. /.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/MIN(05)/ST/51 
15 December 2005 
 (05-6016) 
MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE 
Sixth Session Hong Kong, 13 - 18 December 2005 Original:   English 
 
  
BAHAMAS 
 
Statement Circulated by the Honourable Leslie Miller
 
Minister of Trade and Industry  
 
(As an Observer) 
 
 
 It is indeed an honour and privilege for my delegation to attend this Sixth WTO Ministerial 
Meeting and for me to be afforded the opportunity  to once again address this august body.  At the 
outset, I wish to congratulate the Government of Hong Kong and the WTO organizing committee for the excellent arrangements which have been put in pl ace here in this beautiful and historic city of 
Hong Kong to ensure the success of this meeting.  
 The Bahamas is one of 39 Observer countries wh ich are currently seeking membership in the 
WTO.  In July 2001, when the Government of th e Bahamas applied for Observer status in the WTO, 
emphasis was placed on our commitmen t to the ideals of free and fair trade and our willingness to 
actively participate in a strong, viable, transparent, fair and predictable global trading system and that 
this would be done on terms which are mutually fa vourable to both the Bahamas and other Member 
countries of the WTO, terms which should continue to  facilitate the long-term sustainable growth and 
development of our nation.   As the Bahamas prepares to  join the WTO, it intends to do so from a knowledge based 
approach, weighing the advantages and disadvantag es of membership, with an on-going commitment 
to the people of the Bahamas to ensure that at a ll times our interests are protected.  The Government 
of the Bahamas has sought to educate its citizens on the multilateral trading system and to bring about 
great awareness on the pivotal role which this orga nization plays in forging a fair and equitable 
multilateral trade framework which would facilitate global trade and benefit all of its Members by 
bringing about an equitable and fair system of  trade between developed and developing countries. 
 
 As you are aware, the Bahamas is a small, vulnerable, developing is land nation, which is 
dependent on customs duties as the major source of revenue for central government administration.  
Customs duties are applied across the board and do not discriminate against goods on the basis of 
their point of origin.  The services sector domina ted by tourism, financia l, maritime and other 
ancillary services, accounts for approximately, 65  per cent of GDP, and has always been open to 
foreign investors.  The GATS negotiations would th erefore be of particular significance to the 
Bahamas.   The Government of the Bahamas is cognizant of the daunting challenges which developing 
nations, particularly our sister Ca ribbean nations, have experienced as a result of agriculture subsidies, 
preference erosion and tariff reductions which have  had a devastating socio economic impact on these 
small vulnerable economies as thousands of  farmers have lost their incomes. 
 WT/MIN(05)/ST/51 
Page 2  
 
  Every effort should be made at this Sixth M eeting for developed nations to lead the way in 
finding practical, workable and effective solutions  to the pressing issues of concern, which are 
obstacles to progress in bringing about the succes s of these negotiations.  During this Round of 
Negotiations the Membership of the WTO must ensu re that this Organization takes into account and 
effectively addresses the concerns of its Members es pecially small vulnerable developing nations in 
relation to agriculture subsidies, erosion of pref erences, special and differential treatment and tariff 
reduction which require greater flexibility and longe r transition periods which would reduce poverty, 
minimize economic shock and enable these economies to meet their obligations under the WTO.  By 
addressing and resolving these issues, developed c ountries would demonstrate their sincerity in 
advancing the plight of developing nations, th ereby giving true meaning to the development 
dimension of the Doha Developm ent Round, which places the needs and interests of developing 
countries at the heart of the Doha Work Programme.   My Government is grateful to the WTO Secretariat for providing on-going technical assistance and training to Bahamian officials to assist in building capacity and increasing awareness 
about the World Trade Organization and Agreements .  The installation of the WTO Trade Reference 
Centre at the College of the Bahamas and the Ba hamas Chamber of Commerce has served to benefit 
faculty, students and the general public.  Scores of Bahamian officials continue to participate in 
courses held in Geneva, regionally and locally. 
  The Bahamas is no doubt aware of the impending challenges that we have to overcome as we 
move forward with our accession to the WTO in terms of complying with and implementing WTO 
commitments and seeking to balance our national inte rest and policies to promote long-term economic 
growth and development, while seeking to balance the need to ensure our full integration within the 
global economy.  As the Bahamas moves forward in its  quest for membership in this body, it is our 
hope that the negotiations process will be a harmoni ous and beneficial one and that the WTO will 
continue to be a beacon of hope for its membership. 
 
__________