. /.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  TN/MA/19 
27 July 2006 
 (06-3613) 
Negotiating Group on Market Access  
  
 
NEGOTIATING GROUP ON MARKET ACCESS 
 
Progress Report by the Chairman, Ambassador Don Stephenson, to 
 
the Trade Negotiations Committee  
 
 
I. STATUS OF WORK 
1.1 Since the last report to the TNC dated 28 April 2006, the NAMA Group has held two week-
long meetings (15 to 19 May  and 13  to 16 June)  which were convened thro ugh organizational faxes 
dated 24 May 2006 and 12 June 2006, r espectively.  Several open-ende d meetings supplemented these 
week-long meetings. In addition, I have been c onsulting with proponents and opponents of issues 
either separately or together. These consultations have been further complemented by Room F and 
Room E-type meetings as well as confessionals.   1.2 In the table below are some more details on the open-ended sessions held since my last report 
to the TNC and the issues taken up at these sessions:  
 
Date Type of meeting Issue(s) discussed 
10 May 2006 Open-ended LDCs; Pa ragraph 6; SVEs; RAMs; Non-
reciprocal preferences 
15-19 May 2006 Open-ended (NAMA 
week) Paragraph 6; NTBs; Sectorals; LDC issues; 
SVEs; RAMs; Product coverage; Preparation of Doha Schedules 
30 May 2006 Open-ended  Introduction by the Secretariat of the 
Simulations 
31 May 2006 Open-ended NTBs; AVEs 
2 June 2006  (cont. on 7 June) Open-ended Simulations 
9 June 2006 Open-ended "Ambition" issues 
12-16 June 2006 Open-ended (NAMA 
week) All issues 
23 June 2006  Open-ended Introduction and comments to Chair's paper 
entitled "Towards modalities".  
 
1.3 I would note that several new papers, proposal s/ proposed language as well as reports have 
been presented during the course of these open-ende d sessions and discussed.  In fact since my last 
TNC report,  thirty documents under the TN/MA/- sy mbol and 15 documents with JOB numbers have 
been circulated.  In this regard, I would draw  your attention to the Secretariat document  
TN/MA/S/16/Rev.5 which highlights all new documents circulated since 4 April 2006. Of course, I 
would note that informal papers which were circulated are not listed in this document.  
  TN/MA/19 
Page 2  
 
  II. OUTSTANDING ISSUES/FUTURE WORK 
2.1 Following this process of intensive meetings  and consultations, I elaborated my document 
entitled "Towards NAMA Modalities" (JOB(06)/200) .  Following its discussion at an open-ended 
informal meeting on 23 June 2006, I circulated a revised version on 26 June 2006 (JOB(06)/200/Rev.1).  This document has subsequen tly been re-issued as TN/MA/W/80.  It is clear 
that divergences remained on a number of issues, but  it is also notable that much progress had been 
made in closing some of the gaps.   
2.2 On 1 July 2006, following the unsuccessful Ministerial gathering at the end of June when 
modalities in Agriculture and NAMA were to be estab lished, the TNC agreed: (1) to request the TNC 
Chairman, in view of the crisis in the DDA, to c onduct intensive and wide-ra nging consultations with 
the aim of facilitating the urgent establishment of modalities in agriculture and NAMA;  (2) that his 
consultations should be based on the draft texts prepared by the Chairs of the negotiating groups; and 
(3) that he should report to the TNC as soon as possible.  2.3 As you heard from the report made by the TNC Chairman on 24 July 2006, despite all efforts 
it was not possible to reach the objective of est ablishing these modalities.  As a result, his 
recommendation was to suspend the Doha negotiations .  He did not propose any date for resumption 
of activity in the Negotiating Groups as, in his view, this could only happen when the "conditions 
exist to permit renewed progress".     
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