RESTRICTED  
  
WT/COMTD/M/97  
 
21 December 2015  
(15-6829)  Page: 1/13  
Committee on Trade and Development 
Ninety-Seventh Session    
 
   
NOTE ON THE MEETING OF 13 NOVEMBER 2015 
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) Further consideration of requests for observer status by the League of Arab States, 
the Organization of the 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 Developpement  ...................................................... 2
 
C. REPORT OF THE 49TH SESSION OF THE JOINT ADVISORY GROUP ON THE 
INTERNATIONAL TRADE CENTRE UNCT AD/WTO (ITC/AG(XLIX)/260) ............................ 2  
D. TECHNICAL COOPERATION AND TRAINING ............................................................. 4  
-  Biennial Technical Assistance and Trai ning Plan 2016-17 (W T/COMTD/W/ 211) .................. 4  
-  External Evaluation of the WTO's Trade-Related Technical Assistance (JOB/DEV/30) 
– statement by Norway on behalf of th e Steering Committee of the Evaluation .......................... 5  
E. 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) ..................................................................................... 6
 
-  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) .................................. 6  
-  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) ......................................................................................................... 6  
-  Committee on Trade and Development mandate: review of the application of S&D 
provisions in the Multilateral Trade Agreements and related Ministerial Decisions in favour 
of developing country Members - proposal from Ecuador (WT/COMTD/W/204) ........................... 7  
F. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE ENABLING CLAUSE .................................................... 8  
-  Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) notifica tion of Customs Union – communication 
from China, Egypt and In dia (WT/COMTD/ W/175) ................................................................. 8  
-  Notification of the Agreement on Trad e in Goods between the Association of 
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Korea ......................................................................... 9  
-  Notification of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement  between India 
and Korea (Goods) ........................................................................................................... 10 
-  Generalized System of Preferences – notification by the European Union 
(WT/COMTD/N/4/Add.7) ................................................................................................... 10 
G. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE TRANSPARENCY MECHANISM FOR 
PREFERENTIAL TRADE ARRANGEMENTS ........................................................................ 10  WT/COMTD/M/97 
 
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  H. ANNUAL REVIEW OF THE STEPS TAKEN TO PROVIDE DUTY-FREE AND 
QUOTA-FREE MARKET ACCESS TO LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES ................................. 11  
-  Report by the Secretariat (WT/COMTD/W/214) ............................................................ 11 
I. PARTICIPATION OF DEVELOPING CO UNTRIES IN THE MULTILATERAL 
TRADING SYSTEM (W T/COMTD/W/ 212) ....................................................................... 11  
J. DRAFT ANNUAL REPORT FOR 2015 (WT/COMTD/W/213) ..................................... 12  
K. OTHER BUSINESS .................................................................................................. 13  
 
 A. ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA 
1. The draft agenda as contained in document WTO/AIR/COMTD/5 of 2 November 2015 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) Further consideration of requests for observ er status by the League of Arab States, the 
Organization of the 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 Developpement 
4. 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.  
5. It was so agreed. 
6. The Chairman said that he wished to inform Members of a new request for observer status 
in the CTD. The request was from the Intergovernmental Standing Committee on Shipping 
(ISCOS), which was established in 1967 by the Governments of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and 
Zambia. As the request from ISCOS had been rece ived after the agenda for the present meeting 
was circulated, it would appear on the agenda of the next CTD meeting for Members' consideration, as was the practice for such requests. In the meantime, he invited Members to consult the ISCOS website ( www.iscosafricashipping.org ).  
C. REPORT OF THE 49TH SESSION OF THE JOINT ADVISORY GROUP ON THE 
INTERNATIONAL TRADE CENTRE UN CTAD/WTO (ITC/AG(XLIX)/260) 
7. The Chairman said that the report of the 49th Session of the Joint Advisory Group (JAG) on 
the International Trade Centre UNCTAD/WTO  (ITC) was contained in ITC document 
ITC/AG(XLIX)/260. He invited Ambassador Patricia O'Brien of Ireland, the Chairperson of the 49
th Session of the JAG, to introduce the report. WT/COMTD/M/97 
 
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  8. The Chairperson of the JAG said that the Group had held its 49th Session on 26 June 2015. 
At the meeting, delegations had expressed apprecia tion for the ITC’s renewed focus on innovation, 
effectiveness, and pragmatic results on the ground . They also confirmed their support for the ITC’s 
new strategic direction, as laid out in the Strategic Plan for the 2015-2017 period, and particularly 
welcomed the introduction of the new programmatic approach clustered around six focus areas. 
The ITC’s achievements in building strategic partne rships - including with the private sector - were 
recognized. The focus on doing more, and doing it  better, was welcomed. Evidence of this was 
found in the ITC’s expanding portfolio of national and regional programmes, which addressed such 
areas as trade facilitation, the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), regional economic integration, non-tariff measures (NTMs) and South-South cooperation. The ITC’s work on women’s economic empowerment, promoting young entrepreneurs, and linking 
SMEs to markets through the use of e-commerce were also seen as important areas in which to 
maintain a presence. She said that, through such interventions, the ITC would continue to provide demand-driven technical assistance to all of its clients but, in particular, to least developed 
countries (LDCs), landlocked developed countries (LLDCs), sub-Saharan Africa, small, vulnerable 
countries, as well as post-conflict and fragile states. In terms of areas for further improvement, delegations at the JAG had, inter alia , mentioned the need to better align the relationship between 
projects and the activities carried out, and th e need to better elaborate the link between funds 
received and results achieved. The need for more  predictable resources was also recognized.  
9. She went on to say that the second part of the JAG had focused on the implementation of 
the recommendations provided by the two recent ex ternal evaluations of the ITC, which were the 
2014 Independent Evaluation and the 2015 UN Offi ce of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) 
Programme Evaluation. The Executive Director of th e ITC had reaffirmed to the JAG that all of the 
strategic recommendations had been accepted. Wi th regard to the first recommendation of the 
Independent Evaluation - which stressed the need for the ITC to focus on well-defined priorities in 
order to maximize impact - the Executive Director had pointed to the six thematic focus areas, and to the newly formed Programme Development Task Force. On the second recommendation - which 
was to further improve the quality of the ITC’ s technical work - the Executive Director had 
indicated that the new project portal would allow a tracking of the progress and results of each project. Furthermore, the ITC’s new Evaluation Policy would allow strengthened reporting on development results. In relation to the third recommendation - on better governance and 
enhanced accountability - the Executive Director had, inter alia , mentioned the progress made in 
terms of risk management, costing, and the im plementation of UN-wide operating systems. 
Regarding the final recommendation - on raising the organization's visibility - the 
Executive Director had pointed to the ITC’s active role in highlighting the importance of SMEs and 
women’s economic empowerment in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The opening of a liaison office in Addis Ababa and the enhancement of the ITC’s presence at the UN's 
headquarters in New York were also cited as examples. With regard to the additional 
recommendations made in the OIOS evaluation, the JAG was informed, inter alia , of the new 
resource mobilization strategy and the gender mainstreaming policy.  
10. In closing, she said that, at the JAG meeting,  the Governments of China, Finland, Germany, 
Norway and Switzerland had announced their commitments of financial support to the ITC. She 
also informed the Committee of a number of ITC activities and events in the course of 2015, 
including the Women Vendors Exhibition and Foru m held in São Paulo, and the World Export 
Development Forum (WEDF) held in Doha. Finally, she indicated that an event on Women in 
Business would be held in Nairobi in December 2015, on the margins of the WTO's Tenth Ministerial Conference (MC10).  
11. The representative of Sri Lanka expressed apprec iation to the ITC for its work in Sri Lanka. 
He informed the Committee that Sri Lanka had offered to host the next WEDF.  
12. The Committee took note of the report of the 49th Session of the JAG and forwarded it to the 
General Council for adoption.   WT/COMTD/M/97 
 
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  D. TECHNICAL COOPERATION AND TRAINING 
- Biennial Technical Assistance and Training Plan 2016-17 (WT/COMTD/W/211) 
13. The Chairman said that the Biennial Technical Assistance and Training Plan (TA Plan) for 
2016 and 2017 had been circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/211. He invited the Director of the 
Institute for Training and Technical Cooperation (ITTC) to introduce the Plan. 
14. The Director of the ITTC recalled that an informal meeting had been held on 
19 October 2015 to discuss a draft of the TA Plan. Th e Plan that had been circulated in document 
WT/COMTD/W/211 incorporated the comments from  delegations that had been made at this 
informal meeting. The document outlined the pla nned activities, the target results and the funding 
required. In preparing the Plan, it had been assumed that human and financial resources would remain stable during the biennium. As such, the Plan was based on the level of activity of the last 
three years, and had a mix of both traditional and new products. Details on the specific activities 
were presented in Annex 2 of the document. The achievement of the key results would be monitored on the basis of a number of performance indicators and targets, which had been refined 
based on lessons learned in previous years. The focus would continue to be on managing for 
results, and efforts would be made to refine the results-based management monitoring and evaluation tools. The technical assistance activities would concentrate on assisting Members to 
implement WTO Agreements, and there would be a systematic follow-up to Trade Policy Reviews. 
Furthermore, the Progressive Learning Strategy woul d continue to be applied. There would also be 
more emphasis on interactive training methods, and e-learning would play a critical role. The Secretariat would analyze existing partnerships with other institutions to ensure that these 
remained meaningful. With regard to the budgeted level of financial resources, she said that a 
total of CHF 19 million per year would be requir ed to implement the Plan. About CHF 12 million 
would come from the Global Trust Fund, CHF 4.5 million from the regular budget, and the rest 
from contributions to specific programmes. The budget for the TA Plan would be up for approval by 
the Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration at its meeting of 16 November 2015.  
15. The representative of Guatemala indicated that her delegation had raised a number of points 
in the course of discussions during the preparation of the TA Plan. She expressed appreciation that 
these points had been taken into account. 
16. The representative of Pakistan expressed appreciation for the WTO's technical assistance 
activities, and indicated his delegation's support for the TA Plan.   
17. The representative of Nepal said that the WTO's technical assistance activities helped LDCs 
to build their capacity and enhance their understanding of WTO issues. Both e-learning and 
face-to-face activities were effective in this regard. He expressed appreciation to the ITTC for 
prioritizing the needs of LDCs, and indicated that technical assistance was a core element of the 
development dimension of the multilateral trading system, as well as an important component of Aid for Trade. In this light, he called on donors  to ensure that their contributions to the WTO's 
technical assistance activities did not decrease. Finally, he expressed his delegation's support for 
the TA Plan.  
18. The representative of Oman thanked the ITTC for its support in the organization of activities 
in Oman. He recalled that the regional trade policy course for the Arab region was currently being 
hosted by Sultan Qaboos University in Oman, and was in its second year. The main element that 
had contributed to the success of the course in its first year was the direct supervision and contribution of high level officials from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, as well as from the 
university itself. He also noted that Oman was one of four Arab countries hosting a WTO Chair, and 
additionally informed Members that Oman had requ ested two national activities in 2015. The first 
activity concerned notification requirements, while the second was on technical barriers to trade 
(TBT) and sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures.
1  
19. The representative of Montenegro expressed her delegation's support for the adoption of the 
TA Plan. She said that the WTO's technical assistance had contributed to building the 
                                               
1 The points in this paragraph were made by Oman  at the informal meeting held on 19 October 2015 to 
discuss the draft TA Plan. They are included in the minutes of this meeting at the request of the delegation of Oman. WT/COMTD/M/97 
 
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  administrative capacity of various Ministries in Montenegro. She particularly mentioned the 
technical assistance which had been provided in the course of Montenegro's accession to the Government Procurement Agreement. In addition, acknowledging the benefits to Montenegro of 
technical assistance in the trade facilitation area, she informed the Committee that the Trade 
Facilitation Agreement was in the final phase of  ratification in Montenegro’s Parliament. She 
believed that these examples demonstrated th e critical role of technical assistance.
2  
20. The Committee adopted the Biennial Technical Assistance and Training Plan for 2016 and 
2017. 
- External Evaluation of the WTO's Trade-Related Technical Assistance (JOB/DEV/30) – 
statement by Norway on behalf of th e Steering Committee of the Evaluation  
21. The Chairman invited the delegati on of Norway to make a statement concerning the external 
evaluation of the WTO's trade-related technical assistance (TRTA).   
22. The representative of Norway indicated that sh e wished to provide Members with an update 
on the external evaluation, and al so present the draft Terms of Reference for the evaluation, which 
had been circulated in document JOB/DEV/30. She recalled that information on the evaluation had 
been provided to the CTD at its 93rd Session. Interested Members had subsequently established a 
Steering Committee to oversee the evaluation. The Steering Committee consisted of 
representatives from Bangladesh, the European Union (EU), Finland, France, Germany, 
Guatemala, Norway, Rwanda, Sweden and the United  States (US). Other Members that wished to 
participate were invited to contact her. She went on to say that the evaluation would be funded 
through extra-budgetary sources from several donors, and planned TRTA activities would therefore 
not be affected. It was envisaged that the evaluation - which would cover the 2010-2014 period - 
would assess all of the WTO's TRTA activities, irrespective of their source of funding. She outlined the main aspects of the WTO’s TRTA that the eval uation would assess, as well as the profile and 
skills expected of the consultancy team, which were laid out in the draft Terms of Reference. She 
also informed Members that the role of the Steering Committee was to manage the evaluation, and to report regularly to the CTD on the progress made. It was for the Steering Committee to 
approve the Terms of Reference for the evaluation, the Inception Report, the draft Evaluation 
Report, and the Final Evaluation Report. The Secretariat would support the Steering Committee through the evaluation, including with regard to the administrative aspects. The procurement process for the consultancy team would be carried out under WTO rules and regulations, and the 
WTO procurement team would assist the Steering Co mmittee. With regard to the Final Evaluation 
Report, she said that it would likely be presented to the CTD towards the end of 2016, along with a management response.  
23. The representative of Pakistan emphasized the importance of TRTA to his country. He 
expressed an interest to participate in the Steering Committee. 
24. The representative of China expressed apprec iation for the WTO's technical assistance 
activities. He also noted that China contributed, within its capacity, to support the activities. With 
regard to the external evaluation, the view of his delegation was that it was important and necessary. He indicated that his delegation would get actively involved in the process.  
25. The representative of Sri Lanka said that his delegation was interested in participating in the 
Steering Committee. He noted that Sri Lanka had benefitted significantly from the WTO's technical 
assistance activities. 
26. The Chairman indicated his appreciation to No rway for the information presented regarding 
the external evaluation and the role of the St eering Committee. He believed that the external 
evaluation was a valuable exercise.  
27. The Committee took note of all interventions. 
                                               
2 The delegation of Montenegro was unable to be present for the discussion under this sub-item, but 
requested that these points be included in the minutes of this meeting.    WT/COMTD/M/97 
 
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  E. 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) 
28. The Chairman recalled that, at the Eighth Mi nisterial Conference (MC8), Ministers had, 
inter alia , reaffirmed the positive link between trad e 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 emphas ized the importance of the MC8 mandate – 
particularly in light of its strong development di mension - and expressed regret that only one of 
the proposals that had been made in this context had been agreed to by the Committee thus far. Furthermore, the proposals currently under consid eration in the CTD had appeared on the agenda 
for quite some time. With regard to these proposals, he informed the Committee that he had held 
a small group informal consultation on 16 Octo ber 2015, and that the proposals had also been 
discussed at the informal, open-ended CTD meeting held on 5 November. He indicated that he was willing to work further with Members, as necessa ry, in order to facilitate progress. He also 
encouraged Members to consider ways in which the CTD could advance in its work relating to the 
MC8 mandate.  
- 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) 
29. 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 th is aim, and the proponents of the two proposals 
had decided to work together. Document WT/COMTD/W/208 was the outcome of their 
collaboration. He also recalled that, at the informal, open-ended CTD meeting held on 
5 November, the proponents had indicated that more consultations would be required before they 
would be in a position to report on concrete progress with regard to the proposal. 
30. The representative of Egypt said that the proponents had not received positive reactions 
from some Members, even though efforts had been made to address the concerns that were raised 
on earlier versions of the proposal. The proponents had not had the opportunity to consult with Members since the last CTD meeting. However, if there was a willingness to consider the proposal, 
she suggested that informal consultations would be useful to move the process forward. She 
requested that the present sub-item remain on the CTD's agenda.    
31. 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) 
32. 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 special and 
differential treatment (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 numb er 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 addressed under 
the previous sub-item. The remaining proposal in document WT/COMTD/W/192 was for the CTD to 
make a recommendation for parties to regional trade agreements (RTAs) to submit their notification and information requirements jointly. He recalled that, at the informal, open-ended 
CTD meeting held on 5 November, the proponents  of this proposal had indicated that more 
consultations would be required before they would be in a position to report on concrete progress. 
33. The representative of Egypt indicated that elem ents of her intervention under the previous 
sub-item applied to this sub-item as well. She re quested that the present sub-item remain on the 
CTD's agenda.   WT/COMTD/M/97 
 
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  34. The Committee took note of the interventions. 
- Committee on Trade and Development mandate: review of the application of S&D 
provisions in the Multilateral Trade Agreements and related Ministerial Decisions in favour of developing country Members - proposal from Ecuador (WT/COMTD/W/204) 
35. The Chairman said that the proposal from Ecuador, circulated in document 
WT/COMTD/W/204, was for the Secretariat to periodically update its paper on the implementation 
of S&D provisions. He recalled that, at the informal, open-ended CTD meeting held on 
5 November, the delegation of Ecuador had reported on some progress with respect to this 
proposal, and had indicated that a revised proposal would be circulated. In this regard, he informed the Committee that the revised proposal from Ecuador had been circulated on 12 November 2015 in document WT/COMTD/W/204/Rev.1. He invited Ecuador to introduce the 
revised proposal. 
36. The representative of Ecuador said that the original proposal contained in document 
WT/COMTD/W/204 had been discussed at various formal and informal CTD meetings. The revised 
version of the proposal had been prepared on the basis of the comments that had been made at 
these meetings. In the revision, it was proposed that the Secretariat paper be updated at least once every two years. The report would serve as a reference document for Members, and would be 
used as each Member considered appropriate. It was not intended for the Secretariat paper to be a 
standing item on the CTD's agenda. If a Member wished to make a request for any particular element in the Secretariat paper to be used as the basis for an item on the CTD's agenda, that Member would explain, in its request, the scope and purpose of the proposed discussion. Following 
the circulation of the second report by the Secret ariat, the Committee would review the report and 
the discussions that had taken place, in order to determine whether it was worthwhile to continue producing the document. He noted that, while all the objectives of the original proposal had been 
maintained, additional flexibility had been provided  for Members to decide on the use they wished 
to make of the Secretariat paper. In the view of his delegation, the paper had value, as it provided 
a clear overview of how S&D provisions were being implemented. 
37. The representative of the United States reca lled that his delegation had expressed some 
concerns with the original proposal from Ecuador. He informed the Committee that the US was in a 
position to agree to the revised proposal, conditional on the understanding that there was no intention for the Secretariat paper to be reflected as a standing item on the CTD's agenda. 
38. The representative of the European Union said that her delegation had also expressed some 
concerns with the original proposal. With regard to the revised proposal, she referred to the 
sentence which read: "The report must include an objective and analytical listing of the S&D 
provisions, identifying the measures that have been taken and put forward to operationalize 
them". In this sentence, she believed that the phrase "and put forward" was not necessary, and could also be confusing, since it was usually proposals that were put forward. She indicated that 
the EU could agree to the revised proposal, on the understanding that the Secretariat paper would 
only list measures that had been taken, and would not include reference to any proposals made on how measures could be implemented.   
39. The representative of Ecuador expressed appreciation for the comments received, and 
acknowledged that the revised proposal had only just been circulated. With regard to the 
comments from the US, he confirmed that it was not intended for the Secretariat paper to be a standing item on the CTD's agenda. If a Memb er wanted the paper on the agenda of a CTD 
meeting, it would be that Member's responsibility  to explain what was the intended scope of the 
discussion and how the report would be used. He also indicated his understanding of the EU's comments, and said that his delegation would discuss the matter with the EU.  
40. The representative of Cameroon recalled that his delegation had supported the original 
proposal from Ecuador. He noted that progress had been made in the discussions regarding to the 
proposal.   
41. The Committee took note of all interventions and agreed to the revised proposal from 
Ecuador contained in document WT/COMTD/W/204/Rev.1. WT/COMTD/M/97 
 
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  F. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE ENABLING CLAUSE 
42. T h e  C h a i r m a n  s a i d  t h a t  h e  w i s h e d  t o  i n f o r m  M e m b e r s  o f  a  r e c e n t  n o t i f i c a t i o n  b y  J a p a n  
concerning its Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) scheme, which was contained in document 
WT/COMTD/N/2/Add.16. As the notification had been circulated after the circulation of the agenda 
for the present meeting, it would appear on the agenda of the next CTD meeting. However, he 
understood that Japan wished to briefly introduce the content of the notification at the present meeting. He indicated that he would give the floor to Japan for this purpose after the Committee 
had concluded its consideration of the listed sub-items under the present agenda item.  
43. He also said that he wished to provide Members with a brief update on the RTAs notified 
under the Enabling Clause that were to be consid ered in the CTD's Dedicated Sessions on RTAs. He 
firstly informed the Committee that the factual presentation on the MERCOSUR-India Agreement 
was circulated on 14 September 2015 in docume nt WT/COMTD/RTA/6/1, and that the Agreement 
would be considered in a Dedicated Session of the CTD in the early part of 2016. He also said that two new notifications of RTAs under the Enabling Cl ause had been made since the last formal CTD 
meeting. The goods aspects of the Agreement between Singapore and the Gulf Cooperation 
Council (GCC) were notified under the Enabli ng Clause on 30 June 2015 in document 
WT/COMTD/N/45/Rev.1. The parties had been requ ested to provide the necessary data to the 
Secretariat for the preparation of the factual presentation by 23 November 2015. The Agreement 
between Mauritius and Pakistan was notified on 30 September 2015 in document WT/COMTD/N/47, and the parties had been re quested to provide the necessary data by 
19 February 2016.  
44. With regard to the Agreement between the Association of Southeast 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 to receive comments from 
ASEAN. The draft factual presentation on the accession of Rwanda and Burundi to the East African 
Community had also been sent to the parties, and the Secretariat was still waiting to receive comments. For a number of other RTAs - namely, RTAs between India and Nepal, India and 
Afghanistan, India and Bhutan, and Cuba and El Salv ador - 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 Committee on 
Regional Trade Agreements (CRTA), a factual presentation of an RTA falling in this category would only be drafted after the agreement had been ratifi ed by all the parties. The parties to PICTA were 
urged to inform the Secretariat as soon as all ratifications were complete. 
45. The Committee took note of the Chairman's update. 
46. Turning to the listed sub-items under the presen t agenda item, the Chairman said that he 
wished to say a few words in the context of the discussion in the CTD relating to the RTAs notified 
under both the Enabling Clause and GATT Article XXIV. In particular, he informed the Committee that he had recently held brief informal consulta tions with some Members, including some of the 
parties to the RTAs in question. These consultations had helped him to gain a better understanding 
of the issues, but it was also clear that further discussions would be required before a solution 
could be found. He indicated his willingness to facilitate any discussions among Members in this regard.  
- Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) notification of Customs Union – communication from 
China, Egypt and India (WT/COMTD/W/175) 
47. 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. 
48. The representative of Egypt said that systemic concerns had been raised by some Members, 
including Egypt, over the legal and procedural implications of the dual notification of the GCC 
Customs Union under both the Enabling Clause an d GATT Article XXIV. She noted that a number of 
delegations had previously expressed the view that the Enabling Clause did not provide the WT/COMTD/M/97 
 
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  appropriate legal basis to justify the formation of a customs union involving the reduction or 
elimination of NTMs. However, others had argued that the non-prescription of criteria or conditions for the elimination of NTMs did not exclude customs unions among developing countries from the coverage of the Enabling Clause. The view of her delegation was that the CTD was the appropriate 
forum to consider the questions arising from RTAs with a dual notification. This originated from the 
CTD's terms of reference, which stipulated that the CTD was the focal point for the consideration 
and coordination of work on development in the WTO. In addition, paragraph 4 of the terms of 
reference mandated the CTD to consider any questions with regard to either the application or the 
use of special provisions in the Multilateral Trade Agreements and related Ministerial Decisions in favour of developing country Members, which included questions relating to the invocation of the Enabling Clause to notify customs unions among developing countries. She hoped that Members 
could have a substantive discussion on the systemic concerns that had been raised. The present 
sub-item needed to be maintained on the CTD's agenda until a solution was found.
3 
49. She additionally requested that the first three sub-items under the present agenda item 
remain on the CTD's agenda. 
50. The representative of the United States said that his delegation continued to have concerns 
with the present sub-item being listed on the ag enda. The sub-item had fulfilled its purpose of 
informing Members of the notification made, and needed to be removed from the agenda. He 
regretted that this matter had taken so much of the Committee’s time over the past few years, and observed that these were the types of issues that took time, resources, and attention away from other pressing development matters. 
51. The representative of India expressed support for the intervention by Egypt. He indicated 
that his intervention related to the first three sub-items under the present agenda item, since the 
three RTAs in question had been "dually notified" under the Enabling Clause and GATT 
Article XXIV. He said that the systemic concerns that were raised by China, Egypt and India in 
document WT/COMTD/W/175 remained relevant and had not been addressed. Although some Members had expressed the view that the systemic  concerns that had been raised were outside 
the scope of the CTD, the view of his delegation was that the CTD was the appropriate forum to 
consider the questions arising from RTAs with a dual notification. Finally, he requested that the first three sub-items under the present agenda item remain on the CTD's agenda until the concerns arising from "dually notified" RTAs were addressed. 
52. The representative of the European Union said that she wished to reiterate the EU's view 
that the purpose of the present agenda item was to inform Members of new notifications under the 
Enabling Clause since the previous CTD meeting. She regretted that the same discussion continued 
to take place in the CTD. She also made a distinction between the issues surrounding the GCC 
Customs Union on the one hand, and those su rrounding the ASEAN-Korea Agreement and the 
India-Korea Agreement on the other. Finally, sh e indicated that her delegation was willing to 
consider a pragmatic solution to move forward on this matter, and was also willing to have a 
substantive discussion on systemic issues in the Negotiating Group on Rules. 
53. The representative of China expressed support for the interventions by Egypt and India. He 
explained that the systemic concerns raised by some Members had not yet been addressed.  
54. 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 
55. The Chairman said that the second sub-item under the present agenda item concerned the 
notification of the ASEAN-Korea Agreement. 
56. No Member took the floor under this sub-item. 
                                               
3 The points in this paragrap h, made by Egypt at the 90th Session and also reflected in the minutes of 
the 92nd, 93rd and 95th Sessions, are reflected once again in the mi nutes of this meeting at the request of the 
Egyptian delegation. WT/COMTD/M/97 
 
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  - Notification of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement  between India 
and Korea (Goods) 
57. The Chairman said that the third sub-item under the present agenda item concerned the 
notification of the India-Korea Agreement. 
58. No Member took the floor under this sub-item.  
- Generalized System of Preferences – notification by the European Union 
(WT/COMTD/N/4/Add.7) 
59. The Chairman said that the EU's notification concerning its GSP scheme was contained in 
document WT/COMTD/N/4/Add.7. He invited the EU to introduce the notification. 
60. The representative of the European Union said that the notification concerned the proof of 
origin for goods exported from GSP beneficiary countries to the EU. As of 1 January 2017, a new 
self-certification system – the Registered Expo rter System (REX) - would replace the existing 
system. The self-certification of origin by ex porters under REX functioned on the basis of 
statements of origin. Exporters would need to be  registered with the competent authorities in 
order to participate. A transition period was available for beneficiary countries that were not able 
to start using the new system immediately. Technical assistance would also be provided to help beneficiary countries implement the system.   
61. The representative of the United States said that his delegation was interested in the 
transition from a certificate of origin to a statement of origin. He inquired whether the statement 
of origin would remain a physical document, or whether the information would be transmitted electronically. His delegation also wished to know whether it would be necessary for the statement 
of origin to accompany the shipment of goods, and whether both importers and producers would 
be able to complete the statement of origin.  
62. The representative of the European Union said that her delegation would respond bilaterally 
to the questions from the US. 
63. The Committee took note of the notification  by the EU and of the interventions. 
64. The Chairman invited Japan to briefly introduce the content of its notification concerning its 
GSP scheme, which had been circulated in document WT/COMTD/N/2/Add.16. The notification 
would appear on the agenda of the next CTD meeting.  
65. The representative of Japan indicated that his delegation wished to inform the Committee of 
an amendment to Japan's customs regulations. In particular, he said that Japan had modified its 
preferential rules of origin under its GSP schem e for Chapter 61 of the Harmonized System, which 
concerned articles of apparel and clothing accessories which were knitted or crocheted. With this modification, products classified under Chapter 61 qualified as originating goods when they went 
through a single manufacturing process, such as from fabrics to apparel products. The new 
regulation was applicable as of 1 April 2015.  
66. The Committee took note of the intervention by Japan.  
G. NOTIFICATIONS UNDER THE TRANSPARENCY MECHANISM FOR PREFERENTIAL 
TRADE ARRANGEMENTS 
67. 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 firstly informed the Committee that Thailand had notified its duty-free and 
quota-free (DFQF) scheme for LDCs on 21 July 2015 in document WT/COMTD/N/46. Thailand had been requested to provide the Secretariat the ne cessary data for the preparation of the factual 
presentation by 8 December 2015. With regard to four other PTAs notified since the establishment 
of the Transparency Mechanism for PTAs - namely , PTAs being implemented by China, India, the 
Russian Federation and Chinese Taipei - the Secret ariat had still not received the full set of data WT/COMTD/M/97 
 
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  required for the preparation of the factual presentations. He urged the notifying Members to 
provide the data as soon as possible. 
68. The Committee took note of the Chairman's update.  
H. ANNUAL REVIEW OF THE STEPS TAKEN TO PROVIDE DUTY-FREE AND QUOTA-FREE 
MARKET ACCESS TO LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES 
69. T h e  C h a i r m a n  s a i d  t h a t  h e  w i s h e d  t o  p r o v i d e Members with a brief update on what had 
transpired since the special CTD meeting devoted to DFQF market access which was held on 
23 September 2015. He recalled that, at that meeting, discussion on a possible way forward had 
focused on what some had termed a "clinical examination" of the issues involved and possible impact arising from the implementation of DFQF market access for LDCs, on the basis of a study 
prepared by the Secretariat. Bangladesh – the main proponent – had subsequently submitted an 
informal document suggesting possible parameters for the proposed Secretariat study. On the 
basis of this informal document, he had held informal consultations with a number of delegations that had expressed an interest in this issue. He went on to say that his consultations on the 
elements of a possible study by the Secretariat had not brought any convergence thus far. The 
delegation of Bangladesh had informed him that the comments and views received from interested Members could not be easily reconciled, and it was therefore not possible to submit a revised 
proposal at this time. Nevertheless, he indicated that he remained available if Members wished to 
continue the discussion on the parameters of the study. In concluding, he said that the DFQF issue remained in the negotiations, and he encouraged Members to take forward this discussion as they prepared for a possible outcome at MC10.  
70. The Committee took note of the Chairman's update. 
- Report by the Secretariat (WT/COMTD/W/214) 
71. The Chairman said that the Bali Ministerial De cision contained in document WT/MIN(13)/44 - 
WT/L/919 instructed the CTD to continue to a nnually review the steps taken to provide DFQF 
market access to the LDCs, and report to the General Council for appropriate action. To aid in its review, the Secretariat was to prepare a report, in close coordination with Members, on their DFQF 
market access for LDCs at the tariff line level, based on their notifications. He said that the 
Secretariat report, which had been circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/214, was the second of its kind prepared to facilitate the CTD's annual review of steps taken to provide DFQF market access to LDCs. It built upon, and updated, the pr evious report issued in November 2014, which 
was circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/206. It was largely based on last year's report, and 
followed the same structure. He recalled that a draft of the document had been considered at the 
informal, open-ended CTD meeting held on 5 November 2015. His general feeling from the 
discussion at that meeting was that the Secretariat report was useful and informative. 
72. The representative of Chinese Taipei noted th at Chinese Taipei was one of the developing 
Members that had notified its DFQF scheme to the WTO. His delegation believed that an 
improvement in market access opportunities for LDCs would help to facilitate their integration into 
the multilateral trading system, and would contribu te to their economic growth and development. 
In this light, he called on more Members to gr ant DFQF market access to products from LDCs. 
73. The Committee took note of the Secretariat report and of the interventions.  
I. PARTICIPATION OF DEVELOPING COUNTR IES IN THE MULTILATERAL TRADING 
SYSTEM (WT/COMTD/W/212) 
74. The Chairman said that the CTD had a mandate to keep under continuous review the 
participation of developing country Members in the multilateral trading system. He recalled that it 
had been agreed at the 93rd Session that the CTD's discussion under this agenda item would take 
place at the present meeting, based on a background paper prepared by the Secretariat. He 
invited the Chief of the International Trade Statistics Section to introduce the paper, which had 
been circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/212.  WT/COMTD/M/97 
 
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  75. The Chief of the International Trade Statistics Section provided a broad summary of the 
information contained in the Secretariat paper. As part of his presentation, he said that developing 
economies' participation in international trade had remained high during the 2012-2014 period, which was the focus period of the paper. The share of merchandise exports of developing 
economies was 43.6% in 2014 - which was almost the same as in 2012 - while the import share 
increased to 41%. With regard to commercial se rvices, developing economies' export share 
declined slightly over the period – to about 30%  in 2014 – and the import share increased to 38%. 
Turning to quarterly merchandise trade statistics, he noted that trade had grown unevenly across 
developing regions. For example, a number of fact ors - including geopolitical tensions and a drop 
in fuel prices - had contributed to a decline in  the exports of Africa and the Middle East. In 
developing Asia, the trade of the "six East Asian traders" - Hong Kong, China; the Republic of 
Korea; Malaysia; Singapore; Chinese Taipei; and Thailand - remained stable, while the exports of 
the rest of the region increased. Latin American  trade growth was largely affected by economic 
slowdown in four of the major economies in the region. He added that, in spite of the difficulties 
experienced in some developing regions, South-South trade had continued to increase, and was an 
important contributor to the overall trade of developing economies. China continued to be an important player in South-South trade. 
76. H e  w e n t  o n  t o  h i g h l i g h t  s o m e  e l e m e n t s  o f  d e v e l o p i n g  e c o n o m i e s '  t r a d e  i n  c o m m e r c i a l  
services over the 2012-2014 period. He noted that developing economies' transport exports had not increased, reflecting a context of relatively weak flows of merchandise trade and falling oil prices. Although developing economies remained net exporters of travel, their travel surplus 
declined sharply in 2014. Developing economies' participation in world exports of "other 
commercial services" remained stable over the focus period, but the participation varied considerably by type of service. In 2014, the larg est shares were recorded in construction, other 
business services, and telecommunications, computer and information services. He next provided 
some insights into the participation of developing economies in global value chains (GVCs), using Latin American economies as illustrative examples. He noted in this regard that Chile was a 
developing economy whose participation in GVCs was mainly driven by downstream links and the 
export of natural resources. A similar predominance  of forward GVC linkages could be observed in 
Colombia. In contrast, Costa Rica and Mexico relied mostly on the import of inputs that they further processed, assembled and embedded into inte rmediate or final products to be exported. He 
informed the Committee that the overall participat ion of developing economies in GVCs increased 
from about 37% in 1995 to close to 49% in 2011. Finally, with regard to the time taken for developing economies to export and import, he noted that, in 2014, Africa had recorded a 
reduction of 0.8 days for exporting and 1.1 days for importing. In LDCs, the delays to export and 
import were reduced by almost a day.   
77. The representative of the European Union expr essed appreciation for the Secretariat report. 
She noted that, in a context of lower economic and trade growth, South-South trade had 
continued to expand in recent years. The in creasing share of developing economies, and 
particularly emerging economies, in global trade also pointed to a growing responsibility towards poorer developing countries. This concerned to some extent the DFQF schemes of developing 
countries in favour of LDCs. In addition, it reflected the need for a growing responsibility in the 
area of Aid for Trade and the manner in which development effectiveness principles were taken into account. Finally, she said that her delegation was encouraged by the positive findings 
regarding the participation of developing economies in GVCs.   
78. The Committee took note of the Secretaria t report and of the interventions.   
J. DRAFT ANNUAL REPORT FOR 2015 (WT/COMTD/W/213) 
79. The Chairman said that a fax was sent to Memb ers on 5 November 2015 to inform them that 
the CTD's draft annual report had been circulated in document WT/COMTD/W/213. It was noted 
that the draft contained a number of square brackets relating to items under consideration at the 97
th Regular Session, as well as at the 4th Dedicated Session on the Monitoring Mechanism on 
Special and Differential Treatment and the 30th Dedicated Session on Small Economies. The square 
brackets would be removed as part of the process of adopting the annual report. Noting that Members had been requested to submit in writing any comments on the draft annual report by 
10 November, he informed the Committee that no  comments had been received on the report. WT/COMTD/M/97 
 
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  80. The Committee adopted its annual report for 2015.4 
K. OTHER BUSINESS 
81. No matter was raised under "Other Business".  
82. The meeting was adjourned. 
 
__________  
 
 
 
                                               
4 The report was issued in  document WT/COMTD/87.