WT/MIN(15)/ST/31  
18 December 2015  
(15-6748)  Page: 1/2  
Ministerial Conference 
Tenth Session 
Nairobi, 15-18 December 2015  Original: Spanish  
 
  STATEMENT BY H.E. MR JHONY BALZA 
AMBASSADOR OF THE BOLIVARIAN  REPUBLIC OF VENEZUELA 
BOLIVARIAN REPUBLIC OF VENEZUELA  
First of all, on behalf of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, I would like to express my sincere 
thanks to the Government and people of Kenya for their hospitality and the excellent organization of this Conference.  
The fact that this meeting is being held for the first time on African soil is an incentive for us to try 
to achieve, by the end of the week , results that give priority to the aspirations of this Region, with 
special attention to the Least Developed Countries (LDCs). Accordingly, we should spare no effort, 
in the few hours that remain, to achieve significant results in the areas relating, in particular, to 
development, cotton and the LDC decision package.  
On this occasion, on which we celebrate the twentieth anniversary of this Organization, we face 
the urgent task of reflecting on our collective inability to take concrete measures in favour of development and, moreover, adopt decisions desi gned to reduce the continuing development 
deficit. 
 
The difficulty in making progress with the Doha Round – viewed as the WTO's first attempt since it was established to place development at the centre of our concerns and thus balance out the 
results of the Uruguay Round – has not only imperilled the credibility of the WTO but is adversely 
affecting the outlook for the multilateral trading system. These are risks that could force us into 
reaching one-sided agreements and producing results at any price. 
 
I t is  a matter of g re at c onc e rn that some  M e mb e rs  s hould  have  c ome  to Nairob i w ith the  firm intention of putting an end to the Doha Development Agenda, on the premise that it no longer addresses their priorities and that another course must be set if the WTO wishes to remain 
relevant. We cannot throw overboard all those years of multilateral and collective working just to 
accommodate the interests of a few, without having carried to completion those mandates that seek to rebalance the existing shortcomin gs of the multilateral trading system. 
 
It would be truly unfortunate if this Ministerial Conference were to be remembered as that at which the Doha Development Agenda was buried. 
 
A couple of months ago, in New York, our lead ers approved the Sustainable Development Goals 
and, under Goal 17.10, agreed to "Promote a universal, rules-based, open, non-discriminatory and equitable multilateral trading system under the World Trade Organization, including through the 
conclusion of negotiations under its Doha Development Agenda". We cannot come to Nairobi and 
contradict what our leaders agreed only a couple of months ago.  
Let us therefore reaffirm our commitment to the Doha Round mandate, as well as to the 
Declarations and Decisions adopted since Doha and at subsequent Ministerial Conferences; it is essential that this Round be concluded on that basis. 
 
We hope that the agreements reached in Nairobi will be a positive step forwards towards the completion of the Round, based on balanced results that take into account the realities and the requirements of the developing world. 
 WT/MIN(15)/ST/31 
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  Moreover, we consider that until the Doha Round is concluded to the satisfaction of all, we cannot 
accept the expansion of this Organization's agenda, through the inclusion of new or other issues, while vital aspects, such as agricultural refo rm and the development deficit in the existing 
agreements, have remained pending for more than 20 years. 
 
Especially concerning is the interest of some Members in revisiting the WTO's negotiating principles, with the intention of restricting special and differential treatment to a few and, 
in particular, generating a multi-speed multilateral trading system, through the negotiation of 
plurilateral initiatives. We must forge a common future with inclusive and balanced agreements. 
 With respect to the unfinished negotiations in Geneva and before coming to Nairobi, our concern 
has been that while in areas such as agriculture the sensitivities of the developed Members are 
being addressed with greater sympathy and a sense of priority, the flexibilities requested by the 
developing countries are being seriously questioned. This is clearly a case of special and 
differential treatment in reverse, and once again the requirements of the developing Members are 
being underestimated, especially as regards food security and rural development. Here we are echoing the just requests of the members of the G-33, which we hope will lead to concrete results. 
 
We hope that, here in Nairobi, when we come to discuss the decisions that this Conference will have to adopt, the principles of inclusion and transparency will continue to be honoured so that unexpected situations can be avoided. 
 
Finally, we hope that from this Ministerial Confer ence there will emerge a road map that enables 
us to progress with our collective efforts to conclude the Doha Development Agenda, while placing 
the requirements of the developing world at the he art of the debate, with a view to exploiting the 
multilateral trading system as a useful tool for achieving development goals and confronting 
economic and social inequalities. 
 
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