WT/MIN(15)/30  
17 December 2015  
(15-6689)  Page: 1/2  
Ministerial Conference 
Tenth Session 
Nairobi, 15-18 December 2015  Original: English  
 
MINISTERS/HEADS OF DELEGATIONS MEETING OF THE GROUP 
OF ARTICLE XII MEMBERS - GROUP OF RECENTLY  
ACCEDED MEMBERS (RAMS GROUP) 
NAIROBI, KENYA, 17 DECEMBER 2015 
The following communication, dated 17 December 2015,  is being circulated at the request of the 
Delegation of the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu on behalf of the following Members of the Group of Article XII Members: Albania; Armenia; Cabo Verde; China; 
Ecuador; Georgia; Jordan; Kazakhstan; Kyrgyz Republic; Republic of Moldova; Mongolia; Oman; 
Panama; Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; Seychelles; the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu; Tajikistan; the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia; Tonga; Ukraine and 
Viet Nam. 
 
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COMMUNIQUÉ 
1. We, the Ministers/Heads of Delegations of the group of WTO Members that have acceded 
under Article XII of the Marrakesh Agreement (t he Group of Article XII Members, also known 
as the RAMs Group) met in Nairobi on 15 December 2015. 
2. We recognize that developments in world trade pose various challenges to the multilateral 
trading system and to the functioning of the WT O. We strongly urge all Ministers and Heads 
of delegations participating in the MC10 to give the clearest possible directions for the future 
work of the WTO on the road ahead, and beyond.  
3. We attach  great importance to the continuation of the current round of negotiations and to 
achieving a successful and balanced conclusion. We urge all Members to find a viable 
solution to the current impasse in the negotiations. We believe that a successful completion 
of ongoing negotiations will provide a much-needed boost to the global economy and trade, which in our view is essential in enabling Members to properly respond to their respective economic, financial and trade challenges, and to ensure that a level playing-field is 
established for all. 
4. We believe that negotiations on the remaining issues should be completed by building on 
what has been achieved to date, and respecting the mandates agreed by the whole 
Membership as well as certain basic principles favouring the developing country Members, 
such as less-than-full reciprocity, and special and differential treatment. 
5. We emphasize the significance of the Group of Arti cle XII Members, which now represents 
more than 20% of the WTO's total Membership, and the substantial contributions that their 
accessions have already made to both the strengthening of the multilateral trading system and to the further promotion of global trade.  WT/MIN(15)/30 
 
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  6. We recall  that the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration recognized "the special situation of 
recently-acceded Members who have undertaken extensive market access commitments at the time of accession", and stated that "[t]his situation will be taken into account in the negotiations".  
7. We have committed, at the time of  our accessions,  to a level of liberalization well in 
excess of that committed to by the original WTO Members. We, Article XII Members, have 
paid a high price in advance, on the expectation of the original Members undertaking to 
match our level of commitments upon the conclusion of the Doha Round. In order to ensure 
a balanced outcome in negotiations, the original WTO Members should make every effort to match the level of our commitments on completion of the ongoing negotiations.  
8. We are committed  to efforts to facilitate WTO Membership accession negotiations, in 
particular for the Least-Developed Countries (LDCs). We congratulate the two acceding 
LDCs, Liberia and Afghanistan, as well as Yemen, Seychelles, and Kazakhstan, on their joining the WTO from our last Session, and we look forward to welcoming more new 
Members in the coming years. 
9. We note  that the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), the first Agreement that we have 
managed to conclude collectively as WTO Members, is nearing implementation. We call on 
Members who have not yet completed their domestic ratification processes to follow-up on 
this as soon as possible. 
10. We urge  all Members to engage cooperatively and constructively in the post-Nairobi work 
towards a successful conclusion of the ongoing negotiations that is not only appropriate and 
sufficient to cope with the particular cha llenges being faced at the present time, but 
ambitious enough to benefit future generations as well. 
 
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