WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  TN/TF/W/73 
10 November 2005 
 
 (05-5269) 
Negotiating Group on Trade Facilitation Original:   English 
  
 
COMMUNICATION FROM MAURITIUS  
ON BEHALF OF THE ACP GROUP 
  
 The following communication, dated 9 November 20 05, is being circulated at the request of 
the Delegation of Mauritius on behalf of the ACP Group. 
 
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ISSUES IN THE NEGOTIATIONS ON TRADE FACILITATION  
AND THE IMPORTANCE OF  PROMOTING DEVELOPMENT OBJECTIVES  
THROUGH TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND CAPACITY-BUILDING  
  I. INTRODUCTION 
1. The mandate and modalities for the Trade Facilita tion negotiations in the WTO are set out in 
Annex D. These negotiations "shall aim to clarify and improve relevant aspec ts of Articles V, VIII 
and X of the GATT 1994 with a view to further ex pediting the movement, release and clearance of 
goods, including goods in transit."  
2. The African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States recognize the potential 
development benefits that would accrue to ACP countries from undertaking trade facilitation 
measures. In the context of the current negotiations  on trade facilitation, development must be the 
main objective and focus. This will include, inter alia , ensuring that special and differential treatment 
in favour of developing and least-developed countri es is accorded and made fully effective and 
operational; that international c ooperation is enhanced through the provision of sufficient and 
effective technical assistance and capacity-building in  trade facilitation; and that the outcomes of the 
negotiations reflect the needs of these countries for development policy space and flexibility.  
3. Key elements contained in Annex D designed to ensure that these negotiations promote 
development objectives include: 
• "enhancing technical assistance and support for capacity building in this area";  
 
• developing "provisions for the effective cooperation between customs or any other 
appropriate authorities on trade facilitation and customs compliance issues"; 
 
• fully taking into account "the principle of sp ecial and differential treatment for developing 
and least-developed countries"; and 
 
• that these countries would not be obliged "to undertake investments in infrastructure projects 
beyond their means". 
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 II. MAKING ANNEX D OPERATIONAL 
4. The ACP acknowledges the importance of the manda te contained in Annex D which is aimed 
at clarifying and improving Articles V, VIII and X of the GATT 1994 in respect of the following: 
• Transparency – as an essential element of a regulatory business environment. 
 
• Consistency and predictability – that remove uncertainty in trade operations. 
 
• Non-discrimination – as a guarantee of impartia l and uniform administration of border-related 
regulations and procedures.  
 
• Simplification and avoidance of unnecessary r estrictiveness – that are essential for the 
enhancing of efficiency. 
 
• Due process – devising an appropriate mechanism to review and correct administrative action. 
 
5. The proposals so far are largely consistent, in principle, with the thrust of ongoing national 
programmes in some ACP countries.  However, it mu st be borne in mind that ACP countries are at 
different levels of development and by extension, utilize varying levels of border procedure and 
administration.  Trade Facilitation for the ACP is th erefore as much about institutional development, 
systems modernization, attitudinal culture and chan ges, human resource training, and equipment and 
technology upgrading, as it is about trade rules as such.    It is also about identifying improvements 
that these countries would wish to see others undertake for their benefit.   
6. It is important that the mandate of the Ne gotiating Group on Trade Facilitation is adhered to 
without diverting into related areas.   
7. The WTO Secretariat should expeditiously prepar e a study that compiles and looks at various 
Trade Facilitation tools and measures that have been  used by WTO Members, the physical and policy 
infrastructure required to adopt and implement such tools and measures, the timeframe for 
implementation, and their respective total costs of  implementation (from costs associated with policy 
or regulatory changes, physical infrastructure development, acquisition of technology, human resource training, etc.). This study should be circulated to the Membership as soon as possible. 
8. The ACP attaches great value to the flexib ilities contained in Annex D.  These include: 
• The latitude of Members to ultimately decide on the possible format of the final result of the 
negotiations and the allowance for consideration of various forms of outcomes.  Footnote 1 of 
Annex D states that "It is understood that this is  without prejudice to the possible format of 
the final result of the negotiations and woul d allow consideration of various forms of 
outcomes."  This envisages accommodation for ex igencies and the specific requirements of 
individual Members. 
 
• The extent and timing of entering into commitm ents shall be related to delivery of the 
required support and assistance and to implem entation capacities of developing and least-
developed countries.  
 
• LDCs will be required to undertake commitments only to the extent consistent with their 
individual needs and capabilities. 
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 • The principle of special and differential tr eatment for developing and least-developed 
countries must be fully reflected and made di rectly operational in any negotiated outcome. 
 
• The concerns of developing and least-developed countries relating to the cost implications of 
proposed measures shall be effectively addressed. 
 
9. Therefore, although it is recognized that ther e are potential gains from trade facilitation, the 
ACP would not want to see any new disciplines or commitments which would impact negatively on existing policy space and the flexibility of developing countries in adopting trade facilitation measures. It is also critical that a balance be st ruck between the legitimate objective of border control 
and the economically desirable goal of trade facilita tion. In addition, full account should be taken of 
the economic structure of and levels of development in ACP countries.      
III. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND CAPACITY BUILDING 
10. It has often been stressed that there are costs associated with the pursuit of trade facilitation as 
a legitimate development policy objective. In this  regard, we welcome the recognition in Annex "D" 
("Modalities for Negotiations on Trade Facilitation" ) of the 1 August 2004 Decision of the WTO 
General Council that there is a need for synergy between level of commitments, the cost of and the 
availability of resources to implement any possible outcome and the provision of financial and 
technical resources to help build the capacity of developing and least-developed countries in the area 
of trade facilitation. These commitments must be met in letter and in spirit. 
11. An important task in fulfilling the letter and th e spirit of the negotiating mandate will clearly 
be the identification of the needs and priorities of developing countries for technical assistance and 
capacity building on Trade Facilitation, evaluating pr oposals in terms of the te chnical assistance they 
will require for implementation – and while some Me mbers might view it otherwise, we believe that 
such assistance can and should include financial assi stance, where necessary – and finally developing 
target projects or programmes of assistance to s upport the implementation of any negotiated outcome. 
12. The commitment in Annex D to provide techni cal assistance and capacity-building (TA&CB) 
to developing countries in the area of trade facilitati on – both in the context of  the negotiations and in 
the implementation of the outcomes of the negotiatio ns – should be made i mmediately operational. 
The launch of the trade facilitation negotiations w as agreed-upon on the basis of such commitment to 
provide TA&CB and to ensure that such negotiatio ns would promote the development of developing 
and least-developed countries. The ACP believe s that the TA&CB mandate should be made 
operational by providing support (bot h financial and technical) to deve loping countries to assist them 
during and after the trade facilitation negotiations. 
13. It is worth recalling and reiterating, in this  regard, the proposals presented by the African 
Group in their submission TN/TF/W/56, dated 22 July 200 5. In addition to those raised by the African 
Group, the ACP is hereby proposing some further suggestions on how to operationalise TA&CB in 
the course of the trade facilitation negotiations.  
A. E
STABLISHING AN INTER -AGENCY COORDINATING MECHANISM FOR TRADE FACILITATION 
TA&CB   
14. We emphasize the need to strengthen existi ng trade facilitation-rela ted TA&CB programmes 
and the need for closer collaboration and enhan ced coordination among rele vant international, 
regional and sub-regional organi zations (such as, but not limited to, UNCTAD, UNECE, UNECA, 
WTO, WCO, World Bank) in the delivery of tr ade facilitation-relate d TA&CB support to ACP 
countries and other developing an d least-developed countries.  TN/TF/W/73 
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 15. In this respect, there should be an operationa l inter-agency coordinating mechanism set up for 
the provision of TA&CB to developing countries during and after the negotiations
 to help them design 
and undertake trade facilitation-related projects or  programmes identified as part of their trade 
facilitation negotiations needs or priorities.  
16. This mechanism should be a trade facilitati on TA&CB "one-stop shop" or "single window"  
facility  (to be participated in by bilateral and multila teral donors or agencies with  experience in trade 
facilitation) for the expeditious processing, alloca tion, and evaluation of funding for TA&CB requests 
from developing countries in connection with speci fic projects or programmes in the key areas for 
trade facilitation TA&CB described below. 
B. KEY AREAS FOR FUNDING OF TRADE FACILITATION TA&CB 
17. Pursuant to Annex D, there are three (3) key areas where trade facilitation-related TA&CB 
need to be supported and to which the inter-age ncy coordinating mechanism described above should 
endeavour to source and allocate supportive funding.  These are: 
(i) Support for the identification of trade fa cilitation negotiating needs and priorities 
of developing and least-developed c ountries (Paragraph 4, Annex D);  
(ii) Support and assistance during the trade facilitation negotiations (Paragraph 5, 
Annex D); and 
(iii) Support and assistance to help deve loping and least-developed countries 
implement the commitments resulting from  the negotiations, in accordance with 
their nature and scope (Paragraph 6, Annex D). 
 
18. In order to efficiently source and allocate TA&CB support for developing countries in the 
three areas listed above, a special Trade Facilita tion Technical Assistance and Capacity-Building 
Fund  needs to be established. This fund shall be managed by the inte r-agency coordinating 
mechanism described previously, and contributions  thereto shall be sourced from bilateral and 
multilateral donors. Developing countries requiring trade facilitation TA&CB support in the course of 
or after the trade facilitation negotiations may submit their TA&CB proposals and requests to the 
inter-agency coordinating mechanism, which will th en expeditiously process and allocate such 
TA&CB support funded through this special fund. 
19. Consistent with the provisions of Annex D, the negotiation and implementation of new trade 
facilitation rules by developing and least-developed c ountries should be subject to the prior provision 
of effective and sufficient TA&CB targeted at bu ilding and enhancing the capacity of these countries 
to effectively negotiate and implement such new rules. Among the trade facilitation-related TA&CB 
projects, programmes, or activities for which s upport and assistance could be provided through the 
inter-agency coordinating mechanism and special fund described above would be, inter alia , the 
following: 
(i) Support for the identification of trade facilitation negotiating needs and priorities  
 
• National inter-agency trade facilitation needs and priorities assessment projects which ACP 
and other developing countries need in order to enable them to build a complete and 
comprehensive picture of their domestic trade facilitation needs and priorities for purposes of 
the trade facilitation negotiations.  
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 (ii) Trade facilitation negotiations support  
 
• The development of a human and technical res ource base relevant to the trade facilitation 
negotiations in ACP and othe r developing countries through trade facilitation negotiations 
training projects and programmes to be undertaken at the national level for the benefit of, and 
to be participated in by, developing countries’ trade negotiators, customs officials, and other 
relevant domestic stakeholde rs in trade facilitation; 
 
• Ways and means through which ACP and othe r developing countries’ negotiating capacity 
could be enhanced including, inter alia , financial support for the direct participation by their 
capital-based customs officials in the on-going trade facilitation negotiations;  
 
• Facilities for direct and specific trade fac ilitation negotiations-related policy and legal 
research and analytical support fo r developing-country delegations; 
 
• Subject to the need to preserve development po licy space and flexibility, the identification of 
trade facilitation-relevant physical and policy in frastructure needed to enable ACP and other 
developing countries to fully maximize the bene fits of trade facilitation and to effectively 
comply with any new trade facilitation rules,  including policies or measures needed to 
upgrade and streamline existing customs administration, transparency, and procedures 
consistent with individual devel oping countries’ needs or conditions; 
 (iii) Trade facilitation commitments implementation support
 
 
• The acquisition or transfer of appropriate tr ade facilitation-related equipment, technologies, 
systems or methodologies that could be adopted or adapted by developing countries as they deem necessary; 
 
• Identification and implementation of ways a nd means appropriate to developing countries 
through which traffic in transit could be secured and its transit facilitated; 
 
• Subject to the need to preserve developmen t policy space and flexibility, implementation of 
trade facilitation-relevant physical and policy in frastructure that will be needed by ACP and 
other developing countries to fully maximize  the benefits of trade facilitation and to 
effectively comply with any new trade facilitation rules or commitments; 
 
• Support for regional trade facilitation initia tives and programmes in ACP and other 
developing countries; 
 
• Enhancement of ACP and other developing countries’ human and technical resource base in 
trade facilitation through, inter alia , continuing skills exchange, training, scholarships, and  
information exchange in trade facilitation-re lated matters among WTO Members’ customs 
and trade agencies. 
 
IV. EVALUATING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE 
MANDATE IN ANNEX D 
20. The provision of TA&CB support and assistance is a key component of the Trade Facilitation 
negotiations mandate under Annex D.  Hence, the implementation of  this mandate needs to be 
periodically reviewed by the WTO Membership to ensure that the development objectives of the 
negotiations are being met. Members should note that  Paragraph 7 of Annex D states that they "agree TN/TF/W/73 
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 to review the effectiveness of the support an d assistance provided and its ability to support the 
implementation of the results of the negotiations." 
21. To this end, the ACP recommends that a repor t be prepared by the WTO Secretariat on the 
extent to which the technical assistance aspects of Annex D are  being implemented. The report should 
include information and other data concerning th e nature, source or provider, destination or 
beneficiary, objectives, activities undertaken, out put produced, and financial amounts of TA&CB 
support and assistance that have been specifically provided to ACP or other developing or least-developed countries pursuant to the mandate in Anne x D (including the activities of the inter-agency 
coordinating mechanism for TA&CB described above  in the event that such mechanism and its 
associated fund are established). The report should al so contain qualitative information or assessments 
from the beneficiaries of such TA&CB on the extent  to which such TA&CB has been effective in 
enhancing their negotiating capacity in the trade facilitation negotiations.  
22. This report should be submitte d to the Negotiating Group on Trade Facilitation (NGTF) as 
expeditiously as possible, with appropriate operational recommendations on how to improve and 
enhance the provision of trade facilitation-relate d TA&CB to ACP and other developing countries. 
The NGTF shall expeditiously take appropriate action thereon in orde r to ensure that adequate and 
effective TA&CB is provided to ACP and other developing countries in the trade facilitation 
negotiations.  
 
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