RESTRICTED  
  
WT/WGTDF/M/45  
 
14 December 2022  
(22-9307) Page: 1/2 
Working Group on Trade, Debt and Finance    
 
 
REPORT OF THE MEETING OF 8 DECEMBER 2022  
1.1.  The forty -seventh meeting of the Working Group on Trade, Debt and Finance (WGTDF) was 
held on 8 December 2022 and was chaired by Mr Donatas Tamulaitis (Lithuania). The meeting had 
been convened under the cover of WTO/AIR/WGTDF/18. The minutes of the previo us meeting, held 
on 12 July 2022, had been circulated in WTO document WT/WGTDF/M/44. Regarding the proposed 
agenda for the meeting, it was suggested under agenda item 2.A, that the Working Group discuss 
the draft annual report of the Working Group, prepare d by the Chair after having consulted Members. 
The draft annual report had been circulated to Members in WTO document WT/WGTDF/W/102. Under 
proposed agenda item 2.B, it was proposed to examine any other business. The proposed agenda 
was adopted . 
1  AGENDA ITE M 2.A: ANNUAL REPORT  
1.2.  The Chair  said that Members had been agreeable to the idea of the Chair drafting a short report 
for the General Council, and to have a meeting on it. The first paragraph of the draft report reminded 
of the WGTDF mandate. The second par agraph provided factual information about the number of 
meetings, basis for discussion, and minutes. The third paragraph tried to capture the sense of the 
discussion during the July 2022 meeting, based on the minutes. Since the airgram had suggested 
that M embers could communicate observations on the draft report prior to the meeting, the 
delegation of the United States had communicated to the Chair two proposed modifications. In 
paragraph 3, second sentence, it was suggested to add the word "all" between "that" and "other 
Members ", and to replace the words "confirm or specify " by "consider ". In paragraph 3, fifth 
sentence, it was suggested to add "related to aspects of " between "information " and "other pillars ". 
The Chair opened the floor to Members.  
1.3.  The delegation of the United States of America  thanked the Chair for his draft report. It had 
proposed to modify two sentences, to make them clearer so as to reflect views expressed in the 
previous meeting. The emphasis of the first proposed change was on "all other Members ", as it was 
hoped that the discussion reflected the wide range and various levels of development of Members 
in the Working Group. In this sentence, it was thought that the word "consider " best reflected the 
current state of progress in those di scussions. The proposal to modify the second sentence aimed at 
ensuring that the US position was accurately reflected. While the US was not necessarily comfortable 
with all of the pillars, there were aspects in each of the pillars which were found promisin g and on 
which the US was willing to work on.  
1.4.  The delegation of the European Union  thanked the Chair for his draft report and the US 
delegation for its explanations. The European Union had no problems with the draft report and with 
the proposed modificatio ns. Regarding the first proposed change, the subject of the sentence 
seemed to be about the proponents. Therefore, by courtesy to them, it might be ripe to ask them 
whether the proposed change accurately reflected their position. Regarding the last sentenc e of 
paragraph 3, there was a reference to further consultations between the July and December 
meetings of the Working Group. The EU was available for consultations, but had not participated in 
any of them. It asked the proponents or any other Member for a n update, so as to verify the accuracy 
of this sentence.  
1.5.  The delegation of Fiji, on behalf of the ACP Group of States , highlighted the significance of this 
file for the ACP Group of States. Issues of trade, debt and finance remained a priority at the WTO, 
in view of current economic conditions at home. Trade finance facilities were conduits for the 
expansion of trade and development. The draft report was satisfactory and reflective of the current 
state of discussions. Consultations have been held with the delegation of the United States with a 
view to discussing the details and clarifying particular aspects of the on -going proposal. WT/WGTDF/M/45  
 
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  Consultations were indeed needed to address some of the concerns that other Members had 
expressed, and to develop a common unde rstanding about what the proponent s were driving at. 
Comments received from the delegation of the United States had been welcome d by the proponents. 
The EU had also proved to be very supportive since initial submissions had been made. All Members 
should be thanked for their continued forbearance and understanding. The ACP Group was providing 
support to the proponents of WTO d ocument  WT/WGTDF/W/98 Rev.1. The ACP Group has had its 
own proposal, but had agreed to put it aside for the purpose of working on only one proposal. At the 
moment, it was helping to drive this process, get everybody on board, and based on consultations, 
come to a  revised proposal which could draw consensus.  
1.6.  The delegation of the United States  wished to address comments and questions from the EU. 
There had been some work and further consultations on the basis of the proposal mentioned by the 
representative of Fiji,  reflecting the work and engagement by that particular delegation. The US 
confirmed that it would continue to engage in this process, hopefully by the end of the year, and at 
the next meeting of the Working Group. This was an agenda item that it could cont ribute to. Even 
though the consultation process was still on -going, the sentence in the draft report was correct and 
appropriately drafted.  
1.7.  The Chair thanked all delegations for their constructive engagement. He sensed that the draft 
report and proposed mo difications had been approved. It was so agreed . 
2  AGENDA ITEM 2.B: ANY OTHER BUSINESS  
2.1.  The Chair asked whether any Member wished to raise any other business.  
2.2.  The Representative of the European Union  asked questions about the presentation made jointly 
by the WTO Secretariat and the staff of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) on a piece of 
work completed on trade finance in West Africa. The representative wished to know from the 
Secretariat it s plans for future work.  
2.3.  The Secretariat  said that the piece of research presented at the WTO on 5 December (titled 
"Trade Finance in West Africa "), had initially been launched by the WTO Director -General and 
Managing Director of the IFC on 12 October in W ashington , D.C. It was a direct outcome of the 
enhanced partnership with the IFC announced in November 2021.  This partnership aimed at 
improving trade finance gap detection in low -income countries, with a view to direct finite capacity -
building resources o f the IFC and WTO to countries in greatest need. Based on a bank survey 
conducted by the IFC, the study revealed that only 25% of trade in ECOWAS countries was supported 
by trade finance, at a high cost, against 40% on average in the African continent, and  60% to 80% 
globally. The reasons for low coverage and high cost were discussed in the report. Based on 
Members ' requests, the WTO and IFC were also conducting joint capacity -building events on trade 
finance and SMEs. One event was delivered in Côte d 'Ivoire in May 2022, and one was envisaged in 
Rwanda in 2023. The IFC and WTO staffs were considering another survey of trade finance gaps in 
the region of the Mekong, subject to resource availability.  
2.4.  The Representative of Fiji thanked the Secretariat for the update. Issues discussed in the 
WGTDF had been subject to previous engagement of his constituency with the WTO, IFC, and the 
Asian Development Bank. There was indeed continued interest in capitals, due to the high return of 
accessing trade finance, one ext ra dollar yielding 50 cents in additional trade, ultimately benefiting 
jobs and growth. The Secretariat work did not only benefit ECOWAS countries, but all developing 
countries. His constituency supported these initiatives, and looked forward to the Mekong  study. 
Every element of support, including through increased availability of facilities, would bring 
forthcoming positive returns. The Working Group had an important role to play in such a dynamic, 
if one brought minds together, shared initiatives and nat ional experiences.  
2.5.  The Chair  noted that the Working Group, while not extremely active this year, had us ed time 
efficiently to talk to each other and clarify positions, moving towards reaching a common 
understanding how this Group should work in the future.  With this, he closed  the meeting.  
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