WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/AG/GEN/83 
2 April 2009 
 (09-1650) 
Committee on Agriculture  
  
QUESTIONNAIRE 
Improvement of Timeliness and Completeness of Notifications 
 
under Existing Procedures1 
 
 
                                                      
 1 In responding to the questionnaire, Members may wish to refer to the following notification requirements 
(G/AG/2 and G/AG/2/Add.1 refer), as appropriate: 
Tariff and other quotas:  Table MA:1, Table MA:2 
Special safeguard:  Table MA:3,  Table MA:4,  Table MA:5 Current Total AMS:  Table DS:1 and Supporting Tables DS:1 to DS:9 
New or modified exempt measures:  Table DS:2 
Export subsidy commitments:  Table ES:1 and Supporti ng Tables ES:1 and ES:2, Table ES:2, Table ES:3 
Export prohibitions and rest rictions:  Table ER:1 
Monitoring of the Follow-up to the Decision on Measures concerning the Possible Negativ e Effects of the Reform 
Programme on Least-Developed and Net-Food Im porting Developing Countries:  Table NF:1 
  
Objective 
 
 Members have recognized the need to  improve compliance with their 
notification obligations as well as the n eed to enhance institutional capacity to 
analyze notified information. The purpose of this questionnaire is therefore to 
start a more focused discussion on ways to improve the timeliness and 
completeness of notifications under the procedures and formats adopted by the 
Committee on Agriculture.     
 Based on the response
s supplied, it is hoped that the difficulties faced by 
Members in preparing and analyzing notific ations will be identified and that 
solutions to address them will be suggested .   
 
Deadline and contact  
 
 The electronic copy of this questionnaire can be downloaded from the WTO Web Site, Documents Online at: 
 http://docsonline.wto.org/
 
 The questionnaire should be completed and sent to the WTO Secretariat 
by 30 April 2009 by e-mail  to:  majda.petschen@wto.org  G/AG/GEN/83 
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PART I – PREPARATION OF NOTIFICATIONS 
I.1 Have you encountered any problems in preparing your notifications? 
Yes     Sometimes      No   
I.2 If so, please identify and describe them (by notification requirement): 
 
I.3 Did you overcome those problems? 
Yes     Sometimes      No   
I.4 If so, please describe the instruments/measures that  were implemented to address them (by notification 
requirement): 
 
I.5 Have you had any problems submitting your notifications on time? 
Yes     Sometimes      No   
I.6 If so, please identify the factors that contribu ted to the delay (by notification requirement): 
 
I.7 Did you overcome those problems? 
Yes     Sometimes      No   
I.8 If so, please describe the instruments/measures that  were implemented to address them (by notification 
requirement): 
 
I.9 What would be the best ways/initiatives to assist Members in meeting their notification obligations? 
 
PART II  – PARTICIPATION IN THE REVIEW PROCESS 
II.1 How often do you participate  in the review process? 
Frequently                                                           Sometimes    
Rarely                                                                        Never                                 
II.2 How would you rate your participation in the review process? 
Satisfactory                           Average                           Unsatisfactory     
II.3 Have you encountered any problems in pa rticipating in the review process? 
Yes     Sometimes      No   
II.4 If so, please identify and describe them (by notification requirement): 
 
II.5 Do you feel that your participation in the review  process  by posing questions to,  and obtaining 
answers from, Members has yielded satisfactory/ unsatisfactory results?  Please elaborate (by 
notification requirement): 
 
II.6 Do you feel that your participa tion in the review process by recei ving questions from, and providing 
answers to, Members has yielded sa tisfactory/unsatisfactory results?  Please elaborate (by notification 
requirement):  
  G/AG/GEN/83 
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  PART III – CURRENTLY AVAILABLE TOOLS (See details in the Annex) 
  Have you been 
aware of it? Have you ever 
used it? Has it been 
helpful? Any 
comments? 
III.1 Schedules of commitments     
III.2 Agricultural Supporting Tables     
III.3 Notification Requirements and 
Formats (G/AG/2 and Add.1)     
III.4 Notifications Handbook 
(WT/TC/NOTIF/AG/1)     
III.5 Assistance by the AGCD staff     
III.6 TA activities     
III.7 Members' notifications      
III.8 Organization of Work and 
Working Procedures (G/AG/1)     
III.9 Room document – Compliance 
with Notification Obligations     
III.10 Room document - Questions     
III.11 Members' written answers     
III.12 Summary Report of the 
Meeting (G/AG/R/--)     
III.13 The Integrated Database (IDB)     
PART IV  –"NEW TOOL-BOX" 
IV.1 What other  tools would you envisage to improve Members' capacity to prepare and/or analyze 
notifications?  
 
IV.2 Is there a need to improve dissemination of notification-related information?   
Yes      No   
IV.3 If so, in what ways? 
 
PART V – GENERAL COMMENTS 
V.1 Do you have a system in place that would allow you to preserve the "know-how" related to the 
preparation/analysis of notifications and the partic ipation in the review pro cess? Please elaborate: 
 
V.2 Other comments, if any: 
 G/AG/GEN/83 
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  A
NNEX  
 
CURRENTLY AVAILABLE TOOLS  
 
 When preparing  notifications for submission to the WTO Central Registry of Notifications 
(CRN), the following sources of information could be used: 
o Schedules of commitments - available on the WTO Web Site.   
o Note that the latest situation of each WT O Schedule is monitored by the WTO Committee 
on Market Access in order to take account of rectifications, modifications, the results of 
re-negotiations, and the various  transpositions in more recent versions of the Harmonized 
System nomenclature.  For this purpose, the Secretariat updates and circulates a 
background note.  The latest situation is reflected in document G/MA/W/23/Rev.6 dated 
19 March 2009.  A Web Site dedicated to the Current Situation of Schedules of WTO Members is accessible at: 
http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/sch edules_e/goods_schedules_table_e.htm
   
o The electronic version of Schedules of commit ments is known as the Consolidated Tariff 
Schedule ("CTS").  The CTS is directly acc essible by delegations on the WTO Members' 
Web Site. 
o Supporting Tables Relating to Commitments on Ag ricultural Products in Part IV of the 
Schedules - often referred to as "Agricultural Supporting Tables" or "AGST Materials". 
Electronic copies are available on the WTO Web Site, via Documents Online .   
o Notification Requirements and Formats  adopted by the Committee on Agriculture (G/AG/2), 
and including the Addendum - List of "Significant Exporters for the Purposes of the Notification 
Requirements in Respect of Export Subsidy Commitments" (G/AG/2/Add.1).  These two documents are available on-line and the Secretariat continues to distribute them in paper format at 
each regular meeting of the Committee (as part of the documents pack received by all delegates). 
o Notifications Handbook  developed by the Secretariat in 1996 for technical assistance purposes 
and entitled "Technical Coopera tion Handbook on Notification Re quirements – Agreement on 
Agriculture" (WT/TC/NOTIF/AG/1). 
o Assistance by the WTO Agriculture and Commodities Division staff  who remain at the 
disposal of delegations for consultations, as appropriate.  
o Technical assistance  activities  coordinated by the WTO Institu te of Technical Cooperation and 
Training (ITTC), based on the technical assistance and training plans.  Details are available at:  
http://www.wto.org/english/trat op_e/devel_e/teccop_e/tct_e.htm
, including a list of activities for 
2008/2009 at:  http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/d evel_e/train_e/course_details_e.htm  
o Notifications circulated by th e Member concerned in the past  - in case there are changes in 
capital-based staff responsible for notifications, previous notifications by a Member concerned 
may also be a useful source of information.  On-line access is provided (i) on the WTO 
Agriculture Web Site and (ii) via Documents Online  (document series G/AG/N/[ISO standard 
code of a Member].    G/AG/GEN/83 
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   When analyzing  other Members' notifications and participating  in the Review Process 
undertaken by the Committee on Agriculture, in add ition to the tools previously mentioned, the 
following sources of information could be used: 
o Members' notifications  circulated to all delegations in hard  copy and also publicly available (i) 
on the WTO Agriculture Web Site and (ii) via Documents Online (document series G/AG/N/[ISO 
standard code of a Member].  
o Organization of Work and Working Procedures of the Committee on Agriculture adopted 
by the Committee at its Meeting on 28 March 19951 (G/AG/1).  This document is available on-
line and the Secretariat continues to distribute it in paper format at each regular meeting of the 
Committee (as part of the documents pack received by all delegates). 
o Room Document – Compliance with Notification Obligations  prepared by the Secretariat for 
each regular meeting of the Committee (as part of the documents pack received by all delegates) and posted on the WTO Members' Web Site. It shows each Member's compliance with its notification obligations.  The status of complianc e is also annexed to the annual report by the 
Chairperson of the Committee on Agriculture to the Council for Trade in Goods (document series 
G/L/--). 
o Room Document – Questions prepared by the Secretariat for each regular meeting of the 
Committee (as part of the documents pack recei ved by all delegates) and posted on the WTO 
Members' Web Site.  It reproduces the full versions of the points raised by Members under Article 18.6 of the Agreement on Agriculture and in connection with individual notifications.  
o Written answers  provided by Members to the Secretariat in electronic format, posted on the 
WTO Members' Web Site. 
o Summary Report of the Meeting prepared by the Secretariat after each regular meeting of the 
Committee on Agriculture (document series G/AG/R/ --).  The reports contain Members' questions 
and responses provided during the Review Process since 1995.  
o The Integrated Database  (IDB) contains tariff and trade information as notified by each WTO 
Member.  The latest status of submissions to the IDB is reflected in the Secretariat document 
G/MA/IDB/2/Rev.29. 
 
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