WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
WT/MIN(11)/ST/60 
16 December 2011  
 
(11-6621) 
MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE 
Eighth Session Geneva, 15 - 17 December 2011 Original:   English 
 
  
THE PHILIPPINES 
 
Statement by H.E. Mr Gregory Domingo 
Secretary, Department of Trade and Industry 
 
 
We are gathered here today on the shores of Lac Leman at a pivotal point in time.  It is 
perhaps an opportune figure of speech to say that we - all 153 of our economies, and growing - are in 
the same boat.  While we are different - some bigge r than others, some stronger than the rest - we 
consider ourselves equals, and we have come together  in order to steer collectively towards one goal - 
"open and fair trade for the benefit of all ". 
 
Like other Members, the Philippines remains deeply committed to ensuring the functioning 
and sustained enhancement of the multilateral trad ing system.  The primacy of this system is 
unquestionable.  In a time of global economic un certainty, the Philippines, as far back as 2008, has 
made a strong stand against protectionism.  We re main committed to resisting taking "protectionist" 
measures, and we have followed through our word w ith firm action.  We continue to call on other 
Members to similarly take action that is consistent  with the rules and disciplines of the system.  We 
also recognize the significant role that the WTO has played, both as overseer and as analyst, in staving 
off these protectionist measures.  We are confident th at the WTO will continue to effectively carry out 
this function as we continue to rec over from the global financial crisis. 
 
In strengthening the system, we particularly welcome the good work done by and the 
continuous improvement of the TPRB Monitoring exercise;  the moratorium on custom duties and 
work programme on e-commerce;  and the mora torium on TRIPS non-violation and situation 
complaints. 
 
Preliminary work has also been done on the ar ea of Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) and 
its systemic implications on the multilateral tradi ng system and we need to build upon this foundation 
to further advance the objectives of the MTS.  The Philippines, like most developing countries, have 
engaged in RTAs and FTAs with a view that this is another avenue to complement the multilateral 
trading system.  However, it cannot be denied th at the spaghetti bowl of RTAs/FTAs is becoming a 
concern with regard to its systemic implications .  An area that can be further looked at is the 
long-term impact on rules of origin, making it more  complicated and eventually hinder rather than 
facilitate trade. 
 
We stand firm in our resolve to help the Organization move forward with its agenda.  
Development remains at the heart of the multilate ral trading system, and the conclusion of the 
Doha Development Agenda remains the single most e ffective step towards reaching the goal of "open 
and fair trade for the benefit of all".  In these uncertain times, the Philippines welcomes discussion of 
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  "fresh ideas and approaches " to reinvigorate negotiations, incl uding pragmatically advancing the 
negotiations where progress can be achieved.  In emba rking in this new path, we should keep in mind 
that:  
(1) Any review should be based on the progress achieved so far; 
 
(2) the Doha development mandate must always  be an integral part of any of these 
negotiations;  and 
 
(3) any early agreements shall be taken in to account in "assessing the overall balance of 
the negotiations". 
 
Having said this, the Philippines will be fully en gaged in the identification of issues and 
development of a forward work programme at the pr oper time and venue.  We join others, including 
our ASEAN neighbours, in calling for decisive co llective action backed by thorough examination of 
the options currently before us. 
 
Allow me to take this opportunity, in this peri od of reflection, to dwell on the heart and soul 
of our current work, which is development.  
We have witnessed the ever-growing prominence of development in the context of the global 
economic, political and social architecture in the l ast two decades.  This development gap exposes a 
glaring need for capacity building and long-lasting solutions to pressing problems.  This development 
gap has also led to, and is mutually impacted by, differences in capabilities of Members.  In our 
international agreements in climate change, for inst ance, this is embodied in the ideal of common but 
differentiated responsibility;  in the WTO agreemen ts and other international treaties, it is made 
operational through special and differential treatment. 
 
During the last two decades, the world has experienced unprecedented growth fuelled by 
trade and this is particularly evident in developi ng countries.  There is, however, a need to go behind 
these figures to see how economic and trade expansion has contributed to the quality of life of the 
people of developing countries.  It is not uncommon to see high-growth  countries still mired in 
poverty and underdevelopment.  We need time to  lay down the foundations for true economic 
emancipation.  This is especially true in th e aftermath of the global financial crisis. 
 
In real terms, despite growth in some parts of the world, whole communities of the poor and 
the underprivileged are being ravaged by unfair a nd exploitative trade and investment practices.  
Technology transfer and foreign investment were supposed to unleash latent development potential in 
poorer nations.  Instead, in many cases, we find unfair and unreasonable restrictions on the spread and sharing of knowledge.  
At this juncture, the Philippines welcomes the re affirmation of development as a core element 
of the WTO's work.  We welcome the results of the 3
rd Global Review for Aid for Trade, together 
with the Aid-for-Trade work programme for the upc oming years;  the progress made on issues that 
addresses the needs of LDCs;  and the commitm ent to strengthen the Committee on Trade and 
Development.  These elements, particularly those ca ptured in the elements for political guidance and 
the decisions that we will endorse during this conf erence, are confidence builders which will enable 
us to take steps further in the right direction. 
 
The multilateral trading system is a vehicl e that can propel us towards our avowed 
development objectives.  Given the interrelationship of our economies, there is so much potential for 
developing countries, through improved market access, the strengthening of the rules-based trading 
system, and technical assistance and capacity building.   However, beyond the principle of special and  WT/MIN(11)/ST/60 
 Page 3 
 
 
  differential treatment and the elements of deve lopment that I had enumerated, we need the 
establishment of the overarching framework of the Doha Development Agenda to drive us towards 
sustainable development.  
This is particularly important given that de veloping countries are comprised mainly of small 
and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and poor sma ll farmers who are most vulnerable to market 
uncertainties and who would most benefit from a harmonized trading system and open and fair 
markets.  
In the Philippines, SMEs accounted for 99.6 pe r cent of total establishments, and contributed 
61.2 per cent of employment and 35.7 per cent of GDP.  Meanwhile, agriculture, which is comprised 
mainly of poor small farmers, accounted for ab out 35 per cent of total employment, but only 
15 per cent of GDP, in 2009.  These figures glaringly show that a great portion of our population share only a very small slice of our economy.  
Furthermore, the losses suffered by SMEs and farm ers in the aftermath of the global financial 
crisis and countless natural disasters that have struck  our nation have shown th at they are two of the 
most vulnerable sectors in our economy.  As such, SMEs and small farmers should not just be an 
afterthought.  Instead, they should be the primary con cern in our policies and agreements.  Open trade 
should benefit the general public by making trade rul es also fair.  In this regard, vulnerable groups 
like SMEs and farmers serve as reliable yardsticks of  the efficacy and meaningfulness of the decisions 
we make. 
 
The performance of SMEs and agriculture is constrained by various factors, but there are 
several areas where the WTO could make an impact, such as:  (1) improving information needed to 
facilitate market access and to enhance the busin ess environment;  (2) providing opportunities to 
access new technologies;  (3) simplification of comp lex and varying trade rules and requirements;  
(5) integrated capacity-building initiatives which cap tures the important elements of innovation and 
research and development;  and (6) an oper ational special and differential treatment. 
 
Another area gaining more and more relevance,  especially for developing countries like the 
Philippines, is "food insecurity".  Since 2006, inte rnational food prices have gone up sharply on 
two occasions, the second rise is still in motion where peopl e in East Africa continue to suffer.  At the 
height of the food crisis in 2008, the Philippines, wh ich is mostly dependent on rice as its main staple, 
was not spared when the global rice prices skyrocke ted about three (3) times higher than pre-crisis 
levels.  These events, of course, came not w ithout casualties as a number of food importing 
developing countries suffered from hunger, food riots and looting, and deaths. 
 
That said, let me be clear about this at the outset:  food security - trade and non-trade - has 
multidimensional pillars that need to be addressed in  a holistic and integrated fashion both at the 
global and local levels.  While we recognize that tr ade has a role to play, the Philippines is under no 
illusion that trade alone is the panacea to food insecurity that  some of us here continue to advance.  
This is so simply because making food available does not necessarily translate to food access.  In 
addition, incomes needed to purchase food in mo st developing countries with large populations 
dependent on agriculture are continuously underm ined by the current unfair trading rules and 
practices as huge subsidies remain and the two sides of tr ade highly distorted.  It is for this reason that 
in Doha we have all placed devel opment at its core - not on total trade dependency - that is why the 
food security mandate goes hand-in-hand with the need to secure livelihood security and rural 
development in developing countries.  Let us not  therefore turn our backs from this development 
dimension as we deliver the Doha Round.  In hi s light, we underscore the need to put in place 
operational and effective Special Safeguard Mechan ism and Special Products as critical development 
and S&DT instruments for developing countries.  WT/MIN(11)/ST/60 
Page 4  
 
  So how do we address food insecurity in developing  countries?  Let me explain this way - the 
FAO, G20 and APEC have called for the need to  increase food production by 70 per cent by 2050 to 
prevent mass starvation to take place, and that much  of this production requirement must arise where 
the hunger is.  While food aid and trade play roles, there is no substitute to bringing investments back 
to developing countries for productivity and greater production to meet the ever growing demand for 
food.  However, we know that investments for food security can only flourish when income of 
farmers, particularly the small, is assured and e nhanced.  However, income of farmers in developing 
countries has been depressed and threatened by unfa ir competition through huge subsidization in trade 
that has discouraged and led to low investments in  agriculture of developing countries for decades.  
Not only that, the emergence of increased volatilities in  global food production, supply, and prices in 
recent years is another threat to ensuring income and food security.  It is therefore vital that 
developing countries provide support systems to th eir farmers including appropriate trade and 
non-trade policy environment that is conducive for their survival, and ultimately for food security. 
 
On Philippine agriculture and trade, we take pride in saying that we are one of the least 
protected among the Members of the WTO "agriculture exporting group" .  For example, our average 
agriculture bound tariff is forty (40) per cent, and we have virtually no trade-distorting subsidies in place since the Uruguay Round (except for miniscul e amounts for rice and corn for food security 
purposes).  It is also for this already open a nd trade-friendly environment that we are seeking 
operation and effective meaningful S&DT flexibility in  the WTO to preserve some - that still can be 
sufficient - policy space for food production and ultimately for food security of our people.  
Nevertheless, imports  can continue to complement greater domestic production for food security for 
as long as major suppliers can ensure the stability and reliability of food supply at the price that our 
people can afford.  
Finally, it is our sincere hope and desire that we all continue to purs ue global trade reforms 
including under Doha to establish a truly fair a nd market-oriented, rules-based multilateral trading 
environment where development is an integral part and where both impor ters and exporters are 
nurtured to flourish and prosper so that they can play their different but complementary roles to 
address food security that we all seek to have for all our people.  
Trade is an essential tool for development not the end itself.  While we must explore new 
approaches to the multilateral trading system and to conclude the DDA, the essence of development 
remains the same.  The needs of developing coun tries are still the same, and the ultimate goal of 
seeking solutions to break the impa sse is the same - to come up with a long-term solution to help 
people rise out of poverty, and in the interim, re lief for the most vulnerable as we recover from the 
global economic crisis. 
 
The Doha Development Agenda was the outcome of  the yearnings of billions of people in the 
developing world.  We co ntinue to hope and belie ve in the ability of open trade to create opportunities 
for us to learn, produce, rise out of poverty, and stand on our own feet.  After only a decade of attention, we must therefore not give up on Doha  and ten years of foundational work.  We waited for 
generations to have a development round see the li ght of day, and we hope to see it through to its 
conclusion. 
  
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