 
marking the success they had achieved that day. 
1.32.  He believed it was a truly historic occasion for Kazakhstan, and for the WTO. In approving 
Kazakhstan's accession protocol they were concluding almost two decades of negotiations. 
Moreover, they were delivering a result which would have a major economic, systemic, and human impact since the WTO accession could help create jobs, raise incomes, and improve people's lives. 
For Kazakhstan, the occasion was recognition of the efforts it had made over recent years and its 
commitment to the process. It was an endorsemen t of the extensive programme of reforms which 
it had undertaken, and a message to the world that Kazakhstan was open for business.  
1.33.  It was also a very important moment for the WTO. Kazakhstan's accession added an 
important voice to the discussions in the Organization and brought WTO closer to the heart of 
Central Asia and to its goal of universal membership. Over the 20 years since the WTO had been created, 34 accessions had been completed. Each  one was distinct, but they all represented a 
commitment to the core values of the WTO: op enness, transparency, good governance, and the 
rule of law. The Accession Protocol approved by  the General Council showed Kazakhstan's clear 
commitment to those values and to the multilateral trading system. 
1.34.  The ceremony might mark the end of one journey, but it also marked the start of another. 
He looked forward to Kazakhstan's growing integration into the multilateral trading system over 
the coming months and years, to the continuation of its programme of reforms, and to its active participation in all aspects of the work of the Organization. He had no doubt that Kazakhstan 
would use the platform that the WTO provided to make its voice heard – and to help strengthen 
the multilateral trading system for the benefit of all. 
1.35.  He had interacted intensively with severa l Members of the negotiating team over recent 
months and paid tribute to their hard work and professionalism. He paid particular tribute to 
Minister Aitzhanova, whose role as Chief Negotiator had been key in guiding Kazakhstan through the accession process. He also thanked Ambassador Vesa Himanen, as Chairperson of the Working Party, and the other Members, for their invaluable collaboration in the process.  
1.36.  He had had the privilege of meeting Presiden t Nazarbayev during his first week as Director-
General, at the G20 meeting in Saint Petersburg, in September 2013. He remembered it very WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 7 - 
 
  clearly. The President had told him then that when the Accession Package of Kazakhstan would be 
concluded, he would personally come to Geneva to sign the Protocol of Accession. Members could see that he was a man of his word! It bade well for Kazakhstan's participation in the Organization, where trust, openness, and good faith were so im portant. He was delighted to have the President 
present at the meeting. He welcomed the Presid ent and the Republic of Kazakhstan to the WTO 
and conveyed to them his warmest "sälemdesw!" 
1.37.  H.E. Ms Amina Mohamed, Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kenya, 
was honoured to join the Chairman and the Director-General in welcoming President Nursultan 
Nazarbayev, members of his Presidential Delegati on and his negotiating team led by Minister 
Aitzhanova. President Uhuru Kenyatta, the Governme nt and the People of Kenya congratulated the 
Government and the People of Kazakhstan on the de cision that had just been taken by the General 
Council to approve the Accession Package of Kaza khstan. The Report of the Working Party and the 
statement made by the Director-General both testified to the toughness and the immediate, 
medium and long-term benefits from the result of WTO Accessions.  
1.38.  After 20 years, from 1995 to 2015, the jury was no longer out. The facts had added up and 
the conclusions were clear. The results from the accessions process had provided acceding 
governments with an agenda for domestic refo rms and had updated the rules of the WTO. The 
negotiations process per se had helped to foster broader international cooperation. For too long, 
the value of WTO accession had been understated . At present, it was more manifest. Members 
knew how challenging those negotiations could be. Hard decisions were required because they bordered on domestic law and policy and directions of government. She joined the Director-
General and all Members to salute and pay tribute to the wisdom, the vision and courageous 
reform decisions taken by President Nazarbayev. 
1.39.  She stressed that it was all about leadership. The accession package of Kazakhstan provided 
a solid foundation for its continuing modernization and transformation. President Nazarbayev had 
decided that he wanted Kazakhstan to be one of the top 30 world class economies by 2015. With 
WTO accession, he should and she wished him good luck. Kenya looked forward to working very 
closely with Kazakhstan in the Organization as their countries would be seated next to each other 
as Members in every single WTO meeting from the date of its Membership. She could not think of any better way of deepening their economic relations within a solid multilateral framework which the WTO offered.  
1.40.  She was aware of the deep engagement by the Director-General to ensure that the call of 
Kazakhstan's accession had been on pace for 2015. She congratulated Ambassador Vesa Himanen, the Chairperson of the Working Party and the Secr etariat team that worked so hard on that 
accession – she knew how hard they all worked, which they did superbly. 
1.41.  Kenya was grateful for the honour to ho st the WTO Tenth Ministerial Conference and was 
ready to welcome all Members to Nairobi. The accession of Kazakhstan to the WTO was the first 
deliverable for Nairobi. If the WTO could conclude the accession negotiations of Kazakhstan, it 
could break any negotiating deadlock, find any compromise and conclude any negotiation. Each accession made the multilateral trading system stronger and Kenya looked forward to more accession deliverables at MC10. She noted that Trade Minister Axel Addy, the Chief Negotiator for 
the WTO Accession of Liberia, was also present at the meeting. She was aware that the Working 
Party was poised to adopt the draft accession package after the summer break so that a formal decision could be taken in Nairobi.  
1.42.  At that critical juncture, in Members' pr eparatory work towards Nairobi, the conclusion of 
Kazakhstan's accession, Liberia's accession which was poised for conclusion, and the conclusion of the expanded ITA, all had given WTO Members a hug e boost in their confidence. It showed that 
the system could rise to the occasion and deli ver. Led by the Director-General and with the 
support of Members, Members needed to build on the successes as the Organization intensified its work towards Nairobi. 
1.43.  She stressed that the African Union and Africa had bound themselves to do whatever it took 
to achieve substantive outcomes and to have a successful ministerial. She recalled that, on 
20 July, she had hosted a meeting of African Union Trade Ministers in Nairobi and reconfirmed that 
Members should compromise and do whatever it took to have a successful MC10. She asked other 
Members and regions to join Africa in a constructive and cooperative engagement. For her, it was WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 8 - 
 
  more than just holding a successful Tenth WTO Mi nisterial meeting. Members needed to deepen 
their commitment to sustain the domestic refo rms for growth and competitiveness. The WTO 
accession process offered valuable lessons, and it was the direction that Members should take. 
1.44.  She had also followed Kazakhstan's recent increased engagement in the African continent 
with great interest. It had intensified bilateral contacts with individual African countries. In 2013, it 
had obtained an Observer Status in the African Union. She hoped that MC10 would serve as another venue for Kazakhstan to deepen its coop eration with Africa. She again congratulated the 
President on his vision and leadership as he had carried through with his program to enhance the 
welfare of the people of Kazakhstan. She looked forward to welcoming his delegation to Nairobi as a full-fledged Member. 
1.45.  All representatives who spoke congratulated the Government and the People of the Republic 
of Kazakhstan on the completion of its accession process and warmly welcomed President 
Nazarbayev and his delegation to the meeting. They paid tribute to the efforts of Minister 
Aitzhanova and her team, the Working Party Chair and the WTO Secretariat, and looked forward to 
working soon with Kazakhstan. 
1.46.  The representative of the Russian Federation  said that the accession of Kazakhstan, Russia's 
closest economic partner, had been a challenging process. It required long, laborious negotiations 
and difficult compromises from all parties involved. The unprecedented had to be resolved due to 
its uniqueness, laying the foundation for a new chapter in some areas of the WTO. Kazakhstan's accession provided the best proof that against all odds, the WTO and its Members remained capable of reaching necessary compromises and delivering meaningful results.  
1.47.  He admired Minister Aitzhanova for her high professionalism, endurance and persistence in 
defending her country's and the Eurasian Economic Union's economic interest and in negotiating the best possible accession terms and conditions. He hoped that the collaborative spirit that had 
re-emerged in Kazakhstan's accession process would be picked up in the multilateral negotiations.  
1.48.  Kazakhstan, throughout its recent histor y, had been a proponent of trade expansion and 
had made a substantial contribution to a common effort to bring the world economy back on track. 
The Eurasian integration was considered by Kazakh's leadership as an important means of 
improving the competitiveness of States and the ef fective integration into the world economy. The 
newly announced 2015 Transformative Agenda for Kazakhstan laid the foundation for bringing the nation at the age of technological and economic advancement and therefore increasing its practical 
input into the global pursuit for growth, sustainability and prosperity. 
1.49.  Kazakhstan's membership would not only be a landmark achievement for the country itself, 
but also an occasion to further forge the relationship between the WTO and its Members and the 
Eurasian Economic Union. The Union firmly rested on the WTO rules and principles of full 
transparency and engagement. Being placed at the heart of the continent, Kazakhstan was a 
natural bridge for Europe and Asia and served as a linchpin for better connectivity and economic 
cooperation. Russia looked forward to the accession of the Republic of Belarus which remained the 
sole Eurasian Economic Union member outside the WTO. He wished Kazakhstan productive work in its capacity as a full-fledged WTO Member and assumed his readiness to jointly seek solutions that would enable trade to further unlock its potential and serve as a vehicle of positive change for the 
world economy. 
1.50.  The representative of the United States said that it had been a long journey for Kazakhstan 
to complete accession negotiations, and that day should be a momentous one in Kazakhstan's 
history. President Nazarbayev's presence appropriately completed that journey. The United States' 
relationship with Kazakhstan had long been a strong one across many fronts, due in large part to the President's direct personal involvement. He l ooked forward to a future of working together in 
the WTO. 
1.51.  With the General Council decision, Kazakhst an would enter the final stage of becoming a 
full-fledged Member of the WTO. His delegation looked forward to congratulating the President 
later that year in Nairobi at the WTO’s Tenth Mini sterial Conference when it expected Kazakhstan 
to participate side-by-side with other Members in concluding a Nairobi outcome. Kazakhstan’s hard 
work stood as an important reminder of the importance of the institution of the WTO – and the value that membership in it offered.   WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 9 - 
 
  1.52.  He and his team knew how well served Minister Aitzhanova and her whole team had been 
by their hard work, determination, and commitment, even as negotiations confronted extremely complicated issues. In retrospect, Minister Aitzhanova would be able to confirm that it had been all worth the effort, as Kazakhstan undertook critical domestic reforms, broadened and expanded its 
trading relationships across the spectrum of WTO Membership, and assumed an important role in 
helping to bring the WTO Membership to gether to realize future successes. 
1.53.  The representative of the European Unio n said that after Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, 
Kazakhstan was the third Central Asian country to join the WTO. His delegation firmly believed 
that Kazakhstan's accession would serve as a major engine for Central Asia’s economic development and reform. He hoped that other countries in that region followed that reform path and could soon fully participate in the multilateral trading system. 
1.54.  Kazakhstan's accession marked the end of a process that lasted almost twenty years, in 
which the EU had played an important role. However, it was Kazakhstan that had worked hard to prepare for WTO membership and to make the changes needed in its domestic legal and 
regulatory system. Its determination and commitment to open trade and investment were 
rewarded that day. 
1.55.  The EU congratulated Minister Aitzhanova and her negotiating team, the national authorities 
and the people of Kazakhstan. The EU praised the Chairman of the Working Party for his 
leadership and the Secretariat for its hard work. The EU would be pleased to have Kazakhstan participating as a full-fledged Member of the WTO at the Tenth Ministerial Conference in Nairobi which would be the culmination of a process that the EU had continuously and strongly supported. 
1.56.  The representative of China said that the decision that the General Council had made was a 
milestone in the modern history of Kazakhstan an d of the WTO. President Nazarbayev's presence 
demonstrated how much importance he had personally attached to the accession of his country to 
the WTO and to the strengthening of the multilateral trading system. 
1.57.  Kazakhstan's accession was one of the best gifts to the WTO's twentieth anniversary. It had 
not only enhanced WTO's universality and vitality, but more importantly, it had proven that WTO 
could still deliver. It was also another strategic decision of Kazakhstan under the President's wise 
and personal leadership vigorously helping it to better integrate into the global economy and participate in making rules in international trade and global governance. It was the victory of Kazakhstan, President Nazarbayev, and the WTO and its entire Membership. 
1.58.  China had always been supporting Kazakhstan's early accession to the WTO. As a close 
neighbour and a comprehensive strategic partner, his delegation had been working with brotherly Kazakhstan and had readily offered its helping hand. In 2013, the President of the People's 
Republic of China, President Xi Jinping, had proposed the "Silk Road Economic Belt" during his 
meeting with President Nazarbayev in Astana. Such initiative had successfully connected with Kazakhstan's new economic policy the "Bright Road". Kazakhstan's WTO accession would not only 
boost their future cooperation but also contribute to the world economic recovery. 
1.59.  The representative of Ukraine said that Kazakhstan was Ukraine's third major trading 
partner with trade and economic relations spanning for decades. This had recently become rather 
complex but remained promising because of close ties between their people. Ukraine strongly 
believed in the universality of the WTO. By joining the Organization, Kazakhstan had made a 
confident step towards closely integrating into the multilateral trading system and the global economy. Ukraine could then regard Kazakhstan not only as a trading partner as it had been for 
years before but also as a partner in the system of rules for which they shared responsibility.  
1.60.  Ukraine sincerely believed that Kazakhstan had already established respect for these rules 
and would be promoting such respect both at the gl obal and regional levels – particularly at the 
Eurasian Economic Union level. In performing such role, she pledged Ukraine's support and wished 
Kazakhstan more successes and accomplishments. 
1.61.  The representative of Japan said that it had been a long journey since 1996. Members had 
sometimes faced a bumpy road, but it was delightful that they had finally adopted the Accession 
Protocol. Japan reiterated its appreciation to Kaza khstan, especially to Minister Aitzhanova and her 
team, for its dedication and hard work during the process. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 10 - 
 
  1.62.  Japan had continuously supported Kazakhstan's accession. Despite the tough challenges 
related to the creation of the EAEU, they had overcome them thanks to their solid bilateral 
friendship and creativity. After Kazakhstan’s accession to the WTO, Japan hoped to closely cooperate with Kazakhstan to further strengthen the multilateral trading system. His delegation 
looked forward to welcoming Kazakhstan as a full-fledged WTO Member at MC10 in Nairobi. 
1.63.  The representative of Brazil said that Kazakhstan's accession was a historical occasion that 
had to be celebrated by all Members. As others had said, no other accession had been so 
challenging particularly given that in that case, further elements of complexity had been added 
along the way — requiring even greater efforts from the acceding country, Members and the Secretariat. The journey which had started nineteen years before by Kazakhstan had ended in full success. 
1.64.  As Minister Amina Mohamed had reminded Members, at a time when the Organization was 
faced with the need to overcome multiple challenges on its way to the successful conclusion of the Doha Development Round, Kazakhstan had demonstrated that with hard work, clear objectives in 
mind, pragmatism and team work, rema rkable progress could be achieved. 
1.65.  Brazil expressed its appreciation for the ti reless dedication showed by the Kazakh team led 
by Minister Zhanar Aitzhanova with whom he had the gratifying experience of working with. He 
also thanked the Working Party Chairperson and hi s predecessors for their energy and dedication, 
and the Secretariat team led by the Director-Gener al Roberto Azevêdo and by the Director of the 
Accessions Division, for the hard work done. 
1.66.  Brazil had always been a full supporter of Kazakhstan's accession and an active Member 
throughout the process. His delegation attached great importance to its relationship with 
Kazakhstan both in the bilateral and in the multilateral fronts and was determined to further strengthen their economic ties, including by working together in Geneva. The steady broadening of 
the WTO membership benefited not only the Member s of the Organization but also the rules-based 
multilateral trading system as a whole — an objective that had always been one of the top priorities of Brazil in foreign and trade policies. 
1.67.  The representative of India said that, as a consistent supporter of Kazakhstan’s accession, 
India was pleased to see Kazakhstan join the WTO. Her delegation applauded the leadership 
provided by President Nazarbayev in the proc ess. His presence at the meeting highlighted 
Kazakhstan’s commitment to the rules-based multilateral trading system. She recognized the 
tireless efforts of the negotiating team of Kazakhstan led by Minister Zhanar Aitzhanova, in 
steering the accession process successfully, particularly in the concluding phase of the negotiations.  
1.68.  As part of its accession process, Kazakhst an had agreed to undertake a series of important 
commitments to modify its regulatory and policy framework, foreign trade policy regime and to 
take necessary legislative actions for implementing its obligations in line with the WTO rules and 
requirements. India wished the Government of Kazakhstan every success in that endeavour. 
1.69.  India commended the Chairperson of the Working Party on the accession of Kazakhstan, 
Ambassador Vesa Himanen, and all his predecessors for their leadership and contribution in the successful conclusion of the accession negotiations. Her delegation also acknowledged the 
excellent support of the Secretariat team in the Accessions Division.  
1.70.  India and Kazakhstan enjoyed a strategic partnership and their cooperation covered a wide 
array of bilateral, regional and global issues. Kazakhstan had been a valued friend and India’s 
largest economic partner in the Central Asian region. Earlier that month, the Honourable Prime 
Minister of India had paid an official visit to Kazakhstan and the leaders had laid out an ambitious vision to take their bilateral ties to a new level. India looked forward to working with Kazakhstan in 
the WTO as well, on issues of common interest.   WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 11 - 
 
  1.71.  The representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on behalf of the Arab Group, said that 
the long and challenging negotiations and the high quality of the accession package clearly 
reflected the political will and the strong desire of  the Government of Kazakhstan to integrate its 
economy into the multilateral trading system. Kazakhstan's accession to the WTO would not only 
have a positive impact on its trade and investme nt environment but would also benefit the global 
economy by integrating a vibrant and growing ec onomy into the international trading system. 
1.72.  The Arab countries and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in particular enjoyed a historical, 
brotherly relationship with Kazakhstan. The roots of that relationship went deep into history, 
religion and common values. They were confident that the accession of Kazakhstan to the WTO would add another substantive economic and trading dimension to that relation. 
1.73.  He thanked all those who brought the acce ssion to a success: the Director-General for his 
outstanding role and help to conclude that accession; the high quality negotiating team of 
Kazakhstan led by Minister Aitzhanova and th e Chairperson and the Working Party Members for 
their positive spirit and tireless efforts to overcome all challenges of Kazakhstan's accession. He 
also extended his thanks to the WTO Secretariat, especially the Accessions Division for their efforts 
to facilitate and accelerate the process. He reiterated his congratulations to the President and the people of Kazakhstan and looked forward to working collaboratively with Kazakhstan as a full-
fledged Member of the WTO both at the level of their capitals and in Geneva. 
1.74.  The representative of Turkey said that it was an honour and a privilege to witness that 
historic day both for Kazakhstan and the WTO with H.E. President Nursultan Nazarbayev, the 
founder and the eminent and visionary leader of modern Kazakhstan, the "Ak Sakal", "white 
beard" of the Turkish world.  
1.75.  Kazakhstan's accession package set a new standard and challenge for all WTO Members, in 
terms of liberalization, as well as sectoral and modal coverage – making an important contribution 
to the multilateral trading system. As a land of stability with a population of 17 million, more than 
230 billion US dollars of GDP, and its geopolitical importance being at the crossroads of the Central 
Asia and the new Silk Road of the 21st Century, Kazakhstan's accession would not only make the 
multilateral trading system stronger, but would al so bring further prosperity to the whole region. 
That accession would give impetus to the economic development of Kazakhstan, helping her to become one of the 30 most developed countries in  the world, in line with the "Kazakhstan-2050 
strategy". Kazakhstan's accession would be one of the most important outcomes of the Nairobi 
Ministerial in December.  
1.76.  He praised the Government of Kazakhstan, especially Minister Aitzhanova and her capital 
and Geneva-based teams, for their strong commitment to the process and their dedicated and 
results-oriented approach through the years, which had made the accession of Kazakhstan 
possible. He also thanked the Chairperson of the Working Party, all his predecessors and the WTO 
Secretariat for their efforts and hard work. 
1.77.  Kazakhstan's accession process, stretching to more than nineteen years, stood as evidence 
that the WTO was able to deliver meaningful results even after long years of negotiations. It was never too late to have significant results and no deadline in the house had to be considered as a "make it or break it" rendez-vous.  
1.78.  The representative of Mexico said that after 20 years, the efforts of Kazakhstan to join the 
WTO had succeeded. Initiating an internal process in one's country to join the WTO was an 
important step in the defence and promotion of the multilateral trading system and its integration 
into the global economy. Kazakhstan's accession was for the benefit of the WTO which 
strengthened Members' trade relations with Kazakhstan. Mexico expressed its appreciation to the Government of Kazakhstan; to Minister Aitzhanova, who had headed the negotiations; and to the 
Working Group of the WTO for their hard work and valuable role in bringing about the accession. 
1.79.  The representative of Uruguay said that by committing to WTO rules, Kazakhstan gave the 
WTO an extra Member, thereby further strengthening the multilateral trading system. Uruguay 
wished all the best for Kazakhstan so that it could strengthen its trade links as it would with the 
rest of the WTO membership. Uruguay hoped that Kazakhstan's accession would contribute to 
achieving the developmental goals of the WTO particularly in raising standards of living. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 12 - 
 
  1.80.  The representative of Uganda noted that the process of accession to the WTO consisted of 
enormous tasks, especially for a developing country like Kazakhstan. A number of stringent 
conditions and requirements were put in place th at had to be fulfilled and complied with ranging 
from socio-economic issues to legal and political transformative measures. Due to their resolute 
determination and commitment, the people of Kazakhstan through their Government under the 
able leadership of President Nazarbayev, ha d managed to meet all those conditions and 
requirements with the wise guidance of the Chai rperson of the Working Group and the Director of 
the Accessions Division. His delegation was prepared to cooperate and work diligently together 
with Kazakhstan to make WTO a meaningful an d development-oriented organization, where all 
Members would enjoy the benefits of being Member s. He wished Kazakhstan success in all future 
endeavours and roles in the multilateral trading system. 
1.81.  The representative of Tanzania said that it had been a long-haul of efforts towards 
Kazakhstan's accession to the WTO. That achievement would lead Kazakhstan to its full integration 
into the international trading system. The Governme nt of the United Republic of Tanzania looked 
forward to working together with Kazakhstan for the successful conclusion of the WTO Tenth 
Ministerial Conference in Nairobi. 
1.82.  The representative of Chinese Taipei, on beha lf of the RAMs Group, noted that it was a long 
and difficult journey. The RAMs Group had been enormously impressed by Kazakhstan’s strong will 
and commitment to become a WTO Member, and it was pleased to support the adoption of its accession to the WTO. Kazakhstan’s accession further strengthened the importance of the multilateral trading system. It was therefore not only a historical moment for Kazakhstan, but also 
an encouraging and important day for the WTO. Th e RAMs Group had always been supportive of 
new accessions to the WTO. The Group welcomed Kazakhstan as a fellow-WTO Member, and looked forward to working constructively and closely with Kazakhstan in the future. 
1.83.  The representative of Oman stressed that it was the successful culmination of a long and 
laborious process. The Government, the people of Kazakhstan, and its hard working officials 
deserved all praise for their commitment and perseverance. The Sultanate of Oman had strong, 
friendly and historic relations with the Republic of Kazakhstan. The World-famous Silk Route had 
closely connected the two nations. They shared common interests. They were both oil producing countries and developing countries who stood to benefit from the rules-based multilateral trading system. Oman thus had a particular pleasure in welcoming Kazakhstan to the WTO fold. 
1.84.  Kazakhstan had undertaken far reaching commitments in its accession package. It had 
bound tariffs on all agricultural and non-agricultural products at very low rates. It had made commitments on more than 110 sub-sectors of services and had undertaken a large number of 
systemic commitments, perhaps more than most WTO Members. Kazakhstan's WTO accession 
would benefit not only Kazakhstan but also all WTO Members. It would provide access to WTO Members on MFN basis to the important markets of Kazakhstan and would give access for the 
exports of Kazakhstan to the markets of all WT O Members. It was also another step toward 
making the WTO a universal organization. Oman looked forward to working closely with the delegation of Kazakhstan, to strengthen the WTO, both in the RAMs Group and in all WTO fora. 
1.85.  The representative of Korea was convinced that the clear vision and strong leadership of 
President Nursultan Nazarbayev had been instrumental in making the historic achievement 
possible. Since the application of Kazakhstan for WTO membership, Korea had actively supported the accession of Kazakhstan to the Organization. Korea’s support had been repeatedly confirmed 
during several rounds of meetings between the two countries. Korea was thus glad to join the 
General Council in approving the accession package of Kazakhstan.  
1.86.  Kazakhstan’s WTO accession would open up  huge opportunities for expansion of its trade 
and investment, and help consolidate its competitiveness-enhancing reforms. Korea was confident 
that Kazakhstan would make the best of the WTO membership in fostering sustainable economic growth and prosperity. He appreciated Mi nister Zhanar Aitzhanova and her team, 
Ambassador Himanen, and the Director-General and the WTO Secretariat for their excellent work 
during the long accession process. He hoped that Kazakhstan would complete the necessary 
domestic procedures and participate in the Tenth Ministerial Conference to be held in December in Nairobi as the 162
nd Member of the WTO. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 13 - 
 
  1.87.  The representative of Switzerland noted that that day marked a further milestone in the 
history of the multilateral trading system. Kazakhstan's WTO Accession Package was ready for 
adoption by the General Council – a further major step towards making the WTO truly universal. In 
a country 66 times the size of Switzerland and with a great nomadic tradition, Kazakhstan was 
accustomed to travelling long distances under sometimes tough external conditions. Kazakhstan's 
accession journey had indeed been an arduous one. It required great efforts and exceptional stamina by Kazakhstan’s leadership and an able negotiating team. It was through the sustained 
joint engagement by all participants that they had reached the finish line. 
1.88.  The quality of the accession agreement coul d not be overstated. It reflected wide-ranging 
economic and trade reforms undertaken by Kazakhstan and its readiness to fully embrace the multilateral trading system and its rules. Kazakhstan was poised to play an important role in the 
future work of the WTO, due, inter alia , to its economic strength and potential, and its function as 
a bridge between Europe and Asia. Switzerland would remain engaged with Kazakhstan and was 
ready to further deepen their cooperation. His delegation welcomed Kazakhstan's plans for a quick 
ratification of the accession agreement and looked forward to celebrating its full Membership at the 
upcoming Ministerial Conference in Nairobi. 
1.89.  The representative of Norway noted that President Nazarbayev's presence demonstrated the 
importance to both Kazakhstan and the WTO of that accession – one of the more complex 
accession processes undertaken in the Organization. Norway had always supported the quest for Kazakhstan's WTO membership – having already signed a bilateral protocol in 2006, with a mutually acceptable result in goods and services. Much of the work over the past years had clearly 
been of a pioneering nature, such as aligning the conditions for Kazakhstan’s WTO membership 
with the commitments related to membership in the Eurasian Economic Union – an issue crucial to the process which would affect the future shaping of the multilateral trading system. Kazakhstan's 
accession would further strengthen WTO's fundamental role as the cornerstone of global trade 
disciplines and Norway looked forward to we lcoming Kazakhstan as a full-fledged Member. 
1.90.  The representative of the Solomon Islands, on behalf of the Pacific WTO Group, Australia 
and New Zealand, said that the accession of Kazakhstan was an important step towards the 
universal membership of the WTO and enhanced the multilateral rules-based system that was 
important for smaller economies. While they congratulated Kazakhstan for braving what was an intense and arduous process, like the recently acceded Pacific WTO Members, the implementation 
of their accession commitments would begin alongside the negotiations for new trade rules under 
the DDA post-Bali work program. They looked forward to working with the delegation of 
Kazakhstan as they entered the next phase of their engagement and particularly in the 
negotiations of multilateral trade rules that took account of the Pacific WTO Group's economic 
situation. 
1.91.  The representative of the Bolivarian Repu blic of Venezuela, on behalf of the GRULAC, 
attached particular value to the accession of Kazakhstan, and to the efforts that had been made to 
facilitate the process of accession of new Members to the WTO with a view to making membership increasingly universal – which could certainly strengthen the Organization. GRULAC hoped that that accession would foster greater global market integration, positively contributing to the 
multilateral trading system. 
1.92.  The representative of Malaysia, on behalf of ASEAN, noted that for the last 20 years, both 
the Government of Kazakhstan and the WTO Members had put in maximum efforts to conclude the 
negotiations – a historical milestone for Kazakhstan and the multilateral trading system. ASEAN 
was confident that this achievement would accelerate Kazakhstan's integration into the global trading system and would act as a catalyst to boost Kazakhstan’s economy. 
1.93.  The representative of Pakistan believed it was a momentous occasion for Kazakhstan, 
Pakistan, the Region, and the Global community. Pakistan expressed its gratitude to President 
Nursultan Nazarbayev for providing personal leadership to that great initiative. The Minister for Economic Integration and her team negotiating team deserved special appreciation. 
1.94.  Members had observed a celebration – sy mbolizing an end to the arduous journey of 
accession that had spanned more than 19 years and ultimately achieved the objective. Pakistan acknowledged the efforts of the Chair of the Workin g Party, the WTO Secretariat, and the Director-
General. The present occasion marked a new chapter in the history of the WTO – not only by WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 14 - 
 
  fortifying the rules-based system but also by deepening Members’ faith in the WTO. Pakistan firmly 
believed that the accession of Kazakhstan would be a substantial value-addition to the intra-regional trade among the central and south Asian economies. 
1.95.  The representative of Bangladesh, on be half of the LDC Group, said that President 
Nazarbayev's presence at the meeting was a testim ony to the importance attached by Kazakhstan 
to the WTO. The nearly 20 years of relentless, intense and difficult negotiations to conclude the accession process, perhaps so far the longest, reflected Kazakhstan's commitment towards full 
integration into the multilateral trading system. This not only indicated Kazakhstan's keenness to 
engage with the global economy, but also the confidence that its economy would benefit from it. The LDCs hoped that Kazakhstan's accession would also contribute towards trade expansion, particularly through the creation of market access opportunities for developing countries. The LDCs 
believed that the next steps in the process would also be completed soon and looked forward to 
welcoming Kazakhstan as a full member of the WTO hopefully at MC10 in Nairobi. 
1.96.  The representative of Ecuador echoed what had earlier been said by Members. Regarding 
the negotiations with Ecuador during Kazakhstan's accession process, there had been openness 
from the two parties to reach an agreement on concessions and commitments on goods – which was why Ecuador had supported the accession. That accession was important in strengthening the 
multilateral trading system – a system Ecuador was committed to. Ecuador hoped that the internal 
procedures of Kazakhstan would allow it to complete its accession process soon. 
1.97.  Ecuador thanked Minister Aitzhanova wh o had served as head of the delegation of 
Kazakhstan during the negotiation process, and her team comprising the Permanent Mission in 
Geneva. The Government of Ecuador and President Rafael Correa also extended their 
congratulations to the WTO Secretariat led by the Director-General for their efforts and efficiency. 
1.98.  The representative of Georgia commended the Government of Kazakhstan for its 
constructive engagement during the accession process. Kazakhstan’s WTO accession was truly a 
historic moment. It highlighted the country’s commitment to engage constructively in the frame of the rules-based multilateral trading system. Kazakh stan’s WTO Membership would be beneficial for 
the promotion of the multilateral trading system and the country’s further economic development. 
1.99.  Georgia and Kazakhstan enjoyed excellent relations, close partnership and cooperation 
based on mutual respect and shared interests. Bilateral trade and economic cooperation was developing steadily and Georgia looked forward to further deepening those ties in the years ahead. 
At the same time, the accession provided another opportunity to cooperate with Kazakhstan, 
Georgia’s FTA partner, in the framework of a multilateral platform. Georgia stood ready to share its experience in the implementation of the commitments undertaken and looked forward to 
welcome Kazakhstan as a full-fledged Member  at the upcoming Ministerial Conference. 
1.100.  The representative of Colombia welcomed th e completion of the process of accession of the 
Republic of Kazakhstan to the WTO, certain that it  would prove to be an active and valued Member 
in discussions within the Organization. On a personal note, having paid an official visit to 
Kazakhstan several years ago as Deputy Minister of Trade, he was particularly appreciative of the fresh opportunity to forge closer ties between their two countries. His delegation and he undertook to help Kazakhstan in any way possible in its work within the Organization. 
1.101.  The representative of the Kyrgyz Republic  welcomed the Council's decision and hoped that 
the high quality of the accession package would accelerate Kazakhstan's integration into the global 
trading system and provide a boost to Kazakhstan's economy for years to come.  
1.102.  Kazakhstan's WTO accession sent a strong, positive and clear signal to its trading partners, 
including the Kyrgyz Republic for its commitment to engage with the global economy in the framework of the rules-based multilateral trading system. That would also coincide with the entry 
into force of Kyrgyzstan's accession to the Eurasian Economic Union and would allow further 
development of regional economic integration in the region in accordance with WTO rules and a win-win partnership. With its positive impact on  the trade and economic relations between their 
countries, that accession would allow their relationship to go to the next level of cooperation.  WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 15 - 
 
  1.103.  Kyrgyzstan had always attached a vital role in cooperation with Kazakhstan, which it had 
close historical and fraternal ties with and was glad for Kazakhstan's success and achievement that day. Kyrgyzstan wished Kazakhstan all successes as a new Member of the WTO. 
1.104.  The representative of Cuba commended the representatives of Kazakhstan for their 
commendable efforts after the long accession process lasting twenty years. Kazakhstan had shown 
great flexibility and had worked with great seri ousness, proving its interest to complete its 
accession to the WTO. Cuba noted its support to the entry of the Republic of Kazakhstan as the 
162nd WTO Member which it hoped would be formalized at MC10 in Nairobi. 
1.105.  The representative of Paraguay, on behalf  of the LLDCs, said that the adoption of the 
accession package of Kazakhstan was one of the major achievements made so far in 2015 at the 
WTO. The LLDCs were delighted to see that Kazakhstan was accelerating the necessary ratification 
to become a new Member of the Organization and hoped to see it participating as a full-fledged 
WTO Member in Nairobi. 
1.106.  This was a victory for the Organization, which the group of Landlocked Developing 
Countries celebrated as its own since Kazakhstan was an important leader of the group. It had 
been in Almaty where the LLDCs had adopted thei r first Programme of Action for the Landlocked 
Developing Countries – a programme that had helped raise attention on their special needs and 
challenges. Through its implementation, from 2003 to 2014, major achievements had been made. 
Kazakhstan had taken an important leadership role in the process leading to the Second UN Conference for the Landlocked Developing Countries where diversification, value addition, international trade, trade facilitation and transit had been mainstreamed into what had become 
known as the Vienna Programme of Action to  be executed over the following 10 years. 
1.107.  After more than 19 years of intense negotiations for its accession, Kazakhstan had shown 
commitment and attitude that should be replic a t e d  b y  m o s t  W T O  M e m b e r s .  K a z a k h s t a n  h a d  
undertaken important reforms. It had introduced amendments and had adopted new laws to bring 
its legal framework in compliance with WTO norms. Important efforts had been shown in the agricultural sector such as the elimination of export subsidies and a substantial reduction of 
domestic support. Significant liberalization of key goods and services sector was to be 
implemented over the coming years. All those reforms sought to provide non-discriminatory treatment and to guarantee transparent, predicta ble and stable business and investment regimes 
in Kazakhstan.  
1.108.  Minister Aitzhanova had highlighted these among others at the conclusion of the Working 
Party meeting in June, which fully adhered to the principles and goals of the Organization. Kazakhstan was already doing what the Members had committed to do in the Doha Development 
Round – to undertake substantial reforms towards trade liberalization and a more levelled playing 
field. Reforms and an improved business environment were crucial for development. Kazakhstan had done it, was still doing it and would surely continue to do it. 
1.109.  As a landlocked developing country, Kazakhstan was an inspiration for LLDCs. It was the 
farthest country from any seaport, a reason why it had developed a strategic development plan with the objective of eliminating trade and transit barriers and developing logistic infrastructure. In the recently-held side event of the LLDCs on th e Aid-for-Trade week, the Group had described the 
work it was doing on building and rebuilding highways, train rail, airports, transit corridors and 
border crossing points. It had also highlighted the reality that despite the high trade openness, the trade level was still far from its full potential. Economic diversification should therefore become an 
urgent priority to promote greater productivity, move up the value chain and establish the 
necessary infrastructure to increase exports. In that sense, Kazakhstan's WTO accession would contribute to further explore its potential. The LLDCs hoped to undertake more activities that 
would allow them to fully benefit from the multilat eral trading system and stood proud of President 
Nazarbayev's achievement from which the people of Kazakhstan would benefit. 
1.110.  The representative of Tajikistan said that it was a historic moment for the Republic of 
Kazakhstan. Its accession to the WTO marked one step forward towards deeper integration to the 
globalized world and the multilateral trading syst em meeting the WTO Principles of inclusiveness 
and universality.  WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 16 - 
 
  1.111.  Members were aware of the complexity of  Kazakhstan's accession — having it been the 
longest in WTO history. That would have not been possible without the firm commitment of the Government of Kazakhstan led by President Nazarbayev, the negotiating team headed by 
Minister Aitzhanova, the Director-General, the Di rector of the Accessions Division and his team, 
with excellent mediating skills and substantive work. With the accession to the WTO, work would 
only continue for Kazakhstan and its membership would serve for the benefit of its people. 
1.112.  The role of trade for economic developm ent and prosperity had been increasing and the 
WTO gave the platform and played a crucial role for maintaining the rules-based mechanism for 
the multilateral trading system, where all countries were heard regardless of their economic size and geographical location. Tajikistan looked forward to seeing Kazakhstan as a full-fledged Member at MC10 in Nairobi. 
1.113.  The representative of Argentina stressed that Kazakhstan's accession had been completed 
after almost 20 years – a process in which Argentina had participated actively at various stages, 
particularly in the areas of its interest. Given the importance of agricultural and livestock activities 
in Kazakhstan, both in terms of employment and food security, Argentina was pleased that 
Kazakhstan, as a major agricultural producer, became part of the organization.  
1.114.  Argentina dealt with issues of mutual inte rest more intensely within the framework of the 
Doha Round, especially in agricultural subsidies. Both countries shared a common vision 
favourable to multilateralism – strengthening political and economic dialogue at the bilateral and multilateral agenda. Bilaterally, Argentina hoped that would also constitute an opportunity to consolidate, deepen and diversify their business relationship. Systemically, Argentina believed that 
Kazakhstan's accession had positively contributed to  the Organization by brin ging it closer to its 
goal of universality through greater representation. 
1.115.  The representative of Guatemala commended  Kazakhstan and its team both in capital and 
in Geneva for their hard work in recent years, which had allowed the conclusion of the negotiation 
process, and the WTO Secretariat for all its support for that accession. Guatemala recognized the importance of that accession, which had begun in 1996. The process had involved years of hard 
work, culminating with a win for everyone. Guatemala was pleased to have witnessed the 
conclusion of the process with the signing of Kazakhstan's Protocol of Accession. Guatemala wished to continue strengthening its trade ties with Kazakhstan and looked forward to Kazakhstan's participation as a full-fledged Member of the WTO at MC10. 
1.116.  The representative of Hong Kong, China said that throughout the accession process, 
Kazakhstan had demonstrated a strong commitment to the multilateral trading system. Every step 
it had taken affirmed its readiness to implement domestic reforms that would facilitate a smooth 
integration into the system. As a member of the Working Party, Hong Kong, China fully 
appreciated those efforts and felt privileged to have been able to contribute to the process, and to see it coming to fruition. Kazakhstan being such a vibrant economy and a valued trading partner 
to many, its accession would no doubt bring significant benefits to world trade. Hong Kong, China 
thanked all the parties involved for the many years of hard work that they had put in to make it possible and looked forward to working closel y with Kazakhstan as a fellow WTO Member. 
1.117.  The representative of Lesotho, on behalf of the African Group, noted that by withstanding 
the long accession process, Kazakhstan had shown strong determination to join the multilateral 
trading system. The benefits of accession could he lp create jobs and improve lives through trade. 
The African Group looked forward to working with  Kazakhstan at the WTO in strengthening the 
multilateral trading system for the benefit of al l Members. The Group appreciated the work put in 
by all other Members involved in the Working Party and hoped that Kazakhstan would share its experience with acceding African Governments. The Group also took note of the tremendous 
progress achieved on the accession process of Liberia and hoped that Liberia would become a 
Member of the WTO in December. 
1.118.  The representative of Morocco extended the warmest congratulations of the Kingdom of 
Morocco to the Government and People of Kaza khstan and welcomed Kazakhstan to the WTO. 
1.119.  The representative of Sierra Leone said that Kazakhstan's persistent efforts towards that 
achievement provided a good example for all to emulate. Her delegation noted with great 
satisfaction the recent efforts that Kazakhstan wa s making to reach out to Africa, and believed that WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 17 - 
 
  that would auger well for increased trade relations with the continent. For its part, Sierra Leone 
had established diplomatic relations with Kazakh stan in November and looked forward to their 
fruitful cooperation including in the area of trad e as both countries had similarities in terms of 
mineral resources endowment. 
1.120.  Sierra Leone looked forward to the ho sting by Kazakhstan of EXPO 2017 which would 
showcase energy solutions for the future and would assist participating countries in identifying suppliers for renewable energy technologies to meet their growing needs, while addressing their 
requirements for sustainable development. 
1.121.  The representative of Israel had closely followed the accession process and was aware of 
the complex, long and arduous journey, which spanne d a period of nearly 20 years, as well as of 
the magnitude of the liberalization reforms that the Government of Kazakhstan had to undertake 
to join the Organization. Israel had throughout expressed its support to Kazakhstan's candidacy 
and was pleased to see it finally seated at the table in the Organization. The upshot of such an arduous accession process was that Kazakhstan was then in a position to "hit the ground running". 
1.122.  Israel welcomed the indefatigable efforts of President Nazarbayev, Minister Aitzhanova and 
the Kazakh delegation throughout the process, which were testament of Kazakhstan's commitment to the WTO principles. Israel celebrated Kazakhst an's drive and constructive example and looked 
forward to continue collaborating with it as a full Member of the Organization. Israel noted its 
appreciation to the Secretariat team for the strong technical backing it had provided time and again throughout the accession process to aspiring members. 
1.123.  The representative of Jordan associated his delegation with the statement made by the 
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on behalf of the Arab Group. Jordan enjoyed long standing diplomatic, 
cultural and economic relations with Kazakhstan making the historic event add value to both the Government of Kazakhstan and the rules-based multilateral trading system. Jordan congratulated 
the Chairman of the Working Party on the Accessi on of Kazakhstan, the negotiating team headed 
by the Minister of Economic Integration of Kazakh stan, and the Secretariat for their hard work and 
dedication in concluding the accession negotiation. Jordan looked forward to working closely and 
constructively with Kazakhstan in the near future. 
1.124.  The representative of Canada commen ded President Nazarbayev for his unwavering 
leadership and commitment to Kazakhstan's WTO Membership over what had been a long and 
arduous negotiating process. Canada also underlined its tremendous respect and admiration for 
Minister Aitzhanova and her entire negotiating te am whose professionalism, dedication, patience 
and sheer talent were second to none. 
1.125.  Canada had been a strong and active supporter of Kazakhstan's accession since the 
process had begun. They concluded bilateral market access negotiations in 2008 and had been a 
very active member of the Working Party since well before then. Canada recognized the deep and broad reform program that Kazakhstan had undertaken in parallel with its bid for WTO 
Membership and was heartened to see the consolidation of the process in its soon-to-be WTO 
obligations.  
1.126.  Canada and Kazakhstan had many similarities. They both had large territories with vast 
resource endowments and relatively small populations, making their economies dependent on 
international trade. They also shared many ge ographic and climatic features and had similar 
export profiles. Against that backdrop, Canada was confident that Kazakhstan’s WTO accession would serve as a strong foundation for continued growth in their commercial relations and looked 
forward to working closely with Kazakhstan as a full-fledged WTO Member. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 18 - 
 
  1.127.  The representative of El Salvador joined the other delegations in commending Kazakhstan 
on completing the long and complex process of accession. In particular, El Salvador extended its 
appreciation to President Nazarbayev, Minister Aitzhanova, and their team for their tireless and constructive work in the course of these negotiations; Ambassador Himanen for his work at the 
helm of the Working Party; the Director of the Accessions Division for his leading role in that 
process; and, the WTO Secretariat for its hard work and dedication. El Salvador was firmly persuaded that the accession of Kazakhstan to the WTO was a historic event that would serve to 
strengthen the Organization and promote universa lity of its membership. It looked forward to 
welcoming Kazakhstan soon as a full-fledged WTO Member and to working together on issues of mutual concern. 
1.128.  H.E. Mr Axel Addy, Minister of Commerce an d Industry of Liberia, speaking as an Observer, 
was honoured to be again given the unique opportunity to address the General Council on the 
state of play on Liberia's accession since his last update in 24 July 2014. On behalf of H.E. President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, President of th e Republic of Liberia, and the people of Liberia, 
his delegation congratulated President Nazarbayev, Minister Aitzhanova and her team on the 
accession of Kazakhstan to the multilateral trading system. 
1.129.  Kazakhstan's accession was truly a remarkable achievement and a true testament of the 
value of the Organization in shaping the world thro ugh trade. Despite the challenges of concluding 
various negotiations, the domestic reforms the WTO demanded from all Members was a bitter pill 
but good for the health of their world, th eir countries and their people. Those demands 
transformed lives. Liberia was still knocking at Members' doors to join the Organization because it 
believed that trade could be the catalyst for econom ic transformation and being at the table of the 
Organization would help it achieve that. 
1.130.  Liberia congratulated President Nazarbayev's efforts to increase international cooperation 
between his nation and Africa, and looked forward to exploring such cooperation, particularly in 
agriculture, mining, oil and gas. Liberia also thanke d the President for his contribution to the global 
response to the Ebola outbreak in his country, as well as in Sierra Leone and Guinea. 
1.131.  Liberia also congratulated the delegation  of Kenya in the leadership of H.E. Amina 
Mohamed in hosting MC10 and looked forward to the Nairobi experience. 
1.132.  He recalled that a year before, he had addressed the General Council, making an appeal to 
exercise flexibility in supporting Liberia's desire to join the WTO at MC10 in Nairobi. At the 
meeting, his delegation was grateful to all Memb ers, thanks to the leadership of the Director-
General Mr Roberto Azevêdo, its Working Party Chairperson Ambassador Reiter (Sweden), the Director of the Accessions Division Mr Chiedu Osakwe, Mr Alejandro Jara of King & Spalding Legal 
Team, the Government of Sweden and the Swedish Board of Trade, Ms Arancha Gonzales and the 
ITC Team, Dr Mukhisa Kituyi and the UNCTAD team, Members of its Working Party, the Ambassadors and their technical teams of the Members it engaged in bilateral negotiations with – 
Japan, Canada, European Union, United States, Thailand, and Chinese Taipei.  
1.133.  The road to Nairobi was clear. Liberia had concluded all bilateral negotiations. On 28 July, 
he would Chair the technical verification meeting which he hoped would provide the momentum for the emergence of the accession package. He then planned to return in early October for what he 
hoped would be a final meeting. His delegation would also use the opportunity to complete the 
drafting of the Accession Package to implement th e post-accession agenda. It was Liberia's desire 
that in December, Liberia's President, H.E. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, would come to Nairobi to sign the 
Protocol on Liberia's accession. 
1.134.  The accession process was a difficult one because implementing domestic reforms was a 
complex and difficult undertaking. It was particularly more difficult for an LDC, let alone an LDC 
emerging from multiple challenges and crises that had crippled its infrastructure, its economy and 
its people. Liberia remained resilient and despite the odds, no matter how many times it had been knocked down, it continued to get up. Liberia wa s hopeful and confident that the process would 
pave the way for a new awakening that would change the way it traded with the world in a way 
that would spark a new renaissance of economic transformation that was balanced and inclusive. 
1.135.  Liberia remained committed to the process because it believed in a multilateral trading 
system and the power of trade to break the shackles of poverty in its country. This was why the WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 19 - 
 
  WTO's role in shaping the post-2015 development ag enda was pivotal particularly in the alignment 
o f  a i d  w i t h  t r a d e .  A s  t h e y  a l l  c o n v e r g e d  i n  N e w  Y o r k  i n  S e p t e m b e r ,  t h e y  s h o u l d  c o l l e c t i v e l y  advocate for the alignment of aid and trade. Africa's  transformation could only be realized when its 
people were not only consumers of global goods and services but also producers of quality goods 
and services. To liberate its people from the shackles of poverty, trade matters and the 
Organization should help re-write history to achieve sustainable, equitable and inclusive growth in Africa. 
1.136.  Currently, the average Liberian was under  25 years of age. The average Liberian was a 
youth with the desire, dreams and wishes like any other youth in the world. Many of Liberia's youth, sad to say, lived in abject  poverty. Their only crime was the timing and place of their birth. 
It was estimated that 10 million of these youth would come into the job market in Africa with the 
audacity of hope, to live in self dignity, with th e human rights and equal opportunities and to live a 
fulfilled life. Everyone had a role to play, for their failure to do so would pave the way for an exodus from Africa and extremist tendencies  that would render everyone to fear.  
1.137.  Liberia valued the multilateral trading system because of the principles and rules it stood 
for and it believed that at the table, they could all contribute to ensure that Africa was a better and equal trading party with the rest of the world.  Making Africa a better, equal and a respected 
trading partner would make the world a better place and the WTO a better organization. The WTO 
would take one more step in that direction when Liberia would join at MC10 in Nairobi. 
1.138.  H.E. President Nursultan Nazarbayev, President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, expressed 
his deepest gratitude to the representatives of the Members and Observers present at the meeting 
for their gracious and encouraging words. During the course of the complex negotiations, he had 
been able to meet with many Heads of State. He  recalled his meetings with the Presidents of the 
Russian Federation, the United States, Ukraine, Mo ngolia and many others, where he had felt their 
good attitude towards Kazakhstan and their encouragement of his efforts. From the first day of its 
independence, Kazakhstan had wanted to be perceived as a country emanating peace and integration. At present, Kazakhstan was the centre of many integration initiatives including the 
team of twenty-two countries on the Trans-Asian roads. It was the co-founder of the Shanghai 
Organization of Cooperation; the first country to denounce the continuation of the use of the largest nuclear test site and peacefully eliminating the world's fourth largest nuclear arsenal; the country that frequently hosted international religious gatherings such as the Islamic Conference 
and international organizations such as the OSCE. Kazakhstan viewed that as a token of 
confidence and trust that people vested in the country. He ensured all delegations that Kazakhstan intended to stand loyal to the principles of the WTO and would do its outmost to further strengthen 
the authority of the Organization. Trade should alwa ys be fair, unbiased and open to all. Only on 
that basis, Members could build politics conducive to peace, coexistence and prosperity of their countries. He wished the WTO and its Members all the best in the future because its successes and 
achievements would be to the benefit of th e countries and the people of the world. 
1.139.  The General Council took note of the st atements and of the expressions of welcome and 
support. 
2  REPORT BY THE CHAIRMAN OF THE TRADE NEGOTI ATIONS COMMITTEE 
2.1.  The Chairman invited the Director-General, as  Chairman of the TNC, to report on the TNC's 
activities since his last report to the Council. 
2.2.  The Director-General, Chairman of the TNC3, recalled that since he had last reported to the 
General Council on 5 May, there had been intense activity aimed at preparing the DDA work 
program. Work had continued on the tracks that he had outlined at the beginning of the year, specifically: the work of the negotiating groups, supported by the group Chairs. That was the main 
track – it fed everything Members did – and that was where the work program had to happen; his 
own consultations with different configurations of the Membership on a variety of issues, including meetings in Room W; and meetings convened by  Members themselves – some of which he had 
been invited to and had participated in.  
                                               
3 The Director-General's statement was subsequently circulated in JOB/GC/81. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 20 - 
 
  2.3.  He had also continued his consultations with Ministers and Leaders, including: in May, at the 
APEC meeting of Ministers Responsible for Trade;  in June, at the informal Ministerial meeting 
convened on the side-lines of the OECD in Paris and the G7 Summit in Germany; and in July, at the Fifth Global Review of Aid for Trade and the UN Financing for Development Summit in Addis 
Ababa. In addition, there had been a meeting of African Trade Ministers in Nairobi the previous 
week, convened by the African Union. He had been unable to attend due to his consultations in Geneva, but he had made sure that a WTO delegation had attended the meeting, led by DDG 
Shark. He was pleased that the meeting had taken place as it signalled again the high level of 
engagement among African Members which he thought was very important. Indeed, he was delighted to welcome Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed who joined Members again at the meeting and who would give them a more detailed update on that meeting. 
2.4.  Since the May General Council, he had convened three Room W meetings – on 1 June, 
17 June and 8 July. At those meetings he had reported to the Membership on all of his consultations and on the progress towards the preparation of the work program. On each and 
every one of those occasions, he had expressed his concern that despite intense and active 
engagement, insufficient progress had been made on the substantive points – particularly on the 
gateway issues. Significant differences had remained across many areas. The reality was that 
despite willingness to explore different approach es and consider proposals or ideas, many 
Members had still not been willing to move towards convergence. Progress had remained very limited.  
2.5.  That was why at the last Room W meeting on 8 July, he had been clear in his assessment 
that as things stood then, there had been very little prospect of delivering the substantive and 
"clearly defined" work program by the end of the month. He had also been clear that that had not been a question of the time available. Rather, it had been about making the tough political 
decisions to unlock the situation. He had urged Members to keep working, but also to start 
considering all possible scenarios, including how to move forward in the absence of a work program. At that same meeting, he had announced his intention to convene a TNC meeting on 
24 July, and to provide a full report to the General Council about the situation. However, after 
talking to delegations and reflecting further, he had decided that in order to allow the maximum possible amount of time to keep working before the deadline expired, the TNC meeting should be 
postponed until 31 July. 
2.6.  He had discussed the situation widely – in cluding with the Chairs – and he thought that, 
despite best efforts so far, his earlier view st ill remained valid. As he had stated on several 
occasions, the process had to remain Member-driven. Members should not expect him, or the 
Chairpersons, to put forward a work program for Members to discuss. It had to come from 
Members. He had encouraged them to come forward with new ideas and proposals to help build consensus. And they have done that. He sensed a willingness to engage in a conversation that was 
more creative and open-minded than before. That was coming not from one or two Members, but 
from a large spectrum of the Membership – the majority in fact. It was very positive. He particularly welcomed the initiatives that Members had begun to see in recent days. 
2.7.  But, as things stood, Members still did not have a work program. And, even within the more 
open-minded exercise, there were still clear concep tual differences in expectations. For example, 
he saw some large gaps between what some Members wanted to put on the table and what they wanted in return. That was true for many, including among the major players. So there was still a 
long, long way to go. They were just three days from their deadline and so, despite recent efforts 
by some groups, he found it hard to see how thin gs could change sufficiently in the time they had 
available. But it was vital that they kept working and kept pushing.  
2.8.  During the previous week, a number of nego tiating groups had met – specifically the groups 
on agriculture, NAMA and services. The Negotiat ing Group on Rules would meet on 29 July to 
discuss two new submissions. The TRIPS Special Session would also meet on 30 July. The Chairs would fully report on those activities to  the Membership at the TNC on 31 July. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 21 - 
 
  2.9.  He was continuing his consultations. He ha d a meeting with a group of delegations on 24 July 
to discuss market access issues in agriculture, NAMA and services in a horizontal manner. He 
would also hold sessions to take up some other agriculture issues – specifically domestic support and export competition – as well as the areas of Rules, development and LDC issues. He had also 
been invited to attend further consultations held by Members. The Chairs and he would report fully 
on all of those activities at the TNC meeting on 31 July. 
2.10.  At the TNC meeting, Members would have no alternative but to face the reality of what they 
would have been able to achieve by then. That wo uld not mean making the final call on what they 
could achieve in Nairobi, or on the DDA more broadly – it was mainly about the work program. In a scenario where there was no work program by the 31 July deadline there would certainly be a sense of disappointment that Members would have missed an opportunity to establish a clear 
roadmap to move forward. But they should not allow this to lead them to inaction. It could not 
become an obstacle. They would need to redo uble their efforts and work towards achieving 
substantive outcomes for Nairobi. 
2.11.  Indeed, whatever the outcome that week would be, it was vital that Members remained 
committed and focused on substantive outcomes. Co me September, Members should be ready to 
hit the ground running on substance not process.  While they had not move d forward yet, through 
their extensive engagement they had built the vehicle which could take them forward. If a 
common understanding materialized early in the second semester, then he thought they still had an excellent chance of delivering meaningful outcomes in Nairobi. Whatever the outcome that week, when they returned after the summer that sh ould be their number one priority. As the crow 
flew, Nairobi was about 6,000 kilometres away from Geneva. In September they would have to 
stop talking about how they could make the journey, and take their first step. 
2.12.  H.E. Minister Amina Mohamed (Kenya), Chairperson of the Tenth Ministerial Conference, 
thanked the Director-General for his report and tireless efforts towards developing a post-Bali work 
program as Members collectively looked to deliver  concrete outcomes on the DDA in Nairobi. She 
had been in regular contact with the Director-General who had kept her up-to-date on the 
intensive work and consultations that had been taking place in Geneva. She thanked all 
delegations for their unwavering engagement, openness and commitment to the DDA negotiations.. 
2.13.  In her role as MC10 Chair, she had also been in contact with counterparts in different 
regions, including at the informal ministerial meeting on the side-lines of the OECD Ministerial 
meeting in June, where she had outlined her expectations in terms of outcomes for Nairobi, including for LDCs. She understood that her full statement had been circulated to all Members in 
document WT/L/951. She also had the pleasure of meeting and exchanging views with Members 
on the occasion of the Fifth Global Review of Aid for Trade. 
2.14.  As she had already conveyed to Members when she had accepted Kenya's role to host 
MC10, President Kenyatta had taken the public positi on that the first WTO Ministerial Conference in 
Africa should not be allowed to fail. The outcomes had to be not only realistic but meaningful as well. It was in that context that in addition to engaging Ministers across the Membership, she had in particular maintained regular contacts with African Trade Ministers on a number of occasions. 
On 20 July, she had hosted a meeting of African Ministers in Nairobi to discuss the progress of 
work in the area.
4 It had been a useful meeting and she was happy to inform Members that the 
Ministers had committed to use every effort possibl e to ensure that MC10 was a success. All of 
them agreed that their meeting in Nairobi in December should be a positive step for the WTO and 
the multilateral trading system. They had agreed to meet again in October in order to continue their discussions and to ensure that their common goal of a successful MC10 was met. 
2.15.  But based on what she had just heard, she was very worried about the persistence of 
serious differences in the positions of Members and the difficulties in finding convergence as 
reported by the Director-General. The state of a ffairs had implications not just for the Nairobi 
Ministerial, but fundamentally for the WTO's negotiating function. However, it was somewhat 
heartening to learn that Members were all still working and that there continued to be commitment 
and willingness to further engage and explore avenues for progress. She encouraged them to 
                                               
4 Minister Mohamed's concluding remarks at the 20 Ju ly meeting of the African Trade Ministers can be 
found in WT/GC/171. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 22 - 
 
  redouble those efforts – both in Geneva and in their capitals – as they edged closer to Nairobi. 
Members needed outcomes that would further reinforce the unrivalled position of the WTO as the forum for global trade governance and reaffirm its role as the ultimate inclusive forum for trade policy and rule-making. Therefore, Nairobi needed to succeed.   
2.16.  In 2015, Members celebrated the Twentieth Anniversary of the WTO. Nairobi had to build on 
the progress that the WTO had made over the past  twenty years – of which Members were aware. 
Nairobi should build on Bali and go beyond Bali. It was in that context that she congratulated the 
Director-General, ITA Participants and the entire Membership on 24 July's landmark agreement on 
expanding the ITA. Not only was that the first major tariff-cutting agreement at the WTO in eighteen years, but it also came on the heels of the landmark Bali deal. All WTO Members would 
benefit from the duty free market access that would result from the implementation of that 
Agreement. She therefore encouraged Participating Members to sustain their excellent work and to 
conclude their implementation plans in time for the Nairobi Ministerial Conference. 
2.17.  Nairobi had to succeed for Africa – that being the WTO's first Ministerial on the continent. 
The African continent as a whole had a large stake in the success of the DDA and with that – 
Nairobi. Not only did Africa have a significant Membership share, but more importantly many countries in Africa firmly believed in the multilateral trading system's ability to deliver meaningful 
outcomes for their growth, development and po verty reduction strategies. Members therefore 
should deliver for Africa and the LDCs that continued to look up to the multilateral trading system to overcome some of their development challeng es. Nairobi therefore should have meaningful 
development outcomes that responded to the challenges of developing countries. 2015 was also 
an important year for sustainable development. Th e WTO had to make its contribution to the post-
2015 agenda and Nairobi offered that opportunity which Members should seize.  
2.18.  She remained fully committed to the success of the Conference. As Kenya's Cabinet 
Secretary responsible for international trade the WTO's Tenth Ministerial Conference in Nairobi was 
her top-most priority. One of the items on her "to-achieve-list" for Nairobi was further progress on TFA ratification. As she had already signalled to the Membership at the General Council in 
December 2014 and again at the Fifth Global Review  on Aid for Trade, she hoped that they would 
have good news on this front by Nairobi. While good progress was being made towards that goal, Members should hasten their pace, if they were to  realize it. She would encourage capitals in the 
course of the following months before Nairobi, to speed up domestic ratification processes so that 
the required threshold for the Agreement's entry into force would be attained in a timely manner. 
2.19.  She assured delegations that they could count on her support at any time and use her 
expertise to assist them, the Director-General and the Chairman of the General Council in bridging 
remaining differences that would allow them to converge on outcomes in Nairobi that were 
acceptable to the whole Membership. As Members had already been briefed during the information session on MC10 by the Kenyan Task Force on 27 Ju ly, she once again assured delegations that no 
effort was being spared to ensure the smooth r unning of the Ministerial Conference. She looked 
forward to engaging further with them to ensure positive, meaningful outcomes for Africa, for development, and for the entire Membership as they  sought to further strengthen their multilateral 
trading system that they valued and upheld. 
2.20.  The representative of Indonesia, on beha lf of the G-33, informed all Members that on 
27 July, the G-33, SVEs, ACP Group and the Sepa rate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, 
Kinmen and Matsu had submitted a joint statement of renewing development through SP and SSM. 
The submission (TN/AG/GEN/36) stressed the mandates that Members had to develop and 
establish SP & SSM which to them should become the must-have for a successful MC10 in December. 
2.21.  The representative of Tonga extended Tonga's sincere appreciation to the WTO Director-
General and the Secretariat for scheduling the Gene va Week that week. It provided an important 
opportunity for non-resident WTO Members like Tonga to keep abreast of developments and to participate in key WTO meetings such as that of the General Council.   WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 23 - 
 
  2.22.  Tonga recognized the importance of having a voice in the WTO but owing to a combination 
of factors including limited resources, it was unable to have a permanent presence in Geneva. Nevertheless, Tonga looked to the multilateral trading rules as critical to ensuring certainty, predictability and transparency for small, vulnerable economies like itself who could not influence 
the world price or world trade with the very small trade volumes that they generated. 
2.23.  Tonga considered trade as an important tool for generating economic growth and 
development for Tonga. It thanked the Chairs of the Negotiating Bodies for their reports and noted 
the overall limited progress of the work program on the remaining areas of the Doha Development 
Agenda (DDA) as mandated by Ministers in Bali in 2013. However, as Members prepared for MC10, Tonga considered the centrality of development in  all the remaining areas of the DDA – that MC10 
should deliver meaningful outcomes on the DDA particularly on Development, Agriculture, and 
Fisheries subsidies. 
2.24.  The representative of Barbados, on behalf  of the ACP, updated th e Membership on some 
developments with respect to the draft work program which the ACP Group was preparing. The 
ACP had changed the title of the program to "Proposals for Bridging Gaps in the remaining Doha 
Development Agenda issues and outcomes for th e WTO Tenth Ministerial Conference" and would 
be in a position to distribute the document beyond the group the following day.5 
2.25.  The representative of Lesotho, on behalf of the African Group, said that in the Lesotho 
custom, when an elder had spoken, the rest could not speak. Since the Protocol was reversed in 
the Western culture, his elder – Minister Amina Mohamed of Kenya had spoken before him and it 
befell him to welcome the Minister. He thanked he r for the speech she had delivered particularly 
on the guidance that had been given to the African Group in continuing to engage in that area and 
the direction of that engagement in the WTO. He  also thanked her for the words that Members had 
to make sure that an outcome for Africa and the LDCs were meaningful in Nairobi. 
2.26.  It was well-known that development issues were at the core of the DDA. However, that had 
not come to pass in the course of the year making it important to have meaningful outcomes in the area in Nairobi. In that respect, the LDCs we re preparing something in relation to making sure 
that there was an outcome in Nairobi. Members of the African and ACP Groups had an input in 
what was going to be put forward in the contex t of what Members would engage in after the 
summer break so that they would have meaningful outcomes in Nairobi. 
2.27.  The African Group appreciated the overview that had been given by the Director-General on 
progress and that Members should continue workin g. On the work program, as had been aptly put 
by the Director-General, missing the 31 July deadlin e was not the end of all. Work towards Nairobi 
should not end even if there was no detailed wo rk program by 31 July. Members should continue 
engaging and Africa was prepared to do that. 
2.28.  The representative of Sierra Leone aligne d her delegation to the statements delivered by 
the ACP, the African and the LDC Groups. She dr ew attention to the outcome document of the 
recently concluded Third Financing for Development Conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The 
document recognized the importance of international trade as an engine for development and dedicated a whole section to the subject. Indeed, paragraphs 79 to 91 spelled out the steps, which needed to be taken to ensure that developing  countries, including least-developed countries 
derived maximum benefits from trade to a ccelerate their development. It called, inter alia , on WTO 
Members to fully and expeditiously implement all the decisions of the Bali Package, including the 
decisions taken in favour of LDCs. 
2.29.  She highlighted a few areas which should be frontloaded in the implementation of the Bali 
Decisions and the post-Bali work program. With resp ect to implementation of preferential rules of 
origin for LDCs, her delegation urged concerned Members to give life to the streamlining and 
transparency envisaged in the Decision adopted at Bali. For LDCs, preferential rules of origin could 
have a real and catalytic impact on the ability of  LDCs to benefit from market access opportunities. 
2.30.  With respect to the Services Waiver, her delegation was gratified by the announcements 
made by the Members at the High Level meeting in February and called upon those Members to 
submit their notifications on the agreed dead line of 31 July 2015 and to expeditiously move 
                                               
5 The ACP Group's Proposal was subsequently circulated in document JOB/TNC/50.  WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 24 - 
 
  towards the operationalization of the waiver that would enhance real market access in sectors of 
export interest to LDC services suppliers.  
2.31.  On Trade Facilitation, Sierra Leone looked forward to the scaling up of technical assistance, 
including the commissioning of the Trade Facilitation Trust Fund. A step forward in the area of 
technical assistance would not only support implementation, it would send a strong signal to 
developing countries that all Members were honouring the commitments made during the negotiation of the Trade Facilitation Agreement. It was time for the house to make good on the 
commitments made to developing countries and LDCs. 
2.32.  The outcome document also called on WTO to  redouble its efforts to promptly conclude the 
negotiations on the Doha Development Agenda. It further acknowledged the major role that Aid for Trade had to play and urged that developed coun tries and developing countries, in a position to 
do so to provide such assistance to developing and least-developed countries, including through 
the Enhanced Integrated Framework. 
2.33.  The relevance of the outcome document  on Financing for Development could not be 
overemphasized. The post-2015 Sustainable De velopment Agenda had been hailed as the 
international solution to address underdevelopme nt. As described by the UNDP Administrator, 
Helen Clark, it provided "an unprecedented opportuni ty this year to shift the world onto a path of 
inclusive, sustainable and resilient development." MC10 was the opportunity for WTO Members to 
make good on the promise to assist the weaker Members of the international community to achieve the goal of sustainable development and Sierra Leone was looking forward to its 
outcomes. 
2.34.  The representative of Bangladesh, on behalf of the LDC Group, fully agreed with the 
Director-General and the African Group that 31 Ju ly would not prevent LDCs from continuing to 
work. The LDCs were engaged in a very visible wa y. When things had not been happening in other 
areas, they had continued to push. They had made an informal dedicated session on rules of origin 
happen. He thought they could reasonably claim that they had made a difference between the state of affairs that had existed before that sess ion and that which they had achieved after. They 
had continued to push for a dedicated session on the DFQF issue. The idea remained the same that 
they should bring that issue to the floor to allow Members an opportunity to focus on that issue. That was all their concern and they really wanted to push for it as much as they could within the rules of engagement in the house. They would remain engaged and would work in the same way 
that they had been doing. 
2.35.  The Director-General stressed that 31 July was definitely not the end of the road. On the 
contrary, it would be a wake-up call that Members had to come back in September with ideas, 
commitment and focus on substance. They needed to move forward quickly. He was also happy 
that some Members and Groups of Members were putting proposals on the table. That was going to be critical if Members wanted to make progress in the second semester. More than that, he was 
concerned that they had been concentrating on the gateway issues trying to find solutions for that 
and believed that they had not made as much progress as they could have on LDC issues. They were trying to hold dedicated sessions but he had not seen any concrete progress there. He recalled he had cautioned against sequencing for quite some time. If there was one area that they 
had to come back and hit the ground running – sprinting even – was on the LDC issues. Members 
were way behind on that one. It was not even about gaps of perception or position – he did not know what the gaps were. That was the reality. They needed to do better on that particular issue. 
2.36.  The General Council took note of the Director-General's report, the statement of the 
Chairperson of the Tenth Ministerial Conference and of the other statements. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 25 - 
 
  3  AID FOR TRADE — REPORT BY THE DIRECTOR-GENERAL ON THE FIFTH GLOBAL 
REVIEW 
3.1.  The Chairman invited the Director-General to  report on the Fifth Global Review of Aid for 
Trade. 
3.2.  The Director-General recalled that from 30 June to 2 July the WTO had hosted the Fifth 
Global Review of Aid for Trade with the theme "Reducing Trade Costs for Inclusive, Sustainable 
Growth". The feedback he had received suggested  that the topic had been apt and timely. It 
seemed to have struck a chord across the Member ship. Overall, the Review had been a success.  
3.3.  2015 was a defining year for development glob ally. In that context, he was happy that the 
Review had helped define how trade could contribute to the development outcomes everyone was seeking. Regarding the Global Review itself, over  1,000 people had participated in the 46 plenary 
and side-event sessions. The excellent attendance  had continued throughout the full three days. 
Some 30 statements had been made even in the closing plenary session in the afternoon of the 
third day. Not only had representation by Members been excellent in number, it had also been 
diverse in nature. Sessions tailored to discuss the trade costs of different regions and categories of 
Members had been well-attended. A particular achievement had been the profile given to the Pacific – a region particularly challenged by trade costs due to its geographical remoteness. 
3.4.  Another welcome feature had been the substantive engagement of other inter-governmental 
organizations, notably the international financial institutions and UN regional economic commissions. Various IGOs had provided inputs, including as collaborators in the flagship Aid for Trade 'At a Glance' report and through partnershi ps with WTO on other reports and publications. 
3.5.  The Asian Development Bank, the Confeder ation of Indian Industry, the Inter-American 
Development Bank, the Islamic Development Bank and UN Economic Commission for Africa had launched reports examining the theme of trade cost s. The private sector, NGOs and academia had 
also been well-represented across the different sessions. The World Bank Group had also been 
prominent in its engagement. The joint report that he had launched with World Bank President Jim Kim on "The Role of Trade in Ending Poverty" had been one of a series of substantive contributions 
that the Bank had made.   
3.6.  Regarding the messages which had been delivered during the Review, if there was something 
that he could say with confidence after the many hours of discussion, and hundreds of pages of analysis, it was that "Trade costs matter". They mattered for a variety of reasons. But he thought 
that four elements had emerged with particular clarity.  
a. Trade costs fell disproportionately heavily on the poorest countries. 
b. Trade costs were not distributed equally among countries – some naturally faced higher 
costs due to their geography or economic size.  
c. Trade costs were higher for agriculture and food products – a sector where poverty was 
most prevalent, but in which many poor countries enjoyed comparative advantage. 
d. Within countries, it was the smallest companies that struggled the most to deal with high 
costs – companies that also were a motor of employment and social inclusion, notably for women. 
3.7.  Without action to bring down trade costs, connectivity would be decreased, and the global 
development prospects of many Members would be diminished. That was why he saw trade costs 
as an area for action. Encouragingly, Aid for Trad e had already been having a tangible effect on 
trade costs and connectivity. The implementation of the Bali Package promised further substantive 
and measurable impacts in that area.  
3.8.  It had been encouraging to note the many actions that had been taken in support of border 
modernization, and which had led to some very positive results. That bade well for the Trade 
Facilitation Agreement, and Members' efforts to support its implementation, including through the 
Trade Facilitation Agreement Facility.   WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 26 - 
 
  3.9.  He recalled that he had written to Ministers in recent days, calling to their attention the 
urgent need to ratify the Agreement. In addition, he had also written to Ministers to urge action on both the TRIPS amendment to support access to medicines, and on the LDC services waiver. 
3.10.  A number of other themes had emerged from  the sessions at the Global Review, and from 
Members' statements. They included: the specific  needs of some Members, such as LDCs, SVEs, 
and also landlocked countries; the need to align the Aid-for-Trade initiative with the post-2015 development agenda; the need to capture and promote women's economic empowerment in Aid 
for Trade programming and reporting; the need to recognize the marginalization often faced by 
the rural poor, and the need to support their better integration into the trading system; the 
services dimension to trade costs; the promise of South-South cooperation as a complement to North-South actions; and the question of how to capture climate change in WTO work. 
3.11.  On the process for taking the Aid-for-Trade initiative forward, shortly after the Fifth Global 
Review he had attended the Third International Co nference on Financing for Development in Addis 
Ababa. He was pleased to report that there was a robust section on trade in the outcome 
document. Not only did that text recognize trade as an engine for inclusive economic growth and 
poverty reduction, it also underlined the importance of action on trade finance and highlighted the major role that Aid for Trade could play. 
3.12.  Clearly, Members needed to take stock of the new framework and explore its implications 
for the Aid-for-Trade initiative. The same would also be true for the summit on the Sustainable Development Goals at the end of September. The summit would provide the framework against 
which Members collectively measured their progre ss on development issues. A CTD workshop on 
the implications of those new frameworks was fores een as part of the biennial Aid for Trade Work 
Programme. He had no doubt that the CTD Chair,  Ambassador Aguirre, would ensure that this 
proceeded as planned.   
3.13.  He offered some thoughts for where the initiative could focus in the future. He knew that 
the question was on Members' minds. Indeed, th ere had been a number of side events that had 
discussed that issue from various perspectives. Members would recall that the Aid-for-Trade 
initiative had been launched in December 2005 at  MC6 in Hong Kong. At MC10, the Aid–for-Trade 
initiative would therefore have its tenth birthday. The milestone was of course an opportune moment to take stock on what had been achieved , and where to go next. In that sense the work 
ahead would need to factor the outcomes of MC10 into that process. 
3.14.  One suggestion, building on the theme of the Global Review, was to focus on the evolution 
of trade costs in the coming years. Past reviews had focused on financing, which was the input to 
the process. The next focus could be on outcomes, including the developments in trade costs and 
connectivity. That would provide a powerful tool to mobilize continued financing. Members could 
also consider looking at trade connectivity. Thes e elements could provide a practical contribution 
to monitoring the delivery of the post-2015 development agenda. 
3.15.  He would value Members' suggestions on ho w to take the initiative forward, and how to 
align it with the new global development architecture. He thought they had a particular opportunity to already do that as they could capitalize on the success of the Global Review. 
3.16.  He recalled the words of many Members abou t the excellent content and organization of the 
Fifth Global Review. He agreed with those that had said that the Aid-for-Trade initiative had 
emerged as one of the flagship activities in WTO' s engagement with the global community. He also 
agreed with the sentiment that Members should "Keep it going and remain creative". He looked 
forward to their help and cooperation in achieving that outcome. 
3.17.  The representative of Sierra Leone comple mented the presentation of the Director-General 
by making particular reference to the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF), the only programme 
dedicated to trade-related assistance to least-developed countries. The second phase of the EIF 
had been launched during the Fifth Aid for Trade Review. An evaluation of Phase One of the EIF had concluded that EIF had been value for money and recommended a second phase to assist LDCs to develop their trade capacities. The second phase had a budget of US$270million to 
US$320 million over a period of seven years starting  from January 2016. Sierra Leone called on all 
donors to contribute generously to the second ph ase of the EIF. A Pledging Conference would be 
held on 14 December in Nairobi, a day before the start of MC10. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 27 - 
 
  3.18.  The representative of the European Union thanked the Director-General and the Secretariat 
for their hard work to prepare and deliver a successful review. His delegation valued the 
opportunity to come together with its peers and discuss the progress of the Aid-for-Trade initiative. The European Union's commitment to the initiative was clear. It continued to see Aid for 
Trade as a catalytic tool to support partner countries to participate in and benefit from the 
multilateral trading system. The European Union particularly thanked the WTO Secretariat for their support in hosting the EU’s side event on the Futu re of EU Aid for Trade strategy. It had been well 
attended and his delegation appreciated the participation of all stakeholders. The consensus 
among donors, recipients and other stakeholders on the importance of reducing trade costs had 
been evident for all to see at the Review. With  the adoption and implementation of the Trade 
Facilitation Agreement as a central element of th e agenda, the European Union looked forward to 
continued success for the Aid-for-Trade initiative. 
3.19.  The representative of Guatemala, on behalf of the SVEs, thanked the WTO Secretariat for 
the opportunity to conduct a specific activity dedicated to the SVEs within the Fifth Global Review 
of Aid for Trade. It was the first time the SVEs were provided with such an opportunity during a 
Global Review of Aid for Trade. That effort had represented a very important platform to approach 
donors and partners that had already worked with their countries or had an interest in doing so. 
After the substantive discussions put forward duri ng the Review, important issues and challenges 
ahead on Aid for Trade still existed, such as ob taining a broader geographical distribution of 
cooperation. For SVEs, reducing trade costs was vital to increase their competitiveness and promote their comprehensive integration in global value chains. The dialogue sustained during the 
Global Review had allowed them to exchange views and direct their efforts towards that goal. The 
SVEs hoped that in future Aid for Trade activities, SVEs continued to be taken into account and could therefore have a proactive participation on these issues. 
3.20.  The General Council took note
6 of the Director-General's report and of the statements. 
4  IMPLEMENTATION OF THE BALI OUTCOMES — STATEMENT BY THE CHAIRMAN 
4.1.  The Chairman7 recalled that Members had had that agenda item on implementation of the 
Bali outcomes since July 2014, to have an opportunity to assess the work taking place in those 
regular bodies which were directly working on the various Bali Decisions. He was keeping an on-going dialogue with the Chairs of regular bodies that had Bali implementation mandates and had held another productive meeting with them on 20 July. 
4.2.  On the so-called Decisions on "regular work", there were separate agenda items for three of 
them where Members would hear the relevant updates: Aid for Trade — where the Director-General had provided a report — the Work Programme on Small Economies and E-Commerce. 
4.3.  Concerning TRIPS Non-Violation and Situatio n Complaints, at MC9, Ministers had directed the 
TRIPS Council to continue its examination of the scope and modalities for complaints of so-called non-violation and situation complaints to the TRIPS Agreement and make recommendations to 
their next session. It had been agreed that, in the meantime, Members would not initiate such 
complaints under the TRIPS Agreement. Since then, the Council for TRIPS had discussed the matter at each of its formal meetings. As had been agreed at the Council's meeting in June, the Chair was currently holding consultations with Members with a view to enabling the Council to 
agree, at its next meeting in October, on its recommendations to MC10. 
                                               
6 The statement of the United States from the Closing Plenary Session of the Fifth Global Review of Aid 
for Trade is incorporated in the mi nutes of this meeting and can be fo und in Annex 1 of this document. 
7 The Chairman's statement was subsequently circulated in JOB/GC/82. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 28 - 
 
  4.4.  Concerning the Decision on Trade and Transf er of Technology, at the meeting of the Working 
Group in June, Members had underscored the linka ge between trade and transfer of technology 
and had highlighted the role of innovation and te chnology generation in improving productivity, 
export promotion and economic growth, as well as in realising other broader development 
aspirations of developing countries and LDCs. The Working Group had received three useful 
briefings — from Ecuador, the Philippines and Chinese Taipei — on some of their experiences in the area of trade and transfer of technology. In addition, Members continued to discuss possible 
recommendations on the basis of a non-paper titled "Facilitating Access to Information on 
Appropriate Technology Sourcing — Steps to In crease Flows of Technology to Developing 
Countries", tabled by a group of developing countries. 
4.5.  On the Bali Package – in Agriculture, the 77
th regular meeting of the CoA held on 4 June had 
included the second dedicated discussion on Export Competition. For that discussion, the 
Secretariat had issued a report based on Members' replies to the Export Competition questionnaire contained in the Annex of the Ministerial Declaration on Export Competition. A revision of the 
report had been circulated
8 concluding the 2015 dedicated discussion exercise. 
4.6.  The CoA was also responsible for the revi ew and monitoring of the implementation of 
Members' obligations under the Bali Decision on TRQ Administration. Members had begun 
reporting fill rate information in their notification s as called for by that decision. The underfill 
mechanism, which could be triggered by low fill rate s or in situations where fill rates were notified, 
had not been invoked. 
4.7.  Regarding Development and LDC issues – on DFQF market access for LDCs, at the CTD 
meeting on 9 June, a request had been made by the LDC Coordinator (Bangladesh) — and 
supported by some other LDCs — for a dedicated session of the CTD to discuss implementation of DFQF market access for LDCs. Two formal communications had been circulated by Bangladesh, as 
requested by Members. The Chairperson had held consultations with Members on the holding of a 
dedicated session on the issue. He understood that  such a session could be held after the summer 
break. As for the CTD's annual DFQF review, that would take place at the Committee's final 
meeting of 2015, for which a Secretariat report on Members' DFQF market access to LDCs would 
be prepared in accordance with the Bali Decision. 
4.8.  Concerning the Monitoring Mechanis m on Special and Differential Treatment , the Decision 
stipulated that the Mechanism, which operated in a Dedicated Session of the CTD, was to serve as 
a focal point within the WTO to analyse and revi ew the implementation of S&D provisions. Three 
meetings of the Dedicated Session had been held since Bali. However, no written submissions from Members had yet been received. Its next meeting was scheduled for November. 
4.9.  On the LDC Services Waiver, at the meetin g of the Council for Trade in Services held on 
3 June, Members had addressed the notificati on of preferences submitted by Australia
9. The 
notification covered the Mode 4 Category of "contr actual service suppliers", as well as a range of 
subsectors in the fields of tourism services; transport services; computer and related services and 
a range of business services. These elements respon ded to areas identified in the LDC collective 
request as being of particular export interest to LDC suppliers. The preferential treatment had been announced to be put in effect from 1 June 2015 and was intended to be maintained for the 
duration of the Waiver. 
4.10.  At the meeting, the LDC Group had responde d positively to the format and content of the 
Australian notification, which, as far as they could tell, had seemed to go beyond what Australia 
had had announced at the High-Level Meeting in February and had urged other delegations to 
follow the Australian approach. 
4.11.  In response to the plea by LDCs to respect the target date of end July for the notification of 
preferences, 16 delegations had updated the Counc il on progress in the preparation of their 
notifications, indicating that, subject to the comp letion of domestic approval processes, they had 
aimed to notify by that indicative timeframe.  LDCs had indicated they would assess all the 
notifications received and suggested a future course of action. 
                                               
8 The revision of this report can be found in document G/AG/W/125/Rev.3 including Addenda 1 to 4. 
9 S/C/N/805. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 29 - 
 
  4.12.  As of 28 July, seven additional notification s had been submitted to the Council for Trade in 
Services, from Norway10; Korea11; China12, Hong Kong, China13; Chinese Taipei14; Singapore15; 
and, New Zealand16. He urged Members to submit their notifications of preferences within the 
indicated time-frame. 
4.13.  Concerning Preferential Rules of Origin for LDCs, at the request of the LDC Group, the 
Committee on Rules of Origin (CRO) had held an informal dedicated session on 23 and 24 July to discuss preferential rules of origin for LDCs. Du ring the session, Members had learned more about 
existing rules which applied to LDCs under trade preferences and how some rules could hinder 
market access opportunities for the LDCs. The LDCs had also made reference to the Bali Ministerial Decision and had presented concrete recommendations for the further implementation of that Decision by preference-granting Members. Th e discussions had been lively and both Members 
benefiting and those granting preferences had found the meeting useful. The Chairperson of the 
Committee would prepare a summary and report of these discussions to be presented at the next CRO meeting in October. In addition, at its next meeting, the Committee would conduct a review 
of new developments related to rules of origin fo r LDCs and would prepare a report to the General 
Council as required by the Bali Ministerial Decision. 
4.14.  On Trade Facilitation the Committee had received additional Category A notifications 
bringing the current total to 67. At the PCTF m eeting on 11 June, Members had been encouraged 
to ratify the TFA by highlighting two support programmes: the TFA Facility and the notification database. The Committee had further shared their experiences on the establishment of national 
trade facilitation committees and on the domestic TFA ratification process. In relation to the 
process, he was pleased to inform Members that four additional Members — Malaysia, Japan, 
Australia and Botswana — had recently ratified the TFA. It should be noted that although they had 
increased the number of ratifications to eight, it  was still far from the required threshold of 
acceptance which was two-thirds of the Membersh ip. He therefore encouraged those Members who 
had not yet ratified the TFA to do so especially since MC10 was fast approaching. 
4.15.  The representative of Tonga said
17 that as the Minister responsible for Revenue and 
Customs for the Government of Tonga, he wished to update the General Council on Tonga's 
preparations for notification and ratification of the Trade Facilitation Agreement. With the help of the World Bank and the Pacific Islands Forum, th e Government of Tonga had conducted in June a 
national consultation and final needs assessment including the categorization of its TFA 
commitments. A regional workshop on the TFA for Pacific Parliamentarians was scheduled for mid-
August to help Tonga and other Pacific colleagues better understand the TFA, which would facilitate the ratification process. While he recognized the positive contribution that the TFA could 
make in improving border clearance and reducing  trade costs, other trade costs such as trade-
related infrastructure, energy, ICT connectivit y, trade finance and addressing supply side 
constraints remained a challenge to increasing Tonga’s trade. In that connection, he stressed the 
importance of the WTO Aid for Trade in assisting Tonga to address those challenges through future 
Work Plans on Aid for Trade. 
4.16.  The representative of China believed that the agenda item was not less important than the 
post-Bali work program. The faithful and timely implementation of the Bali Decisions not only 
contributed to the credibility of the multilateral trading system but also gave a strong boost to 
advance the negotiations on the remaining Doha issues. 
4.17.  The full implementation of TFA was of institutional significance to the Organization and to 
the well-being of all Members – developed and deve loping. China would submit its notification of 
TFA ratification very soon and remained fully committed to working with all Members for sufficient ratifications between that day and MC10 as had been expected by Kenya's Cabinet Secretary 
Amina Mohamed – which the Chairman had said was still far from reaching the "two-thirds of 
Membership" threshold. China stressed that assi stance and support to developing Members was 
                                               
10 S/C/N/806. 
11 S/C/N/808. 
12 S/C/N/809. 
13 S/C/N/810. 
14 S/C/N/811. 
15 S/C/N/812. 
16 S/C/N/813. 
17 The statement of Tonga was delivered under Item 2 of the Agenda. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 30 - 
 
  crucial for building their capacity for TFA implementation and it would continue to honour its 
commitment to provide help to the best of its ability. 
4.18.  With regard to the LDC issues, China had pr ovided duty-free treatment of up to 97% of its 
tariff lines for products originating from LDCs from the beginning of 2015 and had called upon 
others to do the same in accordance with the Hong Kong and the Bali Declarations. China was also 
keen to address concerns of LDCs regarding Rules of Origin within its capacity. The operationalization of the LDC Services Waiver was an important outcome of the Bali Ministerial 
Conference and an essential step towards realising the development objectives of the Doha 
Agenda. China was going to grant the LDC Members in  the areas of capacity building and technical 
assistance, market access and domestic regulation. His delegation had also submitted its formal notification of preferences to the Council for Trade in Services and hoped that more Members 
would do the same as soon as possible. 
4.19.  The representative of Korea informed the General Council that Korea had just completed its 
domestic procedures and would submit the instrument of acceptance for the TFA no later than 
31 July.18 Korea would become most probably the ninth Member among those who would have had 
accepted the Protocol. It was his sincere hope that Members accelerated and completed their domestic procedures as soon as possible so that the entry into force of the TFA could be a major 
achievement of MC10 in Nairobi. 
4.20.  Korea was also very keen to the LDC issues in the DDA negotiations. It had submitted its 
notification on 13 July to provide preferential tr eatment to LDCs, which included in particular the 
preferences to contractual service providers from LDCs. It was a bit disappointing that only nine 
Members, including New Zealand, had submitted thei r notifications so far to the Secretariat. Korea 
encouraged Members that had indicated to provide preferences to LDCs to come forward with their 
notifications as early as possible. 
4.21.  On a personal note, he said that in the Korean system, the three-year term was relatively 
strict for the Foreign Service Officers' rotation including Ambassadors. Although nothing was yet official, middle of September would be his expect ed departure. He had had the privilege to serve 
as Korea's Ambassador to the United Nations and the WTO in Geneva for the last three years. His 
WTO experience was special and incomparable – three years in a collegial environment working with seasoned diplomats with the highest authority in the field of trade policy and trade negotiations. He thanked the Director-General, th e DDGs, the Chef de Cabinet, all Directors and 
other staff members of the Secretariat for all their efforts and support. He hoped that everyone 
would work hard, in full trust of each other in order to make a meaningful delivery in Nairobi in December.  
4.22.  The representative of the European Union said that as MC10 became closer, Members 
needed to be clear that the decisions taken at th e last Ministerial Conference were either already 
implemented or were well on their way to being so. The EU remained fully committed to ensuring 
an appropriate and comprehensive follow-up to all decisions that their Ministers had taken in Bali. 
4.23.  He was particularly happy to note that Members had started submitting their ratifications of 
the Trade Facilitation Agreement, which moved them toward their objective of ensuring its entry into force as quickly as possible, ideally already by the time of the Tenth WTO Ministerial 
Conference. The EU should be in a position to deposit the instrument of acceptance in October. 
Nevertheless, several notifications of Category A commitments remained outstanding which should 
be remedied as a matter of urgency. 
4.24.  Good progress had also been made regarding the issues of concern for developing countries 
and particularly LDCs. He noted that Members, including the EU, were in the process of notifying their preferences under the LDC services waiver and that discussions were continuing regarding 
rules of origin, DFQF and cotton. 
4.25.  On agriculture issues, the EU was firmly de dicated to moving forward as part of the ongoing 
process of preparing DDA outcomes for MC10. He  would underlined the importance of ensuring 
that Members focused on achieving a comprehensive deal in Nairobi as any attempt to aim for a 
"small step" outcome was bound to lead to failure. 
                                               
18 Korea submitted its instrument  of acceptance on 30 July. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 31 - 
 
  4.26.  The representative of Bangladesh, on behalf of the LDCs, recalled that there were four Bali 
Decisions dealing with the LDC issues, all of which had been covered by the Chairman in his report 
– Preferential Rules of Origin, Operationalization of Services Waiver, DFQF Market Access for LDCs 
and Cotton. 
4.27.  On Preferential Rules of Origin, Memb ers had had a dedicated session on 23-24 July. 
Discussions had been very effective. The presence of experts from capitals of a number of countries had made a difference. During the discussion, delegates from preference-granting 
countries had had a clear view of difficulties that LDCs had faced in complying with the Rules of 
Origin of various DFQF schemes and the requirement of LDCs in the area of rules of origin in order to fully avail the opportunities offered by these schemes. The delegates had clarified the need on the application of value-addition criterion, change  of tariff classification criterion and processing 
criterion, cumulation and documentary requirement.  On the basis of the needs identified by the 
LDC preference-granting countries, the LDCs were expecting that they would be in a position to improve their preferential rules of origin applicable  to LDCs prior to MC10 to fulfil the commitment 
made at the Hong Kong Ministerial Conference and to make preferential rules of origin applicable 
to imports from LDCs transparent and simple, thereby contributing to facilitate market access. 
4.28.  On the Operationalization of Services Waiv er, the submission of the LDCs' collective request 
and the results of the High-Level meeting on February 2015 triggered by that request were 
important milestones in accordance with the Bali Services Waiver Decision. At the High-Level meeting, Members had resorted to submit notifi cations that would crystallize the preferential 
treatment announced which had been well received. Paragraph 2 of the LDC Services Waiver 
Decision provided that notification of preferenti al treatment was required. To date, nine Members – 
Canada; Australia; Korea; China; Hong Kong, China; Chinese Taipei; Singapore; Norway and New Zealand – had submitted notifications seemingly id entifying preferential treatment in accordance 
with the LDC Services Waiver Decision. The LDCs welcomed their commitment. At the High-Level 
meeting, they had registered their appreciation for the positive announcements made and said that details would need to be examined once th ey received the notification. The LDC Group was 
examining the notifications and would assess the contents in relation to the announcements made 
at the High-Level meeting, the collective reques t and subsequent consultations with Members, as 
well as its recent communication to Members. Because of some questions arising from the notification process, the Group requested that if any Member chose to invoke the Waiver Decision 
to provide preferences for LDCs based on their existing GATS schedule, they should provide a 
summary with the notification verifying how such  preferences would work. Where restrictions had 
been carried over from GATS schedules, the pr eference should include the removal of those 
restrictions on LDC Service Suppliers. That would be consistent with the definition of a preference 
and would allow LDC suppliers to more readily discern that preferences were not coming with more hurdles for LDC suppliers to jump over. While the Group was encouraged by the recent arrival of 
more notifications, it was only three days away from the deadline of 31 July and it was anxious to 
see all notifications submitted in time. The fifteen year duration of the Waiver Decision was also fading away with three and a half years alre ady expired before any notification had been 
submitted. It was imperative for the credibility of the institution, its commitment to LDCs and any 
positive direction for Nairobi that more notificati ons were submitted by the end of July. The LDCs 
would add their voice to the Chairman's exultations and that of Korea that it was disappointing that Members were not seeing more notifications coming their way. 
4.29.  On DFQF market access for LDCs, the LDCs had made a request to have a dedicated session 
on the implementation of the decision. An informal consultation had been held on 18 June at the CTD. Some Members had requested more information on the objective and agenda of the 
dedicated session. Accordingly, the LDCs had sent a communication to the CTD on 9 July 
requesting for a dedicated session on the impl ementation of the decision where they had 
elaborated the rationale behind holding such decision with a probable agenda. The document had been circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/210/Add.1 on 14 July. It was evident from the informal 
consultation that no Member had had any real objection to such a dedicated session on DFQF 
market access for LDCs. The LDCs hoped that such session would be held soon after the summer break as had been recorded. 
4.30.  On Cotton, a dedicated session had been held on 9 July. During the session, the United 
States had announced to provide DFQF market access on seven HS lines of Cotton after completion of internal procedures. Members needed to put more such efforts on addressing issues 
relating to domestic support and export competition. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 32 - 
 
  4.31.  The LDCs were grateful to the periodic an d frequent urging by the Director-General and the 
amount of importance he had been putting on the LDC issues. They were also encouraged by what 
they had heard from H.E. Minister Amina Moha med, putting focus on the LDC issues for an 
acceptable and meaningful MC10 outcome. They would continue to work to that end. 
4.32.  The representative of the United States appreciated the effort that WTO Members were 
making to bring the Trade Facilitation Agreement into force. Members all knew how important the 
Agreement would be in increasing global trade and income levels, particularly for developing 
countries. They had some ways to go in reaching the two-thirds threshold for entry into force, and 
the United States appreciated the repeated calls of Kenyan Minister Amina Mohamed to make progress in reaching the threshold by the time Kenya hosted the Tenth Ministerial Conference. 
4.33.  The United States had been focused on  concrete actions to follow through on the 
commitments in the Bali decisions on LDCs and wa s pleased to note progress on that front. His 
delegation had recently reported to a Dedicated Session of the Committee on Agriculture on new legislation that provided legal authority to the President to fully implement the US initiative to 
provide duty-free, quota-free access for upland cotton to LDCs. The United States had already 
fulfilled part of that commitment in 2012 by eliminating tariffs on in-quota shipments of upland cotton from LDCs. Since the US President had auth ority to make the remaining lines duty free, 
that process was under way which it hoped would be completed before MC10. 
4.34.  With respect to rules of origin for LDC preference programs, the United States had reported 
the previous week in the Dedicated Session of the Committee on Rules of Origin of changes in regional cumulation provisions under AGOA for AGOA LDC beneficiaries. The session had been a 
useful opportunity to exchange information on  the operation of rules of origin under LDC 
preference programs and to update delegations on any changes in these programs. 
4.35.  The United States was hard at work on a notification on services with respect to 
operationalising the waiver for services from LDCs. It had learned much from the recent 
notifications of others and would seek to follow their example. 
4.36.  The United States recognized the importance of these Bali decisions for the interests of 
LDCs and looked forward to further work on these i ssues in the run up to the Nairobi Ministerial.  
The United States agreed with the Director-Gener al that Members would need to "hit the ground 
sprinting" on these issues in the fall. 
4.37.  The representative of Thailand said that her country had been strongly supportive to the 
implementation of all Bali outcomes, particularly the outcomes on LDC issues. She informed 
Members that, in line with the Bali Decision on  Duty-Free and Quota-Free (DFQF) Market Access 
for Least-Developed Countries (LDCs), Thailand had granted DFQF for all LDCs since 9 April 2015. 
Such preferential tariff treatment covered 6,998 products originating from LDCs, accounting for 
73.21% of all tariff lines of Thailand. The DFQF scheme had already been circulated as WTO document G/C/W/714 and WT/COMTD/N/46. 
4.38.  The representative of Montenegro thanked Minister Mohamed for her valuable contribution 
to that General Council session. Montenegro had begun the ratification process of the Protocol 
providing for the entry into force of the TFA. Montenegro thanked the WTO Secretariat and, in 
particular, the ITTC for their continuous support and for providing the most efficient expertise and 
technical support to its National Team for TFA implementation, both in Montenegro and in Geneva. 
Montenegro would continue to show its full commitment and dedication to finish the TFA 
ratification prior to the MC10 in Nairobi. Monteneg ro also encouraged all the major players and the 
regional groups to step up negotiations on DDA to provide for substantive and commercially 
meaningful results in Nairobi. 
4.39.  The General Council took note of the Chairman's statement and of the other statements. 
5  WORK PROGRAMME ON SMALL ECONOMIES — REPORT BY THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE 
DEDICATED SESSION OF THE COMMITTEE ON TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT 
5.1.  The Chairman recalled that in line with the framework and procedures agreed by the General 
Council in 2002, the Work Programme on Small Economies was a standing item on the General 
Council's agenda and the Committee on Trade and Development reported regularly to the Council WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 33 - 
 
  on the progress of work in its Dedicated Sessions on the subject. At Bali, Ministers had also 
adopted a Decision re-confirming their commitment to the work programme and instructing the CTD to continue its work in Dedicated Sessions under the overall responsibility of the General 
Council. He invited Ambassador Juan Esteban Agui rre (Paraguay), Chairperson of the Dedicated 
Session of the CTD, to report on that matter. 
5.2.  Ambassador Juan Esteban Aguirre (Paraguay), Chairperson of the Dedicated Session of the 
CTD, recalled that at the last meeting of the General Council in May, it had been reported that the 
proponents of Small Economies had been following up on the Decision taken at the WTO's Ninth 
Ministerial Conference in Bali. That decision instructed the WTO Secretariat to provide relevant information and factual analysis for discussion among Members concerning item "K" of the Small Economies' Work Programme and, in particular, the challenges and opportunities experienced by 
small economies when linking into global value chains in trade in goods and services. 
5.3.  He reported that the Secretariat had pr epared a background analysis on the subject 
(WT/COMTD/SE/W/31). Members had discussed the report and its findings at a meeting of the 
Dedicated Session on Small Economies on 5 June. Since then, the SVEs Coordinator had been 
consulting with the proponents and with other Members to finalize a written proposal to identify issues in the paper which the SVEs would like to explore in further detail. Such a proposal was to 
be issued soon and should help in the preparations for future informal and formal meetings of the 
Dedicated Session on the Work Programme on Small Economies. 
5.4.  The representative of Guatemala, on behalf of the SVEs, said that during the meeting of the 
dedicated session on Small Economies on 5 June , Members had discussed a study on challenges 
and opportunities experienced by Small Economies while linking into global value chains in trade in 
goods and services contained in document WT/COMTD/SE/W/31. The SVEs had considered the exchange of views as its first step and expected that based on the factual background provided by 
the Secretariat, specific challenges affecting their countries would be further discussed. With that 
in mind, the SVEs had made suggestions on possible topics for future discussions. They were currently meeting bilaterally with delegations that expressed concerns and expected to table their 
proposals for the future work within the Committee after those consultations. 
5.5.  The General Council took note
19 of the CTD Chairperson's report and of the statement. 
6  WORK PROGRAMME ON ELECTRONIC COMMERCE — REVIEW OF PROGRESS (S/C/47, 
G/C/56) 
6.1.  The Chairman recalled that, at MC9, Mi nisters had adopted a Decision on the Work 
Programme on Electronic Commerce (WT/L/907). In that Decision, Ministers had decided to 
continue with the positive work under the Work Programme on Electronic Commerce and 
instructed the General Council and its relevant bodies to continue substantially invigorating that 
work. Ministers also instructed the General Council to hold periodic reviews, in July and December 2014 and July 2015. He noted that the Chairs of the Council for Trade in Goods and the 
Council for Trade in Services had circulated reports on developments in their respective bodies, in 
G/C/56 and S/C/47, respectively. 
6.2.  In addition to work in the WTO bodies, Ambassador Alfredo Suescum (Panama) had been 
facilitating and coordinating horizontal discussions on e-commerce on his behalf. He invited 
Ambassador Suescum to report on developments under the Work Programme on E-Commerce 
since the General Council's last review in December. 
                                               
19 The statement of the European Union on this item is incorporated in the minutes of this meeting and 
can be found in Annex 2 of this document. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 34 - 
 
  6.3.  Ambassador Alfredo Suescum (Panama)20 recalled that at the Bali Ministerial Conference, 
Ministers had adopted a Decision that called, among other things, for continued positive work 
under the Work Programme on Electronic Commerce,  based on its existing mandate and guidelines 
and on the basis of proposals submitted by Memb ers in the respective WTO bodies. Ministers had 
further instructed the General Council to hold peri odic reviews of progress on the Work Programme 
at its meetings in July and December 2014 and July 2015. The report, which he was making under his own responsibility, covered developments und er the Work Programme on Electronic Commerce 
since the General Council's last review in December 2014.  
6.4.  He recalled that the WTO bodies primarily charged with conducting the E-Commerce Work 
Programme were the Councils for Goods, Services and TRIPS and the Committee on Trade and Development. The General Council exercised an over sight function and considered any issue of a 
cross-cutting nature. During the period under revi ew, the Council for Trade in Services had met on 
18 March and on 3 June and again informally on 15 July to consider submissions under the item on 
the Work Programme on E-Commerce. Further details on the proposals as well as the ensuing 
discussions were contained in the CTS Chair's report (S/C/47). The Council for Trade in Goods had 
also met on 26 March and on 26 June but without much discussion under the item on e-commerce as indicated in the CTG Chair's report (G/C/56). Both the TRIPS Council and the CTD had recently 
met but e-commerce had not been on their agenda. 
6.5.  With regard to the horizontal discussions under the auspices of the General Council, on behalf 
of the General Council Chair, he had convened the Tenth Dedicated Discussion on E-Commerce on 16 February 2015. At that meeting, DDG Yi had made a factual presentation of the Work 
Programme on E-Commerce focusing on its mandate as well as what had been discussed in the 
WTO since its adoption. In preparation for that meeting, the Secretariat, under its own responsibility, had circulated a backgro und information document (JOB/GC/73).  
6.6.  The main objectives of that Dedicated Di scussion had been to discuss the way forward on e-
commerce, preparations for MC10 and the General Council review. There had been no substantial changes in Members views since his last report to the General Council in December 2014. Some 
delegations had expressed readiness to consider possible outcomes for MC10 while others had felt 
that the time had not yet been right to discuss any recommendations. Some had stressed that the Work Programme on E-Commerce did not have a negotiating mandate. Delegations had also stressed the importance of a bottom-up, Member-d riven approach. Some had noted that progress 
across the four bodies had been uneven and that much of the discussions had been focused on the 
services pillar. Some had expressed a desire to  see the current moratorium on customs duties 
made permanent, while others had noted they woul d prefer an extension or had indicated that the 
question was premature. He had encouraged them to remain engaged with each other and to 
share their views. 
6.7.  He said he had also urged delegations to th ink further on the three questions he had posed in 
2014, which remained relevant: 
a. What were Members views on the status of work on e-commerce given the (then) status 
on Bali implementation? 
b. How did Members see the work continuing in the short to medium term? 
c. Were there any concrete results or objectives foreseen for MC10? 
6.8.  Since the Tenth Dedicated Discussion in February, he had continued his contacts with the 
Chairs of the four principal bodies in charge of  issues under the Work Programme on E-Commerce. 
He had also invited delegations to schedule addition al individual informal meetings in June during 
which he had met with ten delegations to hear if there had been any evolution in their views on the way forward, and if any new thinking or conv ersations had taken place. In these meetings, he 
had recalled his prior three questions and stressed  the need to substantially reinvigorate their 
work and had pointed to the short time remaining before MC10. 
                                               
20 Ambassador Suescum's report was also circulated in WT/GC/W/701. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 35 - 
 
  6.9.  Views expressed during these "confessionals" had remained almost the same. On possible 
MC10 outcomes, some delegations had reiterated that it was too early to consider outcomes. Others thought that such discussions should start soon. A number of delegations had reiterated their preference for a permanent moratorium as a possible outcome. Others had stressed that they 
could only consider an extension, and had made it  clear that even that should not be taken as a 
given. A few delegations had commented that any draft decision for Ministers should be streamlined and focused. Some had suggested that it could be time to impart a clearer direction to 
the work programme. 
6.10.  On 25 June, he had convened an informal open-ended meeting to report to Members on his 
consultations and to continue preparations for the General Council review. At that meeting, views expressed by Members had continued to be varied. Members had welcomed the proposals 
submitted in the context of the Council for Trade in Services and had expressed their willingness to 
discuss them further. He again referred Members to the report of the Chair of the Council for Trade 
in Services for further details on these proposals.  
6.11.  On the moratorium, two well-known position s – making it permanent and extending it – had 
been reiterated. A delegation had stressed it was too early to discuss either option as much depended on what would be on the table for MC10. On the effects of the moratorium, one 
delegation had asked whether the Secretariat could provide relevant and updated information on 
the matter. The Secretariat was currently discussing that internally and would revert to Members in due course. 
6.12.  There had been general support for focusing on SMEs but it had also been noted that there 
had been other issues of interest besides SMEs, such as, data flow, privacy, e-signatures, etc. 
Some delegations had stressed that it was time to move beyond workshops and information exchange to more concrete matters. One delegation had said that, while not proposing to begin a 
negotiation of multilateral disciplines, it was ready to engage with Members on how to develop an 
e-commerce work programme for the post-Nairobi phase. Another delegation had emphasized that a deepened discussion on e-commerce would be im portant for the WTO to remain relevant. Some 
developing countries had pointed out that e-commerce laws were still being developed in their 
countries and that they could only participate in conceptual discussions and were not ready to adopt disciplines. 
6.13.  During the Fifth Global Review of Aid for Trade, he had moderated a panel discussion on 
electronic commerce and aid for e-trade. The ev ent had helped present concrete examples of 
situations, challenges, opportunities, and the cost of missing the opportunities presented to SMEs engaging in e-commerce. The panellists had also made suggestions on how the WTO might 
promote e-commerce as a tool for trade by developing countries. He encouraged delegations to 
digest the debate and extract ideas for recommendations to the Ministers at MC10. 
6.14.  To move ahead in the process, Members should submit proposals and continue their 
discussion in capitals and among themselves. It was a Member-driven process and any forward 
movement would depend on Members' contributions and engagement. Ministers at Bali had instructed Members to make recommendations on possible measures related to e-commerce to the 
next Session of the Ministerial Conference. They would need to think further on how to comply 
with that mandate and to start considering a possible text for Ministers' consideration. Time was 
clearly not on their side. It was his hope that rapid, concrete progress could be made after the summer recess. He remained ready and available to  meet with any Member for further discussion. 
6.15.  The representative of the United States supported continued reinvigoration of the work 
programme based on written proposals or submissions by Members. The United States had 
submitted a written submission in December 2014 in the CTS and supported the Chair’s continued 
effort to energize Members to actively engage on those issues. The United States also supported 
continued extension of the customs duties moratorium. It was a practice that the United States, and many others, bound in their bilateral FTAs. It was certainly a practice that should be bound permanently in the WTO. 
6.16.  The representative of the Russian Federation considered that the work programme could 
become a very useful platform for exchange of best practices in e-commerce and spur trade and 
economic growth. As a cross-cutting issue of growing importance, e-commerce should be given a 
balanced consideration especially while preparing a respective draft ministerial decision. In that WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 36 - 
 
  regard, Russia called on Members to actively engage in accelerating work on the matter and to 
secure involvement of capitals to achieve meaningful outcomes at MC10. 
6.17.  The representative of China said that e-commerce was a new mode of business, important 
for developed and developing Members. Relevant discussions in the WTO were necessary to 
address the issues brought to us by the new tr end. Meanwhile, Members should acknowledge that, 
generally speaking, developing Members were lagging  far behind in terms of market development, 
administration and regulation and should be taken into account in their future discussions. China 
was ready to exchange information and cooperate constructively with other Members. Recently, 
their proposal on the formalization of an inform ation sharing exercise in the auspices of the e-
commerce work programme had been accepted by the Council for Trade in Services. China hoped the mechanism would contribute to further discussions of this important topic and enhance 
cooperation among Members in that regard. 
6.18.  The representative of India thanked the Fr iend of the Chair for the succinct report on the 
work done so far in the area of e-commerce. She stressed that Members were all aware that there 
was no negotiating mandate under the Work Programme on E-Commerce. The mandate was an 
exploratory one. For most developing countries, including India, e-commerce-related laws and regulations were still evolving, and therefore it was premature to get into a discussion, let alone 
agree, on a set of principles the scope of which was uncertain and continuously evolving. Further, 
the basic issues that confronted the developing countries were access and infrastructure related.  
6.19.  However, in line with the mandate of the Work Programme on E-Commerce, India assured 
its participation in an exploratory, experience-sharing mode, provided that the discussions under 
the work programme had no normative or prescriptive content or intent. 
6.20.  India was not aware of any active discu ssions under the work programme in any of the 
bodies mandated to discuss it – an indication of  the limited appetite of Members on the matter. 
Albeit some interesting proposals had been tabled by Members in the CTS, these were being 
discussed in an exploratory/experience-sharing mo de. They needed to continue discussing these 
proposals to better understand the various aspects of the issues presented in these proposals. 
6.21.  India believed that, as mandated by the Bali Ministerial Conference, Members had continued 
the positive work under the work programme base d on the existing mandates and guidelines and 
on the basis of the proposals submitted by WTO Members. However, India believed that at that 
stage it was rather premature to speak about sket ching out the outcomes/deliverables of the work 
programme as the status of discussions under the mandated bodies/committees was not ripe 
enough to consider any recommendations. 
6.22.  The representative of the European Union sa id that the EU had always been a supporter of 
the work programme on e-commerce as part of the regular work of the WTO. EU was ready to 
engage, to propose and to discuss. However, as fa ctually set out in the reports submitted to the 
General Council, several delegations were not comf ortable to negotiate specific commitments or 
disciplines and that there was a general preference to continue the work programme as a forum 
for exchange of experiences. The European Union regretted that the membership was not able to 
converge on more ambition, going beyond a mere sharing of information. 
6.23.  After many years of discussions, exchange of ideas and workshops, the EU remained open 
to consider ways for more engagement on the important topic to facilitate and support electronic 
commerce. The EU remained available for any type of process that would allow Members to move towards more concrete steps and would demonstrate that the WTO was useful in supporting trade 
using information and communication technologies. 
6.24.  The General Council took note of the re ports by the Chairpersons of the Goods Council 
(G7C/56) and the Services Council (S/C/47), of  Ambassador Suescum's report (WT/GC/W/701), 
and of the statements. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 37 - 
 
  7  TENTH SESSION OF THE MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE 
7.1  ELECTION OF OFFICERS 7.1.  The Chairman noted that the Rules of Procedure (Rule 12) for the Ministerial Conference 
established that "During the course of each regular session a Chairperson and three Vice-
Chairpersons shall be elected from among the Member s. They shall hold office from the end of that 
session until the end of the next regular session." He recalled that, at its meeting on 5 May, the General Council had agreed that MC10 would be  chaired by H.E. Amina Mohamed, Cabinet 
Secretary of Foreign Affairs and International Trade of Kenya – the host country of MC10. 
Regarding the three Vice-Chairs, in view of the fact that the Chair would come from Africa, and in line with customary practice, at that meeting he had invited the representatives of the other three broad groupings – i.e. Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia and developed countries – to consult 
with their constituents so that the General Council could revert to this matter at its July meeting.  
That had also been followed by faxes he had sent  to them on 4 and 30 June, inviting them, once 
the relevant consultations had been concluded, to inform him about the name of the proposed 
Vice-Chairs for their respective groupings by 15 July. 
7.2.  He had then sent a fax to all delegations on 15 July informing all of them that the 
representatives of the other three broad groupings had submitted to him their nominations and 
proposed that, if no objections had been receiv ed by 21 July, the General Council would elect the 
three proposed Vice-Chairs at that day's meeting.   
On the basis of this process, and since no objections had been received, he was very pleased to 
propose that the General Council agree to elect the following Vice-Chairs for MC10: H.E. Heraldo 
Muñoz, Minister of Foreign Affairs (Chile); H.E. Gregory L. Domingo, Secretary of Trade and 
Industry (Philippines); and, H.E. Carlo Calenda, Me mber of Italian Cabinet of Ministers, in charge 
of Trade and Investment (Italy). 
7.3.  The General Council so agreed. 
7.2  ATTENDANCE OF OBSERVERS FROM  INTERNATIONAL INTERGOVERNMENTAL 
ORGANIZATIONS 
7.4.  The Chairman recalled that past practice up  to MC7 had been to invite those IGOs which had 
had observer status in the previous Ministerial Conference to attend the next one. Delegations 
would also recall that for MC8 and MC9, consensus on repeating past practice with respect to IGOs 
attendance could not be reached, and that theref ore no IGOs had been invited to attend both 
sessions of the Ministerial Conference. 
7.5.  At the General Council meeting on 5 May, he had reported on his consultations on this 
matter, and had noted that more time had been n eeded for delegations to consider this approach, 
and he had therefore proposed to continue his consultations and to revert to those matters at that 
day's meeting. From the consultations he had since carried out, it appeared that Members still had 
no clarity on attendance of IGO Observers. In this light, he had proposed that he would continue 
his consultations in various configurations on the matter after the summer break, and he trusted 
that was acceptable to all. 
7.6.  He urged delegations to work together with a constructive spirit to address this matter – and 
to come up with concrete suggestions on how to un block this issue. On his part, as General Council 
Chairman, he would certainly continue working on this matter with a positive spirit, and he called 
on all delegations to do likewise. 
7.7.  The representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on behalf of the Arab Group, thanked the 
Chairman for his continued efforts and consultations on this important issue. The participation of 
all qualified IGOs at MC10 was very crucial and every effort should be made to facilitate it. The Arab Group believed that all IGOs should be treated on an equal footing. The process of 
considering their participation in MC10 should remain technical, transparent and objective, and 
should be undertaken on the basis of Annex III of the rules of procedure of the Ministerial Conference. The Group remained strongly commi tted to supporting the WTO Member consensus to 
welcome each qualified IGO as an observer at MC10. However, it considered just as strongly that 
all requests should receive equal treatment by the house. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 38 - 
 
  7.8.  The General Council took note of the statements. 
8  COMMITTEE ON BALANCE-OF-PAYMENTS RESTRICTIONS — CONSULTATIONS WITH 
UKRAINE (WT/BOP/R/110) 
8.1.  The Chairman, on behalf of the Chai rperson of the BOP Committee, reported that 
consultations had been held with Ukraine on 28 April and 11 June 2015 following its introduction 
on 25 February of an import surcharge for ba lance of payments purposes. The majority of 
Members had recognized Ukraine's BOP difficulties and considered it had applied the import 
surcharge consistently with WTO provisions, although they had encouraged it to remove the 
surcharge as soon as possible. Ukraine had co mmitted to terminate the measure by the end of 
2015. One Member had considered that Ukraine's measure had not been justified by the BOP provisions of the WTO Agreement. The Committee had noted that it had not been possible to reach 
consensus on the measure adopted by Ukraine and had thus decided to conclude the 
consultations. 
8.2.  The General Council took note of the stat ement made on behalf of the Chairperson of the 
BOP Committee and adopted the report on the consultations with Ukraine in document 
WT/BOP/R/110. 
9  IMPROVING THE GUIDELINES FO R GRANTING INTERGOVERNMENTAL 
ORGANIZATIONS PERMANENT OBSERVER STATUS IN THE WTO — STATEMENT BY THE 
CHAIRMAN 
9.1.  The Chairman recalled that the matter had been on the General Council's agenda since 
February 2012 because, at its November 2011 meeting, the General Council had agreed to initiate 
a process of consultations to consider the issue of Observer Status for IGOs in the WTO, further to 
a communication by the Arab Group entitled "Improving the Guidelines for Granting Observer Status to Intergovernmental Organizations in the WTO" (WT/GC/W/643), which had then been 
supplemented by a further communication in document WT/GC/W/654. 
9.2.  As he had announced at the General Council meeting on 5 May, he had continued the 
consultations on the matter and, at that time, he was not able to report any change in the 
positions previously expressed. It was clear that the matter was also closely related to the 
attendance of IGOs at MC10. He intended to continue these consultations and report back to the General Council as appropriate. 
9.3.  The representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on behalf of the Arab Group, thanked the 
Chairman for his consultations with Members on the Observer Status for IGOs in the WTO. The 
issue of granting observer status to IGO’s in the WTO was not specific to a particular body, but a larger systemic one. This issue was long-standing, constantly re-appearing on the agenda of 
different WTO bodies. Divergence over the interpretation of the guidelines granting IGOs observer 
status continued to appear among some Members, with no clear indication as to how some IGOs had been granted permanent observer status while others continued to be barred from receiving 
the same status. In that regard, it would be crucial for Members to evaluate and revise the rules 
governing the process of granting IGOs Observer Status in the WTO.  
9.4.  The Arab Group believed that all IGO's s eeking permanent and/or ad hoc observer status 
should receive a favourable, unbiased and uniform treatment. This requirement, which manifested 
the full participation principle, stemmed in no less measure from the fact that Article V of the 
Marrakesh Agreement directed WTO Members to ensure the effective cooperation and consultation with IGO's concerned with WTO matters. Therefore, it was important for the WTO to revisit its 
cooperation with IGOs in line with the rules associated with the WTO mandate and activities. These 
rules should be clear and objective. The observership granting process should be neutral and transparent for all IGOs. 
9.5.  The Arab Group re-affirmed its view that th e responsibility for improving the Guidelines fell 
equally on each Member, and was in no way specific to certain groups. The Group looked forward to positive engagement from all Members to resolve this issue without further delay. 
9.6.  The General Council took note of the statements. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 39 - 
 
  10  WAIVERS UNDER ARTICLE IX OF THE WTO AGREEMENT  
10.1  CANADA – EXTENSION OF THE WA IVER FOR THE CARIBBEAN INITIATIVE: 
CARIBCAN – DRAFT DECISION (G/C/W/710) 
10.1.  The Chairman drew attention to the draft decision in document G/C/W/710 which concerned 
the request for a waiver by Canada on the Extension of the Waiver for the Caribbean Initiative: 
CARIBCAN. He invited Ambassador Hé ctor Casanueva (Chile), Chairp erson of the Goods Council, to 
report on the Council's consideration of the matter. 
10.2.  Ambassador Héctor Casanueva (Chile), Chairperson of the Goods Council, reported that the 
Council for Trade in Goods, in its meeting on 26 June 2015, had approved the request for 
exemption submitted by Canada regarding "Request for Extension of Exemption on the Basin Initiative Caribbean: CARIBCAN (G/C/W/710)." At that meeting the Goods Council had also 
recommended by consensus that the draft decision contained in document G/C/W/710, would be 
referred to the General Council for adoption. 
10.3.  The representative of Canada thanked the Chairperson of the Goods Council and those 
Members who had already expressed their support for the request which was a renewal of a long-
standing waiver. A waiver itself was a reflection of an even longer relationship between Canada 
and the Commonwealth Caribbean Countries. It was a proposal and a framework that unilaterally, 
on Canada's behalf, extended duty-free access to  the Canadian market. Its approval would enable 
Canada to continue to provide that treatment until the end of December 2023 covering eighteen Commonwealth Caribbean Countries. Canada looked forward to its approval by the General Council. 
10.4.  The Chairman proposed that the General Council adopt the Draft Decision he had just 
referred to in accordance with the Decision-Making Procedures under Articles IX and XII of the 
WTO Agreement agreed in November 1995 (WT/L/93). 
10.5.  The General Council so agreed.21 
10.6.  The representative of Jamaica, on behalf of the CARICOM, thanked the CTG Chairperson for 
his report and the Government of Canada for its continued commitment to extending the 
CARIBCAN facility to its countries. CARICOM deeply appreciated this arrangement, which 
underpinned much of its trade with one of the region's most important trade and investment partners. CARICOM thanked Members for approving the waiver which would enable the continuation of this important programme. 
10.7.  The representative of Grenada, on behalf of the OECS, associated with the statement made 
by CARICOM. The OECS Economic Union, compos ed of WTO Members who were listed among the 
countries eligible to receive the duty-free benefits accorded under CARIBCAN, expressed its 
support for this waiver request and thanked the membership for approving the waiver. Over the 
years of its existence, CARIBCAN had provided o pportunities to the beneficiaries to expand their 
export trade into the Canadian market and thereby contributed to the economic growth and 
development of the beneficiaries including the OECS Member States. The OECS expressed its 
appreciation to the Government of Canada for seeking to continue the programme and to seek this waiver at the WTO. The OECS thanked the General Council for adopting the waiver. 
10.8.  The General Council took note of the statements. 
                                               
21 The decision was subsequently circulated in document WT/L/958. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 40 - 
 
  10.2  REVIEW OF WAIVERS PURSUANT TO  ARTICLE IX:4 OF THE WTO AGREEMENT 
10.2.1  LDCs — Article 70.9 of the TRIPS Ag reement with respect to Pharmaceutical 
Products, granted on 8 July 2002 until 1 January 2016 (WT/L/478) 
10.2.2  Preferential Treatment for Least-De veloped Countries, granted on 27 May 2009 
until 30 June 2019 (WT/L/759) 
10.2.3  United States — Former Trust Terri tory of the Pacific Islands, granted on 
27 July 2007 until 31 December 2016 (WT/L/694, WT/L/954) 
10.2.4  United States — African Growth an d Opportunity Act, granted on 27 May 2009 
until 30 September 2015 (WT/L/754, WT/L/955) 
10.2.5  Philippines — Special Treatment for Rice (WT/L/932) 10.9.  The Chairman recalled that, in accordance  with paragraph 4 of Article IX of the WTO 
Agreement, "any waiver granted for a period of more than one year shall be reviewed by the 
Ministerial Conference not later than one year after it is granted, and thereafter annually until the waiver terminates." There were five waivers before  the General Council for review. With regard to 
the waiver in sub-item (i) for LDCs under the TRIPS Agreement, he noted that in connection with 
the approval of the draft waiver at the meeting of the TRIPS Council in June 2002, the Chairperson 
of that Council had noted that it had been unde rstood, in regard to the review foreseen in 
paragraph 2 of that waiver, that the exceptional circumstances justifying the waiver would 
continue to exist for least-developed country Members until its expiry date of 2016. 
10.10.  Two of the waivers under review provided that an annual report should be submitted by 
the Member concerned regarding the operation or im plementation of those waivers with a view to 
facilitating their annual review by the General Council. The reports from the United States had 
been circulated in documents WT/L/954 and 955. 
10.11.  The representative of the United States informed Members that the United States had 
submitted a request for an extension of ten years for its AGOA waiver. The request had been 
tabled on July 16 as document G/C/W/713. The United States looked forward to engaging with WTO Members on this request for a waiver extension at the next meeting of the Council for Trade 
in Goods in November. 
10.12.  The General Council took note of the reports contained in documents WT/L/954 and 955, 
and of the statements, and agreed to revert to th e review of multi-year waivers under Article IX.4 
of the WTO Agreement at its last regular meeting in 2015. 
11  COMMITTEE ON BUDGET, FINANCE AND AD MINISTRATION — REPORT ON MEETINGS 
OF JUNE 2015 (WT/BFA/149) 
11.1.  The Chairman drew attention to the report of the Budget Committee in document 
WT/BFA/149 and invited Ambassador Daniel Blockert (Sweden), Chairperson of the Committee, to 
introduce the report. 
11.2.  Ambassador Daniel Blockert (Sweden), Chairperson of the Committee on Budget, Finance 
and Administration, said that at its meetings in June, the Committee on Budget, Finance and 
Administration had been informed of the accessi on of the Republic of Seychelles. The Committee 
had recommended to the General Council the pro rata assessed contribution and the contribution to the Working Capital Fund of the Republic of Seychelles, as stated in the meeting report. 
11.3.  The Chair of the Working Group on Af ter Service Health Insurance had updated the 
Committee on its last meetings in June. The Working Group had reached its objective and had completed its draft report by the deadline of 30  June 2015. The Working Group had met fourteen 
times since its establishment. The Committee looked forward to receiving the final report of the 
work of the Working Group and would review it at its next meeting in September. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 41 - 
 
  11.4.  The Chair of the WTO Pension Plan Management Board had presented his report on the on-
going actuarial review of the WTO Pension Plan, based on its situation as of 31 December 2014. The Management Board was developing proposals to address a funding imbalance. A final report containing formal recommendations would be su bmitted to the CBFA, before the end of 2015. 
11.5.  The CBFA had also been updated on the ad ministrative progress reports on the budgetary 
and financial situation, the extra-budgetary funds and the WTO Risk Management System. 
11.6.  The CBFA had reviewed the revised annua l report on the overall grade structure and 
promotions within the Secretariat. The Secretariat was making progress on controlling staff costs 
and rationalising the grade structure by recruiting at lower grades. The Secretariat was increasing the internal mobility by introducing lateral staff movement. The Secretariat would continue to inform the Committee on progress made on that overall area. 
11.7.  The CBFA had reviewed the WTO 2014 Financial Performance report and the related report 
of the External Auditor and would be making a recommendation to the General Council. 
11.8.  A member of the Secretariat had indicate d that the Secretariat had realized a budgetary 
savings of CHF 14.5 million in 2014. These savings related to different cost savings achieved on 
several areas of the Budget. However, due to the implementation of IPSAS principles, the financial 
result showed a deficit of 10.2 million for the year 2014. 
11.9.  The President of the German Supreme Audit Institution, the external auditor of the WTO, 
had certified the 2014 WTO Financial Statements and had expressed one reserve, related to the consolidation of the ITC accounts. The external auditor had underlined that several improvements had been reflected in the 2014 Financial Report. 
11.10.  The External Auditor had also conducted a performance audit of the Procurement Unit and 
IT Governance and had underlined that the Secretariat had taken note of the pending 
recommendations and had agreed to implement them. 
11.11.  The recommendation of the CBFA regarding the 2014 accounts was as followed: "The 
Committee recommends that the General Council  approve the transfers between budgetary 
sections as outlined in paragraphs 2.30 and 2.38 of document WT/BFA/W/365. The Committee 
further recommends that the General Council approve the audited accounts for 2014." 
11.12.  The Senior Management had updated the Committee on the progress on the 
Organizational Review taking place within the Secretariat. Members had expressed a great interest to be kept informed on the progress made on the Organizational Review Process. The Committee 
had emphasized that any decision taken by the Secretariat would have to be in line with solving 
the inverted pyramid and the ZNG budget. 
11.13.  The CBFA had also reviewed a proposal to establish a Building Renovation Fund. The 
Secretariat had underlined that the FIPOI had redu ced its intervention on site as the WTO was 
already the owner of its buildings. That change generated increased maintenance costs which would have to be reflected in the biennium budget and financed from savings to comply with the 
ZNG budget. The FIPOI estimated, based on its me thod of calculation that an additional annual 
amount of MCHF 1.3 would be necessary to provide financial reserve for the long-term renovation needs of the WTO buildings. Most Members had shown an interest in creating such a Fund to avoid 
future financial crisis. The Committee would have further discussion on the Fund in September. 
11.14.  The CBFA had reviewed the proposed Terms of Reference for a working group concerning 
an audit committee. The Committee had been upda ted with additional information from the 
Secretariat on that subject. Members had expressed an interest in creating a working group in 
order to determine whether or not the Organization needed to have an audit committee. The 
Committee would follow up on that issue in September. 
11.15.  The General Council took note of the statement, approved the Budget Committee's specific 
recommendations in paragraphs 1.2 and 8.8 of its report and adopted the report in WT/BFA/149. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 42 - 
 
  12  WTO PENSION PLAN 
12.1  REPORT OF THE MANAGEMENT BOARD FOR 2014 (WT/L/952) AND REPORT OF THE 
INDEPENDENT EXTERNAL AUDITOR ON THE AUDIT OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS OF THE WTOPP (WT/L/953 AND WT/L/953/CORR.1) 
12.1.  The Chairman drew attention to the A nnual Report of the Management Board for 2014 
contained in document WT/L/952, which was submitted to the General Council in accordance with 
Article 5(d) of the Regulations of the WTO Pension Plan. He also drew attention to the Report of 
the Independent External Auditor on the Audit of the Financial Statements of the WTOPP in 
document WT/L/953. He invited Mr Johannes Rühl (Switzerland), Chairperson of the Management Board, to introduce the reports. 
12.2.  Mr Johannes Rühl (Switzerland), Chairper son of the WTO Pension Plan Management Board, 
said that the Annual Report, for the period of  1 January 2014 to 31 December 2014, had been 
prepared by the Management Board in accordance wi th Article 5 of the Regulations of the Plan to 
be presented to the General Council and to Plan Participants. 
12.3.  The principal focus of the Management Boar d in 2014 had been the triennial actuarial report 
and the actions to address the funding imbalance identified at the end of 2013. By the end of 
2014, the Board had developed a package of recommendations to address the imbalance. These 
had been under active review in the first half of 2015, including consultations with stakeholders. It 
was expected that final recommendations would be presented to the General Council, through the Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration, before the end of 2015. 
12.4.  The Board had also adopted a code of conduct for members of the Management Board 
which could be found in an annex at the end of the report. 
12.5.  In the area of investments, 2014 had been another good year for the WTOPP's investment 
portfolio. The Management Board's investment strategy had followed closely its benchmark and 
had delivered a real rate of return of 8.4%. That was above the long-term target rate of return of 
3.5% used in the actuarial assumptions of the Plan. 
12.6.  The WTO had introduced International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) starting 
2012. IPSAS brought new dimensions to its accounting and increased interest from stakeholders in 
monitoring and evaluating the long-term viability  of the Plan. The WTO should consolidate the 
assets and liabilities of the WTO Pension Plan into its financial reporting. IPSAS valuations made different assumptions than those used to manage the Plan on an on-going basis and in general, 
IPSAS assumptions led to higher liability estima tes. Consequently, the IPSAS valuations raised 
new questions and challenges for both the Plan and the Organization.  
12.7.  The WTOPP was a young plan with a solid, positive cash-flow status which meant that the 
Plan could take a long-term view on managing its assets and estimated liabilities. Important 
decisions about the management of the Plan co uld be carefully deliberated and thoughtfully 
implemented. He assured Members that the Manage ment Board was fully engaged in ensuring the 
continued good governance of the WTO Pension Plan and was pleased to share the annual report 
with them. 
12.8.  The General Council took note of the A nnual Report of the Management Board for 2014 in 
document WT/L/952, the Report of the Independent External Auditor on the Audit of the Financial 
Statements of the WTOPP in document WT/L/953 , and of the WTOPP Chairperson's statement. 
12.2  ELECTION OF TWO ALTERNATES — PROPOSAL BY THE CHAIRMAN OF THE GENERAL 
COUNCIL (WT/GC/W/699) 
12.9.  The Chairman recalled that Article 4(a)  of the Regulations of the WTO Pension Plan 
provided, inter alia , for the election by the General Council of a Chairperson, four members and 
four alternates to the Management Board of the Pension Plan. 
12.10.  In a communication circulated to delegations in document WT/GC/W/699, he had indicated 
that positions for two alternates were currently vacant, and that it had been necessary for the Council to decide on the matter. He proposed th e names of representatives who had kindly agreed WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 43 - 
 
  to have their names put forward for election as alternates. He had also invited delegations to 
submit any comments they could have by close-of-business on 21 July. 
12.11.  He had not received any comments regarding the proposed nominations, therefore he 
proposed that the General Council elected Ms Junko Ueno (Japan) and Mr Andrew Staines (United 
Kingdom) to serve as alternates on the Manageme nt Board for the remainder of the terms of their 
respective predecessors, which in that case was until 2017. 
12.12.  The General Council so agreed.22 
13  FOSTERING PARTICIPATION OF MICRO, SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES IN 
GLOBAL MARKETS – STATEMENT BY THE PHILIPPINES 
13.1.  The representative of the Philippines, spea king under "Other Business", said that on 22 July, 
the Philippines had circulated a paper in document JOB/GC/80 entitled "Fostering the Participation 
of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSMEs) in  Regional and Global Markets". The purpose of 
the paper was to get the views of Members and their support for a specific statement at the Tenth Ministerial Conference in Nairobi which first recognized the important role of Micro, Small and 
Medium Enterprises in national economies; and second, sought to enhance the existing dialogue 
on MSMEs in WTO and with other international organizations with the end in view of fostering their participation in regional and global markets. 
13.2.  MSMEs had formed the backbone of many economies. They constituted the vast majority of 
firms, were a major source of employment, co ntributed significantly to GDP, and provided 
opportunities for women and the youth to participate in the national economy. However, the share of micro and small enterprises in global trade was minimal. Yet, recent developments in 
international trade such as the emergence of glob al value chains and the levelling effect of new 
technologies then made it possible for MSMEs to integrate into the global trading system. 
13.3.  The paper, by seeking to enhance the discussion on MSMEs, hoped to unleash the full 
potential of micro and small enterprises to participate in regional and global trade and contribute 
to the attainment of inclusive and equitable growth. Consequently, he invited Members to consider the paper and how MSMEs could be placed front and centre in the global trade agenda at the Tenth 
Ministerial Conference in Nairobi. Following the meeting, the Philippines would consult and work 
with Members with the view to submitting a form al proposal at the next meeting of the General 
Council. 
13.4.  The representative of Singapore, on be half of the ASEAN, thanked the Philippines for its 
useful proposal on MSMEs. ASEAN fully supported the proposal and was interested to participate in 
further discussion on the issue. 
13.5.  The representative of Grenada, on behalf of the OECS, also welcomed the paper. The 
subject of micro, small and medium sized enterprise s was in fact a priority for the OECS Economic 
Union in 2016. It was also a priority for CARICO M. The OECS looked forward to working with all 
Members on advancing the proposal in the coming months. The OECS believed that it was timely 
and held significant value. It was reflected both in the CARICOM strategic development plan and in 
the OECS growth and economic development stra tegy. The OECS would work with Members and 
looked forward to having some concrete proposals to advance at the Ministerial Conference. 
13.6.  The General Council took note of the statements. 
                                               
22 The decision was subsequently circulated in document WT/L/959. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 44 - 
 
  14  ITA EXPANSION – STATEMENT BY THE EUROPEAN UNION 
14.1.  The representative of the European Union, speaking under "Other Business", informed 
Members of the conclusion of ITA expansion negotiations, as far as the coverage was concerned. 
Following the 17th negotiating round, which had taken place between 14 and 18 July, the 
participants to the negotiations had reached an agreement in principle on the "Declaration on the 
Expansion of Trade in Information Technology Products" as well as on the list of products which was attached to such Declaration.
23 
14.2.  The EU as the Chair had called for an Ambassadors Meeting on 24 July to confirm with 
participants the approval by capitals of the Declaration and the list of products. As a result, out of the 25 participants to the negotiations (representing 54 WTO Members, counting the 28 EU Member States and the European Union), 22 participants had already confirmed their acceptance 
of the Declaration and the list. The participants who had already accepted the list were Albania, 
Australia, Canada, China, Costa Rica, European Union, Guatemala, Honk Kong China, Iceland, Israel, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Montenegro, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Singapore, 
Switzerland, Separate Customs territory of Ta iwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu, Thailand and 
United States. The remaining three participants were still undergoing the internal domestic procedures for approval but hoped to be able to confirm soon. 
14.3.  On the substance of the ITA expansion: as to the coverage, the list comprised as many as 
201 products and included a wide range of IT-related products, from medical devices, to audio-visual products to new generation semi-conductors and GPS navigation equipment, smart cards, optical media and many other products.  
14.4.  The Declaration provided for a roadmap which should allow participants to finalize the 
overall negotiations in time for the Nairobi Ministerial. The negotiations on staging, i.e. timeframe for implementation, would start in September with the objective to finalize them by October to 
allow all participants to produce draft schedules by 30 October and to verify and approve other 
participants' draft schedules by 4 December. 
14.5.  There was no need to stress the significance  of the result. The figures provided by the WTO, 
1.3 trillion dollars of annual trade, were already ve ry telling by themselves. That was a deal that 
the IT-world industry had been anxiously awaiting . Duty-free import and export of IT-goods would 
make worldwide IT industries more competitive an d increase the efficiency of global supply lines. 
14.6.  The ITA expansion brought benefits to all Members since it applied on a most-favoured-
nation basis to the whole Membership beyond the participants of the negotiations. It was an 
agreement open to all Members, regardless whether they had participated to the negotiations until then or not. Members could join anytime by no tifying their decision to the WTO Secretariat. 
14.7.  With the ITA expansion, an important message had been passed to the world – the WTO 
mattered and could deliver important results for business and ultimately for consumers. The systemic importance of the ITA expansion was undeniable. With the Nairobi Ministerial 
approaching, it was an inspiring success, which pr oved that results could be obtained and which 
could hopefully both help and inspire the Organization to move forward and deliver on the DDA.  
14.8.  The ITA in 1996 had originally been subscribed by 29 Members, but the number of 
participants had grown quickly right after the a nnouncement of the agreement. Currently, the ITA 
had 81 Members. All Members were invited to consider joining the ITA expansion. He was made 
aware of the interest of some Members and hoped and believed that the number of participants to 
the ITA expansion would also grow.  
                                               
23 The Declaration on the Expansion of Trade in Info rmation Technology Products  with the corresponding 
list of products was circulated in document WT/L/956. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 45 - 
 
  14.9.  He thanked all the participants to the nego tiations. In a good negotiation, nobody could get 
100% of what one had hoped for, but everyone obta ined sufficient satisfaction to endorse the final 
outcome. Such an outcome was only possible if participants could show enough flexibility and 
could take difficult decisions. Participants to the ITA expansion had been able to do so in the 
negotiation of the coverage. In particular, he th anked the United States, China, and Korea for the 
great flexibility they had shown during the final and most delicate phase of the negotiations. He also thanked the Director-General whose contribution  to bridge the final distance had been crucial. 
14.10.  He was pleased to conclude on such a high note as the announcement of the ITA 
Expansion Coverage. He thanked his colleagues from the European Union who had worked incredibly at the WTO. With a mandate on unity in trade matters, their coherence had been pushed at extraordinary levels for the past four and a half years providing hope for the EU and on a wider 
scale – for the WTO. It gave a message that with a sense of purpose, Members could move 
forward in building coherence and perform miracl es. He thanked the Director-General and the WTO 
staff – a great asset for the future of the Organization. He also thanked his colleagues at the 
General Council for their cooperation, friendship, and the extraordinary path that they had taken 
together. The WTO had covered good ground since 2011 with the success in Bali, the progress made in ITA, TISA and Environmental Goods, and the prospects for Nairobi. He was glad that he 
could be part of the path. Looking ahead, there wa s a deal to be made in Nairobi and knowing that 
the challenge it represented would be left in capable hands would make him leave with confidence. 
14.11.  The Director-General thought that the agr eement to expand the ITA was very significant. 
It was the first major tariff-cutting deal at the WTO in 18 years. Trade in the products covered by 
the expansion was valued at over 1.3 trillion dolla rs each year - larger than the global trade in 
automotive products. To take another example, it was larger than global trade in textiles, clothing, iron and steel combined. In fact, the deal covered approximately 7% of global trade. 
14.12.  Eliminating tariffs on trade of that magnitude would have a huge impact. It would support 
lower prices – including in many other sectors that used IT products as inputs – it would create jobs and it would help boost GDP growth around the world. While the agreement had been reached 
between a group of Members, all WTO Members would benefit under the Most-Favoured Nation 
principle. The agreement would be open to all Me mbers to join at any time and understood that 
some had already expressed interest in joining. 
14.13.  The best kind of agreement was one in which everybody took part. But Members had to 
recognize that sometimes some Members were ready to move faster than others. In such 
circumstances agreements like that were very he lpful. They allowed interested Members to move 
ahead, without discriminating against non-participants and without shutting the door. The benefits 
under the agreement would be available to all and the agreement was open to all to join.  
14.14.  He would continue working with the participants of the ITA as they finalized their plans to 
implement the agreement. He looked forward to concluding the technical work in time for the 
Tenth Ministerial Conference in Nairobi in December. Together with Kazakhstan's accession, he 
thought the breakthrough on the ITA had wider im plications for Members' work. It showed that 
they could deliver and were prepared to use innovative approaches to achieve results. He hoped that the success would serve to spark progress elsewhere in their negotiating work. It had not 
been easily achieved. It had taken a lot of work and time, and most importantly, compromise. 
14.15.  This was the kind of attitude that Member s needed to bring to other areas of their work – 
both from the participants in the ITA, and others. He hoped that they would all take inspiration 
from this success. A few months ago it had not se emed doable yet they had done it. They should 
take comfort from this success. 
14.16.  The representative of Japan expressed his appreciation for those Members that had made 
very difficult political decisions at the very last minute of the negotiations, as well as for the 
support and push given to them by their industri es. He looked forward to smooth negotiations on 
staging in the autumn. 
14.17.  The General Council took note of the statements. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 46 - 
 
  15  STATEMENTS DAMAGING TO THE RE PUTATION OF SEVERAL INTERNATIONAL 
FINANCIAL CENTRES IN SM ALL DEVELOPING COUNTRIES CONTRARY TO THE 
ASSESSMENT OF THE RESPONSIBLE AUTHORITIES – STATEMENT BY BARBADOS 
15.1.  The representative of Barbados, speaking under "Other Business", said that trade in 
services had become the backbone of the Barbadian economy. Its financial services sector was 
well developed and an important contributor to the country’s economy. Barbados and several other small economies had accomplished much success in the area.  Barbados had sustained its 
excellent reputation and had maintained high stan dards. It had also regulated an international 
financial centre and financial services hub working steadfastly with the OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration and the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes in ensuring that the country was in compliance with international standards. 
15.2.  It was therefore with great distress that Barbados along with several other CARICOM 
economies registered their disappointment at the recent statement made by the EU Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs, Taxation and Customs on the blacklisting of certain 
jurisdictions. Included in his statement, the Commissioner had announced the publication of what 
the European Commission had referred to as its "first pan-EU list of third-country non-cooperative tax jurisdictions". It was claimed that the list was triggered when ten or more EU States identified 
countries using standards inconsistent with those which had been internationally recognized. 
15.3.  However, Barbados pointed out that the OE CD Centre for Tax Policy  and Administration and 
the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes were the specialized bodies equipped to examine matters of transparency and compliance and exchange of 
information of these jurisdictions. They had done so and had found that some of those listed 
countries were even more transparent and cooperative than larger jurisdictions, some of whom were not named in the blacklist. It was therefore very unfortunate that the analysis of the entity 
set up to evaluate transparency and compliance had been ignored and an independent evaluation 
published, in contradiction of the analyses and findings of the organization set up for the purpose. It had been done in a most un-transparent manner. In so doing, the reputation of these 
jurisdictions had been damaged, most of which were small jurisdictions, dependent on financial 
services and the international business sector for growth and economic development. 
15.4.  Indeed, the Global Forum on Transparency  and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes 
had distanced itself from the List. The Global Forum had confirmed that "the only agreeable 
assessment of countries as regards their cooperation is made by the Global Forum and that a 
number of countries identified in the EU exercise  are either fully or largely compliant and have 
committed to the Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI)". They had further stated that 
"without prejudice to countries' sovereign positions, we are happy to confirm that these 
jurisdictions are cooperative and we would like to commend the tremendous progress made over the past years as well as the cooperation and integrity of the Global Forum process". 
15.5.  She stressed that Barbados had not been alone in renouncing the EU Commission’s so called 
list of uncooperative jurisdictions. The eighteen th meeting of the ACP Ministerial Trade Committee 
on 26 June 2015 had issued a declaration which among other things had strongly condemned the approach taken by the EU and had called for the withdrawal of the list. Similarly, the Caribbean 
Community (CARICOM) at its thirty-sixth regu lar meeting of the Conference of Heads of 
Government of the Caribbean Community had also renounced the publication of the list. The impact of blacklisting on a small country like Barbados could have immediate and irreparable harm 
to a country’s reputation, services sector revenues and economic development. Barbados again 
called for the withdrawal of the list and remained  ready and open to engage with the European 
Union and the Member States involved on the matter. 
15.6.  The representative of Jamaica, on behalf of the CARICOM, associated with the statement 
made by Barbados and emphasized the importance of Trade in Services, in particular financial 
services, to the economy of Barbados and of the countries of the Caribbean Community. CARICOM recalled the efforts made by relevant jurisdictions to ensure compliance with National and 
International standards that safeguarded the integrity of their financial services sectors. CARICOM 
recognized that both the OECD Centre for Tax Po licy and Administration and the Global Forum on 
Transparency and Exchange of Information for Ta x Purposes had determined that some of the 
countries that had been blacklisted by the EU were more compliant and transparent than some of 
the larger countries which had not been included in the blacklist. CARICOM recognized the WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 47 - 
 
  importance of ensuring high standards of integrity in financial services at the national, regional 
and international levels. The Group, however, underlined the importance of multilateral disciplines and expressed concern at unilateral steps that could undermine the trade interests of Members and their economic and social development. In th at context, CARICOM urged the EU to take note 
of the concerns expressed by the delegation of Barbados and addressed by the Heads of 
Government of the Caribbean Community and th e Ministers of Trade of the ACP. The Group 
welcomed the undertaking given by the EU Trade Commissioner to consider the concerns raised by 
CARIFORUM members on the occasion of the recent  ACP/EU Trade Ministers Meeting in Brussels. 
15.7.  The representative of Panama shared the concerns expressed by Barbados with regard to 
the publication by the European Union of the list of thirty third country non-cooperative tax 
jurisdictions, given its consequences for the financial and banking services and service providers of 
the blacklisted countries. Panama was also concerned about the discriminatory measures to which 
these services and service provider s could be subject in the future, in view of the fact that the 
publication of the list had been announced as only  the first step in the action plan for fair and 
efficient corporate taxation in the EU. Panama hoped that the European Union would withdraw the 
list of non-cooperative jurisdictions and enter into constructive dialogue with the third countries in question, with a view to strengthening good tax governance practices both within and outside the 
European Union without adversely affecting trade in services among Members of the Organization. 
15.8.  The representative of Vanuatu expressed disappointment at the unilateral action made by 
the European Union blacklisting countries including Vanuatu, without avoiding the opportunity for 
prior consultation. The impact of the blacklist would dampen Vanuatu's investors' confidence, 
which was already struggling, to repeal its economy after the devastating cyclone that hit the 
country. Like other speakers before, Vanuatu requested that EU withdraw the list. 
15.9.  The representative of the European Union took note of the preoccupation and the will to 
hold discussions of Barbados and the other colleagues that had spoken. He noted that an item 
under other business was not really meant to allow for discussion in substance and that at the same time that the issue had also been raised in the context of the EU TPR, where his delegation 
had provided replies to the Members concerned. Th e EU action in that very important matter was 
very well thought through and clearly motivated. The EU remained open to discuss further as needed, bilaterally or in any forum or in the WTO if the Members concerned decided to put the issue on the agenda of any meeting. 
15.10.  The General Council took note of the statements. 
16  CHAIRMANSHIP OF THE COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE IN SPECIAL SESSION – 
STATEMENT BY THE CHAIRMAN 
16.1.  The Chairman, speaking under "Other Business", recalled that as announced in the fax he 
had sent delegations on 7 July, he had been informed that Ambassador John Adank (New 
Zealand), Chairperson of the Committee on Agriculture in Special Session, would complete his 
assignment in Geneva in August and would then return to New Zealand. As a consequence he 
would also be relinquishing his post as Chairperson of the CoA SS and it was therefore necessary to hold consultations to appoint a new Chair for the CoA SS. 
16.2.  In line with the Guidelines for Appointmen t of Officers to WTO Bodies (WT/L/510), he had 
begun conducting these consultations with the assistance of Ambassador Neple (Norway), 
Chairman of the Dispute Settlement Body, and of Ambassador Fried (Canada), former Chairman of 
the General Council. They had met with the coordinators of the four Groups (Developed Countries, 
Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean) and with a number of interested delegations.  
16.3.  Further to this process, he had sent a fax on 27 July in which he had informed delegations 
that, since there had been no other candidates  submitted to them, there had been a general 
agreement that the next Permanent Representative of New Zealand, Ambassador Vangelis Vitalis, 
would take over the Chairpersonship of the CoA SS.  He had also invited delegations to submit comments and observations to him by that day. Since he had not received any comments, and unless any delegation wished to comment at that stage, he proposed that Ambassador Vangelis 
Vitalis (New Zealand), who was taki ng up his appointment in Geneva shortly, be formally elected 
as the next Chairperson of the Committee on Agriculture in Special Session at the Committee's next meeting. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 48 - 
 
  16.4.  The General Council took note of the statement. 
17  ADMINISTRATIVE MEASURES FOR MEMBERS IN ARREARS – STATEMENT BY THE 
CHAIRMAN 
17.1.  The Chairman, speaking under "Other Business", recalled that the new revised 
Administrative Measures for Members in arrears, contained in WT/BFA/132, Annex I, had entered 
into force on 1 January 2013. 
17.2.  Those measures included a requirement th at, at the end of each meeting of the General 
Council, the Chairperson of the Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration should provide 
information with regard to which Members and Ob servers were under Administrative Measures. He 
invited the Chairperson of the Budget Committee, Ambassador Daniel Blockert (Sweden), to provide the Council with the information. 
17.3.  Ambassador Daniel Blockert (Sweden), Chairperson of the Committee on Budget, Finance 
and Administration, recalled that in line with the Administrative Measures he should list all 
Members and Observers under all categories of Administrative Measures as of 24 July 2015. There 
were 11 Members and 3 Observers in Category 1: Benin, Grenada, The State of Kuwait, Malawi, 
Rwanda, St Vincent & the Grenadines, Suriname, Tanzania, The Former Yugoslav Republic of 
Macedonia, Vanuatu, The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Equatorial Guinea (Observer), Libya 
(Observer), and Sudan (Observer). There were no Members and Observers in Category 2. There 
were 6 Members and 1 Observer in Category 324: Central African Republic, Djibouti, Dominica, The 
Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania, and Sao Tomé and Principe (Observer). 
17.4.  The Chairman said that he was also required at each Council meeting to request Members 
and Observers in Categories II and III of the Measures to inform the Secretariat as to when their 
payment of arrears could be expected. 
17.5.  The General Council took note of the statements of the Chairperson of the Budget 
Committee and of the Chairman. 
 
_______________ 
 
  
                                               
24 Members who have not complied with their Paymen t Plan Terms: Central A frican Republic, Djibouti, 
The Gambia and Mauritania. WT/GC/M/158 
 
- 49 - 
 
  ANNEX 1 
STATEMENT OF THE UNITED STATES AT THE CLOSING PLENARY SESSION OF THE FIFTH 
GLOBAL REVIEW ON AID FOR TRADE ON 2 JULY 2015 
At its request, the statement by the United Stat es at the above-mentioned meeting is included 
below as part of the Minutes of the General Council meeting. 
 
_______________ 
 
 The energy and dedication of this biennial event always impresses our delegation. First, we wish to 
thank DG Azevêdo and his staff, particularly those in the Development Division, for organizing this 
review, for pulling together the various plenaries and side events, and graciously accommodating 
the many requests for meeting space.  
Reflecting on this same room two years ago, we have seen notable progress. It is fitting that this 
year's review should focus on reducing trade costs, given the impressive work to conclude and implement the Trade Facilitation Agreement. Many of the sessions in recent days have reinforced 
again how important this Agreement is to advancing solid development outcomes in the trade 
sphere, as well as reminding us of the extensive av ailability of relevant technical assistance from 
multiple sources. In this regard, we urge each WTO member to take the domestic steps necessary to notify the WTO that they have ratified the agreement. Entry-into-force would be a terrific 
achievement to celebrate at MC10. 
 On Tuesday, in this same room again, we hear d in the opening remarks a clear and consistent 
theme — that lower trade costs contribute significantly to sustainable, green, and inclusive 
economic growth and poverty reduction. This ba sic fact lies at the heart of the proposed 
Sustainable Development Goals. To steal the lang uage from the Global Review brochure, high 
trade costs act as a brake on the trade integration of many developing countries, and in particular 
least-developed countries. To release the brake, concerted action is needed. It will serve us well to keep this very much in mind in the months leading to our ministerial conference.  
I don't know how many of you were able to attend the side event yesterday — "21
st Century public 
private partnerships: The win-win of the Trade Facilitation Agreement." In that session we heard from the private sector that trade facilitation plays a role in their investment decisions and can 
critically affect their bottom line. 
 We also heard about the intention of the United States, Germany, Canada and United Kingdom to 
partner with the International Chamber of Commerce, World Economic Forum, and the Centre for 
Private Enterprise to form a new initiative that will capitalize on the insights of the private sector to deliver robust implementation of the TFA.  
The Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation — which will be officially launched later this year — will 
harness private sector leadership and expertise to deliver commercially meaningful trade facilitation reforms driven by real-world metrics. It will create a new framework for cooperation for 
aid for trade between the private sector, donors and recipient countries to help maximize the vast 
potential of the TFA to accelerate development an d create broad-based opportunity. Together with 
other participants in the Alliance, we look forward to sharing more information about the Alliance 
in Nairobi and to updating you on the results of the Alliance in the years ahead. 
 
__________