WT/MIN(17)/ST/67  
 
18 December 2017  
(17-7012)  Page: 1/2 
Ministerial Conference  
Eleventh Session  
Buenos Aires, 10 -13 December 2017  Original: English  
 
 
STATEMENT BY H.E. MR. ISRAHYANANDA DHA LLADOO  
AMBASSADOR PERMANENT  REPRESENTATIVE TO TH E WTO  
MAURITIUS  
Multilateral rule making and market opening based on consensus is the essential foothold for 
balanced and equitable outcomes for economic development and prosperity.   
 
We must all stand in solidarity to ensure that the WTO remains the only credible global  trade rule -
making body and to send a strong signal that multilateralism and the WTO  should prevail as the 
premier " edifice " of global development.  
 
 My delegation reaffirms its strong and unequivocal commitment in the work of the WTO.  
 
It is unfortunate that we are not living up to our pledges on the Doha Development Agenda.  
The paradigm of development agreed in Doha is being challenged, and it is becoming increasingly 
difficult to deliver on the development agenda. This can be evidenced by limited, if no t absence of 
achievements on development issues.  Given the state of play in the negotiations in Geneva, we 
have not come to Buenos Aires with high expectations. Nonetheless, my delegation believes that 
here in Buenos Aires we can achieve a mixed outcome, i ncluding some agreed decisions and a set 
of proposals to be pursued under the post MC11work programs.  
 
For the MC11, Mauritius would like to emphasize the following:  
 
The development dimension of trade should continue to be the main focus in the WTO 
negot iations;  
 
The fisheries subsidies disciplines should not impede the ability of Ocean states and SIDS, like 
Mauritius, to develop and diversify their fisheries sector ; 
 
There is need to support and scale up trade -related capacity building for developing countries, 
including the implementation of the Trade Facilitation Agreement;  
 
We call for a substantial reduction of the trade subsidies provided by developed countries to the 
agricultural sector ; 
 
We urge members to consider positively the proposals on Sp ecial and Differential Treatment, 
which has been long overdue, and to operationalise the monitoring mechanism;  
 
There should be necessary flexibilities for Net Food Importing Developing Countries (NFIDCs);  
 
We support a permanent solution with respect to the Stockholding Programme for Agriculture, and 
a way forward to address the issue of Special Safeguard Mechanism;  
 
Mauritius proposes that the Work Programme for Small and Vulnerable Economies should be 
reinvigorated to more precisely address the challen ges and needs of SVEs in their efforts to reduce 
trade costs and to ensure their integration into GVCs and in the multilateral trading system;  
 
We are open to the WTO undertaking socio -economic assessment of issues such as e -commerce, 
trade and climate cha nge, MSMEs and investment facilitation for informed discussions.  WT/MIN(17)/ST/67  
 
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  My delegation reiterates our call to adopt customised provisions, specifically catering for the 
vulnerabilities of Small Island Developing States (SIDS), and our request for the recognition o f 
SIDS as a specific category at the WTO.   
 
Buenos Aires is a valuable opportunity for introspection, to reflect on how multilateralism should 
be framed in order to effectively respond to the expectations of a diverse range of economic 
stakeholders, and t o deliver meaningful, balanced and inclusive outcomes for all.   
 
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