WT/MIN(15)/ST/25  
18 December 2015  
(15-6744)  Page: 1/3  
Ministerial Conference 
Tenth Session 
Nairobi, 15-18 December 2015  Original: English  
 
 STATEMENT BY HON. JOSHUA SETIPA 
MINISTER FOR TRADE AND INDUSTRY 
LESOTHO  AND ALSO ON BEHALF OF THE AFRICAN GROUP 
Madam Chair Amina Mohamed, Cabinet Secretar y for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and 
International Trade of Kenya, thank you for giving me this opportunity to deliver this intervention 
on behalf of the Africa Group.  
At the outset the Africa Group pays tribute to the Government and people of Kenya for hosting this 
first ever WTO Ministerial Conference held on Af rican soil. This conference is also a momentous 
one as we also celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the WTO. We therefore commend the 
Government of Kenya for the excellent and warm reception given to us since we arrived.  For that 
we say ASANTE SANA.  
That the WTO is an important organization goes without saying. This is evidenced by a number of 
accolades accumulated in the past 20 years in the form of successful negotiated outcomes, monitoring, as well as litigation mandates. Here in Nairobi we hope to build on these successes by adopting a declaration.   
 
The Africa Group welcomes all newly acceded Members since our last session. Amongst others, the accession of the Republic of Seychelles deserves special mention, particularly because it 
represents Africa’s continued openness to the de epening of global trade rules on the Continent. 
This is pleasantly confirmed by the accession of the Republic of Liberia. At the general level, the advancement in accessions to date brings our organization closer to full global membership. That 
said, the Africa Group once again reiterates the need to ensure that the accession process does 
not derail acceding countries from their trajectory towards economic development.   Today we stand at the brink of an opportunity to build on the edifice of Members’ commitments to 
reform the multilateral trading system. At the heart of this reform of the multilateral trading 
system lies the needs of the most marginalized Me mbers of the WTO majority of which are African. 
As Members we therefore cannot suppress our conscience from responding to the clarion call of 
our commitments to reform the WTO’s body of rules.  
 We equally cannot turn a blind eye to our commitments to redress imbalances codified in 
outcomes of the Uruguay Round of negotiations as well as decisions we collectively signed off on 
under the auspices of the Doha Ministerial Declaration and attendant Mandates. In this context, Madam Chair, the Africa Group is aware of th e stalemate overshadowing WTO’s negotiations 
function as represented by a bracketed draft declaration from Geneva negotiators. The choices are 
clear: reaffirm the Doha Work Program, or condemn it. For Africa, turning away from the Doha 
Work Program and the broader Doha negotiations’ architecture, on African soil, is a highly unacceptable proposition. In fact a proposition of this nature devastates trust in the sphere of 
relations among states and calls into question the credibility of Members’ commitments within the 
WTO system.   
The proposition put to Members to do away with Doha Work Program is one with neither requisite 
justifications nor clearly articulated alternatives for Members consideration. Undoubtedly we cannot succumb to a narrative that condemns our organization to being in existential crisis in the absence of well thought out, convincing and credible arguments.  
 WT/MIN(15)/ST/25 
 
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  What is clear though is that there are attempts to renegotiate the key provision of the founding 
Marrakesh Agreement establishing the WTO, in cluding changing the negotiation approaches, 
thereby formalizing the plurilateralisation of the WTO decision-making process as well as doing away with decision-making by consensus in the WT O system. This is indeed a systemic concern. 
Further, this Conference is being asked by some Members to overrule and disrespect decisions by 
our Heads of States and Government.  
You will recall that our Presidents and Prime Minister in September 2015 adopted the Sustainable 
Development Goals, specifically Goal 17.10 wh ich focuses on the role of the WTO and the 
conclusion of the Doha Round negotiations. Thus, to turn away from this clear directive would be counter to what was adopted at the UN General Assembly.  
 
Ministers have an up-hill task to dispense with the brackets in various texts. During the next few days we must all sieve through a number of alternatives at our disposal with a view to charting the 
way forward for the WTO negotiations function. As I noted, for the Africa Group, Nairobi cannot 
and must not be a burial ground for the Doha Work Program.  
That said, the Africa Group welcomes decisions adopted by the General Council for noting by this 
conference. Decisions in favour of LDCs ranging from services waiver to TRIPS related decisions are warmly welcome. On all other texts forwarded to  this Conference the Africa Group will engage 
constructively with a view to making this conference a success. This however, should not be at the 
expense of Africa’s development objectives. This Conference must not go down into history as 
being one that served to dictate its outcomes based on domestic regimes of some Members.  
 
The WTO cannot be a truly global organization if its main objective is to internationalize domestic 
laws of a few affluent Members. It is the hope of the Africa Group that in the few days we have in Nairobi, real political calls will be made for the benefit of the poorest people in developing 
countries. In this regard, outcomes without tangible deliverables in the Area of Agriculture 
including cotton will be a betrayal of hopes and dreams of many farmers in Africa hoping for the 
WTO to serve and address their needs.  It is also  the view of the Africa Group that there is an 
outcome on Special and Differential Treatment. Moreover, the development dimension should also 
be preserved in both horizontal and vertical outcomes of this conference.  
 
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 At this juncture, I beg your indulgence for me to turn to the Kingdom of Lesotho’s intervention. 
 
The multilateral Trading System is of utmost importance to small countries such as Lesotho. Lesotho joined the WTO in pursuit of a promise that the multilateral trading system will integrate our nascent economy into the system.  Twenty years on, we are still chasing the promise.  
 
Regrettably, all indications point to disintegrati on of African LDCs from the system and less so 
integration into the system. The WTO 2015 Report clearly illustrates this disintegration, with the 
greatest share of African Countries in international trade dictated by growth in regional trade. 
Whereas trade growth may be perceived as positive the concern is that there is no commensurate level of growth in the direction of value added trade with global trading partners. This story line is 
quite simple. It will take reforms of the Uruguay Round outcomes as well as realization of 
disciplines foreseen by DDA negotiation mandates, to truly integrate LDCs into global trade. It is for this reason that Lesotho firmly believes that commitments made by Members, in as far as the architecture of the DDA is concerned, must be honoured.  
 
Trust is of utmost importance. We must be in a position to trust each other and be accountable for our commitments. Turning away from our commitments will certainly cast doubt over seriousness 
of any new commitment by Members. While we strongly believe in the need for reaffirmation of 
Doha Work Program by this Conference, particularly the DDA architecture, in the same vein we question whether any supposed architecture will not similarly be abandoned if it does not serve 
interests of some Members over time. Lesotho is  therefore deeply concerned by the precedent 
W T O  w i l l  s e t  i f  D D A  a r c h i t e c t u r e  i s  a b a n d o n e d .  I n  o u r  v i e w ,  M e m b e r s  h a v e  t o  g o  b a c k  t o  t h e  drawing board and focus on specific problems be lying the current impasse as opposed to blaming 
the lack of progress on the architecture of the DDA . Clearly the change in the architecture will, in 
itself, neither clear the outstanding issues nor solve problems of engagement. In the absence of WT/MIN(15)/ST/25 
 
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  clear proposals the impasse will only be intensified and protracted.  This is not the MTS we are 
hoping for.  On a positive note, Lesotho welcomes all WTO decisions and measures aimed at improving the 
prospects for LDCs to realize trade as a true en gine for development. Amongst others, we welcome 
preferences notified by Members under the remit of Services Waiver Decision, as well as LDC 
related decisions in the area of TRIPS. Lesotho further welcomes the recently adopted waiver on 
AGOA.  It is initiatives such as AGOA, as well as other preferences, that provide requisite 
incentives to truly integrate LDCs into the multilateral trading system. Capacity building measures such as found in the EIF, as well as the aid for trade programs, coupled with the WTO training and the resource centre platform are also to be commended. Sturdy results, in the battle against 
supply side constraints, are beginning to be manifest in Lesotho. 
 While a lot remains to be done at this 20th anni versary of the WTO, the Kingdom of Lesotho lauds 
the organization for its achievements for the benefit of LDCs. It is in this spirit that I wish to 
announce that Lesotho has deposited her instru ment of acceptance with respect to Trade 
Facilitation Agreement, as well as under TRIPS and Public Health. 
 
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