RESTRICTED  
  
GPA/M/75  
 
28 May 2019  
(19-3706) Page: 1/11 
Committee on Government Procurement    
 
MINUTES OF THE FORMA L MEETING OF 27 FEBR UARY 2019  
CHAIRMAN: MR CARLOS VANDERLOO  (CANADA)  
The Chairman said that, in preparation for the meeting, delegations had received an Airgram1 setting 
out the proposed agenda, in addition to two related faxes. The proposed agenda was as follows:  
 
1. Chairmanship of the Committee in 2019;  
2. Request for Observer Status: Paraguay;  
3. Adoption, by the Committee, of its Revised Draft Decision on the United Kingdom's 
Accession, in its Own Right, to the Agreement on Government Procurement 
(GPA/ACC/GBR/20/Rev.1);  
4. Other Business, if any.  
Concerning the first agenda item, the Chairman said that he would defer his statement to the end 
of the meeting. His statement  would outline some aspirations that the Committee might hope to 
achieve for the year. No other items of other business had been proposed by delegations.  
 
The Committee adopted  the agenda, with the additional information items noted above.  
 
1  CHAIRMANSHIP O F THE COMMITTEE IN 2 019 
1.1.  The Chairman  recalled that, in his email dated 29  January 2019, he had informed delegations 
of his availability to serve as Chairman of the Committee through 2019. The Secretariat had not 
been informed that any delegation was unable  to support his re -election, or that any other candidate 
was seeking the position. In this context, it was his understanding that delegations wished him to 
continue as Chairman through 2019.  
1.2.   The Committee re-elected  Mr Carlos VANDERLOO (Canada) as its Ch airman for 2019.  
1.3.  The newly re -elected Chairman  thanked delegations for the confidence reposed in him. He 
would  make a statement at the end of the proceedings of the formal meeting. Delegations warmly 
congratulated him on his re -election.  
2  REQUEST FOR OBSER VER STATUS BY PARAGU AY 
2.1.  The Chairman  said that a request for observer status in the Committee had been circulated by 
Paraguay in February 2019.2 This request was a very significant and welcome development for the 
Committee.  
2.2.  The Committee agreed to grant  observer status to Paraguay, pursuant to the request that had 
been received from that delegation and to the relevant provisions of the Agreement on Government 
Procurement  (GPA) . 
                                                
1 WTO/AIR/GPA/ 17, dated  15 February 2019.  
2 GPA/147, dated 6 February 2019.  GPA/M/75  
 
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  2.3.  The Chairman  extended a warm welcome to Paraguay, on behalf of the Committee, in  its new 
capacity as observer to the Committee on Government Procurement.  
2.4.  The representative of Paraguay  expressed his pleasure at the opportunity for his country to 
participate in the Committee on Government Procurement as an observer.  The decision to re quest 
observer status reflected the desire of the new administration of President Mario Abdo Benítez to 
modernize the economy and to improve the management of public resources. Paraguay's interest in 
the Committee's work was  an important signal of the Nati onal Government's new vision going 
forward. Participation in the Committee as an observer would be helpful to facilitate enhanced 
knowledge and access by Paraguay to best international practices, both at the multilateral and 
regional levels, and in order t o foster improved relations between the State and providers or 
contractors.   
2.5.  In recent years, Paraguay had been engaged in the negotiation of government procurement 
chapters in regional free trade agreements. These included ongoing negotiations within MERC OSUR, 
as well as between MERCOSUR and the European Union. Given the role of the GPA as an instrument 
of reference in relation to government procurement commitments in numerous bilateral and regional 
free trade agreements (FTAs), Paraguay hoped to be better  positioned to develop a deeper 
understanding and perspective on the matter through its observer status on the Committee.  
2.6.  With regard to the latest developments, at the regional level, Paraguay was a party to the 
MERCOSUR Protocol on Government Procurement , under which it had made commitments on 
transparency. Meanwhile, during the preceding five -year period, a number of regulations on various 
aspects of government procurement had been adopted, with the aim to generally make the 
corresponding procedures more  flexible and transparent. A further aim was, in some cases, to 
establish mechanisms to support domestic production and employment through government 
procurement.  
2.7.  The government procurement regime in Paraguay was mainly governed by Law No.  2.051/03 
on Government Procurement (LCP), as amended by Law No.  3.439/07 and its implementing 
Regulations, Decree No.  21.909/03, which was amended by Decrees Nos.  5.174/05 and 3.719/15. 
Government procurement in Paraguay was regulated and supervised by the National Go vernment 
Procurement Directorate (DNCP). Similarly, the DNCP was responsible for the management of the 
Government Procurement Information System (SICP). The SICP was an interactive electronic 
platform introduced in 2003 and updated in 2010 on which all pro curement undertaken by the 
Government was published, from the planning stage up to the award of the contract. Access to the 
SICP was public and free of charge. Publication of invitations to tender and government procurement 
procedures on the SICP was manda tory for all contracting entities subject to the LCP.  
2.8.  During the preceding five year -period, efforts had continued to be made to enhance the 
efficiency and transparency of the government procurement system, with the adoption of measures 
such as: improvemen ts to the electronic reverse auction system; the introduction of a framework 
agreements scheme; the implementation of a new registration scheme for paying suppliers; the 
implementation of the business intelligence scheme to make it easier to obtain global data and to 
monitor government procurement procedures carried out through the SICP; and the introduction of 
a pilot project for the contract management scheme with some contracting entities.  
2.9.  In recent years, Paraguay had continued to work with internationa l organizations to modernize 
and improve the efficiency of its government procurement regime. In June 2014, it had signed an 
agreement with the Inter -American Development Bank (IDB) which allowed Paraguay to use its 
national procurement system, notably the  electronic reverse auction system, along with other 
approved procurement methods, when implementing Bank financed -projects.  
2.10.   Further, there were special provisions to boost participation in government procurement by 
micro, small and medium sized enterprise s (MSMEs). Decree No. 1.434/09 of 6  February 2009 
provided that in the event of technically equivalent bids in government procurement procedures 
carried out according to the electronic reverse auction method, MSMEs had the opportunity to make 
a second bid after the final bids had been submitted.  
2.11.   With a government procurement market representing an estimated value in excess of USD  3.5 
billion, Paraguay was potentially an attractive investment destination for interested contractors and 
suppliers. His delegati on was very heartened by the positive developments in the government 
procurement sphere. These would serve as a roadmap for Paraguay in its gradual and steady quest GPA/M/75  
 
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  for greater government efficiency. At the same time, his delegation was aware that obstacle s would 
persist, and national authorities would need to consider the learning process in the Committee. 
Paraguay was ready to begin this work, and was fully committed in its new observer capacity within 
the Committee.  
2.12.   The representatives of the European Un ion, the United States  of America,  Japan , Norway , 
Switzerland , the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu , Canada  and 
Singapore  congratulated Paraguay on its new status as observer to the Committee and warmly 
welcomed it to the Committee.  
2.13.   The representative of the European Union  said that his delegation was very pleased to support 
Paraguay in its request for observer status in the  Committee. The European Union looked forward 
to the eventual accession of Paraguay to the Agreement in the foreseeable future.  
2.14.   The representative of the United States  of America  recalled that Paraguay had stated in its 
trade policy review two years previo usly that it was considering observer status in the Committee 
on Government Procurement. His delegation was pleased that Paraguay had followed through on 
this intent. It was the hope of his delegation that observer status would encourage Paraguay to more 
closely align its government procurement practices to those of the GPA. He looked forward to 
Paraguay using its observer status in the Committee to learn more about the commitments under 
the Agreement, engage with other delegations on government procurement  issues, and consider 
pursuing full GPA membership in the future.  
2.15.   The representative of Japan  warmly welcomed Paraguay's interest and enthusiasm to 
participate in the Committee as an observer. Government procurement was one of the advancing 
areas in the WT O, and already familiar to many WTO Members through government procurement 
commitments in relevant FTAs in which they were participating. Japan looked forward to working 
with Paraguay in the Committee going forward.  
2.16.   The representative of Norway  joined in w elcoming Paraguay as an observer to the Committee. 
Norway was pleased about the statement that had been delivered by Paraguay. It hoped that 
Paraguay would consider acceding to the Agreement in the future and, in that event, would use the 
opportunity to en ter negotiations with high ambition.  
2.17.   The representative of Switzerland  expressed appreciation to the delegation of Paraguay for 
its initiative. Participation in the Committee as an observer offered an excellent opportunity to 
enhance understanding of the r ules and functioning of the Agreement. The GPA was a tool to promote 
open and transparent rules for trade in government procurement, contributing to sustainable 
growth, job creation and economic development. Switzerland remained available to share any 
experience that might be useful to a possible future GPA accession by Paraguay, complementary to 
the cooperation and exchanges established between the two delegations in the context of the 
ongoing EFTA/MERCOSUR FTA negotiations.  
2.18.   The representative of the Separ ate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu  
said that his delegation looked forward to active participation by Paraguay in the work of the 
Committee. Chinese Taipei encouraged Paraguay to take the opportunity of its observer status to 
familia rize itself with the GPA procedures and rules. Given Chinese Taipei's very close economic 
relations with Paraguay, her delegation would be pleased also to assist Paraguay in becoming a full -
fledged member of the GPA by sharing Chinese Taipei's  experience.  
2.19.   Warmly welcoming Paraguay as an observer to the Committee , the representative of Canada  
said that her delegation looked forward to Paraguay initiating its process to accede to the GPA in the 
foreseeable future and, to that end, to working closely with Para guay.  
2.20.   The representative of Singapore  said that Paraguay's observer status reaffirmed its 
commitment to the key GPA principles of openness, transparency, non -discrimination, and open 
competition. The warm, congratulatory statements that had been made by de legations were a clear 
indication of their general interest to work with Paraguay, and to assist it in learning more about 
and enhancing its appreciation of the benefits of the Agreement. Singapore looked forward to the 
eventual accession of Paraguay to th e Agreement and to working with the delegation of Paraguay in 
the Committee. It encouraged Paraguay to consider making use of the technical assistance and 
support that was available from the Secretariat if it so needed.  GPA/M/75  
 
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  3  ADOPTION, BY THE COM MITTEE, OF ITS R EVISED DRAFT DECISIO N ON THE UNITED 
KINGDOM'S ACCESSION,  IN ITS OWN RIGHT, T O THE AGREEMENT ON G OVERNMENT 
PROCUREMENT (GPA/ACC /GBR/20/REV.1)  
3.1.  The Chairman  recalled that the United Kingdom's application for accession to the GPA in its 
own right had been circ ulated on 5  June 2018 in a communication from the European Union, together 
with the United Kingdom's market access offer and its replies to the Checklist of Issues.3 A 
preliminary discussion based on those documents had been held during the Committee's inf ormal 
sessions on 27  June 2018. In the course of that discussion, Parties had made clear the importance 
that they atta ched to the United Kingdom's continuing participation in the GPA following its 
withdrawal from the European Union, on mutually agreeable t erms. Subsequent to that meeting, 
written exchanges had been conducted between Parties and the United Kingdom.4 
3.2.  On 2 October 2018, the delegation of the United Kingdom had circulated, via the delegation of 
the European Union, its final market access offer.5 A further discussion on the United Kingdom's 
accession had been held during the Committee's informal sessions on 17 October 2018. During that 
discussion, the United Kingdom had expressed  its willingness to update its proposed schedules within 
a brief period, following the completion of its proposed accession and its schedules coming into force, 
using the procedures set out in Article XIX of the revised GPA.  
3.3.  On 27  November 2018, the Commit tee had held an ad hoc informal meeting to consider further 
the United Kingdom's accession, in its own right, to the GPA. In the course of that discussion, 
agreement, in principle, had been reached on the United Kingdom's final market access offer of 
2 October 2018. At the conclusion of the meeting, the European Union had undertaken to circulate 
proposed elements for inclusion in an appropriate draft decision by the Committee, to reflect the 
unique context of the United Kingdom's accession.  
3.4.  On 29  November 2 018, the European Union had circulated its proposed elements for inclusion 
in the Committee's draft decision on the United Kingdom's accession in its own right.6 Subsequently, 
Canada, the United States, Japan and Chinese Taipei had circulated related comme nts, questions or 
suggestions.7 Taking account of these communications and related discussions among delegations, 
on 24  January 2019 , a draft Committee decision had been circulated on the United Kingdom's GPA 
accession in its own right (GPA/ACC/GBR/20). Su bsequently, as foreseen, on 6 February 2019, an 
updated version of the draft decision (GPA/ACC/GBR/20/Rev.1) had been circulated to reflect 
proposed consequential changes to their own schedules by several Parties, to be agreed through the 
Committee's decis ion on this matter.  
3.5.  The Chairman recalled that he had asked all Parties to make every possible effort to promptly 
secure the necessary approvals for adoption of the draft decision, if agreeable.  
3.6.   He further recalled that a minor typographical error had be en noted in the updated draft 
decision on the United Kingdom's accession: in paragraph 9 (concerning the consequential changes 
to Switzerland's Annexes), the draft referred to "the United Kingdom it its own right" rather than "in 
its own right". He had ask ed the Secretariat to fix this when the decision was adopted and re -issued 
as a GPA document.  
                                                
3 GPA/ACC/GBR/1, dated 5 June 2018; GPA/ACC/GBR/1/Rev.1, dated 14  June 2018 ; and 
GPA/ACC/GBR/2, dated 5 June 2018.  
4 Questions and comments from Ukraine - GPA/ACC/GBR/3, dated 22  June 2018 ; from Moldova - 
GPA/ACC/GBR/4, dated 27  June 2018 ; from the United States - GPA/ACC/GBR/6 and 8, dated 19 July  2018; 
from Chinese Taipei - GPA/ACC/G BR/11, dated 8  August  2018; from New Zealand - GPA/ACC/GBR/1 2, dated 
4 September  2018; and follow -up comments and questions from the United States - GPA/ACC/GBR/1 3 and 14, 
dated 10  September  2018. The United Kingdom's replies to the questions from Ukraine - GPA/ACC/GBR/5, dated 
19 July  2018; to Moldova - GPA/ACC/GBR/7 , dated 19 July 2018 ; to the United States - GPA/ACC/GBR/9, dated 
3 August  2018 and GPA/ACC/GBR/10, dated 3  August  2018; to Chinese Taipei - GPA/ACC/GBR/ 15, dated 
13 September  2018; to the Unit ed States' follow -up questions - GPA/ACC/GBR/17 and 18 , dated  5 October  2018; 
and to New Zealand - GPA/ACC/GBR/19, dated 8  October  2018. 
5 GPA/ACC/GBR/ 16, dated 2  October  2018. 
6 RD/GPA/72 , dated 29 November 2018.  
7 Comments and questions from Canada - RD/GPA/74, dated 7  December 2018; from the United States 
- RD/GPA/76 , dated 17 December 2018 ; from Japan - RD/GPA/77, dated 20  December 2018 ; and from 
Chinese  Taipei - RD/GPA/78 , dated 17  January 2019.  GPA/M/75  
 
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  3.7.  The Committee adopted  the decision (GPA/ACC/GBR/20/Rev.1 with its attachments), with the 
minor correction foreseen, inviting the United Kingdom to accede to the A greement on Government 
Procurement in its own right on the terms agreed.8 
3.8.  The Chairman , on behalf of the Committee and on his own behalf, warmly congratulated the 
United Kingdom on the successful conclusion of the negotiations on the terms of its  GPA acces sion 
in its own right. The United Kingdom had persevered through the series of meetings and bilateral 
consultations that had been an essential part of the process. Equally, he congratulated the Parties 
for their constructive engagement throughout the proce ss and the Committee for yet another 
successful outcome. The Committee had, again, shown itself to be a pragmatic and results -oriented 
body that got the job done. Lastly, he expressed his deep appreciation both to the Secretariat and 
to the previous Chairm an, Mr John Newham (Ireland), for their support in facilitating this important 
outcome . 
3.9.  The representative of the European Union  recalled that the European Commission continued to 
represent the European Union as regards all matters related to the GPA and, with that, passed the 
floor to the representative of the United Kingdom for his statement.  
3.10.   The representative of the United Kingdom , on behalf of his Government, warmly welcomed 
the Committee's Decision approving the terms of the United Kingdom's accessio n to the GPA. As a 
signatory to the original agreement back in Marrakesh in 1994, the United Kingdom had long been 
a strong supporter of the GPA. The present outcome was the culmination of significant efforts by all 
Parties, and it demonstrated a shared be lief that the United Kingdom's continued participation in the 
Agreement would be to the benefit of all. He thanked all delegations, including both Geneva - and 
capital -based teams, for their understanding and constructive engagement throughout the process. 
In particular, he thanked the European Union, Montenegro and Switzerland for the consequential 
amendments that they had made to their own schedules, to ensure continuity.  
3.11.   The day marked a significant moment in the United Kingdom's transition as it proceed ed with 
the process to leave the European Union. Since the Committee had given its agreement in principle 
in November 2018, the United Kingdom had been engaging with all Parties to ensure that the 
Decision that had just been adopted would provide suitable clarity on the terms of the United 
Kingdom's accession. As the representative of the European Union had previously set out, the 
European Union and the United Kingdom were fully committed to ratifying a Withdrawal Agreement. 
The Decision provided that, duri ng any transition period, the United Kingdom would be treated as a 
Member State of the European Union, and thus would continue to be covered by the GPA in the 
same manner as it was covered at present, and that there would be no changes to its rights and 
obligations. The Decision also addressed what would happen were the United Kingdom to leave the 
European Union without the Withdrawal Agreement being put into effect. The Decision underlined 
the determination of the United Kingdom to minimize any disruption however it left the European 
Union, and gave it effect.  
3.12.   Lastly, he wished to draw attention to the invaluable assistance that the United Kingdom had 
received from the Secretariat, without which it could not have navigated this process so smoothly. 
The upco ming retirement of Mr Robert Anderson, Secretary to the Committee, would, in this respect, 
be an enormous loss to the Committee. Colleagues familiar with his work would attest to his 
significant contribution to the cause of global trade and prosperity over  the years, and to the World 
Trade Organisation as a whole. On behalf of his delegation, he wished him all the very best for the 
future, and looked forward to working closely with his successor.  
3.13.   The United Kingdom had also been fortunate to have benefited from the skill and commitment 
of two very able Committee Chairs, firstly Mr John Newham (Ireland) and currently Mr Carlos 
Vanderloo (Canada). He wished to commend them both for their wise counsel  and encouragement 
throughout this unusual and interesting process.  
3.14.   The delegations of the European Union ; the United States  of America ; Switzerland ; Norway ; 
Montenegro ; the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu ; 
Hong Kong, China ; Iceland ; the Republic of Korea ; Republic of Moldova ; New Zealand ; Japan ; 
Liechtenstein ; Singapore ; Israel ; Canada ; the Netherlands with respect to Aruba ; and Ukraine  
                                                
8 Subsequently issued as GPA/CD/2, dated 28  February 2019.  GPA/M/75  
 
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  warmly congratulated the United Kingdom on the successful conclusion of its GPA accession  
negotiations in its own right.  
3.15.   The representative of the European Union  said that, considering the unique situation of the 
United Kingdom, the United Kingdom and the European Union had agreed, by means of a joint letter 
dated 11 October 2017, to work toge ther towards the United Kingdom's objective of remaining, in 
its own right, subject to the rights and obligations that it currently had under the GPA as a Member 
State of the European Union on the basis of the commitments that were at present contained in the 
European Union schedule. In view of that, throughout the process for the accession of the United 
Kingdom in its own right to the revised GPA, the European Union had been advocating that the 
approach that had just been adopted by the Committee was the o ne that guaranteed a swift 
accession of the United Kingdom, and that all GPA Parties would continue to have the access that 
they at present had to the United Kingdom's public procurement market, ensuring that there was 
no gap in the market coverage.  
3.16.   Delega tions should all be pleased about the result that had been achieved in this difficult 
process, the outcome of which had not at all been guaranteed. On behalf of the European Union, he 
wished to express his deep appreciation to all Parties for their strong and continuous commitment, 
for the flexibility shown on repeated occasions, and for their willingness to work together to the 
benefit of all. In the same vein, he expressed his deep appreciation to the Chairman and the 
Secretariat team led by Mr Robert And erson for their guidance and support in this complex and 
unique situation. Without their assistance, today's successful outcome might not have been realised.  
3.17.   With regard to the substance of the United Kingdom's market access offer, the European 
Union appre ciated that United Kingdom's final offer was commercially credible and valuable, as it 
maintained the existing levels of market access commitments available to other GPA Parties. The 
United Kingdom's final offer replicated its current coverage under the Eu ropean Union's schedule, 
with minor technical adaptations. The European Union had introduced terms for the United 
Kingdom's accession that specified the coverage offered by the European Union to the United 
Kingdom. The European Union had circulated these e nvisaged specific terms that would become part 
of the terms of accession of the United Kingdom, in its own right, to the GPA . 
3.18.   The European Union's terms of the United Kingdom's accession, which had been approved by 
the Council of the Union on 22 February 2 019, specified the coverage offered by the European Union 
to the United Kingdom. They were detailed in Attachment B, Part 1 of the Committee Decision. At 
this stage, the European Union wished to remind Parties that the United Kingdom continued to be 
covere d by the GPA as a member State of the European Union, until the date of the United Kingdom's 
withdrawal from the European Union or, if the European Union and the Uni ted Kingdom concluded 
an agreement that provided for a transition period during which Europ ean Union law would apply to 
and in the United Kingdom , until the date of expiry of that transition period. In case the United 
Kingdom would continue to be covered by the GPA as set out in paragraph 1 of the just approved 
Decision, the European Union would  make the appropriate notification to the Committee pursuant 
to paragraph 4 of the Decision.  
3.19.   The European Union wished to reiterate that the Commission continued to represent the 
European Union as regards all matters related to the GPA. The European Union  looked forward to 
working with the United Kingdom within the GPA community.  
3.20.   The representative of the United States  of America  said that his delegation enthusiastically 
welcomed the decision to formally invite the United Kingdom to join the GPA as a stan dalone Party. 
His delegation took the opportunity to congratulate Ambassador Braithwaite and his team for 
achieving this important milestone. The United States believed that keeping the United Kingdom in 
the GPA was very important for the Agreement – wheth er through the United Kingdom's standalone 
accession to the GPA during the six -month period following the adoption of the Decision, or through 
a transitional agreement with the European Union. In 2013, the United Kingdom had accounted for 
over a quarter of  the total procurement covered by the European Union under the GPA. The 
importance of the United Kingdom was even more significant at the central government level, where 
the United Kingdom accounted for 46% of the European Union's covered procurement. The United 
States wished to thank the United Kingdom's negotiating team for its professionalism and hard work 
throughout its accession process. The United States remained confident that the United Kingdom 
would continue to be an active Party to the GPA, and co ntinue to make valuable contributions to the 
Committee.  GPA/M/75  
 
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  3.21.   The representative of Switzerland  congratulated the United Kingdom. In the view of 
Switzerland, ensuring the continued participation of the United Kingdom in the GPA was a significant 
achievement not only for the United Kingdom, but for the GPA community as a whole.  Switzerland 
and the United Kingdom enjoyed very intense economic ties, and the GPA was an important pillar 
on which their respective economic operators would continue to rely in their busin ess relations with 
public -sector entities. His delegation took note that the two countries shared similar ambitions 
regarding the importance and relevance of the GPA, and made use of the full potential that the GPA 
offered. Switzerland thanked the United K ingdom for its engagement in its accession process, and 
particularly appreciated the fruitful exchanges it had with the delegation of the United Kingdom, 
together with other EFTA Member States. Switzerland looked forward to cooperating with the United 
Kingdom in the future work of the Committee.  
3.22.   The representative of Norway  congratulated the United Kingdom on the Decision that had just 
been taken by the Committee and thanked it for all its efforts in the process  of accession  in its own 
right. Norway was ver y pleased that the United Kingdom had preserved its existing market access 
commitments, thereby keeping a market access coverage which was among the most 
comprehensive in the GPA. Norway very much looked forward to warmly welcoming the United 
Kingdom as a Party to the GPA in its own right and to cooperating with the United Kingdom in the 
future work of the Committee.  
3.23.   The representative of Montenegro  joined other delegations in congratulating the United 
Kingdom. His delegation also expressed its appreciation  to the Secretariat for including Montenegro's 
consequential amendments into the revised draft decision, and the subsequent circulation of the 
revised draft at short notice. Montenegro would continue to work with Parties to ensure the full and 
timely imple mentation of the GPA. 
3.24.   The representative of the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu , 
echoing other delegations for the support expressed for United Kingdom's accession, in its own right, 
to the GPA, said that her delegation recognized the paramount importance of ensuring the United 
Kingdom's continued membership of the Agreement immediat ely after Brexit. She expressed her 
particular appreciation to Ambassador Julian Braithwaite and his team – including Ms. Lauren Boag 
and capital -based expert Ms. Joanne Lawson – for the patience and perseverance that they had 
demonstrated throughout the p rocess in pursuit of their common objective of the United Kingdom 
joining the GPA in its own right .  
3.25.   The representative of Hong Kong, China  warmly congratulated the United Kingdom for the 
historic decision that had just been taken by the Committee. Hong Ko ng, China greatly valued the 
United Kingdom's partnership in government procurement. It also recognised the importance of the 
United Kingdom's continued participation in the GPA in a seamless manner post -Brexit. With this in 
mind, Hong Kong, China had pled ged, and demonstrated in practice, its strong support for the United 
Kingdom's accession throughout the process. Hong Kong, China was delighted to see that the joint 
efforts of the two delegations had borne fruit. The United Kingdom would be  joining the GPA in its 
own right at a dynamic and important moment. Hong Kong, China looked forward to the full 
participation of, and to working together with, the United Kingdom in the future work of the 
Committee.  
3.26.   Any real celebration of the decision on the United Ki ngdom's accession would be remiss 
without saluting the work done by the United Kingdom's negotiating team led by Ambassador 
Braithwaite.  The team had accomplished an almost impossible task with dignity and respect. He 
extended his personal thanks to Ms Lau ren Boag and Mr Peter Bennett of the United Kingdom team 
for their hard work, support and friendship. These colleagues had demonstrated a deep 
understanding of the issues. It had been a difficult and lonely journey – one that they no longer 
needed to take alone.  
3.27.   The representative of Iceland  warmly congratulated the United Kingdom for the decision that 
had just been taken by the Committee. Ensuring the continued participation of the United Kingdom 
in the GPA following its exit from the European Union was a very important matter. By the present 
decision, the Committee had achieved this important objective, taking into account the different 
scenarios. Iceland appreciated the valuable contribution of the United Kingdom to the Agreement 
from its inception, and l ooked forward with pleasure to continuing to work with the delegation of the 
United Kingdom in the Committee going forward. Her delegation extended its thanks to the United 
Kingdom team – both in Geneva and in the capital – for its cooperation, its profess ionalism, the 
information provided, and its commitment to the process leading to the day's decision.  GPA/M/75  
 
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  3.28.   The representative of the Republic of Korea  expressed his warm thanks to the delegation of 
the United Kingdom for its statement. Korea had engaged construc tively with the United Kingdom 
in negotiating the conditions of its  GPA accession. In this regard, it had been willing to date to 
cooperate with the United Kingdom in order to make progress on both substantive and procedural 
aspects. Korea was thus very pl eased at the outcome achieved at the present meeting. In 
November  2018, Korea had joined the consensus in reaching agreement in principle on the accession 
of the United Kingdom in its own right, in light of the United Kingdom's commitment to update its 
schedules. Korea sincerely hoped that the United Kingdom would take the necessary steps to 
complete the remaining domestic procedures in adequate time. Korea was also ready to resolve 
unsettled bilateral issues with the United Kingdom as soon as possible. Kor ea extended its 
appreciation to the United Kingdom for its efforts.  
3.29.   The representative of the Republic of Moldova , on behalf of her delegation, congratulated the 
United Kingdom.  The Republic of Moldova had engaged actively and constructively with the 
deleg ation of the United Kingdom throughout its process of negotiating accession in its own right. It 
wished to take the opportunity to thank the United Kingdom for continuing to remain in an agreement 
that was based on transparency, predictability and equality . The present decision marked an 
endpoint that truly crowned the whole process. The Republic of Moldova wished the United Kingdom 
utmost success in its future capacity as a Party to the GPA in its own right.  
3.30.   The representative of New Zealand  welcomed the d ecision that had just been taken, and the 
prior work that had gone into arriving at the decision – including, in particular, the efforts by the 
delegation of the United Kingdom to explain its situation, and the way its domestic regulatory regime 
post-Brexit was intended to provide continuity in meeting the rules and requirements under the GPA. 
The United Kingdom had a substantial government procurement programme, and had been a long -
standing member and advocate of the GPA. New Zealand looked forward to the United Kingdom 
continuing to play this role as a Party to the Agreement in its own right in the future.  
3.31.   The United Kingdom's accession process had been unusual, subject to particular 
circumstances. As a result, the draft decision that had been presented t o the Committee for its 
approval was unlike any other decision that had been taken by the Committee in its recent history. 
Members of the Committee had been called upon to show considerable forbearance in the way these 
very unusual circumstances had been a ddressed in order to help the United Kingdom preserve the 
status quo in the treatment accorded to it in international government procurement markets, and 
to avoid any disadvantage to its procurement suppliers as a result of Brexit. The United Kingdom 
had, in its statement, reaffirmed its intention to fully honour its existing GPA commitments during 
any transition period in which it would remain a member of the European Union Single Market and 
subject to European Union regulation, as well as when it would assume membership of the 
Agreement in its own right. It was on the basis of the confirmation that the United Kingdom would 
fully honour its existing GPA commitments that New Zealand had been prepared to agree to 
paragraphs 1 and 4 of the decision that had ju st been adopted. In agreeing to do so, New Zealand 
looked to the United Kingdom to take a consistent approach to its international trade commitments, 
and to reaffirm its intention to continue to fully honour its wider WTO commitments so that other 
WTO Memb ers would not find themselves disadvantaged through Brexit.  
3.32.   New Zealand also took note of the importance of the timely observance by the United Kingdom 
of paragraph 7 of the Decision concerning the prompt rectification by the United Kingdom of its 
Annexes 1 to 3 to Appendix I. This was important in the light of the need for clarity and transparency 
regarding the precise commitments of the United Kingdom under the  Annexes that were appended 
to the Decision that had just been taken, and which had been pointed  out by a large number of GPA 
Parties. It was important also to ensure a prompt follow up on these matters so as to ensure that - 
notwithstanding the highly unusual features of this accession  - core GPA principles were not 
undermined. New Zealand looked fo rward to the United Kingdom and the Chairman keeping the 
Committee fully informed as regards progress towards the implementation of the decision over the 
period ahead.  
3.33.   The representative of Japan  joined other delegations in welcoming the adoption by the 
Committee of the revised Draft Decision regarding the accession of the United Kingdom to the 
Agreement in its own right. The United Kingdom was one of its most important trading partners, and 
it commended the United Kingdom for its efforts to bring the nego tiations to formal  conclusion.  
3.34.   The representative of Liechtenstein  joined other delegations in congratulating the United 
Kingdom  and extended its warm appreciation to the United Kingdom for the constructive cooperation GPA/M/75  
 
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  they enjoyed together, including, notably,  during the preceding year and a half. Liechtenstein looked 
forward to continuing fruitful cooperation with the United Kingdom in the future.  
3.35.   The representative of Singapore  congratulated the United Kingdom and extended warm 
thanks to the United Ki ngdom for its close cooperation with Parties, including Singapore, during the 
preceding months towards the day's successful outcome. The United Kingdom was an important 
government procurement market. In this regard, the present decision - providing certain ty for 
businesses regarding the United Kingdom's coverage under the Agreement in the different 
scenarios - was perfect. Singapore looked forward to working with the United Kingdom in the 
Committee.  
3.36.   The representative of Israel  welcomed the decision approvi ng the terms of accession of the 
United Kingdom to the GPA in its own right. Israel looked forward to continuing to work with the 
United Kingdom under the GPA. 
3.37.   The representative of Canada  said that her delegation was delighted that Parties had adopted 
a positive decision concerning the United Kingdom's accession to the GPA in its own right. Ensuring 
that the United Kingdom remained a Party to the GPA had always been a key priority for Canada. 
Her delegation was pleased to see that the decision adopted incl uded a commitment for the United 
Kingdom to update its market access schedule by invoking Article XIX – Modifications and 
Rectifications to Coverage – within three months after the United Kingdom became a GPA Party in 
its own right. To reiterate, an accura te and up -to-date market access schedule was important from 
a transparency standpoint, particularly for Canada's stakeholders. Specifically, Canada looked 
forward to seeing the United Kingdom updating the following: its Annex 1 entities; its indicative lis t 
of bodies and categories in Annex 2; and, its indicative list of contracting authorities and public 
undertakings in Annex 3. Canada thanked the United Kingdom for its goodwill, openness and 
cooperation throughout this process. Canada looked forward to co ntinuing its close collaboration 
with the United Kingdom in the Committee.  
3.38.   The representative of the Kingdom of the  Netherlands with Respect to Aruba , on behalf of her 
delegation, warmly congratulated  the United Kingdom on the adoption of the decision invi ting it to 
accede to the GPA in its own right. Her delegation was pleased that the United Kingdom would 
continue to participate in the Agreement  post-Brexit. The Kingdom of the Netherlands with Respect 
to Aruba looked forward to working together with the U nited Kingdom going forward.  
3.39.   The representative of Ukraine  warmly welcomed the adoption of the decision on the accession 
of the United Kingdom to the GPA in its own right. Ukraine was grateful for the work done, and the 
cooperation demonstrated by the Uni ted Kingdom in its accession process, in particular in explaining 
the complexities of its accession in such uncommon circumstances. Ukraine appreciated the 
contributions of the United Kingdom to the Committee, looked forward to further cooperation with 
the United Kingdom, and wished it success in its future efforts within the Committee .  
3.40.   The representative of United Kingdom  expressed the deep appreciation of his delegation to 
the Committee and to all Parties for the decision that had just been taken, as wel l as to all delegations 
that had spoken. The United Kingdom was grateful and appreciative to delegations for their 
constructive engagement, cooperation and pragmatism throughout its accession process. 
Delegations had come together to find a solution in con structive and pragmatic ways to the United 
Kingdom's accession to the Agreement in its own right. The decision that had been adopted today 
provided continuity of the United Kingdom's membership of and participation in the GPA in all 
scenarios of its leavin g the European Union.  
4  CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT  
4.1.  The Chairman , outlining his goals and aspirations for the Committee for the year, said that his 
belief was that , going forward, 2019 could be another very significant year for the Committee, 
witnessing important progress on diverse aspects of its work. In this context, the Committee might 
wish to consider committing itself to do whatever it could to achieve further significant progress in 
the following five specific areas. He looked forward to receiving feedback from delegations, and all 
suggestions made were subject to the Committee's evolving interests and relevant constraints:  
• First, concerning the entry into forc e of the revised GPA, he looked forward to the one 
delegation that had still to accept the 2012 Protocol amending the GPA to do its very best GPA/M/75  
 
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  to complete all remaining steps to formally do so. This was important to enable the 
Committee to work efficiently and to move forward with confidence;  
• Second, he hoped that the Committee would continue to make good progress on pending 
and future accessions to the GPA. To begin with, the Committee looked forward to the 
deposit by Australia of its instrument of accessio n, and to welcoming it as a full Party in 
the course of the year. Similarly, following the adoption of the decision regarding the 
accession of the United Kingdom , in its own right , to the GPA, the Committee looked 
forward to welcoming it, at the appropriat e time, as a Party . He hoped, as well, that the 
Committee would aim to conclude work during the year, subject to Parties' negotiating 
interests, on the accessions of the Republic of North Macedonia, the Kyrgyz Republic and 
Tajikistan. With respect to China , while recognizing that this was intrinsically a longer -
term process, he hoped that no opportunity would be lost to make progress in this very 
important accession;  
• Still on the topic of accessions, he was confident that Parties, and the Russian Federation  
itself, would do their best to move forward discussions on that Member’s  accession in a 
constructive manner. He further very much hoped that the Committee and interested 
Parties would  continue their active promotion of the GPA in Latin America and in othe r 
regions of the world. Indeed, it was as well very much his aim to do so himself, in his 
capacity as Chairman. The Secretariat's technical assistance work, in which it 
systematically exposed workshop and seminar participants to the potential benefits of G PA 
participation, also was a very important aspect of this;  
• As a third broad area of interest, he was confident  that the Committee would continue to 
move forward purposefully in regard to its various agreed Work Programmes. Regarding 
both the SME and Susta inability Work Programmes, much of the mandated work had now 
been done. He recognized that further discussion was needed to identify the appropriate 
format and substance of any overall reports to be issued in regard to these Work 
Programmes. Still, it was his hope that they could be finalized , in some fashion,  during 
the course of the year. Further, he hoped that the Committee would continue to move 
toward a conclusion of work on the Work Programme on Statistics. In this regard, he was 
pleased by the ideas for further progress in this area that had been noted in the course of 
the day's proceedings. Regarding any other potential Work Programmes, it was his 
understanding that the Committee would take them up as and when appropriate;  
• Fourth, as outlined in his recent Non -Paper, he hoped that delegations would be prepared 
to give due consideration to possible ways of enhancing information sharing and 
transparency in the Committee. It was his belief that there was a latent appetite for this 
in the Committee, poten tially most notably among recently acceded Parties. In his 
personal view as suggested in his Non -Paper, one way of doing this would be to hold 
annual GPA workshops on new developments in government procurement, national 
experiences, and other matters of in terest to Parties. The discussions that would take 
place in the context of these workshops would be for information -sharing purposes only, 
and would be entirely without prejudice to the views and positions of Parties. This was, of 
course, only one possible  approach. He looked forward to delegations' related suggestions;  
• Finally, regarding the e -GPA system, he proposed that the Secretariat continue to move 
the project forward, with the support and guidance of the Committee.  
4.2.  The Committee took note  of the sta tement made by the Chairman.  
5  OTHER BUSINESS  
5.1.  The Chairman  recalled that the dates that had previously been reserved9 for the remaining 
substantive meeting week s of the Committee in 2019  were: (i) the week beginning 24 June 2019, 
including plurilateral sessi ons that would normally take place on Wednesday, 26 June 2019 ; and 
(ii) the week beginning 21  October 2019, including plurilateral sessions that would normally be held 
on Wednesday, 23 October 2019 . 
                                                
9 RD/GPA/ 70, dated 21 November 2018. GPA/M/75  
 
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  5.2.  For completeness, the above dates were exclusive of the Committee's end -of-year 
housekeeping meeting, to be scheduled, at which participation by Geneva -based officials only would 
be expected, and any other short meetings, similarly covered by Geneva officials, that might be 
necessary to respond to contingencies . 
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