WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
WT/GC/133 
27 July 2011 
 (11-3865) 
General Council 
27 July 2011 Item 5  
 
  
EIGHTH SESSION OF THE MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE –  
STATEMENT BY THE CHAIRMAN 
  
As I announced at the May meeting of th e General Council, I have continued the 
consultations started by my predecessor on the Eighth Session of the Ministerial Conference, which, as you know, will take place on 15-17 December.  My consultations have been aimed at hearing 
Members' views about substance a nd organization of MC8, including work to take place after the 
Conference.  In other word, this initial phase was about defining the "big picture".  We clearly need to 
first develop a common view as to what we want this Conference to do and how it should do it.  Only then can we move on to settle  other more detailed issues. 
  The overall objective remains as we defined it  at the outset – to produce a successful 
Ministerial Conference;  one which, despite the cu rrent problems in the Round, will help to reinforce 
the value of the WTO system for all its members.   
 
Since May, I have met with a very wide range  of Members in three rounds of consultations, 
which, in keeping with our usual practice, have included Group Coordinators, individual delegations, 
groups of delegations and the Chairs of the Council' s subsidiary bodies.  As ever, my door has also 
remained open for any other delegation wishing to meet me. 
  I would now like to begin my overview of the co nsultations by outlining the points on which I 
have seen a high degree of convergence emerging.   There was a general sense that MC8 would have to be a different event from MC7.  This is 
largely because more is at stake – even, according to some, the credib ility of the organization itself.  
More focus should be placed on the systemic and institutional issues.  MC8 should strengthen the 
system as a whole.   Most delegations also stressed that MC8 should send the message that the WTO is not 
synonymous with the DDA:  the WTO is more than the Round.  At the same time, there was a general 
sense that MC8 could not, and should not, avoid addressing the DDA.  It was noted that possible deliverables under the Doha mandate were being pursued through the TNC process chaired by the 
Director-General.  A general view was also express ed that Development issues should remain central 
at MC8, and LDC issues in particular. 
 
 Let me now turn to the organizing principles for MC8.   There was unanimous support for reaffirming two principles that had helped make the previous Ministerial run smoothly.  First, the FIT 
principle (Full participation, Inclusiveness and Transp arency), to be applied both in the preparations 
for the Ministerial and at the Conference itself.  WT/GC/133 
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   Secondly, the "gentleman's agreement" as agr eed for MC7.  This means that any Member 
pursuing an issue for decision, but not achieving consensus on it 6 weeks before the Ministerial, 
which means 2 November, will not insist on putting the item on the Conference Agenda. 
  Delegations also stressed the need to avoid wh at they termed the "Christmas tree syndrome".  
Clearly, we all want the Conference to be a success, and for this to happen the Agenda we put before 
Ministers must be realistic in terms of the number of  issues it contains, especially in the light of the 
short time available to them at MC8.   Members recognized that 3 issues have to be  taken up at MC8 under existing mandates: 
 
 Moratorium on e-commerce duties; 
 Moratorium on TRIPS non-violation complaints; 
 Overview of WTO activities. 
 
In terms of the structure of MC8, a number of delegations stressed that the discussions should 
be structured and focused.  There was general accep tance of a proposal to fo cus the structure of the 
Conference and its preparation on two main themes: 
 
(i) WTO work up until December 2011;  and  (ii) WTO work after December 2011 and perhaps up to the next MC in 2013.  
  To help organize our work, I have asked delegati ons to consider when they put forward issues 
which of these headings they could fall under.  In pr actical terms this means thinking whether an issue 
could realistically be considered ripe for action in December, or whether it is something that might be 
flagged as possibly forming part of a future WTO wo rk programme.  We will need to develop greater 
clarity on this point as we move ahead.   On the substantive agenda of MC8, many ideas have been floated in my consultations and I 
do not intend to list all of them today.  But to gi ve you an idea, the suggestions I have heard under the 
first heading range from a focus on Development, in cluding Aid for Trade and issues relating to LDCs 
and SVEs, to improving Accession processes.  Othe r suggestions include strengthening the TPRM 
and the monitoring mechanism, and broadening wo rk on RTAs.  For the future work programme 
under the second heading, suggestions include addr essing systemic aspects of WTO's work and a 
number of new, or 21st century, issues as they have been called.  Examples of issues raised in this 
regard include trade and currency exchange rates, climate change, and food security. 
  Most of the issues raised so far in my consu ltations have a home in the existing structures and 
processes of the WTO.  In fact many of the issues ar e already part of the on-going work in these areas.  
We do not need to, and I do not intend to, dupli cate these structures and processes.  Instead the aim 
should be to use them to the maximum, so that issu es of interest can be pr esented to Ministers through 
the reports WTO bodies will make to them via the General Council.  These reports can of course 
include recommendations for action where any can be agreed.  This approach appears to be well 
understood by the proponents.  
 In this regard, I am maintaining contact with  the Chairs of the regular WTO bodies to help 
reinforce the processes as necessary, and I hope all of  you will also make full use of the existing 
machinery.  The need to rev italize the work of regular WTO bodies, including notification and 
compliance, has been a common theme in our consu ltations.  We can take a useful step in that 
direction right now by giving them their proper pl ace in the preparation of the Ministerial agenda. 
  WT/GC/133 
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   The focus of my recent consultations has been  to encourage delegations to move from the 
general to the specific.  I have urged anyone advocat ing a point for Ministerial attention to develop it 
in a concrete and operational way.  This is essential since, in line w ith the gentleman's agreement, the 
onus is on proponents to build consensus around thei r proposals and to do so before the six-week 
deadline for the Conference Agenda. 
 
 We have seen a good deal of commonality in th e issues identified in my consultations.  This 
is already a positive sign.  Of course approaches to these issues vary considerably at present.  
Working towards the necessary converg ence on substance and process is a challenge in front of us for 
the autumn, as is working toward a shared view of the WTO's future work programme. 
 
 In the light of this, let me share with you some conclusions that I have drawn from my 
consultations over these past weeks.   Firstly, we should remind ourselves that we a ll reject a "Christmas tree" approach to the 
Ministerial.  The purpose of my recent consultations  has been to ensure th at where any issues do go 
forward to Ministers, in line with our agreed pro cedure, these are properly formulated and prepared.  
We should keep in mind that there are limits to what  Ministers can do in three days, especially since 
we are pledged to respect the FIT principle.   Secondly, we need clarity on the scope of the issues which will go to MC8.  I hope that those 
of you who have raised an issue in my consultatio ns so far will now deve lop it in a concrete and 
operational way and test it with colleagues.  We can not afford to create misleading ambitions for what 
the Ministerial can deliver.   Lastly, I would like to stress the time factor.  After the summer break we will have less than 
14 weeks until the Ministerial, and some 7 weeks un til the agenda closes.  This is a very short 
timeframe in which to finalize the substantive content of the conference and settle remaining 
procedural issues.  It will be made even tighter by  the need to factor in the outcome of the on-going 
consultations on the DDA which the Di rector-General is undertaking. 
  Before I conclude, I would like to turn to th e issue of the outcome document of MC8, which 
has been raised in my consultations by some de legations.  This is clearly a key element of our 
preparatory process, and we will have to address it more specifically when we return in September.  
Suffice it to say at this juncture that while some delegations have argued in favour of developing an 
agreed ministerial communiqué or even declaration,  others felt that a Chairman's statement along the 
lines of the 2009 model might be preferable.  Of cour se, the form it takes will depend to a great extent 
on the nature of the substantive issues we wish to tr ansmit to Ministers.  Whatever the precise form of 
the product, this is presumably where issues relati ng to the future work programme will be addressed, 
so it will be an important consider ation in our further consultations. 
  The first phase of our preparatory work, which could be described as one of issue 
identification, is now coming to an end.  When we come back in September, delegations will need to 
shift to working through the appropriate processe s to see what is realistically achievable in a 
pragmatic and realistic spirit.  At the same time, I will be shifting the main focus of my continuing 
consultations from immediate issues to the future work programme of the WTO, taking into account 
all that I have heard from you about your long-term priorities for the organization.  My aim in doing 
so is to complete the "big picture" of the substan tive agenda so that we can  then settle the remaining 
organizational issues in good time. 
 WT/GC/133 
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   In my further consultations in the autumn, I will, of course, continue to fully respect our 
principles of transparency and inclusiveness.  My door will remain open for any delegation who 
wishes to meet with me.  I look forward to contin uing to work closely with you all to finalize our 
preparations.  
 That concludes my statement, but before I open the floor I would like to make an 
announcement on administrative matters for MC8.  The Secretariat has already issued a first 
Information Circular, covering various logistical ma tters relating to the Conference.  The second and 
third Circulars are being issued today, covering visas and hotel bookings, respectively.  These Circulars can be found in documents WT/MIN( 11)/INF/1, 2 and 3, and I would encourage all 
delegations to familiarize themselves with the inform ation they contain.  The Secretariat will issue 
further Information Circulars in due course.  
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