WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/COMTD/SE/W/14 
10 October 2005 
 
 (05-4584) 
Committee on Trade and Development 
Dedicated Session Original:  English 
 
 
WORK PROGRAMME ON SMALL ECONOMIES 
 
"Small Economies Report to the Committee on Trade  
and Development in Dedicated Session " 
 
Communication from Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Bolivia, Cuba, Dominica,  
Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Fiji, Gre nada, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica,  
Mauritius, Mongolia, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Solomon Islands, 
 St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago 
  
 The following communication, dated 7 October 2005, is being circulated at the request of the above delegations. 
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1. The Small Economies Work Programme was launche d at the Doha Ministerial conference in 
November 2001 with a mandate recorded in Paragra ph 35 of the Declaration.  Over the years progress 
has been slow as the proponents sought to ra ise Members understanding of the nature of the 
vulnerabilities of small economies.  These vulnerabilities result from the combination and the intensity of the difficulties faced by small, vulnerable economies- including geographical remoteness, 
natural disasters, external economic shocks- coupled  with their lack of resilience.  Given these 
realities Ministers at Doha therefore considered th at these economies deserve special consideration in 
the WTO. 
2. It was emphasized that no one characteristic and problem by itself can be assumed to be 
unique to small, vulnerable economies thus emphasizing the cumulative effect of these characteristics and problems.  Members were asked to take a ho listic view of the marginalization these economies 
are seeking to avoid. 
3. Much time has also been usefully spent in st ructuring an approach which is considered 
capable of avoiding the formation of a new sub- category of Members.  The characteristics based 
approach has therefore been discussed as Members s ought to understand the trade-related problems of 
small economies.  The work programme is now ther efore at the phase of "framing responses" to these 
problems.  The role of the Committee on Trade and Development (CTD) in Dedicated Session at this 
stage includes the monitoring of the progress of such  responses in the relevant negotiating and other 
bodies. 
1. Monitoring Role of the CTD 
4. Document WT/COMTD/W/13 of May 2005 propo sed the examination of more concrete 
responses to the trade-related problems of small, vul nerable economies, in the CTD, with a view to 
also providing more detailed inputs to the rele vant negotiating and other bodies.  The CTD should 
monitor the progress of the small economies propo sals in the negotiating and other bodies where 
relevant and informing the General Council accordingly. WT/COMTD/SE/W/14 
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 2. Trade-related Responses 
5. In document WT/COMTD/SE/W/12, it was stated that "(i)t is the aim of the proponents to 
trigger with this paper the engagement of all Members in working towards framing responses to the 
needs and concerns of the small economies and ensu ring appropriate reporting to the Sixth Ministerial 
Conference …."  Document WT/COMTD/SE/W/13 pr oposed "Considerations for Responses …" and 
"Elements of Responses" providing a bridge between the characteristics/problems and responses. 
3. Agreement-Specific Proposals 
6. Initial submissions have been made in the relevant negotiating bodies as follows: 
• Agriculture 
Overview of Small Economies' Positions on the Agriculture Ne gotiations (JOB(05)/161 of 
27 July 2005 attached in Appendix A). 
• NAMA  
Overview of Small Economie s' Positions on the NAMA Negotiations (JOB(05)/165 of 
29 July 2005 attached in Appendix B). 
 7. In addition, the following small, vulnerabl e economies- Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, 
Dominican Republic, Fiji, Guyana, Jamaica, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, St. Lucia and 
Trinidad and Tobago- tabled document TN/RL/ GEN/57 (Architecture on Fisheries Subsidies 
Disciplines) of 13 September 2005 in the Rules Negotiating Group. 
4. The Way Forward 
8. The continuation of the two tract approach is recommended as follows: 
• The CTD continues to monitor progress of sm all economies proposals in the negotiating and 
other bodies; 
• Agreement-specific proposals are tabled in the relevant negotiating and other bodies. 
 
9. The Ministerial Conference declaration shall in clude specific language that reflects the work 
carried out and the progress made in the context of the CTD as well as in the negotiating and other bodies and shall instruct the negotiating and other bodies to continue to address the concerns of small, 
vulnerable economies towards the ultimate goal of framing responses to the problems identified. 
10. In order to fulfil the requirements of the mandate as well as the monitoring and reporting 
requirements of the General Council, the following should be noted: 
1. As mandated in document WT/L/447 (e) the CTD is  expected to report to the General Council 
so that the General Council can make appr opriate recommendations for action to the 
Ministerial Conference. 
 
2. WT/L/447 (i) states that "In accordance with th e outcome of the programme of work in the 
CTD, the General Council shall, as appropriate, direct relevant subsidiary bodies to frame 
responses to the trade-related issues iden tified by the CTD with a view to making 
recommendations for action to the .…. Ministerial Conference as mandated". 
  
  WT/COMTD/SE/W/14 
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 3. It is recognized that Paragraph 35 requires that  "the General Council shall review the work 
programme and make recommendations for action …. to the Ministerial Conference."  In 
such a review, it is probable that the General Council may instruct a subsidiary body to take 
appropriate action in order to advance the work programme consistent with the Doha 
mandate. 
 
4. Specifically, between October and November 2005 the negotiating and other bodies in which 
small economies needs and concerns have been  raised should be encouraged to give 
meaningful consideration to a ppropriate responses.  The Chairs of those bodies should ensure 
that adequate recognition of responses are made in the draft declaration so that enhanced 
special and differential treatment concessions are extended to small economies where 
appropriate. 
 
5. After December 2005, the small economies proponents are expected to continue refining and 
enhancing their body of proposals in the negotia ting bodies and in the CTD as appropriate.  In 
all cases, the CTD will be kept informed. 
 
6. The final outcome of the Round should see the delivery of effective, meaningful and 
operational responses to the trade-rela ted problems of small economies. 
 11. Document WT/COMTD/SE/W/13 essentially presented the small, vulnerable economies 
"first approximation" as it sought to indicate the areas  in which responses will be sought.  This paper, 
WT/COMTD/SE/W/14, reports on progress sinc e document WT/COMTD/SE/W/13 and suggests how 
the proponents envisage the work programme c ould proceed – towards the Sixth Ministerial 
Conference and thereafter. 
12. The gravity of the difficulties faced by sma ll, vulnerable economies, as well as the clear 
mandate provided in the Doha Ministerial Declarati on and reaffirmed in the 2004 July Package, make 
it necessary for the WTO to agree on concrete respon ses to the specific problems identified by small, 
vulnerable economies in the CTD and in negotiating and other bodies. WT/COMTD/SE/W/14 
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 APPENDIX A 
 
JOB(05)/161 
Committee on Agriculture 27 July 2005 
Special Session 
 
 
OVERVIEW OF SMALL ECONOMIES’ POSITIONS ON THE AGRICULTURE 
NEGOTIATIONS 
 
Communication from Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Bolivia, Cuba, Dominica, 
 
Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Fiji, Grenada, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica,  Mauritius, 
Mongolia, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, So lomon Islands, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, 
St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago  
 
 
1. It has been agreed in the De dicated Session of the Committee on Trade and Development that 
the small economies would articulate their concerns  in the relevant negotiating groups. This process 
of elaboration of issues of interest to small econom ies in fora other than the Dedicated Session of the 
Committee on Trade and Development is also in accordance with the Framework and Procedures of 
the Work Programme on Small Economies (WT/L/447).  
 
2. In fulfilling the request of our trading partners  to take relevant issues to the negotiating 
groups, small economy delegations wish to bring to  the attention of the Special Session of the 
Committee on Agriculture some of the issues and con cerns that we have raised in other bodies in the 
WTO, which are relevant to the Agriculture negotia tions, and which will influence our perspective of 
the Special Session’s work towards formulating de tailed modalities for presentation to Ministers in 
Hong Kong.  3. In the Uruguay Round small, vulnerable economies undertook significant commitments, some 
of which have resulted in severe difficulties. Smal l economies remain committed to the liberalization 
process. However, liberalization must be at a pace  and with levels of re ductions which our economies 
can sustain.  
 4. Taking into account documents WT/COMTD/ SE/W/12 and WT/COMTD/SE/W/13 Rev. 1, 
the small, vulnerable economies would like to high light the following fundamental considerations: 
 
a) The agricultural sector in small, vulnerable economies plays a key role in the attainment of 
their socio-economic development goals, in par ticular with respect to food security, rural 
development, exports and employment. The vol atility of international prices for products 
exported by small, vulnerable economies constitut es an important factor of high vulnerability 
for some small, vulnerable economies. In this c ontext, it is important for small economies that 
these issues be addressed satisfactorily in the agriculture negotiations; 
  
b) Small, vulnerable economies have an insignifican t level of participation in the multilateral 
trading system and a minimal share of total world trade. Furthermore, these economies are constrained by low levels of competitiveness.  Issues related to market access for small 
economies’ products should be addressed satisfactorily so that these economies can 
participate meaningfully in the multilateral trad ing system in accordance with their level of 
development; 
  WT/COMTD/SE/W/14 
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 c) Small, vulnerable economies have  critical concerns in the ma rket access pillar of the 
agriculture negotiations, including special a nd differential treatment and flexibilities and 
economic development broadly. For most small economies, tariffs are the only tool at their 
disposal to protect their agricultural sectors. It is therefore crucial that the tariff reduction formula be flexible enough to accommodate th e concerns of small vulnerable economies; 
 
d) Bearing in mind the key contribution that agriculture makes to the food security and rural 
development of small, vulnerable economies, these countries consider that the provisions of Special Products (SP) and the Special Safegua rd Mechanism (SSM) are important for the 
development of their agricultural sectors. Acco rdingly, SP shall be exempted from tariff 
reductions and from any commitments on TRQs . SP shall also have access to the SSM;.   
 
e) The issue of maintenance of current de minimis  support levels for developing countries is of 
major importance to small, vulnerable economies, especially since they do not have access to 
the aggregate measure of support (AMS). We wish to emphasize that there is no justification 
for the reduction of de minimis support by developing countries;  
 
f) The concerns of small, vulnerable economies sha ll be taken into account in all the provisions 
of special and differential treatment wh ich are provided in the Doha mandate.  
 7. This document is without prejudice to the ri ghts of the small economies to make future 
submissions to the Special Session on any of the issues contained in this document and/or on any 
other issues not included here.  WT/COMTD/SE/W/14 
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 APPENDIX B 
 
JOB(05)/165 29 July 2005 
 
Negotiating Group on Market Access 
  
 
OVERVIEW OF SMALL ECONOMIES’ POSI TIONS ON THE NAMA NEGOTIATIONS 
 
 
Communication
1 from Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Bolivia, Cuba,  
Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Fiji, Grenada, Guatemala,  
Honduras, Jamaica,  Mauritius, Mongolia, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea,  
Paraguay, Solomon Islands, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent  
and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago  
  
Members will be familiar with the mandate  on small, vulnerable economies contained in 
Paragraph 35 of the Doha Ministerial Declarati on. The objective of the work programme on small 
economies is to frame responses to the trade-relate d issues identified for the fuller integration of 
small, vulnerable economies into the multilateral tradi ng system. Members will also be aware that the 
2004 July Package reaffirms the entire membership’s  commitment to fulfil the paragraph 35 mandate 
and to address the small economies’ tr ade-related issues. In this contex t, it is also relevant to recall 
that the July Package also calls  for special attention to be given, in the course of the NAMA 
negotiations, to the specific trade and developmen t related needs and concerns of developing 
countries. 
 
It has been agreed in the De dicated Session of the Committee on Trade and Development that 
the small economies would articulate their concerns  in the relevant negotiating groups. This process 
of elaboration of issues of interest to small ec onomies in fora other than the Committee on Trade and 
Development is also in accordance with the Fr amework and Procedures of the Work Programme on 
Small Economies (WT/L/447).  
 In fulfilling the request of our trading partners  to take relevant issues to the negotiating 
groups, small economy delegations wish to bring to the attention of the NAMA Negotiating Group 
some of the issues and concerns that we have raised  in other bodies in the WTO, which are relevant to 
the NAMA negotiations, and which will influence ou r perspective of the Negotiating Group’s work 
towards formulating detailed modalities for presentation to Ministers in Hong Kong.   Small economies have issues of substantial in terest in the NAMA negotiations, including 
special flexibilities and economic development broadly.  These issues should be addressed satisfactorily so that small, vulnerable economie s can participate meaningfully in the multilateral 
trading system in accordance with their level of  development, market share, vulnerabilities and 
economic size and structure.  
Small economies remain committed to the liberali sation process. However, liberalisation must 
be at a pace and with levels of reductions which our economies can sustain. 
 
                                                     
 
1 This was the statement made by Barbados on behalf of the Small Economies at the wrap up session of 
the NAMA week 4-8 July 2005.  WT/COMTD/SE/W/14 
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 For small developing economies, tariffs are a primary means of ensuring the viability of 
vulnerable domestic industries, achieving sustai nable levels of development and maintaining 
revenues. Therefore, it is the view of small ec onomy delegations that the tariff reduction approach 
used in these development-oriented negotiations must  be suited to developing countries’ trade profiles 
and their ability to offer and sustain concessions. 
Furthermore, less than full reciprocity and special and differential treatment must be the 
foundations on which the NAMA negotiating modaliti es are established. In accordance with the 
paragraph 16 DMD mandate, it is necessary for bot h less-than-full-reciprocity and S&D to be both 
integral and cross-cutting elements of the negot iations. The high importance of flexibility for 
countries which have an insignificant share of wo rld trade, a small production and export base and 
little or no comparative or competitive advantag e in these negotiations cannot be overstated. 
 
Small economies regard para graph 8 as the foundation on which additional measures to 
provide flexibilities will be built. In our view, th e S&D flexibilities in the final modalities should be 
augmented from the current paragraph 8. To make S&D conditional is contrary to the spirit of both 
paragraph 16 and the DDA. 
 
Developing countries, particularly the most  vulnerable among them, will require an 
appropriate timeframe for the im plementation of agreed tariff reductions. Such implementation 
periods are to be commensurate with their levels of development, size of economy, fiscal and other strategic development needs.  
 
We recall that paragraph 15 of Annex B rec ognizes that appropriate studies and capacity 
building measures shall be an integral part of  the NAMA modalities. These issues have not been 
adequately discussed in the NG. In order to ensure  the effective participation of small, vulnerable 
economies in the negotiations, it would be necessar y to conduct studies on the impact of further 
liberalisation on their economies and provide appropr iate trade-related technical assistance. Useful 
studies could include the conduct of periodic assessm ents of the impact of tariff reductions on the 
economies of developing countries.   
The results that small economies would wish to see as an outcome of the NAMA negotiations to 
address their situation include : 
 
1. A minimum level of tariff reduction by sma ll economies, which in no way impacts on 
their current applied rates.  
2. No tariff reduction commitments by small ec onomies on products which have strategic 
value for their economic development. 
3. Longer implementation periods for small economies. 
4. Tangible recognition for those small economies which have a substantial percentage of 
tariff binding coverage. 
5. The elimination of NTBs on products of  export interest to small economies.  
6. Targeted technical assistance, including in the area of supply side constraints, in order to 
facilitate the use by small economi es of market access concessions. 
 
Small economies which are in the process of accessi on shall not be required to agree to more 
onerous NAMA obligations than those already acce pted by small economy members of WTO. In 
addition, treatment similar to that now being s ought by small economies in the NAMA negotiations 
must also be accorded to acceding small economies. 
 
The co-sponsors of this document urge the NAMA NG to specifically address the trade-
related problems of small, vul nerable economies in an expe ditious and timely manner.  
 WT/COMTD/SE/W/14 
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  This document is without prejudice to the ri ghts of the small economies to make future 
submissions to the Negotiating Group on any of the issues contained in this document and/or on any 
other issues not included here.  
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