. /.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
WT/MIN(11)/ST/79 
17 December 2011  
 
(11-6644) 
MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE 
Eighth Session Geneva, 15 - 17 December 2011 Original:   English 
 
  
SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS 
 
Statement by Mr Charleton Edwards 
Permanent Secretary, Ministry of International Trade,  
Industry, Commerce and Consumer Affairs 
 
 
St Kitts and Nevis extends its gratitude to the Government and people of Switzerland for 
hosting this, the Eighth WTO Ministerial Conference. 
 
The worsening financial crisis in the Euroz one can have serious negative consequences for 
the global economy and prospects for growth far beyond the advanced Western economies where the problems originated.  The Director-General, Mr Pascal Lamy was right to view the WTO as an 
instrument that in such times of uncertainty can " create confidence by promoting growth and 
development ".  This Eighth Ministerial conference provides an opportunity to collectively explore 
concrete steps via which the trading system can wa rd off the economic catastrophe that faces us all. 
 
It is vital that this effort be pursued at th e multilateral level;  not just because global rather 
than national solutions are needed , but since remedies applied by major players to safeguard their 
national interests can sometimes cause collateral damage to trading partners.  Regrettably, the smallest 
countries such as my own are the most vulnerable.  For instance austerity in donor countries have 
prompted tightening of aid budgets, prompting cutbacks not only in vital traditional flows, but also to essential Aid-for-Trade resources that help us deve lop internationally comp etitive exports of goods 
and services.  
This is why corrective measures, whether in the financial, trad ing or climate change spheres 
need to be subjected to multilaterally agreed prin ciples and disciplines.  Solutions that are good for 
our world as a whole can never result from the more powerful being at liberty to unilaterally devise 
and implement remedies just to safeguard or advance their own interests.  
A specific instance where we have been the innocent victims of domestic action by a major 
trading partner is the Air Passenger Duty levied on air travel.  Ostensibly a "carbon tax" to help 
mitigate the impact of climate change, the tax adds a massive amount to the cost of travel for tourists 
travelling from our largest market.  This reduces our competitiveness with domestic destinations as 
well as others that are equally or more distant but which pay the tax at a lower rate. 
 
We call on Members to muster the political will to  bring this round to a successful conclusion, 
building on the progress made thus far.  In this re gard, St Kitts and Nevis welcomes the advancements 
made in Aid for Trade since its launching in 2005.  We further welcome the continued efforts at the 
WTO to improve monitoring and evaluation and aid effectiveness.  
Trade finance is a priority for the OECS as a critical intervention to assist small, highly 
indebted developing countries to provide the requi site support for firms to trade competitively.  WT/MIN(11)/ST/79 
Page 2  
 
  Appropriate trade finance mechanisms that are cr afted to assist countries that are amongst the most 
highly indebted in the world are urgently needed  to allow for the access to resources to address the 
challenges and constraints that inhibit our ability to trade.  
Chairman, the global crises require collective and inclusive decision making. 
 
A decade ago, our countries committed to the DDA, because we had hoped that the 
negotiations would help rebalance the trading system to  ensure that it would not be neutral in terms of 
development but introduce and support measures th at advance our growth and development.  The 
imperatives to tackle the current crises must not r esult in the de-prioritization of development in the 
DDA. 
 
Addressing the immediate crises should not resu lt in ignoring and therefore perpetuating the 
long-term structural imbalances and inequities that blight the multilateral trading system and which the Doha Development Agenda itself was intended to tackle.  "Yes put out the fire but also deal with 
the shaky foundation on which the house is tottering". 
 
The current economic crises and th e widespread fatigue with Doha  talks must be neither an 
excuse for a quick fix that permits the world to gloss over the glaring inequities of the system nor an excuse to sacrifice the principles and centrality of development in the DDA.  
St Kitts and Nevis wants to see progress in the DDA but we will not join any chorus for its 
conclusion until we are satisfied that the packag e will actually enhance the trade prospects for 
developing countries like mine.  
Chairman, Ministers, Delegates, in closing, St Kitts and Nevis associates itself with the 
statements made by the other delegations fro m CARICOM and the OECS.  We reiterate our 
commitment to the Doha mandate and seek the c onclusion of a round whose success will borne out by 
its ability to address the inequities amongst all participants in the multilateral trading system.   
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