. /.   WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/C/W/609 
20 November 2008 
 (08-5654) 
Council for Trade in Goods Original:   English 
  
 
INTERNATIONAL TEXTILES AND CLOTHING BUREAU 
GOA COMMUNIQUÉ 
 
Communication from Hong Kong, China
 
 
 
The following communication, dated 18 November 2 008, is being circulated at the request of 
the Delegation of Hong Kong, China, on behalf of the members of the ITCB that are also Members or 
Observers of the WTO. 
 
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 Council of Representatives 46
th Session 
Goa, India 
10-13 November 2008 
 
Goa Communiqué  
 
The ITCB Council of Representatives, meeting at its 46th session from 10 -13 November 2008 
in Goa, India, discussed issues and prospects related to trade in textiles and clothing, including the 
current state of trade in the sect or; the future role and functions of the ITCB; textile-related market 
access issues under the Doha Development Agenda  (DDA); certain non-tariff issues confronting 
members’ exports; and Aid-for-Trade in th e context of textiles and clothing.   
 The Council expressed appreciation for the presence of and valuable contributions on the 
current state of trade in the sector from the repr esentatives of various business associations – the 
European Foreign Trade Association; the Chin a Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of 
Textiles; the China National Textile and Appare l Council; the Confederation of Indian Textile 
Industry; the Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Counc il of India; the Synthetic and Rayon Textile 
Export Promotion Council of India; the Korea Fede ration of Textile Industries; the Korea Textile 
Trade Association; and the Vietna m Textile and Apparel Association.   The Council also thanked the 
representative from Jordan for offering its views from a non-member's perspective. 
 The Council discussed the report of the Task Force established in February 2008 to examine 
the future role and functions of the ITCB and to make recommendations for the Council’s 
consideration. It expressed gratitude for the dedication and commitment of the Chairman and 
members of the Task Force. It adopted the recomm endations of the Task Force including that, while 
the ITCB should remain an intergovernmental orga nisation and continue to function in accordance 
with its charter, a Private Sector Consultative Committee should be established to advise the Council 
on matters of interest to the private sector. It further decided to launch a three-pronged action plan 
designed to strengthen the ITCB as a source of information and services for members as well as their 
private sectors.  It expressed confidence in the IT CB’s ability to serve the private sector in a more 
comprehensive manner in the future.   G/C/W/609 
Page 2  
 
   
The Council reviewed the state of market access negotiations pertinent to trade in textiles and 
clothing under the DDA. It urged that progress be made in negotiations with respect to addressing high tariffs, tariff peaks and tariff escalation in the se ctor.  It noted the need for a balanced resolution 
to address the challenges facing preference-receivi ng members, disproportionately–affected members 
and MFN-supplying members as a consequence of tari ff liberalisation in textiles and clothing on an 
MFN basis. The Council expressed the hope that th e negotiation on non-agricultural market access 
(NAMA) would result in a fair and balanced out come to enhance the ma rket access opportunities for 
developing countries in the sector and called on de veloped countries to show leadership in this 
respect. The Council further noted that the mo dalities to be adopted should deliver on the 
development dimension of the DDA and recalled that special and differential treatment for developing 
countries should be an integral part of NAMA negotiations. 
 The Council expressed its concern on the issue of non-tariff barriers.  It discussed the 
proposal by certain WTO Members for an agreem ent on labelling of textiles and clothing products 
and came to the view that further clarification was required of the perceived problem giving rise to 
this proposal. It was necessary to monitor closely and remain vigilant in respect of attempts to impose 
any new trade-restrictive measures.   
 The Council reviewed the state of discussions on Aid-for-Trade and agreed to discuss further 
the possibility of prioritising the allocation of Ai d-for-Trade resources in favour of the textiles and 
clothing sector to assist developing countries to ta ke advantage of new market access opportunities 
and to meet the challenges of adjustment upon the conclusion of the DDA. 
 The Council expressed its concern over the fina ncial and economic turmoil and its potential 
negative impact on the textiles and clothing sector. It urged those major developed economies, which 
had long restrained imports from developing countries in the sector, to reject protectionist pressures 
and help strengthen confidence in th e multilateral trading system. It asked the Secretariat to continue 
to monitor closely pertinent developments related to trade in the sector and to report on a regular 
basis. 
 
The Council reiterated its resolve to continue  and strengthen coordination among its members 
and to deepen its dialogue with other textile and clothing developing econo my exporters having a 
shared interest in trade in the sector. In this regard, it emphasised the importance of constructive 
actions aimed at strengthening the positive efforts at liberalisation in the sector to further the 
development needs of its members. It also stressed  the importance of developing countries exercising 
restraint from taking trade-restrictive measures amongs t themselves in the textiles and clothing sector. 
 
The Council expressed profound gratitude to the G overnment of India for hosting the meeting 
and for its generous hospitality. His Excellency, Mr. A.K. Singh, Secretary, Ministry for Textiles of 
India inaugurated the session. Mr. Martin Glass, Ch airman of the ITCB and Permanent Representative 
of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of  China to the WTO, chaired the session while Dr. 
J.N. Singh, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Textiles of India, served as its Vice-Chairman. 
 
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