WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/CTE/COM/14 
29 April 2009 
 
 (09-2097) 
Committee on Trade and Environment Original:   English 
  
 
REQUEST FOR OBSERVER STATUS BY THE 
ROTTERDAM CONVENTION  
 
  The following communication addressed to the Chairman of the Committee on Trade and 
Environment (CTE) has been received from the Co-E xecutive Secretary of the Secretariat of the 
Rotterdam Convention requesting observer status in the CTE.  
 
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 I have the honour to refer to the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent 
Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pestic ides in International Trade, which was adopted 
by the Conference of Plenipotentiaries in Rotte rdam, the Netherlands, on 10 September 1998 and 
entered into force on 24 February 2004.   
 At its fourth session of the Conference of the Parties held in Rome, on 27-31 October 2008, 
the Conference of the Parties requested the Secretar iat, in decision RC-4/10, to follow up on the 
request for an observer status in the Worl d Trade Organization's Committee on Trade and 
Environment in Special Session and to seek observe r status in the Organization's Committee on Trade 
and Environment in Regular Session.  The full text of decision RC-4/10 is attached to this letter.  
 
 As requested by the Conference of the Parti es, the Secretariat of the Rotterdam Convention 
would, therefore, like to formally seek an observe r status at the Regular Sessions of the WTO's 
Committee on Trade and Environment and appreciate the approval of the above.   
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 WT/CTE/COM/14 
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  Attachment
 
 
RC-4/10: Cooperation with the World Trade Organization 
 
 The Conference of the Parties,  
 
 Taking note  of progress made toward the implementation of decision RC-1/15 on cooperation 
between the secretariat and the World Trade Organization,    Requests  the secretariat, while continuing to follow  up the request for observer status in the 
World Trade Organization's Committee on Trade a nd Environment in Special Session, to seek 
observer status in the Organization's Committee on Tr ade and Environment, as that Committee is the 
standing body of the World Trade Organization mand ated to discuss trade and environment issues in 
regular sessions, and to inform Parties when the re quest has been submitted and when it has been 
granted.  
 
RC-1/15: Cooperation with the World Trade Organization 
  The Conference of the Parties,  
 Noting  that the United Nations Environment Programme and the World Trade Organization 
have developed an informal institutional dialogue ove r several years, a process that started under the 
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and continue d until 1994, before the existence of the World 
Trade Organization,   Noting  the note by the secretariat concerning coope ration with the World Trade Organization,  
 
 Noting  also that informal dialogue has been taking place more recently between multilateral 
environmental agreements, including between the in terim secretariat of the Rotterdam Convention 
and the World Trade Organization, to enhance syne rgies in particular in relation to trade and 
environment,   
 Mindful  of the need to strengthen cooperation be tween the Convention and the World Trade 
Organization within their respective mandates,   1. Welcomes  the enhanced cooperation between the secr etariat of the Convention and the World 
Trade Organization; 
 
2. Requests  the secretariat: 
 a) To seek observer status in the Committee on Trade and Environment in Special Session of the World Trade Organization and inform Parties when the request has been submitted and when it has 
been granted; 
 
b) To report to the Conference of the Parties on any meetings of the World Trade Organization that it attends, any substantive contacts that it has with the secretariat of the World Trade Organization 
and any general or factual information provided to or any other information requested by the 
secretariat of the World Trade Organization or an y other body of the World Trade Organization;  
 
c) To ensure that at all times it does not prov ide an interpretation of the provisions of the 
Convention;   WT/CTE/COM/14 
 Page 3 
 
 
  d) To monitor developments in the Committee on Trade and Environment in Special Session and 
report on such developments to the Conference of Parties;  e) To reflect on ways of enhancing informati on flows on matters of common interest with the 
World Trade Organization; 
 
3. Encourages  Governments to apprise their repr esentatives on the Committee on Trade and 
Environment in Special Session of the present decision.    
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