RESTRICTED  
  
WT/COMTD/M/98  
 
 
25 May 2016  
(16-2828)  Page: 1/12  
Committee on Trade and Development 
Ninety-Eighth Session    
 
   
NOTE ON THE MEETING OF 16 MARCH 2016 
Chairman: H.E. Mr. Juan Esteban Aguirre Martínez (Paraguay) 
A. ADOPTION OF TH E AGENDA .................................................................................... 2  
B. OBSERVERS ............................................................................................................. 2  
(i) Request for attendance of ad hoc observers  ................................................................. 2  
(ii) Request for observer status by the Intergovernmental Standing Committee on 
Shipping (ISCOS)  ............................................................................................................. 2  
(iii) Further consideration of requests for observer status by the League of Arab States, 
the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the Gulf Organization for Industrial Consulting, the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, the Common 
Fund for Commodities, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) 
and the Groupe de la Banque Africaine de Développement  ...................................................... 3
 
C. TECHNICAL COOPERATION AND TRAINING ............................................................. 3  
-  Update on the External Evaluation of the WTO's trade-related technical 
assistance – statement by Norway on behalf of the Steering Committee of the Evaluation ........... 3  
D. TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT – WORK IN THE COMMITTEE ON THE BASIS OF 
THE CHAIRMAN'S CONCLUDING STATEMENT FROM THE EIGHTH MINISTERIAL 
CONFERENCE (WT/MIN(11)/11) ..................................................................................... 3  
-  Committee on Trade and Development mandate: focal point for consideration and 
coordination of work on development in the WTO – proposal from Barbados, Belize, 
China, Cuba, Ecuador, India, and th e African Group (W T/COMTD/W/208) ................................. 4  
-  Operationalization of the CTD's mandate: a proposal to deliver outcomes based on 
the MC8 mandate – proposal from China, Cu ba, Ecuador, India and the African Group 
(WT/COMTD/W/192) ......................................................................................................... 4  
E. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE ......................................................................................... 5  
-  Ministerial Decision of 19 December 2015 (WT/MIN(15)/42 – WT/L/977) – 
Statement by the Chairman ................................................................................................ 5  
F. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE ENABLING CLAUSE .................................................... 6  
-  Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Notifica tion of Customs Union – communication 
from China, Egypt and In dia (WT/COMTD/ W/175) ................................................................. 6  
-  Notification of the Agreement on Trad e in Goods between the Association of 
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Korea ......................................................................... 7  
-  Notification of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between India 
and Korea (Goods) ............................................................................................................ 7  
-  Latin American Integration Association – Report to the WTO on instruments 
concluded under the 1980 Treaty of Montevideo, for the period 1 January 2014 – 31 December 2014 (WT/COMTD/88) .................................................................................... 8
 
-  Generalized System of Preferences – Notification by Japan 
(WT/COMTD/N/2/Add.16) .................................................................................................. 9  WT/COMTD/M/98 
 
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  -  Generalized System of Preferences – Notification by the United States 
(WT/COMTD/N/1/ Add.9) .................................................................................................... 9  
G. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE TRANSPARENCY MECHANISM FOR 
PREFERENTIAL TRADE ARRANGEMENTS ........................................................................ 10  
H. REVIEW OF STEPS TAKEN TO PROVIDE DUTY-FREE AND QUOTA-FREE 
MARKET ACCESS TO LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES ...................................................... 10  
I. ELECTION OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE SUB-COMMITTEE ON LEAST 
DEVELOPED CO UNTRIES ................................................................................................ 11  
J. ELECTION OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE COMMITTEE ON TRADE AND 
DEVELOPM ENT ............................................................................................................... 11  
K. OTHER BUSINESS .................................................................................................. 12  
 
 A. ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA 
1. The draft agenda as contained in document WTO/AIR/COMTD/6 of 4 March 2016 was 
adopted. 
B. OBSERVERS 
(i) Request for attendance of ad hoc observers 
2. The Chairman recalled that, at previous sessions of the Committee on Trade and 
Development (CTD), Members had agreed to invi te a number of intergovernmental organizations 
on an ad hoc, meeting-by-meeting basis. Thes e were the Arab Maghreb Union, the Economic 
Community of Central African States, the Economic Community of West African States, the 
Economic Cooperation Organization, the Inter-Arab Investment Guarantee Corporation, the Islamic Development Bank, the African Union, the Or ganisation of the Islamic Conference, the 
South Centre, the Pacific Islands Forum, the United Nations Environment Programme, the West 
African Economic and Monetary Union, and the World Intellectual Property Organization. These 
organizations had been invited to the present meet ing. He proposed that the same organizations 
be invited to the next formal meeting of the CTD. 
3. It was so agreed. 
(ii) Request for observer status by the Inte rgovernmental Standing Committee on Shipping 
(ISCOS) 
4. The Chairman said that ISCOS was an intergovernmental organization established in 1967 
by the Governments of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Zambia. He recalled that he had informed 
Members at the 97th Session that ISCOS' request for observer status in the CTD would appear on 
the agenda for the present meeting. It was his understanding that the organization had also made 
a request for observer status in the Committee on Regional Trade Agreements (CRTA). He proceeded to outline elements of ISCOS' work on  the basis of the information provided in the 
request letter from the organization and noted, inter alia , in this regard that ISCOS was working 
with regional governments, the private sector, development partners and other stakeholders to coordinate regional initiatives aimed at reducing the cost of doing business.  
5. The Committee agreed to grant ISCOS observer status, after which the Chairman requested 
the Secretariat to circulate an updated list of intergovernmental organizations with observer status 
in the CTD.1 
                                               
1 The updated list was circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/22/Rev.8. WT/COMTD/M/98 
 
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  (iii) Further consideration of requests for observer status by the League of Arab States, the 
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the Gulf Organization for Industrial Consulting, the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, the Common Fund for Commodities, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) and the 
Groupe de la Banque Africaine de Développement  
6. The Chairman said that the positions of delegations were on the record. He indicated that if 
there were no changes in positions to extend observer status to any of the applicants, the 
Committee would take note and revert to the requests at the next meeting.  
7. It was so agreed. 
C. TECHNICAL COOPERATION AND TRAINING  
- Update on the External Evaluation of the WTO's trade-related technical assistance – 
statement by Norway on behalf of the Steering Committee of the Evaluation  
8. The Chairman recalled that the delegation of  Norway had provided information at the 
97th Session on the external evaluation of the WTO's trade-related technical assistance. The 
information had been provided on behalf of the Steering Committee of the evaluation. He 
understood that Norway wished to update Members on the status of the evaluation.  
9. The representative of Norway informed Members that the Steering Committee of the 
evaluation - in cooperation with the WTO Secretariat - had finalized the selection process for the 
consulting firm that would undertake the evaluation, and that Saana Consulting had submitted the winning bid. She pointed to previous evaluations undertaken by Saana Consulting, including of the 
International Trade Centre, and indicated the Steering Committee's satisfaction with the choice of 
firm. She also informed Members that the evalua tion team would be led by Mr. Bernard Wood, 
who had over 40 years of international developmen t cooperation experience in policy, evaluation, 
aid effectiveness, organizational change and international trade for development. She went on to 
provide specific examples of Mr. Wood's experi ence and highlighted that he had led the team 
providing advisory support to the Board of the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) for the design of EIF Phase 2. In closing, she indicated that the CTD would continue to be kept informed of 
progress in the evaluation.  
10. The Committee took note of the update provided by Norway. 
D. TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT – WORK IN THE COMMITTEE ON THE BASIS OF THE 
CHAIRMAN'S CONCLUDING STATEMENT FROM THE EIGHTH MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE 
(WT/MIN(11)/11) 
11. The Chairman recalled that, at the Eighth Ministerial Conference (MC8), Ministers had, inter 
alia, reaffirmed the positive link between trade and development and called for focused work in the 
CTD. Ministers had called on Members to fully operationalize the mandate of the CTD as a focal 
point for development work. He recalled that, at the 97th Session, the Committee had agreed to 
the proposal from Ecuador contained in document WT/COMTD/W/204/Rev.1, which had been 
submitted in the context of the CTD's mandate from  MC8. The proposal was for the Secretariat to 
periodically update its paper on the implementation of special and differential treatment (S&D) provisions in the WTO Agreements and Decisions. He informed the Committee in this regard that he had asked the Secretariat to work on an update to the document, which would be ready later in 
the year. Turning to the two proposals for wo rk under the MC8 mandate that were to be 
considered at the present meeting, he observed that the submissions containing these proposals 
had been appearing on the CTD’s agenda for quite some time, and that it was therefore important 
for progress to be made. He recalled that he had encouraged the proponents of these proposals to 
initiate informal discussions with other delegations, as he believed that this was important to move the process forward. Although there had been no progress to report on this matter at a 
small-group informal consultation held on 3 March 2016, he expressed his hope that some 
progress could be reported at the present meeting. WT/COMTD/M/98 
 
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  - Committee on Trade and Development mandate: focal point for consideration and 
coordination of work on development in the WTO – proposal from Barbados, Belize, China, Cuba, Ecuador, India, and the African Group (WT/COMTD/W/208) 
12. The Chairman said that the proposal contai ned in document WT/COMTD/W/208 had the aim 
for the CTD to report on development-related work taking place in the WTO. He recalled that there 
were originally two proposals which broadly had this aim, and that the proponents of the two proposals had decided to work together. Document WT/COMTD/W/208 was the outcome of this 
collaboration. 
13. The representative of India said that there wa s not much progress on this matter. Recalling 
the mandate from MC8, he said that the CTD was a special body in the WTO. It was the focal point 
for the consideration and coordination of de velopment-related work, and therefore had an 
overarching mandate. His delegation believed th at it was appropriate for the CTD to report 
regularly on the development-related work that was taking place in other WTO bodies and provide the necessary recommendations to the General Council on achieving better coordination within the 
WTO on development issues. He requested that the submission remain on the CTD's agenda for 
the next meeting.  
14. The representative of China expressed su pport for the intervention by India. 
15. The Chairman noted the request to keep the su bmission on the CTD's agenda. He expressed 
his concern with the lack of progress on the propos al and emphasized the need for consultations to 
take place between the proponents and other Members.  
16. The Committee took note of the interventions. 
- Operationalization of the CTD's mandate: a proposal to deliver outcomes based on the 
MC8 mandate – proposal from China, Cuba , Ecuador, India and the African Group 
(WT/COMTD/W/192) 
17. The Chairman said that, while there were th ree proposals in document WT/COMTD/W/192, 
the first two proposals had already been addressed by the Committee. The first proposal, which 
was for the Secretariat to prepare an update to its paper on the implementation of S&D provisions 
in the WTO Agreements and Decisions, had been agreed to by the Committee at its 87th Session. 
The updated Secretariat paper was circulated in June 2013 and had appeared on the CTD's agenda for a number of meetings. As for the second proposal, which was for the CTD to report on development work in the WTO, this idea was now being dealt with in the proposal contained in 
document WT/COMTD/W/208 which had been ad dressed under the previous sub-item. The 
remaining proposal in document WT/COMTD/W/1 92 was for the CTD to make a recommendation 
for parties to regional trade agreements (RTAs)  to submit their notification and information 
requirements jointly. 
18. The representative of India said that the parties to RTAs had several requirements to fulfil 
under the Transparency Mechanism for RTAs. In order to help ensure a timely consideration of 
RTAs and the smooth operation of the Transparency Mechanism, it was important for the parties to 
submit their notification and information requirem ents jointly. He requested that the submission 
remain on the CTD's agenda for the next meeting. 
19. The representative of China expressed su pport for the intervention by India. 
20. The Chairman noted the request for the submi ssion to remain on the CTD's agenda. He 
expressed his concern with the lack of progress  on this proposal as well, and once again 
emphasized the need for consultations to take place between the proponents and other Members.  
21. The representative of the United States indicated her delegation's satisfaction that the CTD 
had agreed at its 97th Session to the proposal by Ecuador contained in document 
WT/COMTD/W/204/Rev.1. With regard to the remaining proposals contained in documents 
WT/COMTD/W/208 and WT/COMTD/W/192, she obse rved that Members were no closer to 
achieving consensus than when the proposals were first addressed in the CTD. The proponents had acknowledged that they had not received positive reactions from Members, and her delegation was WT/COMTD/M/98 
 
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  not aware of any outreach efforts by the proponents to address the concerns that had been raised, 
including by the United States (US). Given that there did not seem to be any prospect to reach consensus, she questioned the utility of maintaining the submissions on the CTD's agenda. 
22. The representative of the European Union expressed her delegation's frustration with the 
situation with respect to the two remaining prop osals. She noted that the European Union (EU) 
had made efforts to explain its substantive concerns on the two proposals in formal meetings and in informal consultations, but there had been no  engagement by the proponents. She also recalled 
that, in the context of the CTD's discussion on the MC8 mandate, there had been instances of 
proposals being withdrawn when it was evident that progress was not being made. She hoped to see some movement on this matter in the near future. 
23. The Chairman explained that the practice in the CTD was for an item to remain on the 
agenda if any Member so requested. He expressed his hope that some progress could be made 
soon on a way forward with respect to the remaining proposals.  
24. The Committee took note of all interventions. 
E. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE 
- Ministerial Decision of 19 December 2015 (WT/MIN(15)/42 – WT/L/977) – Statement 
by the Chairman 
25. The Chairman said that a Ministerial Decision concerning the WTO's Work Programme on 
E-Commerce was taken on 19 December 2015, at the Tenth Ministerial Conference (MC10). The 
Decision - which was contained in document WT/MIN(15)/42 - WT/L/977 – called, inter alia , for a 
continuation of the work under the Work Programme on E-Commerce, based on the existing 
mandate and guidelines, and on the basis of prop osals submitted by Members in the relevant WTO 
bodies. He recalled that the CTD was one of the four subsidiary bodies of the General Council that was mandated to implement the WTO's Work Programme on E-Commerce. The most recent 
contribution of the CTD to the Work Programme  was the Workshop on "E-Commerce, Development 
and Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises", which was held on 8 and 9 April 2013. He referred Members to the report on the workshop – contained in document WT/COMTD/W/198 – and on this 
basis, proceeded to highlight elements of the di scussion that had taken place at the workshop. He 
then encouraged Members wishing to suggest ways to take forward the e-commerce work in the CTD to consider submitting written proposals. He  also informed the Committee that, as indicated 
in the Decision taken at MC10, the General Council's next review of the Work Programme on 
E-Commerce would be held in July 2016. 
26. The representative of the United Nations Co nference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) 
indicated that he wished to take the opportuni t y  t o  u p d a t e  M e m b e r s  o n  U N C T A D ' s  w o r k  o n  e -
commerce. He emphasized the importance of e-commerce as a driver of economic growth, 
inclusive trade and job creation in developing co untries, but noted that a more concerted approach 
was needed in order to assist countries to build e-commerce economies. Against this background, 
UNCTAD had taken the initiative to explore the feasibility of launching an Aid for eTrade initiative. 
This was envisioned as a demand-driven mechanism for development partners and international organizations - in partnership with the private sector - to make actions more coherent, pool capabilities and resources, and avoid duplication. He proceeded to outline elements of the 
initiative, and noted that it would seek synergies with existing initiatives and mechanisms, 
including Aid for Trade and the EIF. Constructive preliminary discussions had been held with selected donors, beneficiary countries, international organizations and business representatives, 
and a draft Call for Action – which would be open for comments from all stakeholders – was soon 
to be circulated. An open consultations meeting would also be held during UNCTAD's E-Commerce Week, scheduled for 18-22 April 2016. He went on to highlight elements of the programme for 
E-Commerce Week, and explained that the event provided an opportunity for discussions on 
recent developments and policy issues related to e-commerce.  
27. The representative of China acknowledged the importance of the Aid for eTrade initiative. He 
also emphasized the importance of e-commerce to the Chinese economy, and in this regard noted 
that most of the Chinese companies involved in cross-border e-commerce were small and 
medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which provided employment for about 2.5 million people. He WT/COMTD/M/98 
 
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  informed the Committee that efforts to help farmers make better use of e-commerce were an 
important element of China's poverty alleviation activities, but additionally noted that China - like most developing countries – faced difficulties with weak e-commerce infrastructures and incomplete regulatory frameworks. He believed that a global solution was required to deal with the 
problems and challenges associated with e-commerce. Noting that useful discussions on 
e-commerce had taken place at the WTO, he expressed China's willingness to continue to work with Members. He shared his delegation's view that discussions in the CTD needed to focus on the 
needs of developing Members and the specific difficulties faced by SMEs. 
28. The Committee took note of all interventions. 
F. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE ENABLING CLAUSE 
29. The Chairman said that he wished to provide Members with a brief update on the RTAs 
notified under the Enabling Clause that were to be considered in the CTD's Dedicated Sessions on 
RTAs. He noted that, as had been agreed at the CTD's 6th Dedicated Session on RTAs, the updates 
on RTAs provided at each CTD meeting by the Chairperson would henceforth also be shared with 
the Committee in the form of a room document, as was done in the CRTA. 
30. He went on to inform the Committee that there had been one new notification of an RTA 
under the Enabling Clause since his last report to the CTD in November 2015. In particular, the 
Arab Mediterranean Free Trade Agreement (Agadir Agreement) between Egypt, Jordan, Morocco 
and Tunisia was notified on 22 February 2016 in document WT/COMTD/N/48. The parties had been requested to provide the necessary data to the Secretariat for the preparation of the factual 
presentation by 15 July 2016. Turning to th e Agreement between Singapore and the Gulf 
Cooperation Council (GCC), which was notified in 2015, he said that data had been submitted by 
Singapore. However, the Secretariat was still waiting to receive data from the GCC parties, which had been requested by 23 November 2015. In the case of the Mauritius-Pakistan Agreement - also 
notified in 2015 - data had been received from the parties, but the Secretariat was seeking some 
additional clarification before processing the data. 
31. He next turned to other factual presentations which had yet to be completed. With regard to 
the Agreement between the Association of Southe ast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and India, he said 
that comments had been received from India on the draft factual presentation that was sent to the parties, but the Secretariat was still waiting for comments from ASEAN, which had been requested by 10 January 2014. The Secretariat was also still waiting to receive comments from the parties on 
the draft factual presentation relating to the acce ssion of Rwanda and Burundi to the East African 
Community, which had been requested by 16 June 2014. For a number of other RTAs – namely, RTAs between India and Nepal, India and Af ghanistan, India and Bhutan, and Cuba and 
El Salvador - the full set of data needed to complete the factual presentations had not been 
submitted by the parties. He urged the parties to these agreements to provide the data as soon as 
possible. He went on to say that there remained one RTA notified under the Enabling Clause that 
had not been ratified by all the parties. This was the Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement 
(PICTA). Following the procedures of the CRTA, a factual presentation of an RTA falling in this category would only be drafted after the Agreem ent had been ratified by all the parties. The 
parties to PICTA were urged to inform the Secretariat as soon as all ratifications were complete.  
32. The Committee took note of the Chairman's update. 
- Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Notification of Customs Union – communication from 
China, Egypt and India (WT/COMTD/W/175) 
33. The Chairman said that the first sub-item und er the present agenda item concerned the GCC 
Customs Union notification. The sub-item also referred to the communication from China, Egypt 
and India which was circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/175. 
34. The representative of India indicated that his in tervention related to the first three sub-items 
under the present agenda item, since the three RTAs referenced in these sub-items had been 
"dually notified" under both the Enabling Clause and GATT Article XXIV. He noted that the systemic 
concerns that were raised by China, Egypt and India over the legal and procedural implications of 
the dual notification of the GCC Customs Union under both the Enabling Clause and WT/COMTD/M/98 
 
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  GATT Article XXIV were pertinent even now, but they remained unaddressed. Some Members had 
expressed the view that the systemic concerns raised in document WT/COMTD/W/175 were outside the scope of the CTD, and needed to be discussed in the Negotiating Group on Rules 
(NGR). The view of his delegation was that the CTD was the appropriate forum to consider the 
questions arising from RTAs with a dual notification. 
35. Pointing to the terms of reference of the CTD contained in document WT/L/46, he noted that 
the CTD was designated to serve as a focal point for consideration and coordination of work on 
development in the WTO and its relationship to development-related activities in other multilateral 
agencies. He added that the Committee could consult with other WTO bodies in addressing the systemic concerns raised in document WT/COMTD/W /175. This was in keeping with paragraph 3 of 
the CTD's terms of reference which entrusted the Committee to review periodically, in consultation 
as appropriate with the relevant bodies of the WT O, the application of special provisions in the 
Multilateral Trade Agreements and related Ministerial Decisions in favour of developing country Members, and in particular least developed country (LDC) Members, and report to the General 
Council for appropriate action. In concluding, he indicated that the first three sub-items under the 
present agenda item needed to remain on the CTD's agenda until the systemic and specific concerns arising from "dually notified" RTAs were addressed. He also requested the Chairman to 
hold consultations in this regard. 
36. The representative of the United States regretted that the Committee was once again 
discussing this issue, which her delegation considered long resolved. She recalled that the US, as 
well as some other Members, had indicated on many occasions that the GCC Customs Union issue 
was not an issue of dual notification. Her delegation continued to have concerns with the present 
sub-item being listed on the CTD's agenda. The sub-item had fulfilled its purpose of informing Members of the notification made, and needed to  be removed from the agenda. Noting that the 
issue took away time, resources and attention from other pressing matters, she expressed her 
hope that the Committee could move forward constructively, recognizing that the GCC Customs Union was not an issue of dual notification, but rather something to be addressed in the CRTA 
under the Transparency Mechanism for RTAs. She urged the GCC countries to provide the 
Secretariat with their comments on the draft factual presentation, so that Members could benefit from transparency on the GCC Customs Union. 
37. The representative of China observed that th e systemic concerns raised by some Members 
remained. He indicated that his delegation was willing to work with Members to find a solution. He 
also requested that the present sub-item remain on the CTD's agenda. 
38. The representative of the European Union recalled that her delegation had on several 
occasions explained its position on this matter.  She observed in particular that the present 
sub-item had fulfilled its purpose of informing Members of the notification made. In addition, she made a distinction between the issues surrounding the GCC Customs Union on the one hand, and 
the issues surrounding the ASEAN-Korea Agreement and the India-Korea Agreement on the other. 
With regard to the latter two agreements, she expressed disappointment that the parties had still not been able to agree on a way forward. She indi cated that her delegation was willing to consider 
a pragmatic solution, but emphasized that the NGR was the right forum for a discussion on 
systemic issues. 
39. The Committee took note of all interventions. 
- Notification of the Agreement on Trade in  Goods between the Association of Southeast 
Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Korea 
- Notification of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between India 
and Korea (Goods)2  
40. The Chairman said that the second sub-item under the present agenda item concerned the 
notification of the ASEAN-Korea Agreement. The th ird sub-item concerned the notification of the 
India-Korea Agreement. 
                                               
2 The discussion under the second and third sub-items is presented together in this Note, as the 
interventions made by delegation s applied to both sub-items. WT/COMTD/M/98 
 
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  41. The representative of Korea said that the position of his delegation remained unchanged, as 
all of Korea's RTAs had been notified in accordance with the relevant provisions of the WTO. He 
nevertheless indicated his delegation's willingness to engage with Members in order to find a solution. 
42. The representative of the United States said th at her intervention related to both the second 
and third sub-items under the present agenda item. She said that her delegation continued to 
have concerns with these sub-items being listed on the CTD's agenda. The sub-items had fulfilled 
their purpose of informing Members of the notifica tions made, and needed to be removed from the 
agenda. With respect to the systemic issue of du al notifications, she indicated that this was 
directly linked to the functioning of the Transparency Mechanism for RTAs, and went beyond the mandate of the CTD. Finally, she expressed disa ppointment that the transparency requirements 
for the two RTAs in question had not been fulfilled. 
43. The Committee took note of all interventions. 
-  Latin American Integration Association – Report to the WTO on instruments concluded 
under the 1980 Treaty of Montevideo, for the period 1 January 2014 – 
31 December 2014 (WT/COMTD/88)  
44. The Chairman said that the report by the Latin American Integration Association (LAIA), 
circulated in document WT/COMTD/88, appeared on the CTD's agenda at the request of the 
delegation of Uruguay. He invited Uruguay to introduce the report.  
45. The representative of Uruguay, on behalf of th e LAIA parties, said that the report was being 
submitted pursuant to the obligation of WTO Me mbers to notify instruments concluded under the 
Enabling Clause, and in accordance with the Transparency Mechanism for RTAs. The report was 
without prejudice to individual notifications subm itted by Members, and was further to the reports 
previously submitted. She recalled that the 1980 Tr eaty of Montevideo had been notified to the 
GATT in 1982 in document L/5342. Turning to the co ntent of the report, she said that the first 
section analyzed trends in intraregional trade in 2014. The second section described the instruments that were concluded and registered un der the 1980 Treaty of Montevideo during the 
period considered, or that were concluded in preceding years but registered with the LAIA General 
Secretariat in 2014. She noted that the report included 12 additional protocols to economic complementarity agreements and one additional protocol to a trade promotion agreement. 
46. The representative of the United States asked for clarification as to why the report was listed 
under an agenda item dealing with notifications. He also indicated his delegation's confusion with 
the language in the first paragraph of the Introduction to the report on page 2, and in particular asked whether the individual LAIA countries coul d explain what was meant by "pursuant to the 
obligation of WTO Members to notify" and "without prejudice to individual notifications submitted 
by Members". With respect to agreements between LAIA countries, he stressed that WTO notification obligations were on individual Members. Under the terms of the Transparency 
Mechanism for RTAs, it was not possible for the LAIA to notify RTAs for individual Members. In this 
light, he urged the LAIA countries to notify their agreements, whether they were undertaken 
regionally or bilaterally. He added that, if the LAIA countries were seeking some kind of regional format for notifications that would be acceptable to WTO Members, the US would welcome such a 
discussion and would engage constructively to fi nd a solution. In order to ensure regional 
consistency and promote efficiency - while ensuring that individual Members remained responsible for their notification obligations - a solution could be as simple as deconstructing the LAIA report 
into agreement-by-agreement notifications that  would be submitted by the parties to those 
agreements. 
47. The representative of the European Union believed that there was a need for further 
clarification on the status of the report. In particul ar, if the LAIA countries considered the report to 
be a notification, then the report could potentially be used as the basis for the preparation of factual presentations by the Secretariat. However, if the LAIA countries did not consider the report to be a notification, then they would need to comply individually with their notification obligations. 
She emphasized that it was the responsibility of individual Members to fulfil their notification 
obligations and to submit the data required for the preparation of the factual presentations. She 
indicated the EU's willingness to participate in further discussions on the matter.   WT/COMTD/M/98 
 
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  48. The representative of Uruguay said that the LAIA parties would need to discuss the points 
raised by the EU and the US before being able to provide a response. 
49. The Committee took note of the report and of the interventions. 
- Generalized System of Preferences – Notification by Japan (WT/COMTD/N/2/Add.16) 
50. The Chairman recalled that the notification by Japan concerning its Generalized System of 
Preferences (GSP) scheme, contained in docume nt WT/COMTD/N/2/Add.16, had been introduced 
at the 97th Session. 
51. The representative of Benin, on behalf of th e LDC Group, thanked Japan for the notification. 
He indicated that the Group would study the notification carefully and would provide any 
comments that it might have. 
52. The Committee took note of the notification and of the interventions. 
- Generalized System of Preferences – Notification by the United States 
(WT/COMTD/N/1/Add.9) 
53. The Chairman said that the notification by the US concerning its GSP scheme was contained 
in document WT/COMTD/N/1/Add.9. He invite d the US to introduce the notification. 
54. The representative of the United States said that 2016 marked the 40th anniversary of the 
US' GSP programme, which was launched in 1976. Since its inception, the GSP programme had 
provided duty-free access for over half-a-trillion US dollars in eligible products from developing 
countries. The programme had also helped to foster the further integration of developing countries into the multilateral trading system. The GSP was at the centre of the US' efforts to promote the 
economic development of developing countries through trade, and was complemented by 
substantial trade capacity-building assistance by the US to help developing countries advance 
economic reforms, and to increase and diversif y their trade. The programme currently provided 
duty-free treatment for up to 5,000 products from 122 designated beneficiary countries and 
territories, including 43 LDCs. 
55. She went on to say that the notification under consideration provided specific information on 
changes to country and product eligibility resulting from the last three GSP annual reviews. Among 
the changes in the programme, she highlighted that the US had added 12 upland cotton products 
to GSP eligibility for least developed beneficiary countries. This had been done in response to requests from these countries, including several cotton-producing countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. The US had also removed from GSP eligibility several products from specific countries after imports 
of these products exceeded statutory competitive need limitations. In addition, several countries 
were graduated from the GSP programme after having become high-income countries, as designated by the World Bank. One country was suspended from GSP benefits, following a 
multi-year review which found that it was not affording its workers internationally recognized 
worker rights.  Although authorization of th e GSP programme had lapsed from mid-2013 to mid-
2015, legislation had been enacted in June 2015 to authorize the programme through 
31 December 2017. Benefits under the programme had been made retroactive through the entire 
period of the lapse, thereby enabling importers to seek refunds of duties paid during the lapse. 
The legislation that renewed the GSP programme also authorized the US President, for the first time, to consider the addition of certain travel goods for eligibility under the GSP. The potential 
addition of these products was currently the subj ect of a public review that was expected to 
conclude in June 2016. 
56. In closing, she said that, while the US reco gnized the successes of GSP programme – which 
covered over US$17.4 billion in imports in 2015 – it was also committed to continue working to 
improve the effectiveness of efforts to integrate developing countries more fully into the global trading system. Towards that end, the US continued to work with GSP beneficiary countries to 
identify ways for them to improve their utilization of the programme in order to increase their 
exports and bolster economic development. Regular meetings with beneficiary government officials 
were organized, and videoconferences and teleconferences were held with trade associations and businesses in beneficiary countries. Seminars for exporters, government officials and others were WT/COMTD/M/98 
 
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  also held. The US planned to continue such outreach activities and was open to working with any 
beneficiary countries that wanted to increase their usage of the GSP programme.   
57. The representative of Benin, on behalf of the LDC Group, thanked the US for the notification. 
He indicated that the Group would study the notification carefully and would provide any 
comments that it might have.  
58. The Committee took note of the notification and of the interventions. 
G. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE TRANSPARENCY MECHANISM FOR PREFERENTIAL 
TRADE ARRANGEMENTS 
59. The Chairman said that he wished to pr ovide Members with a brief update on the 
preferential trade arrangements (PTAs) that we re to be considered in the CTD's Dedicated 
Sessions on PTAs. He observed that, while two PTAs had been considered in the CTD's Dedicated 
Sessions, an additional five PTAs notified sinc e the establishment of the Transparency Mechanism 
– PTAs being implemented by China, India, the Ru ssian Federation, Chinese Taipei and Thailand - 
had not been considered. This was because the Secretariat had not received the full set of data 
required for the preparation of the factual presentations. He urged the notifying Members to 
provide the data as soon as possible. He also informed the Committee that India had circulated a communication in November 2015 - contained in document WT/COMTD/N/38/Add.1 - which 
provided updated information on its PTA.  
60. The representative of the European Union sugge sted that the updates on PTAs provided by 
the Chairperson at CTD meetings could henceforth also be shared with the Committee in the form 
of a room document. 
61. It was so agreed. 
62. The Committee took note of the interventions.  
H. REVIEW OF STEPS TAKEN TO PROVIDE DUTY-FREE AND QUOTA-FREE MARKET 
ACCESS TO LEAST DE VELOPED COUNTRIES 
63. The Chairman recalled that an item concerni ng duty-free and quota-free (DFQF) market 
access for LDCs had been on the CTD's agenda since early 2006. Under this item, delegations had 
provided information on the steps they were taking , or had already taken, to provide DFQF market 
access to LDCs. Written communications by some Members had also been considered. 
64. The representative of Benin, on behalf of the LDC Group, emphasized the importance of 
moving forward on the DFQF issue. He believed that the active engagement of Members was 
needed for this purpose, and input from the Secretariat would also be useful. He also called on 
Members to notify their DFQF schemes to the WTO. 
65. The representative of Bangladesh expressed support for the intervention by Benin and 
highlighted the importance of DFQF market access to LDCs, including with respect to the 
development impact. He recalled the discussions that had taken place in 2015 on the parameters of a proposed Secretariat study on DFQF implemen tation, and looked forward to resuming work on 
this matter with the active engagement of Members.   
66. The Chairman noted that there had not been convergence on the parameters of the 
Secretariat study on DFQF implementation when the matter was discussed in 2015. He also took 
note of the intervention by Benin and proposed th at the Secretariat present a brief update at the 
next CTD meeting on the status of the DFQF market access provided by Members.  
67. It was so agreed. 
68. The representative of Lesotho said that Member s needed to agree on the parameters of the 
Secretariat study and give priority to the DFQF issue in a manner that ensured a development 
outcome. WT/COMTD/M/98 
 
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  69. The representative of Benin, on behalf of the LDC Group, said that the Group would submit a 
proposal on the parameters of the Secretariat study. He hoped that this would allow progress to be 
made on the issue.   
70. The representative of the United States indicated that her delegation remained willing to 
engage on the DFQF issue, and looked forward to  receiving a proposal from the LDC Group on the 
parameters of the Secretariat study. She hoped that a consensus could be reached among Members in this regard. She noted that a report from the Secretariat needed to be balanced and 
fact-based, and could not include any subjective assessments or suggestions of any particular 
policy directions.  
71. The representative of Haiti expressed support for the interventions by Benin and Lesotho. He 
indicated his delegation's interest to participate in the process of defining the parameters of the 
Secretariat study. 
72. The representative of Pakistan said that his delegation was also interested in taking part in 
the process to define the parameters of the Secretariat study. 
73. The Chairman indicated that a written proposal from the LDC Group on the parameters of 
the Secretariat study would help to move the process forward.  
74. The Committee took note of all interventions. 
I. ELECTION OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE SUB-COMMITTEE ON LEAST DEVELOPED 
COUNTRIES 
75. The Chairman said that, on the basis of consultations, he wished to put forward the name of 
Ambassador Roderick van Schreven of the Netherlands to serve for another year as Chairman of 
the Sub-Committee on LDCs. 
76. The Committee elected Ambassador van Schreven as the Chairman of the Sub-Committee 
on LDCs for 2016.  
J. ELECTION OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE COMMITTEE ON TRADE AND 
DEVELOPMENT 
77. The Chairman said that at the General Council  meeting of 24 February 2016, the names of 
the Chairpersons for 2016 had been announced. He was pleased to inform the Committee that 
Ambassador Christopher Onyanga Aparr of Uganda had been chosen as the new Chairman of the CTD. He invited the Committee to formally elect Ambassador Aparr.  
78. The Committee elected Ambassador Aparr as the Chairman of the CTD for 2016. 
79. The incoming Chairman assured Members of his intention to continue to give a high profile 
to the work of the Committee. He also noted that  there were a number of unresolved issues on the 
CTD's agenda, and called on Members to collaborate in order to find solutions. 
80. Several delegations took the floor to express appreciation for the work of the outgoing 
Chairman, as well as to welcome the election of the new Chairman and the re-election of the Chairman of the Sub-Committee on LDCs. Interventions in this regard were made by the 
representatives of Benin on behalf of the LDC Gr oup, Bangladesh, China, Haiti, India, Japan, 
Kenya, Lesotho, Nepal, Chinese Taipei and Uganda. 
81. The representative of Japan additionally drew Members' attention to the Sixth Tokyo 
International Conference on African Development, which would be held on 27 and 28 August 2016 
in Nairobi. He indicated Japan's commitment to development and to the integration of developing 
countries into the multilateral trading system.  
82. The Committee took note of the interventions. WT/COMTD/M/98 
 
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  K. OTHER BUSINESS 
83. No matter was raised under "Other Business".  
84. The meeting was adjourned. 
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