WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  RESTRICTED 
WT/GC/M/136 
6 June 2012 
 (12-2985) 
General Council 
1 May 2012  
 
 
 
MINUTES OF MEETING 
 
Held in the Centre William Rappard 
on 1 May 2012 
 
Chairperson:  Mrs Elin Johansen (Norway) 
 
 
At the outset of the meeting, the Chairpers on welcomed Montenegro and Samoa as the most 
recent Members of the WTO.  The represen tative of Montenegro made a statement.1  In the course of 
the meeting, many delegations  added their words of welcome to these two countries.  
  Subjects discussed:
2 Page 
 
1.  Report by the Chairman of the Trade Negotiations Committee .......................................... 2  
2.  Work Programme on Small Economies – Report by the Chairman of the 
Dedicated Session of the Committ ee on Trade and Development ...................................... 18  
3.  Improving the guidelines for granting intergovernmental organizations 
permanent observer status in the WTO – Communication from the Arab Group .......... 19  
4.  Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration – Report on meeting of 
March 2012 .................................................................................................................... .......... 20 
5.  International Trade Centre UNCTAD/WTO – Report of the Joint Advisory 
Committee on its fort y-fifth session ....................................................................................... 21  
6.  WTO Pension Plan Management Board – Election of a member and two 
alternates – Proposal by the Chairperson of the General Council ..................................... 23  
7.  Guidelines for appointment of officers to  WTO bodies – Statement by Ecuador ............. 23  
8.  Decision on an extension of the period  for the acceptance by Members of the 
Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement – Statement by the Director-General ........... 24  
9.  Chairmanships of the Working Parties on the Accession of Liberia and on the 
Accession of Afghanistan – Statement by the Chairperson ................................................ 25  
10.  Administrative Measures for Members in arrears – Statement by the 
Chairperson ................................................................................................................... .......... 25 
ANNEX – Statement by Montenegro ............................................................................................... .. 26 
 
 
 
 
                                                      
1 The statement is included in th e Annex to the present records. 
2 The Proposed Agenda was circulated in document WT/GC/W/656. WT/GC/M/136 
Page 2  
 
  1. Report by the Chairman of the Trade Negotiations Committee 
1. The Chairperson invited the Director-General, Chairman of the TNC, to report on the TNC's 
activities since his last report to the Council. 
2. The Director-General, Chairman of the TNC, recalled3 that at the February meeting of the 
Council, Members had agreed that the task before them was to implement decisions and to 
operationalize the elements for political guidance resulting from the Eighth Ministerial Conference 
(MC8) in a pragmatic and realistic manner.  The most realistic and practical way forward was to take small steps, gradually moving forward the parts of the Doha Round that were  mature, and re-thinking 
those where greater differences remained.  He had en couraged all Chairs to informally consult on this 
basis.  Trade Facilitation and Dispute Settlement were exceptions.  In these areas, Members had 
agreed on detailed work plans which they had alr eady started implementing.  Since the February 
Council, all Chairs of Negotiating Gr oups had consulted with  delegations in different formats.  He 
would report on this shortly.  First, he wished to re port briefly on internati onal meetings in which he 
had recently participated, starting with the spring m eetings of the World Bank  and the International 
Monetary Fund in Washington and the meeting of G 20 Trade Ministers in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.  
At both of these meetings, he had cautioned that world trade was grow ing much slower than in the 
past – with a trade forecast for 2012 at around fo ur per cent growth in volume, compared to an 
average of six per cent in the past 15 years and fi ve per cent in 2011.  Thus, there had been a clear 
deceleration.  The 2012 forecast was mostly a consequence of sluggish growth in advanced 
economies, particularly in the Euro zone.  The contribution of trade to growth in emerging and 
developing countries was also decreasing and was forecast to further decline.  He had warned that the 
prevailing deteriorating situation coul d get worse if trade protectionism increased.  So far, as all knew, 
although protectionist pressures had been reasonably contained, recent worrying slippages in the form 
of trade-restrictive measures had been registered , and the WTO would publish this on the occasion of 
the next monitoring report.  Thus, it was necessary to redouble vigilance on this front. 
3. At the spring meetings of the Bank and the Fund, he had stressed that trade finance remained 
a downside risk.  The low end of the trade finance mark et, in particular in Africa, was affected by the 
necessary re-regulation and de-leveraging of the fi nancial sector.  Regional development banks and 
the World Bank's International Finance Corporation w ould need to step up their support.  He had also 
mentioned that it was worth continuing to re-exami ne the Basel framework of prudential regulations 
with respect to trade finance, and had convened the Expert Group on Trade Finance on 15 May to 
review the situation.  As usual, a report woul d follow the next meeting of the Working Group on 
Trade, Debt and Finance.  At the recent G20 Minist erial in Puerto Vallarta, the discussion had focused 
on global value chains and the impact this new patte rn of trade had on trade policies and trade politics.  
There had been a shared sense that global value ch ains at present required a new trade narrative, 
where imports mattered as much as exports, and wh ere both imports and exports contributed to job 
creation and growth.  Trade as the expression of  value addition along global production chains 
required a fresh look at the way trade was measured .  It also required that Members reflect on the 
value of interpreting, as they had traditionally done, b ilateral trade balances wh ich in this new pattern 
became much less relevant, at least for policy and action.  The discussion had focused on the systemic 
conditions under which global valu e chains could work better, including the importance of trade 
facilitation measures, the blurring frontier between  goods and services, and adequate and affordable 
trade finance.  He had stressed, and wished to stress again, that this was not about "new issues" versus 
"old issues" or a new selection of priorities.  It  was about how to ensure that global value chains, 
whether on industrial products, agriculture or servi ces, were oiled through the proper trade policies. 
4. Ministers had expressed a strong encouragement for the WTO to keep cooperating with other 
organizations such as the OECD and UNCTAD to better understand the functioning and trade-policy 
                                                      
3 The Director-General's statement was su bsequently circulated as JOB/GC/18.  WT/GC/M/136 
 Page 3 
 
 
  implications of global value chains.  There had also  been support for giving fresh impetus to the Doha 
negotiations with a view to achieving results in areas with potential for pr ompt resolution – such as 
Trade Facilitation – while intensifying efforts to fi nd creative ways and approaches to overcome the 
most critical and fundamental stalemates in especial ly challenging areas.  On Trade Facilitation, there 
had been a collective acknowledgement of its win- win potential for all Members, with work in 
Geneva moving forward and, of  course, provided technical assi stance and capacity building for 
developing countries, and in particular the LDCs, was adequately provided.  The previous week he 
had attended UNCTAD XIII in Doha, Qatar, where he had emphasized many of the same points, stressing the importance of Aid for Trade to assist developing countries, and in particular the poorest, 
to participate in global value chains and move into  value addition.  He had also cautioned that the 
current fiscal difficulties in donor countries should not lead to a drying up of support for Aid for 
Trade, which so far had not happened, as the fi rst numbers for 2010 showed .  In Geneva, he had 
continued his coordination meetings with Chairs of Negotiating Groups and with the General Council 
Chair.  He had met individually with a number of  delegations.  He was also aware that many 
delegations had continued informal contact s among themselves, which he encouraged. 
5. Turning to activities in the Negotiating Groups si nce the February General Council, there had 
been one open-ended informal meeting on Agriculture  on 22 March.  This had confirmed that the ten 
outstanding issues identified by the previous Chair remained key political issues and that they would 
need to be resolved before any overall agreement co uld be reached.  The Chair planned to continue to 
consult with delegations on possible further technica l work or early-harvest approaches.  In NAMA, 
the Negotiating Group had met three times to dete rmine how further work would take place on 
Wagon 1 and Wagon 2 NTB proposals, as well as on tariffs.  The Negotiating Group Chair had 
proposed resuming consultations on some of the Wagon 1 NTB proposals.  In respect of Wagon 2 NTB proposals and tariffs, he would pursue consulta tions on the way ahead.  With regard to the 
Services negotiations, the Chair had held an Enchila da Group consultation in late March, which had 
showed that some Members had been exploring mo re fully different negotiating approaches, keeping 
in mind the need to advance the negotiations where progress could be achieved.  At the same time, the 
respective Chairs of the Working Parties on Domestic Regulation and GATS Rules had been consulting on the best way forward in those areas.  In Rules, the Chairman had extended an invitation 
to consult bilaterally with any delegation that wish ed to share its thoughts about the way forward, and 
a number of such consultations had been held or were scheduled.  In addition, the Technical Group 
had held its second meeting of the year back-to-b ack with the Rules Committee meeting in late April 
to share Members' practices in this area.  On Trade Facilitation, Members had successfully concluded 
the first phase of the Work Plan adopted at the be ginning of 20 12.  The Negotiating Group had agreed 
on new language that would be incorporated in an improved version of the Draft Consolidated 
Negotiating Text.  It had been further decided to continue the facilitator process with three groups – 
S&D, transit, and customs brokers/Pre-Shipment In spection.  This would be complemented by a 
parallel track of negotiations among delegations in different Member-driven formats, covering issues 
that still needed to be narrowed, such as customs co-operation, author ized traders, fees and charges, 
expedited shipments, appeals, publication and other ar eas delegations wished to address.  This process 
would be consolidated at the Group's next meeting on 9-13 July. 
6. Turning to TRIPS and GIs for wines and spirits , there was in general no sign of an appetite 
for activity, including work on low-conflict technical  issues, as the issue of linkages was still cited as 
an obstacle to engagement on the side of the Jo int Proposal Group.  The Chairman would start a 
process of consultations with individual delega tions and in groups to determine how best to 
operationalize those elements of the MC8 outcome that related to the work of the Special Session.  On 
Trade and Environment, consultations  would be held in May in order to discuss the process forward.  
On S&D treatment, Members had resumed consider ation of the elements of the Monitoring 
Mechanism.  On the 28 Agreement-specific proposals ag reed to in principle at the Cancún Ministerial, 
Members had expressed their resolve to fulfil the Ministerial guidance from MC8 by taking stock of these proposals with a view to adopting those th at could be agreed.  The proponents of those WT/GC/M/136 
Page 4  
 
  proposals – the African Group – had been invited to indicate which of those proposals remained 
priorities for them.  The new Chair of the Special Session of the Committee on Trade and 
Development had been meeting key de legations with a view to advanc ing work in this area.  With 
regard to the Dispute Settlement negotiations, the Chairman of the DSB Special Session had convened 
a series of consultations in the week of 5 Ma rch on a number of topics under discussion, namely, 
third-party rights, panel composition, Member c ontrol and flexibility, and strictly confidential 
information.  Further meetings were foreseen for th e week of 7 May, covering these issues as well as 
remand and developing-country interests. 
7. He wished to provide Members with this global overview for the sake of collective 
transparency and inclusiveness.  Clearly, overall th e situation had not evolved much since his last 
report.  However, at the same time, his conversa tions over the past few weeks with Ministers and 
delegations had provided him with a sense that Members wished to continue to explore any 
opportunity to gain the necessary traction and try to make tangible progress as soon as possible.  
Regarding the upcoming 15th anniversary of th e Information Technology Agreement (ITA), a 
symposium open to all WTO Members, Observers , private sector IT industry representatives, 
academic experts in IT technologies, internati onal inter-governmental organizations, NGOs and 
journalists would be held on 14-15 May to mark this event.  This would provide an excellent occasion 
to look at how the elimination of tariffs in this  sector had spurred innovation, provided affordable 
access to technologies and helped oil other sectors of  the economy.  It was also meant to serve as a 
stark reminder of how trade opening could be a win- win game for all its par ticipants, developed and 
developing countries alike.  As one looked back  on this sectoral agreement which now covered 
74 Members, he hoped it would serve as an exampl e of how to move forward pragmatically in 
opening trade.  He also hoped it could help brin g the ITA to a new phase of greater opening and new 
participants.  In concluding, he recalled that at th e February Council, he ha d reiterated his intention, 
first announced at MC8, to convene  a "WTO Panel on Defining the Future of Trade" in order to 
analyse the drivers of present and future world trad e, and to take a fresh look at trade patterns and 
what it meant to open global trade in the 21st century, bearing in mind the role of trade in contributing 
to sustainable development, growth, jobs and poverty alleviation.  He ha d also repeated that this panel 
was under his own responsibility.  Members would have seen his fax announcing the composition of 
the panel, which would meet several times in the course of 2012.  Its first meeting would be in 
Geneva on 16 May.  In the autumn, the panel would have an opportunity to hear Members' views, a 
crucial step in ensuring that its findings were releva nt to current realities.  The expectation was that 
the panel's analysis would be finalized in early 2 013.  As always, he would keep Members informed 
of developments. 
8. Delegations thanked the Director-General for his report. 
9. The representative of Mexico said that as menti oned by the Director-General, for the first 
time in the history of the G20, the Economy and Tr ade Ministers of this group had met in Puerto 
Vallarta, Mexico on 19-20 April.  At the end of the meeting, the Mexican Minister of Trade had put 
forward his own conclusions,4 which he had transmitted to the Pr esident of Mexico in his capacity as 
Chairman of the next Leaders' meeting, which was to be held in Los Cabos in June.  The Puerto 
Vallarta meeting had been the most interesting a nd interactive Trade Ministers' meeting he had 
attended in recent years.  Rather than participants  reiterating their positions on the Doha negotiating 
issues by reading out the usual statements, th ere had been substantive discussion among the G20 
Ministers and the guest countries5 on new issues of particular rele vance in the current international 
trade context.  Among these had been the impact of  global value chains, where a considerable number 
                                                      
4 On the request of the delegation, the oral summary of the Puerto Vallarta meeting was subsequently 
circulated in document WT/L/855. 
5 Cambodia, Colombia, Chile, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Benin had been invited and, with the 
exception of Benin, had participated in the meeting.  WT/GC/M/136 
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  of Ministers had been of the opinion that viewing international trade through supply chains – i.e. 
through the various links that existed in goods and services production processes throughout the world 
– was a new and realistic approach requiring fu rther consideration.  The interdependence of 
production operations meant that a large part of gl obal trade was in intermediate goods and services – 
54 per cent of traded goods were intermediate goods, and 73 per cent of traded services were 
intermediate services – which involved giving value not only to exports but also to imports, and 
highlighted the importance of keeping markets open a nd fighting protectionism.  In their analysis of 
global value chains, various Ministers had ma de no distinction between agricultural goods, 
manufactured goods and services.  Indeed, these chains  now operated in practically the same way in 
all industries and thus covered all areas of intern ational trade, which was why this matter was of 
interest to all.  It had therefore been agreed and recognized that progress on Trade Facilitation was 
one of the most important steps that could be taken to ensure the efficient functioning of regional and 
global value chains in which all were interdepende nt.  There had been several calls for the redoubling 
of efforts to reach an agreement on Trade Facilitati on, although some had said it was also necessary to 
move forward on other important issues, in particul ar those of interest to developing countries. 
10. The other issue discussed by Ministers was the relationship between trade and growth and, 
above all, trade and employment.  While there had been confirmation of a positive link, it had also 
been noted that this relationship had many facets.   The right trade policy, although necessary, was not 
a sufficient condition for ensuring the creation of jo bs.  Much depended on other economic and social 
policies, such as macroeconomic and poverty-alleviation policies, to name but two.  There had been support for strengthening the existing Monitori ng Mechanism, including through the timely 
notification of any measures that might have a restri ctive effect on trade, and for an analysis of the 
impact of such measures on global and national economies.  Ministers had also confirmed the elements for political guidance agreed at MC8 and had emphasized the importance of keeping 
markets open and strengthening the multilateral tradi ng system, while giving renewed impetus to the 
Doha negotiations, with a view to making swift pr ogress in areas where there was potential to achieve 
quick results.  It was also important to intensify efforts to identify ways a nd approaches to overcome 
the most serious and crucial difficulties in the areas posi ng the greatest challenges.  In this context, the 
Puerto Vallarta Ministerial meeting had sent signals  that were not only encouraging and convincing, 
but most definitely consistent with the instru ctions from MC8.  Members should capitalize on these 
signals in order to make progress in their work in Geneva. 
11. The representative of Lesotho, on behalf of th e African Group, recalled that at the General 
Council in February, the African Group had reiterate d the need to preserve the multilateral negotiation 
principles to which all had pledged adherence.  Such principles were the cornerstone for enabling 
developing countries to participate meaningfully  in international trade negotiations.  The Group 
appealed yet again that these principles be upheld .  Regarding the follow-up to MC8, the African 
Group took note, with some concern, that not much  progress had been made in the main chapters of 
the negotiations since MC8.  However, even thoug h it was not definitive at the present stage, the 
Group equally took note of pro-development progress in the negotiations towards delivering some of 
the MC8 Decisions.  In this connection, the Group wi shed to refer to the following elements observed 
since the February 2012 General Council.  It comme nded the high level of e ngagement and open and 
frank negotiations spearheaded by the Chairman of the Sub-Committee on LDCs on the MC8 Decision on LDC Accession.  The Group welcomed Me mbers' objective and active engagement and 
willingness to seriously consider acceding LDCs' con cerns and hopes for a positive outcome.  In the 
same vein, the Group also hoped that the same sp irit of engagement and willingness to consider 
concerns of LDCs would be shown in the acces sion processes of acceding African countries.  The 
Group noted with some trepidation that since MC8, there had not been much progress on the LDC Services waiver Decision, and urged Members to prioritize delivering on that Decision.  LDCs' 
interests in the relevant sectors and accompanying  modes of supply were generally well known.  The 
African Group urged Members, especially develope d-country Members, to engage positively in 
expediting the work towards finalizing the Mon itoring Mechanism for S&D treatment.  The Group WT/GC/M/136 
Page 6  
 
  expected that the commendable efforts by the Ch air of the CTD Special Session to get the work 
moving ahead would be met with a positive attitude  that would consider the Group's development 
interests.  In the same vein, a positive and mean ingful engagement should also prevail in the 
stocktaking process of the 28 Agreement-specific pro posals in Annex C of the draft Cancún text, that 
would ultimately lead to formal adoption. 
12. One of the most important outcomes of MC8 on which the African Group expected Members 
to deliver was ensuring there was more focused work in the CTD that was truly in accordance with its 
mandate.  There had been a call by Ministers for Me mbers to faithfully report back on this matter 
during the next WTO Ministerial Conference.  In th is connection, Members should make every effort 
to formulate a credible road map, i.e. a future work programme, to respond to Ministers' instructions.  
The Group further considered that a myriad of unyielding challenges confronting the global economy 
had to be taken up by the CTD, particularly focu sing on how these threatened the multilateral trading 
system.  This would confirm Ministers' reaffirmation that development was the core element of the WTO’s work.  The African Group called for its de velopment partners to seriously consider 
replenishing and providing more resources to the WTO Global Trust Fund in a predictable and timely 
manner.  This would ensure that Africa and ot her developing countries continued to benefit from 
technical assistance and capacity building facilita ted by the WTO.  The Group appreciated the 
replenishments made so far.  This appeal shoul d be heeded on the full understanding and appreciation 
that growth and development in Africa would result in some measure in growth and development of 
the global economy and thus to everyone’s benefit.   Regarding other areas of negotiation, as already 
observed by other Members, the core negotiation pillars of the Doha Round had not seen any progress 
since February 2012.  Nonetheless, he wished to  convey the following reflections of the African 
Group on some meetings and activities which had taken place since then.  The Group noted with 
concern the Services plurilateral negotiations advanced  by some Members.  Being confronted with an 
information deficit at the present stage on the m odalities of such negotiations – a fact acknowledged 
by the proponents – the Group wished to undersco re that the principles of multilateralism and 
transparency should be upheld and respected.  Ther efore, it was highly preferable that the weaker 
players in global trade in Services, especially the African countries, were not cut off from the Services 
market-access lifeline.  This would be the c onsequence if a non-MFN-based plurilateral outcome 
resulted.  It was important to avoid any potential systemic challenges that might disturb the delicate 
Doha Round negotiations. 
13. On NAMA, the African Group took note of the idea to conduct negotiations on a request-
offer basis as a new approach.  The potential impact  of such a request-offer approach should first be 
assessed against the extent to which it met sustainabl e development objectives.  At the same time, this 
or any other new approach should be  measured against the negotiation principles that had always been 
the mantra of the African Group's engagement in  the negotiations – in this particular case, 
inclusiveness and transparency.  Other principles equally applied.  Rega rding multilateralism, the 
African Group was particularly concerned that th e development component in multilateralism was at 
present under severe stress.  Attempts to erode the development agenda in international discourse was 
now sadly manifesting itself in some of the RTA ne gotiations, where what appeared to be some form 
of mercantilist tendencies was increasingly glaring.  Su ch tendencies were counter to the very spirit of 
development, which ought to be the core in multila teral cooperation.  Nevertheless, the Group wished 
to remind Members that it had been, and was, the need for development that had drawn countries to 
cooperate multilaterally for the good of all.  Closel y related to this, the Group was gratified to learn 
that the resources for Aid for Trade had grown.  This was a welcome gesture of goodwill.  The 
African Group strongly urged Members to ensure that in following up the outcome of MC8, development was prioritized.  It was imperative that any new approach or early harvest first prioritize 
and deliver on development.  As noted by the Di rector-General, protectionism was gaining ground.  
Africa was getting the short end of the stick regard ing the impact of protectionism, which should not 
be allowed to grow, as it would threaten multilate ral co-operation.  Hence, the African Group called  WT/GC/M/136 
 Page 7 
 
 
  for Members to turn to multilateral co-operation, which had served them well as a bulwark against 
protectionism, and welcomed the Director-General's statement in this regard. 
14. The representative of Cambodia, on behalf of  ASEAN, said these countries appreciated the 
Director-General's continued effort s and leadership in looking for solu tions in the DDA.  ASEAN also 
appreciated the insights shared by the Director-Gener al on his interactions at various global fora and 
how this related to the work in Geneva.  Reca lling the call by Ministers at MC8, ASEAN supported 
the need for the DDA negotiations  to move forward in the areas where convergence and progress 
could be achieved, building on the work already done , while at the same time ensuring and preserving 
the development mandate.  In be ing open to exploring different negotiating approaches, ASEAN's 
goal was to find solutions that delivered benef its accessible to all, and which strengthened the 
multilateral trading system.  In this connecti on, ASEAN supported areas where immediate progress 
could be made, including in Trade Facilitation, with the objective of striking a balance between 
flexibility and enforceability, implementation of  the LDC Services waiver and improving LDC 
accessions.  In this regard, ASEAN reiterated its  full support for the accession of Lao PDR and 
wished to see the conclusion in 2012 of its 15-y ear accession journey.  ASEAN thanked all Members 
for their support on this issue.  Members should al so continue to strengthen WTO monitoring against 
protectionism and improve transparency of RTAs.  With their collective determination, Members could make progress in some of these areas.  The current impasse in the DDA negotiations should not 
prevent them from taking positive action.  ASE AN remained committed to both the DDA and the 
regular work of the WTO, and would continue to co nstructively engage in all processes to help move 
these issues forward.  The conclusion of the Round was still a key objective, as its outcomes would 
stimulate economic growth, generate jobs and re duce poverty in all Members, both developed and 
developing countries. 
15. The representative of Kenya supported the stat ement by Lesotho for the African Group.  At 
the present time, Kenya hoped that all Chairs of th e various negotiating groups  had by now finalized 
their consultations within those groups as well as with individual delegations.  Members should now 
endeavour to translate those collective consultati ons into a clear work programme to take the DDA 
negotiations forward in 2012.  It was nearly the end of the first half of the year, yet there was nothing 
tangible to show since MC8.  Members needed to e ngage seriously and ambitiously to ensure that the 
remaining months were productive, with demonstrab le commitments to conclude the DDA.  To this 
end, it was only prudent to target a small packag e of the DDA – low-hanging fruits for harvest – 
which Kenya could only see in terms of LDC issues .  Members should then move progressively and 
systematically to other areas that were rich in de velopment content.  It was only by moving forward, 
step by step, and adhering to the mandate, that Me mbers could cover sufficient ground to conclude the 
DDA.  Specifically, Members should concentrate on the DDA itself, promoting the multilateral trading system, some longer-term issues, and what  they could realistically achieve during the 
remainder of the year. 
16. On the DDA, the overriding guiding principle was that the negotiations needed to be 
concluded, bearing fully in mind Members' commi tment to a development mandate and bottom-up 
approach that was inclusive and transparent.  Me mbers needed to identify and put in place adequate 
measures to manage new approaches or initiatives that  might have adverse development effects, such 
as exclusively bilateral approaches, early harvests on issues that were not mature or lacked S&D 
treatment elements and that were not developmen t-oriented, and attempts to have a standstill on 
applied tariffs.  They needed to develop de tailed proposals and modalities to strengthen the 
functioning of the CTD so as to enable it to c onduct a development review of all S&D treatment 
provisions in the WTO agreements, advocate and deve lop specific positions on issues of interest to 
LDCs, and also prioritize agriculture.  They n eeded to recognize Member s' ability to use WTO- 
consistent measures to achieve legitimate objectiv es of growth, development and stability.  They 
needed to promote trust and build confidence fo r innovation among themselves.  On promoting the 
rules-based multilateral trading system, Kenya fully supported the Friends of Development WT/GC/M/136 
Page 8  
 
  Ministerial Declaration which welcomed, in para graph 9, a decision on LDC accession.  Work should 
be done to operationalize a decision including e volving benchmarks for LDC accession.  MC8 had 
adopted a Decision on extending the transition period for LDCs to comply with Article 66.1 of the 
TRIPS Agreement, and his delegation supported the op erationalization of this Decision.  Kenya would 
not support new measures proposed by some Members that would lead to outcomes that were adverse 
for development.  It would adhere  to paragraph 7 of the Friends of Development Declaration which 
said that any trade-related issues that were pr oposed should be discussed in the appropriate WTO 
body following due process, guided by the principl es of transparency, incl usiveness and consensus 
decision-making. 
17. On the longer-term issues, in 2012 Members ne eded to begin serious consideration of 
elements related to development – its extent, appropriateness of the WTO structure and rules – with a 
view to making the WTO and its procedures, practic es and rules more development-oriented.  Kenya 
would facilitate discussions on this with relevant or ganizations and experts.  The status quo was not 
desirable for the majority of Members.  On activiti es in 2012, Kenya would do its best to facilitate 
dialogue in five areas which could form a basis for an early or provisional agreement within the DDA 
mandate.  These included LDCs, Agriculture, Trade Facilitation, Services and Development.  His 
delegation would engage as a ppropriate in this dialogue with a vi ew to making progress, so that there 
could be some provisional or early agreements  under the DDA mandate.  Kenya would remain 
constructively engaged and invite d others to do the same.   
18. The representative of India said his country join ed others in thanking Mexico for hosting the 
G20 Trade Ministers’ meeting.  Since many Members were either not members of the G20 or had not 
had a chance to participate in the meeting, India recognised their sensitivities to the discussions in that 
forum.  Bearing this in mind and in a spirit of fu ll transparency, India wished  to share its views of 
those discussions.  A statement had been issued by  the BRICS Trade Ministers in Puerto Vallarta6 on 
the agenda items under discussion and on the DDA.  The discussions in Mexico had helped to 
underscore the well-establish ed fact that global value chains did not cover the entire gamut of global 
trade.  They covered neither all sectors nor a ll industries within the same country, and several 
countries were in large measure excluded from value chains.  Developing countries in particular were 
at a disadvantage, with their low levels of skill a nd technological development, generally ending up at 
the lower end of such value chains , supplying basic raw materials or cheap labour.  His delegation had 
said that it would be useful, first and foremost, to  evolve a better understanding of the development 
impact of global value chains and the conditions under which they coul d be used to achieve long-term 
socio-economic gains for all countries, especially th e developing and least-developed countries.  In 
this context, it had been suggested that a Me mber-driven process in the WTO, UNCTAD and other 
intergovernmental organizations would be helpful in examining this issue.  With regard to the call for 
liberalization in services, it had been underlined that the opening up of services markets had to be 
correctly sequenced, corresponding to a country’s leve l of development, its strength in particular 
sectors and regulatory capacity.  All countries, particul arly developing ones, shou ld be able to benefit 
from balanced and equitable services liberalisati on, by gaining additional market-access opportunities 
in sectors and modes of supply where they had a competitive edge. 
19. On Trade Facilitation, India had reiterated its position that while this could have a dynamic 
effect on competitiveness and economic integrati on, the costs of implementing trade facilitation 
measures could be a huge challenge for many develo ping countries, which they had to meet through 
firm prior commitments for financial and tec hnical assistance from developed countries.  Due 
attention also had to be paid simultaneously to the development of export-related infrastructure, 
including transit infrastructure, especially in LDCs, to obtain a win-win result.  Trade Facilitation had 
to be viewed in the overall context of the delicat e balance of trade-offs negotiated during the Doha 
Round.  It could not be viewed in isolation, as it w as part of a complete package and had to form part 
                                                      
6 On the request of the delegation, the statement wa s subsequently circulated in document WT/L/853.  WT/GC/M/136 
 Page 9 
 
 
  of the Single Undertaking.  There had to be both in ternal and external balance to ensure that the 
negotiations on issues of interest to developing countries, and especially LDCs – such as the LDC 
package on DFQF, Cotton, fleshing out the waiver  on Services, export competition in Agriculture, 
which was a done deal waiting to be implemente d, S&D Monitoring Mechanism, the 28 Agreement-
specific proposals, etc. – were given equal priority  and concluded simultaneously.  The other message 
that had come out of the Puerto Vallarta meeting was that trade had to be viewed in the broader 
context of the development gains it generated, a nd not merely as a source of global growth.  While 
trade could create growth opportunities, trade openness by itself would not lead to growth, 
development and social inclusiveness or employment  in a particular country.  Other complementary 
policies and an enabling environment were necessary for this.  A level playing field addressing the 
current inequities in global trade would also need to be addressed so that developing countries could 
take advantage of the opportunities created.  In dia continued to underline the importance of 
concluding the DDA in order to restore the cred ibility of the multilateral trading system.  While 
Members might seek results in specific areas wher e progress was possible, such efforts should not 
lose sight of the centrality of development in the Doha mandate.  As the DDA was the first and only 
development round thus far, all had a high stake in  its early and balanced conclusion as a means of 
demonstrating the WTO’s commitment and credibility.  It would also not be appropriate to cherry-
pick topics of interest from within the areas covered by the DDA, without adhering to the principle of the Single Undertaking.  Building up trust in th e WTO, political will and commitment on the part of 
all would be required to see this through to its lo gical conclusion.  India was ready to engage 
constructively in this exercise. 
20. Regarding the Director-General’s panel of WT O stakeholders, since this panel had been 
constituted under the latter' s own responsibility, India did not wish  to make any substantive comments 
on it at the present time.  While some of the indivi duals on the panel were well known in their fields, 
and his delegation was not criticizing any of them, ove rall the panel appeared to lack balance and did 
not include several important sections of WTO stake holders.  To mention just a few of these, while 
the panel had a number of representatives of large co rporations from different countries, it did not 
have an adequate number of representatives of SMEs , representatives who were experts in the field of 
trade and development or representatives from civil society.  Furthermore, the WTO was a Member-
driven organization, and a report of  a panel constituted by the Directo r-General could be construed as 
a WTO report only after it had been accepted by Memb ers by consensus.  In this context, he drew 
attention to the Leutwiler Report of March 1985, wh ich had had its origins in November 1983, when 
the Director-General of the GATT had constituted a panel of seven eminent persons led by Dr Fritz 
Leutwiler.  India also noted that the expenses of  that group's meetings had been met by the Ford 
Foundation, the Foreign Trade Association, Cologne, th e Japan Institute of Fore ign Affairs, the Chase 
Manhattan Bank, the Ford Motor Company, the Xer ox Foundation and a few others.  The Leutwiler 
Report was not an official GATT publication, and its first edition had been made possible by the 
financial contribution of a number of sponsors.  To the best of India's knowledge, the Leutwiler 
Report had never been adopted by Members as a GATT document.  The WTO was poised at a very 
difficult stage in its short history of 17 years, and th e foremost need was to build trust and confidence 
among the Members so that all could move forw ard on the path of growth and development. 
21. The representative of South Africa said that in the interests of transparency, he wished to 
share with the membership the views his Minister  had expressed at the G20 Trade Ministers meeting 
in Puerto Vallarta on the challenges that face d the global economy, global value chains, trade 
liberalization, growth, development, the multilatera l trading system and the Doha Round.  First, 
regarding the announcement by the Director-General  on the panel of stakeholders, his delegation 
appreciated the Director-General's report on the tasks he had given this panel.  However, it wished to 
record that it had not had the opportunity to discuss th e objectives or terms of reference of the panel, 
or the criteria for the selection of its members.  South Africa thanked the Director-General for his 
clarification and assurance that the panel was constituted on the latter's own responsibility, and 
wished to emphasize that the responsibility to ch art a course forward in the current Doha Round WT/GC/M/136 
Page 10  
 
  remained that of the membership.  South Africa was a signatory to the statement by the BRICS 
countries in Mexico.  That statement recognized "the increasing role of global value chains in trade".  
However, the BRICS countries had expressed their concern "that many sectors, industries and even 
countries are not participating in global value chains  as fully as some others".  Thus, the fundamental 
question his Minister had put was how the DDA a dvanced the objective of integrating developing 
countries into the global economy and global valu e chains in a manner that advanced their 
development.  In this context, South Africa fully  associated with the stat ement by Lesotho for the 
African Group.  At the G20 meeting, his Minister had stated that for South Africa, trade was a tool for industrial and economic development.  Thus, if the new narrative simply sought to regain support for 
the idea of trade liberalization in  itself as the one-size-fits-all so lution to all economic problems, it 
would be regarded as new wine in old bottles and not  be taken seriously.  If, in the current phase of 
globalization, the new narrative s ought merely to increase the efficiency of global supply chains 
without addressing the concerns of development – and addressing the plight of those countries at the 
bottom rung of these value chains or completely ma rginalized by them – it would not be helpful. 
22. The plight of workers and the unemployed all ove r the world – and particularly in developing 
countries, where there was a lack of adequate soci al protection – needed to be considered.  Job 
creation remained a central concern in most countri es.  The recently released ILO "World of Work 
Report 2012" stated that the global employment situation was alarming and showed no signs of 
recovery in the near future.  The report stated that  in most advanced countries, especially in Europe, 
job recovery was not expected before the end of 2016, unless there was a dramatic shift in policy direction.  Trade liberalization that threatened to exacerbate job losses would not be supported by 
constituencies.  However, a care ful calibration of further market opening that was supportive of 
socially-inclusive development was more likely to  gain support – including in developed countries 
faced with high levels of unemployment – when the ti me was right.  Thus, the need to re-calibrate the 
current onerous and unrealistic market-access demand s by some would be essential to re-invigorate 
the Doha negotiations and conclude  the Doha Round on the basis of its development mandate.  As 
Members began to develop a new narrative on trade, they could not forget the plight of the poorest 
countries, and especially the many promises made to  them.  Thus, delivering a package to the LDCs 
had to remain the most important priority and central to any new narrative on trade.  
23. In the unfolding 21st century global economy, there were many complex global challenges 
that the WTO would have to address.  One of th ese was the most appropriate balance between the 
need to maintain more open markets and to redu ce carbon emissions that caused climate change.  
There were plenty of other new issues that were  of concern, such as how trade could promote food 
security, and so forth.  However, there was no running away from the old issues.  Agriculture 
remained central to the concerns of development of many developing countries and most African countries, and the current distortions caused by hi gh subsidies in rich countries had to be addressed 
before Members could tackle these more complex new issues.  The DDA first had to be concluded on 
its development mandate.  While the Doha Round was not the same as the WTO, it was clear that a 
successful conclusion of the Round, as the majority of developing countries had called for at MC8, 
would provide a boost to the legitimacy of the WT O.  It would re-build trust and provide the 
necessary confidence to tackle the more challengi ng issues, such as climate change and trade.  
UNCTAD XIII had proved that while the current  climate for multilateralism was poor, Members 
could still build consensus on the need to address the most complex trade, development and related 
challenges.  The WTO should strengthen its coopera tion with UNCTAD to help build consensus on 
some of the most intractable issues in the Doha Round and the new issues facing the global economy.  
All should applaud the work of the Chair of UNC TAD XIII, Ambassador Maruping (Lesotho), for the 
outstanding work he had done in bringing a ll 194 members of UNCTAD to a consensus on the 
outcome document of UNCTAD XIII.  The latter had provided a beacon of hope for the WTO and the 
Doha Round.  WT/GC/M/136 
 Page 11 
 
 
  24. The representative of Japan said that buildi ng on the discussions at MC8 and the Trade 
Ministers' meetings in 2012, Japan strongly hope d that momentum for promoting new approaches 
would further grow, on the basis of realistic and pragmatic judgements.  Members should continue to 
make steady efforts, and his country maintained  its strong commitment to the WTO.  Japan was 
committed to the discussion on ITA expansion.  It also attached great importance to ongoing 
discussions on Trade Facilitation and LDC accession.  Having said that, Japan was strongly concerned 
about the introduction of various protectionist measur es.  In particular, Members should not overlook 
the introduction of WTO-inconsistent measures, as well as any conduct that ran counter to political 
commitments repeatedly made by G20 and APEC  leaders.  Under these circumstances, the 
strengthening of monitoring needed to be accelerated .  In this context, the importance of the dispute 
settlement mechanism was also incr easing.  Japan remained firmly committed to further strengthening 
the dispute settlement mechanism.  It welcomed the Director-General's in itiative in establishing the 
WTO Panel on Defining the Future of Trade, and ha d high expectations that through fresh discussions 
on such issues as the driving forces in future world trade, the panel could achieve results which would 
contribute to strengthening the multilateral trading system. 
25. The representative of the European  Union said the name of the game in the first four months 
of 2012 had been progress in small steps.  The EU welcomed the fact that at least some limited 
progress was being made in line with the guidance gi ven at MC8.  However, the process was still very 
fragile.  Continued technical work would be needed over the next few months, in particular in those 
areas of the DDA where progress was feasible.  The prio rity remained delivering on issues of interest 
to the most vulnerable.  The EU had already s hown its determination to actively move this area 
forward and would continue to do so .  In particular, Members should engage constructively to achieve 
progress in some S&D treatment-related areas, su ch as the Agreement-specific proposals and the 
Monitoring Mechanism.  Moreover, the EU was keen to pursue negotiations on the DSU 
improvement, where there had been encouraging progress over the past few months.  Trade Facilitation was moving forward at te chnical level, thanks to the constructive involvement of all 
Members, as had been witnessed at the most recent meeting of the Negotiating Group.  The EU 
looked forward to continuing the go od work done in the facilitators-led process under the guidance of 
the Negotiating Group Chair.  There should be no doubt about the win-win nature of an agreement on Trade Facilitation and its development value. 
26. Most recently, at the G20 Trade Ministers meeting in Mexico, several Ministers had 
recognised the potential of a Trade Facilitation agreem ent, while duly highlighting the need to address 
the constraints that LDCs and vulnerable devel oping countries would face in its implementation – 
something to which the EU was fully committed to addressing.  At the same time, more could be 
done.  He was referring, in particular, to discussi ons on NTBs, where Members should also make an 
effort to allow technical discussions to progress.  Al so, it was high time for a review and expansion of 
the ITA, which the EU supported.  In addition to  negotiations on the expans ion of product coverage, 
Members should not forget to include NTBs in the discussion as a complement to tariff liberalisation.  
The EU welcomed the establishment of the WTO Pane l on Defining the Future of Trade.  Strategic 
initiatives of this kind were needed in order to ensure the continued relevance of the WTO in an ever-
changing world.  The EU would be following closely the work of the panel over the next few months 
and looked forward to having its conclusions.  The cu rrent step-by-step process needed to continue in 
a constructive manner in the months ahead.  All Memb ers should continue to instruct their negotiators 
to fully engage in technical discussions.  Members could not afford the continued stalemate of the 
negotiating function of the WTO, as this would even tually affect the credibility of the WTO as a 
bulwark against protectionism. 
27. The representative of Korea said that overall, Kor ea shared the Director-General's assessment.  
It was disappointing that the DDA negotiations remain ed stalemated.  However, it was encouraging to 
note that Members would not settle for the idea of doing nothing.  Trade Facilitation was clearly one 
of the areas where progress could be achieved.  Thus , Korea was pleased and encouraged to learn that WT/GC/M/136 
Page 12  
 
  the G20 Trade Ministers had agreed in Mexico to accelerate work on Trade Facilitation, which was an 
important pillar of the DDA.  His country hoped that Members would test  that positive message on 
the ground.  His delegation was ready and willing to engage in  future discussions on Trade 
Facilitation in an active and constructive manner.  Wh ile trying to keep the ball rolling, all would need 
to guard against protectionism.  Current trade rea lities were such that “trade in tasks” and global 
supply chains were becoming the new norms, with gr owing international fragmen tation of production.  
Under these circumstances, inward-looking measur es could end up impacting negatively on all, 
including those taking such measures.  Korea remain ed ready to work closely with other Members to 
help defuse protectionist tendencies, as restrictions in  one country could affect the efficiency costs of 
the entire value chain.  As the Director-General had said, a panel of WTO stakeholders would 
examine and analyse the challenges to trade libera lization.  Korea looked forward to the opportunity 
to draw on the panel's insightful inputs and contribut ions, as Members continued to work together to 
further strengthen the multilateral trading system. 
28. The representative of Pakistan said that all rec ognized the value of the rules-based multilateral 
trading regime.  Regarding the future of the syst em, Members did not seem to be on the same page 
and were finding it difficult to move forward, includi ng to strengthen the rules of the game.  Against 
this backdrop, Members needed to remain engaged,  to strengthen the regular work of the WTO, to 
keep a watch on protectionist policies, and to take further steps, even if small, to actualize the 
decisions of Ministers at MC8.  His delegation was prepared to work hard and provide its input to ensure a positive outcome from the ongoing discussions .  On accessions, Pakistan fully supported the 
endeavour to provide more flexibility for LDCs in their accession process, and hoped that two more 
LDCs, Lao PDR and Yemen, would complete thei r accession processes in 2012.  This would be a 
major step in making the organization truly global in nature. 
29. The representative of Brazil said his delegation fu lly shared the views expressed by India and 
South Africa, as well as the statement by the BRICS Trade Ministers in Puerto Vallarta.  He would 
confine his remarks to the panel announced by th e Director-General at MC8, which was entrusted 
with "identifying 21st century trade challenges".  Th e composition of the panel had been conveyed to 
Members and the general public on 13 April.  The same WTO press release that communicated the 
composition of the panel had said that "in the autumn , the panel will have the opportunity to hear the 
views of WTO Members on those challenges".  He wi shed to set out some preliminary views that 
could be anticipated from delegati ons on both process and substance.  With respect to process, this 
was an initiative taken by the Di rector-General on his own responsibility, as the latter had again 
confirmed at the present meeting, and Brazil thanke d him for his renewed assurances.  However, the 
message should always be made clear, especially  to the general public, that the findings and 
conclusions of that panel did not represent the organization or engage the commitment of its 
membership.  The views of the WTO were only those agreed by its Members. 
30. On substance, even though global value chai ns were not a new issue, Brazil recognized the 
need for a better understanding of how they operated and how value was both created and 
appropriated in successive stages across global supply chains.  Current trade statistics did not reflect 
value added in the global supply chains put in place largely as a result of corporate strategies aimed at maximizing return on investment.  Developing me thodologies that could measure trade according to 
"value addition" in each country might be an important element for national decision and policy-making, particularly for countries moving from low to high-end value-added creation.  For these 
reasons, Brazil was ready to support initiatives aimed at shedding additional light on the issue, as long 
as those initiatives were conducted within a Member-d riven process in multilateral organizations such 
as the WTO, UNCTAD and others.  The claim had often been made that a better understanding of 
global value chains would ultimately help build a new narrative on trade.  This might or might not 
prove to be true.  Only time would tell.  One shoul d not forget, however, that most of the impasse in 
the current multilateral trade negotiations resulted fr om issues belonging to an "old narrative", from 
unfinished business inherited from previous Rounds, incl uding, above all, agriculture and other issues  WT/GC/M/136 
 Page 13 
 
 
  of interest to developing countries.  A “new na rrative on trade” could hardly emerge while old issues 
remained on the table unresolved.  The Doha Round had been launched in the 21st century and 
remained probably the greatest trade challenge of current times. 
31. The representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arab ia said Members seemed to have lost sight 
of the basic, common interests they shared.  Th erefore, his delegation wished to reiterate the 
fundamental precept that international trade improved the livelihood of all people, and that Members' 
shared commitment to increasing trade flows would enha nce the lives of all.  In the same spirit, he 
regretted to observe that the delayed conclu sion of the DDA postponed economic growth and job 
creation in all Members.  In order to stay th e course for the successful conclusion of the DDA, 
Members needed to steer clear of political consid erations and to focus on the economic gains that 
each would make by concluding the Round.  It might be that Members had lost track of their shared 
economic goals, and that efforts were needed to iden tify specific mutual interests that all shared as a 
minimum common denominator in the calculations of national interest in the negotiations.  Perhaps by 
identifying and reclaiming a shared common ground,  Members could reinforce confidence in their 
mutual commitment to this joint enterprise,  by focusing on positive economic outcomes and 
minimizing political issues, in order to finally ach ieve a win-win result.  Saudi Arabia was fully 
committed to engaging on this basi s and looked forward to sharing its  ideas with all informally and to 
airing ideas formally at the appropriate time and in th e appropriate context.  His country reaffirmed its 
support for the WTO and the mu lti-lateral trading system. 
32. The representative of the United States said his de legation agreed with the Director-General's 
major themes, including the need for pragmatism  and the significance of small steps.  MC8’s 
achievements were two-fold:  first, honesty; and second, the call for consideration of "different 
negotiating approaches".  So far Members had done a good job of avoiding a tumble back into business-as-usual.  At the G20 Trade Ministers meeting in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico had led a creative and substantive conversation about trade in the mode rn world.  Conclusions Ministers had drawn from 
that conversation, including the importance of Tr ade Facilitation and Services, should help provide 
direction in Geneva.  Part of that discussion had al so addressed the spectre of protectionism.  It was 
clear that the ongoing danger was real and required all Members' vigilance to address.  As for how 
Members followed up on Puerto Vallarta, it would now be  seen whether talk translated into action.  
Unfortunately, it was far easier to block than to build.  At present, with the paint still drying on Puerto 
Vallarta, one was already hearing the diplomatic co de words that meant "linkage".  All knew where 
that would lead.  The only way to turn words in to deeds was through action.  Thus, all Members 
should act, wherever and however they could.  It wo uld be clear soon enough if the rhetoric was real.  
The good news was that the potential was there.  Th ere was enormous pent-up energy to negotiate 
trade liberalization.  Members needed to think toge ther creatively about how to harness this energy.  
The United States agreed with th e Director-General's call for pragmatism as Members moved towards 
the 15
th anniversary of the ITA.  Fifteen years was a long time in the field of technology, where 
progress was often measured in months. 
33. The representative of China said that as the Director-General had said, the recent trade 
statistics and forecast were not encouraging, nor was the macro-economic situation.  In the context of 
an international crisis in which protectionism was a strong temptation, it was crucial that the Doha 
Round be concluded as quickly as possible.  Although it had been recognized that this was not likely 
to happen in 2012, it was encouraging that Minister s at MC8 had made decisions on seven important 
issues, as well as providing political guidance on th e importance of the multilateral trading system, 
trade and development and the DDA.  They had inst ructed Members to keep the ball rolling, make 
advances where possible and get better prepared for a full-fledged engagement once the time was ripe.  
Members should spare no effort to implement Minister s' instructions.  In so doing, they should place 
the concerns of developing-country Members, esp ecially LDCs, high on the agenda.  LDCs were the 
poorest among the membership, and both develope d and other developing-country Members had the 
moral obligation to help them reap more benefits from trade liberalization.  To this end, the seven WT/GC/M/136 
Page 14  
 
  areas where Ministers had made decisions at MC8 already encompassed the LDC Services waiver, 
LDC accession and the extension of their tran sition period under Article 66.1 of the TRIPS 
Agreement.  What remained was to redouble effo rts to complete the work on LDC accession by 
July 2012, as well as on substantiating the LDC Serv ices waiver.  In 2011, China had made a donation 
under the Aid for Trade Initiative and had establishe d its LDCs and Accessions Program to help 
LDCs effectively participate in and benefit from th e multilateral trading system, and to support those 
LDCs applying for WTO membership to accelerate the accession process.  With the support of this 
program, the Secretariat would hold an LDCs Round-table on WTO accession in Beijing from 29 May – 1 June.  China hoped that all could provide assistance to LDCs to the best of their ability.  
In addition, regarding Doha as a whole, Minister s had instructed Members to take a pragmatic 
approach and to try, as a step to concluding the Single Undertaking, to build consensus around 
Paragraph 47.  China reiterated its  openness to topics to be chosen, including those on which it might 
have difficulties.  That being said,  China stressed again its support for giving priority to LDC issues.  
He assured all that China would keep playing its constructive role in the common search for the way 
forward. 
34. The representative of Argentina  said that as a member of the G20, Argentina attached 
considerable importance to the policy coordinatio n and debate taking place in that framework.  
However, as other delegations had already said, one needed to be cautious about how initiatives 
discussed in fora that did not include all WTO Me mbers were addressed in the WTO.  At the G20 
meeting in Puerto Vallarta, his delegation had su pported the statement by the BRICS countries which 
had enriched the debate and had included the point of view of developing countries on several of the 
topics under discussion at the present meeting.  He wish ed to cite two passages from that statement.  
First, paragraph 6 referred to the need for a level playing field that addressed the current inequities in 
global trade.  In particular, market opening should apply to all economic sectors, including 
Agriculture, while incorporating special flexib ilities and policy space for developing countries.  
Second, paragraph 9 stated that efforts aimed at the successful conclusion of the Doha Round would 
continue, based on the progress made and in keeping with the mandate, while upholding the principles 
of transparency, inclusiveness and multilateralism.  Regarding the panel of experts, Argentina 
welcomed the information from the Director-General , but shared some of the concerns expressed by 
others.  His delegation would follow the proce ss closely and looked forward to the meetings 
scheduled for the autumn, where Members would ha ve the opportunity to contribute their views. 
35. The representative of Mauritius, on behalf of th e ACP, thanked Mexico for its report on the 
G20 Trade Ministers meeting in Puerto Vallarta,  which, he said, would have gained from the 
participation of some SVE Ministers.  At MC8, a step-by-step approach had been agreed, and it had 
been agreed to try to work on those issues that could be delivered within the mandate but without 
forgetting the mandate as a whole.  One delegati on had mentioned linkages, and it was true that 
Members now had to operate under the broader unde rstanding of a bigger Single Undertaking.  
However, it would be naïve to think that Memb ers could push any agenda with absolutely no 
linkages.  There was a certain level of linkage that  had to be made.  One could not allow a cherry-
picking of some items and expect the membership to accept such an approach.  The first and most 
important linkage that imposed itself imperativel y was the linkage to development, which was 
essential.  In this sense, MC8 had given a number of directions.  He would not make a comprehensive 
statement on this, as the ACP fully supported the stat ement by Lesotho for the African Group, but he 
wished to mention a few issues.  Regarding LDC accessi ons and the need to take a decision in July, 
while there had been progress because Members we re engaging, engaging was not enough.  His 
delegation, together with the LDCs, had already made a number of compromises, and had given the 
parameters within which the figures for the benchmar ks should be decided, i.e. they had put on the 
table figures that called for negotiation.  However, there were as yet no responses to these figures.  
The ACP countries had made a compromise by agreeing to link the percentage of bindings with the 
value of those bindings, of which they had not initially  been in favour.  They had also agreed that the 
LDCs' offer would not be on a take-it-or-leave-it basi s, that there would be bilateral negotiations and  WT/GC/M/136 
 Page 15 
 
 
  that the negotiating rights of Members would be  preserved.  Thus, they had made a number of 
compromises already, but as yet had not seen the kind of engagement that would allow them to negotiate effectively.  It would not be helpful if responses came at the eleven th hour on the eve of the 
July General Council.  An eleventh-hour agreem ent, if not good, would not be accepted.  No 
agreement would be preferable to a bad agreemen t.  Thus, his delegation's call was for effective 
negotiations with the LDC Group, and not just engagement. 
36. The ACP would also like to see more effectiv e negotiations on the Services waiver, the 
28 Agreement-specific S&D treatment proposals and the Monitoring Mechanism, as well as on the 
Decision on the CTD.  It was important that all Members realized that the CTD was an important organ of the WTO for developing countries.  There should be no cynicism or perception that the CTD 
was not an important committee, nor should it be allowe d to become a minefield, as at present.  It was 
important that Members carried out the MC8 ma ndate in the CTD.  This was an important 
development issue for developing countries, and the partnership of all Members in trying to find a 
way to define the development dimension and philosophy the WTO should assume would go a long 
way to defuse the present atmosphere.  On Trade Fa cilitation, the ACP countries agreed to engage and 
were not making any linkages in this area.  However, they had put a number of issues on the table on 
which they wished to have real discussion.  For example, they had a problem with the legal 
configuration of the commitments they were being as ked to make, mostly in Baskets A, B and C.  The 
mandate called for commitments only if they had, or were supplied with, the capacity to make good 
on those commitments.  Thus, any proposal or attempt to schedule the entirety of commitments, be it 
in Basket A, B or C, would not and could not be sustainable.  These countries could not schedule 
commitments if they did not know the legal meaning of that scheduling.  They could not make 
commitments to which they had no capacity to adhe re.  Another issue related to matching needs and 
requirements on the one hand, and resources on th e other.  The ACP countries had also made 
compromises here, and were no longer asking for bi nding from developed countries.  However, they 
wanted, at least, acceptance of the concept that needs and resources would be matched, as well as 
needs and requirements.  Merely indicating that ad equate resources were available was not enough in 
a multilateral trade negotiation.  Greater rigour and a focused approach on this issue were needed. 
37. A third issue was monitoring.  The mandate said that capacity, financial or otherwise, should 
be provided so that countries were able to sche dule commitments.  The ACP had put a monitoring 
mechanism on the table.  If there was no bindi ng relationship between needs and resources, the ACP 
countries at least needed something to show that this  was moving in the right direction, and that could 
only be done by monitoring whether the Doha manda te was being fulfilled.  This was why the ACP 
had made a proposal for a monitoring mechanism in  the to-be-created Trade Facilitation Committee.  
These were the issues the ACP countries were putti ng on the table.  They were not refusing to 
negotiate nor linking issues, and agreed to move forw ard, but had to have the same engagement with 
issues of importance to them, and not just be told that  funds would be available.  In the area of Trade 
Facilitation, the blame should not be put on deve loping countries, SVEs, the ACP, LDCs or the 
African Group for the problems in that area.  There were differences among the proponents 
themselves, and a need for leadersh ip to sort out those differences.  Then Members could come to the 
G-90.  He guaranteed that the G-90 was in a pos ition to, and would, negotiate a solution to Trade 
Facilitation. 
38. The representative of Australia said his delega tion wished to touch on some of the issues 
Mauritius for the ACP had raised.  Regarding that st atement, it was refreshing to get the sense that 
someone was genuinely trying to look for solutions and to move issues forward.  While Australia did 
not agree with everything in that statement, it did agree with much of it.  His delegation particularly 
thanked the Director-General for his feedback  on the UNCTAD and G20 meetings, both of which 
seemed to have gone quite well and had incl uded good discussions.  That had been his own 
experience at the G20 meeting.  His delegation also thanked Mexico for having created an agenda that 
had allowed Ministers to have a very different kind  of discussion that had enabled them to genuinely WT/GC/M/136 
Page 16  
 
  engage and describe problems experienced in their count ries.  It had been very interesting to hear the 
interventions from Ministers of a number of smalle r developing countries, including an LDC, that 
showed the real problems these countries faced and th e solutions they had put in place, that included 
efforts to find better ways to facilitate trade.  Tr ade Facilitation had been part of the discussion, and 
some had pointed to how WTO rules had helped them in adopting and s ticking to reform-related 
approaches to try to address their development and gr owth concerns.  Some of the statements at the 
present meeting, where many seemed to re-state familiar positions, did not seem to be in the spirit of 
those earlier productive discussions.  He understood th ere had been some useful discussions at the 
UNCTAD meeting as well. 
39. The question was what could be done in the WTO.  All recognized the difficulties of the 
current situation.  Members needed to make progr ess where they could, and incremental steps were 
better than no steps at all.  In that regard – and he re he wished to refer to the statement by Mauritius 
for the ACP – Australia too saw the issues of LDC accessions and Trade Facilitation as ones where 
Members should look to see what was possible in 2012.  On LDC accessions, Australia was strongly 
engaged in the discussion, and agreed that Memb ers needed to move that discussion along quickly 
and that all needed to be prepared to put more in formation on the table, particularly in the area of 
benchmarks in both goods and services.  In that  regard, Australia, together with Colombia, had 
submitted a paper to be discussed in the Sub-Commi ttee on LDCs the following week.  This was an 
effort to keep that discussion moving forward, in order to ensure an outcome.  His delegation was 
encouraged by a number of delegations' statements , particularly China's regarding the seminar it 
would hold, and that there was a serious commitment by all Members to move this issue forward.  
That had been reflected in the discussions in th e Sub-Committee, and Australia would like to see the 
focus continue there. 
40. On Trade Facilitation, a number of points in the statement by Mauritius for the ACP tracked 
with Australia's views.  His delegation wished to  see progress on this issue, and for the demandeurs, 
the key thing was to be prepared to listen rather than  lecture.  Up to the present, there had perhaps not 
been sufficient listening to issues that needed to be  confronted if Members genuinely wished to move 
these negotiations forward.  In th is context, the three issues men tioned at the present meeting were 
important.  To move Trade Facilitation forward, Memb ers would have to deal with both Section 1 and 
2 issues, and simultaneously.  One could not follow the other.  From the statements by developing 
countries, it was clear that issues in Section 2 had to  be part of the discussion.  Australia wished to 
reach out to LDCs and developing countries, like the ACP, to see how best to address some of their 
concerns.  These were some of the immediate thi ngs Australia would like to see progress on in the 
coming months.  It would not be easy, but these would be the focus for his delegation's involvement.  Lastly, an area of continuing real concern was Memb ers' inability to act on the guidance received at 
MC8 to examine how to deal with the most intract able issues in the negotiations.  He was referring 
principally to the market-access issues.  It conti nued to be a matter of great concern that, despite 
efforts by the Negotiating Group Chairs, which were highly appreciated, the level of engagement by a 
number of key players had been far from convincing.  It could not be said that the system was operating efficiently if Members were not able to disc uss those kinds of issues.  Australia agreed that 
the need for something to happen in Agriculture w as absolutely critical to Members' ability to move 
the Doha negotiations forward.  It would continue to put forward ideas in all areas, but Agriculture 
was of central importance.  His de legation asked that others be prep ared to engage and recognize the 
importance of grappling with these issues if they ge nuinely wished to protect the system, value and 
work of the WTO. 
41. The representative of Singapore said he wished to share Singapore's view of the discussions 
on global value chains, as this had been raised by ma ny delegations.  In the in terest of transparency, 
he wished to assure all that the discussion in Puerto Vallarta had not been contentious.  Singapore had 
shared its experience of global value chains, as ha d Korea, Chile, Turkey and Cambodia as an LDC, 
among others.  These discussions had showed that  the global value chain was not a North-South  WT/GC/M/136 
 Page 17 
 
 
  phenomenon, as there was also a healthy component of South-South trade in the global value chain 
context.  It was also not a G20 construct, nor a Mexican invention, but something which academics 
had been studying for years.  The WTO, OE CD, other institutions and even WTO Members 
themselves had done work on this area.  He wished to put this issue in context, because it was relevant 
to what Members did in the WTO, and the concept would not go away in the near future.  Singapore 
was not a G20 member and had not been privy to setting the meeting's agenda.  However, it had not 
gotten the impression in Puerto Vallarta that the so -called "new narrative" sought to replace the DDA 
issues or any of the important work done in the WTO.  His delegation saw the global value chain discussion as a supplementary analysis that would help Members better understand and deal with the 
issues they were negotiating in the WTO.  Given th e concerns expressed at the present meeting, it was 
important for the broader membersh ip to hear this reassurance. 
42. In Puerto Vallarta, Cambodia had shared a very  compelling story about its garment industry, 
recounting what national policy decisions it had taken and how this had been very hard initially.  At 
present, however, that sector contributed US$40 million a month to Cambodia's GDP.  Singapore fully understood the point made at the present meeti ng that some Members were perhaps not as well 
integrated into the global value chain as others, but Members would be doing themselves a disservice 
if they concluded that any Member was not partic ipating in it.  As long as a Member exported an 
unfinished good, a raw material, or an input – as a good or service – to any finished product, it was part of the global value chain.  The idea was th at the way Members computed and perceived trade 
flows affected their national policy decisions.  Trade flows could no longer be viewed in traditionally 
absolute terms of surpluses or deficits.  It w as important to understand how each export fit into the 
finished product.  Awareness of global value chai n dynamics would better serve Members' national 
decision-making, rather than their cleaving on to ideo logical constructs that might have worked in the 
past.  This awareness of the global value chain would help each Member formulate better policies to support its companies and SMEs and help them su rvive in the current global economy.  Most 
importantly, delegations should not leave the present meeting with the impression that there had been 
an adversarial debate in Puerto Vallarta.  There ha d been no contest of ideas, but rather an engaging 
and meaningful discussion, where different points of view had found a place to be heard and understood.  This was a spirit from which Members could benefit in their work in Geneva.  His 
delegation saw no objection or difficulty with th e concept of policy space and decision making by 
sovereign nations.  However, the conclusion he had personally draw n from the discussions in Mexico 
was that it was ultimately the policies chosen by go vernments that determined whether companies and 
SMEs could compete and survive in the current global trading environment. 
43. The representative of Haiti, on behalf of the LDCs, said the Director-General's views on 
Trade Facilitation and S&D treatment had especially a ttracted the LDCs' attention.  They agreed that 
Trade Facilitation could be a win-win proposal to th e extent that the terms of reference were well 
documented and clear.  Technical assistance and capac ity building were key points that needed to be 
clarified.  The LDCs were carefully monitoring  the follow-up to the recommendations from MC8.  
They commended the Chairman of the Sub-Committ ee on LDCs for following up on LDC accessions.  
At the same time, they were concerned about the current difficulties regarding the accessions of 
Yemen and Lao PDR.  The LDCs wished to th ank China for taking the initiative to organize a 
conference on LDC accessions in Beijing at the end of May.  Overall, the LDCs remained optimistic 
regarding the desirability of the Development Round.  They were heartened to note the progress in the 
area of Aid for Trade, with the current increase in  funds committed.  Along with the African Group 
and the ACP, the LDCs remained committed to seeking development based on equity and 
inclusiveness. 
44. The representative of Chinese Taipei said his delegation shared many of the concerns 
expressed on the current global economic climate and that it could lead to protectionism.  While 
Members needed to strengthen the monitoring mech anism to keep protectionism at bay, completing 
the DDA was a better way to combat protectionism.  Members could not afford to let the DDA drift, WT/GC/M/136 
Page 18  
 
  and needed to explore areas where progress could be  made.  Global supply chai ns were important, and 
Chinese Taipei, including its SMEs, had benefitted from these.  The expansion of global supply 
chains to include Members not previously includ ed would benefit those Members and help them 
develop trade and foster development.  In this re gard, Trade Facilitation and Services could be viewed 
as tools to enable trade and development.  Member s should continue to work  on development-related 
issues, including LDC accessions.  
45. The General Council took note of the Directo r-General's report and of the statements. 
2. Work Programme on Small Economies – Report by the Chairman of the Dedicated 
Session of the Committee on Trade and Development 
46. The Chairperson said that in line with the fra mework and procedures agreed by the General 
Council in 2002, the Work Programme on Small Economies was a standing item on the General 
Council's agenda, and the Committee on Trade and De velopment reported regularly to the Council on 
the progress of work in its Dedicated Sessions on th is subject.  She invited Mr Maruping (Lesotho), 
Chairman of the Dedicated Session of the CTD, to  report on the progress of work in this area. 
47. Mr Maruping (Lesotho), Chairman of the Dedi cated Session of the CTD, said that since his 
last report to the General Council in February, th e proponents of small economies had been focusing 
most of their attention on Trade Facilitation, a nd had been very active in the recent week-long 
meeting of that Negotiating Group.  Progress had be en made on integrating modified S&D treatment 
provisions into a new version of the draft text, an advance which many SVEs had welcomed.  The 
SVEs would continue to monitor future work in this  area, especially in the run-up to another week of 
meetings of the Negotiating Group foreseen for July.  The SVEs were also keen to move ahead on 
work related to how NTMs affected their exports, an  area which Ministers had cited as a key priority 
for SVEs in their Decision on the Small Economies Work Programme at MC8.   The area of NTMs 
would provide a key focus for future SVE work in  2012.  Efforts were under way to use existing 
research in this area – from both the WTO and Interna tional Trade Centre Secretariats – so that SVEs 
could further discuss the impact NTMs had on their exports.  He looked forward to being able to 
discuss such issues soon in the Dedicated Session.  
48. The representative of Barbados, on behalf of  the SVEs, thanked the Chair of the CTD 
Dedicated Session for his report.  As instructed by Ministers at MC8, the SVEs were continuing their 
work in this body.  They noted the developments in Trade Facilitation concerning the incorporation of 
modified S&D treatment provisions into a new version of the draft text on Trade Facilitation.  The SVEs were also keen to proceed  with the work on NTMs and their impact on small economies, and 
would be focusing on this area in the weeks ahead.  At the same time,  they would continue to monitor 
and work on other areas of interest to small economies to assist them in more fully integrating into the 
international trading environment. 
49. The representative of Cuba thanked the Chair of the Dedicated Session for his report and 
supported the statement by Barbados for the SVEs.  Her delegation attached great importance to the 
analysis of the proliferation of NTMs and its impact on trade and development, as this was a 
phenomenon which ran counter to the principles and norms of the WTO.  As the Chair of the Dedicated Session had said, the SVEs would be devo ting themselves full time to this analysis.  Her 
delegation would participate in these discussions wh ich were of considerable interest to it. 
50. The General Council took note of the report of the Chairman of the Dedicated Session of the 
Committee on Trade and Development and of the statements.   WT/GC/M/136 
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  3. Improving the guidelines for granting in tergovernmental organizations permanent 
observer status in the WTO – Communication  from the Arab Group (WT/GC/W/654)  
51. The Chairperson recalled that in October 2011, the Arab Group had circulated a 
communication entitled "Improving the Guidelines for Granting Observer Status to Intergovernmental 
Organizations in the WTO" (WT/GC/W/643).  At  its November 2011 meeting, the General Council 
had agreed to initiate a process of consultations after the Ministerial Conference to consider this issue.  
At the Council's February meeting, her predece ssor as General Council Chair had reported on the 
progress in these consultations and ha d urged continued enga gement to address this issue.  He had 
also stressed that it would be good to focus the pr ocess of consultations on clear, operational criteria, 
taking into account the existing Guidelines, without prejudging its outcome in any way.  The Arab 
Group had recently submitted a new communication on th is issue, circulated on 12 April in document 
WT/GC/W/654.  The previous day, she had continued the process of consultations in the light of this 
new communication.  The consulta tions had begun with an introduction by the Arab Group of its 
communication.  From the discussion which followed,  it had quickly become clear that this issue 
remained a very complex one, with many different  aspects and a number of ramifications, and that 
fundamental differences remained among Members.  She intended to continue her consultations and 
would report to the General Council on progress as appropriate. 
52. The representative of Qatar, on behalf of the Arab Group, thanked the Chairperson for her 
constructive engagement on this issue, and also  delegations who had expressed encouraging views 
during the consultations.  She recalled that during these consultations, several delegations had said it 
would be good to focus the consultations on clear, op erational criteria, taking into account the existing 
Guidelines.  Furthermore, the Arab Group had been requested to elaborate on its earlier proposal so as 
to trigger a response from the rest of the membersh ip.  In response to these requests and to facilitate 
the General Council's consideration of this  issue, the Arab Group had submitted a new 
communication in document WT/GC/W/654, which c ontained specific suggestions to improve and 
fine-tune Annex 3 of the General Council's Rules of Pr ocedure.  The participation of IGOs with clear 
trade-policy and economic mandates would not only be  an added value to the WTO, but would also 
assist in maintaining the coherence of tackling trade issues both internationally and regionally.  In this 
regard, the Arab Group supported the new round of consultations proposed by the Chairperson and 
would approach them with an open mind.  The Ar ab Group was equally open to discuss any proposal 
that would advance the consultations and unblock the current situation.   
53. The representative of Egypt thanked the Chairp erson for her report on the consultations and 
supported the statement by Qatar for the Arab Gr oup.  On 30 November 2011 in the run-up to MC8, 
the General Council had launched a process to address  the issues related to the representation and 
participation of IGOs in the work of the WTO, on the basis of a proposal by the Arab Group.  It had been recognized that the Guidelines established in  Annex 3 of the Rules of Procedure were, in 
themselves, not sufficient to ensure the participa tion of all IGOs by granti ng them permanent observer 
status, as prescribed by the Marrakesh Agreemen t.  Divergences over the interpretation of these 
Guidelines had dominated Members' discussions for over a decade.  The list of IGOs requesting permanent observer status continued to grow, with no clear indication as to how some IGOs had been 
granted permanent observer status, while others, wi th a clear development mandate, continued to be 
barred from receiving the same status within th e various WTO bodies, including IGOs that had 
maintained observer status under GATT 1947.  On 14  February 2012 the then General Council Chair 
had given his account of the initial round of consu ltations on this issue, wherein he had urged 
Members to continue their engagement, no matter ho w challenging the issue might be.  At the same 
time, he had indicated that it would be helpful to focus the process on clear, operational criteria that 
would need to be devised in this regard. 
54. In the communication entitled "Improving the guide lines for granting observer status to IGO's 
in the WTO" (WT/GC/W/643), the Arab Group had enum erated several shortcomings with respect to WT/GC/M/136 
Page 20  
 
  the application of the aforementioned Guidelines and had proposed some improvements to their 
application with respect to IGOs seeking obser ver status in the WTO.  The established WTO 
principles of full participation, inclusiveness, transp arency and reciprocity sh ould apply consistently 
and indiscriminately across all fields of work in the WTO.  These principles were indivisible, and their application should not be arbitrary.  An y attempt to undermine any of these principles would 
undermine the application of the others and would je opardize the very culture the WTO promulgated.  
As a matter of principle, all IGOs seeking pe rmanent observer status should receive favourable, 
unbiased and uniform treatment.  This requirement, wh ich manifested the full participation principle, 
stemmed from the fact that the Marrakesh Agr eement directed Members to ensure effective 
cooperation and consultati on with IGOs concerned with WTO ma tters.  Further, all IGOs with 
competence in trade-policy formulation and/or  whose activities related to trade and economic 
development and had responsibilities related to the WTO should be granted observer status in the 
WTO.  Egypt therefore hoped that the consultations  would soon pave the way for a consensus to 
emerge that would provide for this.  This was a condition required to ha rness and consolidate the 
inclusive nature of the multilateral trading system in  a manner that would achieve greater coherence in 
global economic policymaking, as prescribed by the WTO Agreement.  
55. The representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on behalf of the Gulf Co-operation 
Council Members, thanked the Chairperson for her ab le leadership on this issue and Qatar for its 
communication on behalf of the Arab Group in document WT/GC/W/654.  This communication had 
been submitted in order to elicit a response from the membership on an issue of systemic interest to 
all Members – how to encourage full participation in WTO activities by all relevant IGOs.  It laid the 
basis for a constructive dialogue, and it was hoped that all would contribute to the positive resolution 
of this matter.  The GCC countries wished to re-a ffirm their view that the responsibility for improving 
the Guidelines fell equally on each Member, and was in  no way specific to the Arab Group.  In this 
context, they looked forward to supporting th e improved operation of the trading system, by 
developing guidelines that encouraged constructive and positive contributions by qualified IGOs that 
supported Members' trading interests. 
56. The representative of Bolivia supported the propo sal by the Arab Group.  Many IGOs had 
problems in participating as observers in the WTO, and this was counter to the democratic principles 
of transparency and inclusiveness that should underp in the work of the organization.  This was why 
his delegation encouraged Members to take a cons tructive approach to this matter and to try to 
improve an area that needed improvement.    
57. The representative of Turkey thanked the Arab  Group for its communication.  The WTO was 
the highest platform for the functioning of the rules- based multilateral trading system.  With this role, 
the WTO sought universality and further inclusiveness in that system.  This required promoting and 
enhancing the participation of IGOs in WTO activiti es.  The request by relevant IGOs for permanent 
observer status in the WTO should be duly and favourably taken into account.  The membership 
should reach a consensus on this issue with a constructive outcome. 
58. The General Council took note of the Chairpers on's statement and of the other statements. 
4. Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration – Report on meeting of March 2012 
(WT/BFA/129) 
59. The Chairperson drew attention to the report of the Budget Committee in document 
WT/BFA/129 and invited Mr Zananavi čius (Lithuania), Chairman of the Committee, to introduce the 
report. 
60. Mr Zananavi čius (Lithuania), Chairman of the Committee on Budget, Finance and 
Administration, said that at its meeting in March 2012, the Committee had reviewed Members' overall  WT/GC/M/136 
 Page 21 
 
 
  situation on Outstanding Contributi ons and had expressed appreciation for the remarkable progress 
made by the Secretariat to improve the situation and reduce the number of Members subject to Administrative Measures.  It had been agreed that the Chair of the Working Group on Administrative 
Measures would hold a meeting regarding payment pl ans going into default and would report to the 
Committee.  The Committee had also been inform ed that Chad, Sierra Leone and Djibouti had 
accepted payment schemes to liquidate their arrears.   Therefore, the Committee recommended to the 
General Council to suspend the application of Administrative Measures for these three Members as 
detailed in the report in paragra phs 4, 5 and 6.  The Committee also recommended to the General 
Council that Guinea-Bissau, the remaining Inactive Member, be urged to liquidate its arrears. 
61. The Committee had also taken note of the progr ess made on the building project and the fact 
that it continued to remain within schedule and bu dget.  The Committee had been required to approve 
the funding of two projects, which included the equipping of the North Wing Conference Rooms and the IT Data Centre.  It had examined the annual repo rt of the Office of Internal Audit, which provided 
an overview of the internal audit activities carried  out in 2011.  Members had welcomed that report 
and had made some suggestions fo r additional reporting.  Two Memb ers had raised concerns about 
selected expenditures incurred by the Secretariat.  The Committee had agreed to have these reviewed 
by the external auditors.  The exte rnal auditors had carried out their investigations over the previous 
two weeks, and the Secretariat had cooperated fully .  From the preliminary information received, it 
was understood that the external auditors would ma ke some recommendations to enhance some of the 
processes.  However, no misuse of funds or fraudulen t activity had been uncovered.  The final report 
of the auditors would be submitted in due c ourse for the consideration of the Committee. 
62. The General Council took note of the statem ents, approved the Budget Committee's specific 
recommendations in paragraphs 4- 7 of its report in document WT/BFA/129, and adopted the report. 
5. International Trade Centre UNCTAD/WTO – Re port of the Joint Advisory Committee 
on its forty-fifth session (ITC/AG(XLV)/242) 
63. The Chairperson said the Joint Advisory Group on the International Trade Centre 
UNCTAD/WTO had held its forty-fifth session on 30 J une to 1 July 2011.  The report of the Joint 
Advisory Group (JAG) had been distributed in document ITC/AG(XLV)/242.  In keeping with 
customary practice, this report had been cons idered initially by the Committee on Trade and 
Development at its meeting on 11 April, where it ha d been presented by the Chairman of the JAG, 
Mr Badr (Egypt).  She invited Mr Maruping (Lesotho) , Chairman of the CTD, to make a statement on 
the Committee's consideration of this report. 
64. Mr Maruping (Lesotho), Chairman of the Co mmittee on Trade and Development, said the 
Chairman of the JAG had presented the report to  the CTD on 11 April 2012 and had made a few 
remarks on the proceedings of the JAG meeting.  The latter had informed the CTD that the meeting 
had been convened to discuss the ITC’s Annual Re port for 2010.  Government representatives had 
also announced their trust fund contributions to the ITC.  In addition, two panel discussions had been 
held on the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF ) project formulation and on follow-up to the May 
2011 LDC IV meeting in Istanbul.  The Deputy Executive Director of the ITC, Mr Jean-Marie Paugam, had indicated in his statement to the Group that the ITC had been striving to make four significant and innovative contributions to building mo re inclusiveness into the world trading system.  
These were delivering access to the following:  trade and market information, decision-making tools, 
markets and income.  The JAG had been informed th at the growth in the ITC’s delivery in 2010 had 
been satisfactory and sustained, with a 13 per cent expansion compared to 2009.  The target of $US 
40 million had been exceeded, and 55 per cent of delivery had focused on LDCs, LLDCs, Small 
Island Developing States and Sub-Saharan Africa n countries.  The JAG had broadly welcomed 
progress on the development of a Results-Based Management (RBM) approach to project development and delivery, as well as in the introduc tion of quality assurance mechanisms.  It had also WT/GC/M/136 
Page 22  
 
  commended the ITC on its technical assistance programmes, and expressed appreciation for the ITC's 
increased focus on delivery to the most vulnerable countries.  Some representatives from regions not in this category had expressed the hope that donors w ould not forget their countries' need for the ITC's 
support.  The JAG Chairman had thanked Canada, China, Denmark,  Finland, Germany, Norway, 
Sweden and Switzerland for their expressions of fi nancial support to the organization.  The CTD had 
taken note of the JAG report and forwarde d it to the General Council for adoption. 
65. The representative of the United Kingdom said hi s country continued to be impressed with 
the ITC's performance.  The UK Department for International Development was contributing more 
than £5 million over three years to support two ITC pr ojects, in addition to its core funding through 
the UN and WTO budgets.  In an internal review  in 2011, both projects had been assessed as 
performing well.  The ITC Trade and Gender Progra mme had delivered real benefits for women in 
some of the poorest countries.  For example, it had facilitated women entrepreneurs' access to 
international markets by bringing together re presentatives of Fortune 500 businesses to strengthen 
their outreach to women entrepreneurs.  The ITC' s work to support data collation and dissemination 
on NTMs had also made sound progress, with NTM country surveys being carried out in 18 countries.  
At the UNCTAD XIII conference, the ITC had gi ven an illuminating presentation on how this work 
could directly improve understa nding of the barriers faced by business, in which one exporter 
explained how she needed to attach a paper copy of  the full text of the relevant Free Trade Agreement 
to the paperwork for every export consignment, in or der to help officials charge the correct rate of 
export duties.  A better understanding of such prac tical barriers to trade and how they could be 
addressed had to be good for trade and developm ent.  In addition to these projects, the UK was 
supporting the organizational strengthening of the ITC.   Of particular importance to the UK was the 
work under way to embed RBM.  The UK fully s upported the ITC's efforts in this area. 
66. The representative of the European Union said the EU and its member States supported the 
work of the ITC in many ways.  The EU particularly supported the ITC four-year strategic plan for 
2010-2013 which responded to the mandate of the organization, the needs of the beneficiary 
countries, the role of the partner organizations and the need to be more impact-oriented and to set 
realistic goals in cooperation with partner countries.  The EU trusted that the plan would facilitate a 
dialogue with beneficiary countries and donors, and contribute to organizational change and 
continuously improved performance.  In operational terms, the European Commission contributed to a 
number of ITC projects and was currently exploring the possibility of launching a new project on small trade operators that could result in a very strong increase of commitment in the coming years.  
At the same time, sever al member States supported ITC project s bilaterally, and the UK had just 
mentioned the support it was providing to two speci fic ITC projects.  Othe r member States that 
supported the ITC were not taking the floor, in confor mity with the usual practice of the EU in the 
WTO and the General Council, but this did not mean  that their contributions or the projects they 
supported were in any way less important than those mentioned. 
67. The representative of Turkey said his country ha d been cooperating with the ITC in building a 
good framework for developing joint activities in LDCs  in general, and Africa in particular.  A senior 
officer of the ITC had visited Ankara earlier in th e year and had met with the Turkish International 
Cooperation Agency as well as with other relevant gove rnment authorities.  Turkey looked forward to 
the follow-up to these meetings and hoped that areas  for joint activities would be found.  He thanked 
the ITC for the report and reiterated Turkey’s  willingness to enhance cooperation with it. 
68. The representative of Canada said he wished to make two points.  First, as already stated at 
the JAG meeting in June, Canada recognized the important work of the ITC in making a real 
difference in building the capacity of SMEs in de veloping countries to access and take advantage of 
the global economy.  This had been borne out in th e ITC's project-based work, to which Canada was a 
major contributor, including on promoting regional integration in Africa and enhancing the capacity 
to trade in five Arab countries.  Canada particul arly noted the ITC's efforts at integrating RBM and  WT/GC/M/136 
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  quality assurance in its project planning and im plementation, while mainstreaming gender, 
environment and poverty reduction as cross-cutting themes.   Under the leadership of Patricia Francis, 
the ITC had positioned itself to become a model for good practice in RBM trade-related assistance.  
Canada urged the ITC to continue these efforts and ass ured its full support in this regard.  Maintaining 
a focus on impact helped ensure strong and su stainable development results.  Second, from a 
procedural perspective, Canada noted the signifi cant time lag between the JAG meeting and the report 
to the General Council.  The 2011 JAG had been held  in June 2011, and the 2012 JAG was scheduled 
for later in May.  This delay was too long, and Canada  urged that all efforts be made to ensure that the 
JAG reported back to the WTO at the earliest opportunity following each of its meetings. 
69. The General Council took note of the statements and adopted the report of the Joint Advisory 
Group in document ITC/AG(XLV)/242. 
6. WTO Pension Plan Management Board – Elect ion of a member and two alternates – 
Proposal by the Chairperson of the General Council (WT/GC/W/655) 
70. The Chairperson recalled that Article 4(a) of  the Regulations of the WTO Pension Plan 
provided inter alia  for the election by the General Council of a Chairman, four members and four 
alternates to the Management Board of the Pens ion Plan.  In a communication circulated to 
delegations in document WT/GC/W/655,  she had indicated that a memb er of the Management Board, 
Ms Witbreuk (Australia), was no longer available to serve, and that it was necessary for the Council to 
decide on her replacement.  In addition, she had in dicated that the positions of two alternates were 
vacant.  Accordingly, in her communication, she had proposed the names of three representatives who 
had kindly agreed to have their names put forward for election as member and alternates, and had 
invited delegations to submit any comment regardi ng the proposed nominations by close-of-business 
on 27 April.  As no comments had been received , she proposed that the General Council elect 
Mr Michael Stone (Hong Kong, China) to serve as a member on the Management Board and Mr 
James Baxter (Australia) and Ms  Micong Klimes (Germany) to ser ve as alternates on the Board for 
the remainder of the its term, i.e. until May 2014. 
71. The General Council so agreed.7 
72. The Chairperson, on behalf of the General Council, thanked the candidates who had kindly 
agreed to serve on the WTO Pension Plan Management Board. 
7. Guidelines for appointment of officers to WTO bodies – Statement by Ecuador 
73. The representative of Ecuador, speaking under "Other Business", said that the most recent 
appointments of Chairs to the WTO's main and subsidiary bodies had highlighted the limitations of 
the appointment process in terms of transparen cy and inclusiveness.  When assessing Members' 
participation as Chairs of the various WTO bodies si nce 1995, it became clear that there was a very 
high incidence of individuals from the same Members serving as Chairs.  For example, in the 17 years since the WTO had been established, individuals from a small number of Members had been Chairs 
more than 20 times, and some almost 40.  It was clear that such a level of concentration of 
representatives of certain Members in the leadership of WTO bodies could only be achieved at the 
expense of the participation of other Members.  In other words, the almost permanent chairing of 
these bodies by a limited few prevented proper altern ation and the effective participation of the 
majority.  One way to eliminate, or at least mini mize, the limitations of the current process – and thus 
the possibility of individual, arbitrary and self-interest ed interventions or interp retations – would be to 
give regional groups a decisive role in appointing th e chairpersons of the WTO's main and subsidiary 
bodies.  In this scenario, the Chair of the Gene ral Council would simply facilitate dialogue and 
                                                      
7 The Decision was subsequently circulated in document WT/L/854. WT/GC/M/136 
Page 24  
 
  agreement among these groups, and the groups themselve s would be directly responsible for agreeing 
on the specific content of the proposal submitte d to the General Council for consideration. 
74. There needed to be a fundamental change in  the role played by regional groups in the 
appointment of chairpersons of WTO bodies.  Inst ead of simply being c onsulted by the General 
Council Chair, these groups should define the specif ic elements of the proposal for the General 
Council.  In this way all Members, through their re gional groups, would effectively have a say in the 
appointment of WTO Chairs.  Otherwise, each regiona l group would act, as it always did, on the basis 
of its own specific procedures and principles.  For example, during the discussions that had taken place in 2011 in GRULAC, some delegations had suggested that the following elements would 
enhance the transparency of this process and promote a lternation.  First, those directly involved in the 
appointment of the chairpersons of WTO bodies coul d not be candidates for such positions.  Second, 
it was important to limit the number of consecutive times that a country or region could hold a particular chairmanship.  Given that the WTO wa s an inter-governmental organization subject to 
public international law, and not a social club, the decision-making process and the exercising of 
rights, as well as compliance with obligations, had to  be subject to the relevant formalities.  A 
Member was fully entitled to object to a proposal, or in this case a nomination, but had to do so 
formally and publicly.  Failing this, any objection s hould be considered non-existent.  His delegation 
hoped that this statement would provide some usef ul elements to help the General Council Chair 
proceed with the mandate concerning the revision of  document WT/L/510, a task she had been given 
by the General Council in February. 
75. The representative of Cuba supported the statement by Ecuador.  At the informal meeting of 
the General Council on 13 February , her delegation had shared some of the concerns raised by 
Ecuador and other delegations.  The initiative to gi ve an important fundamental role to regional 
groups throughout the process of appointment of chairpersons to WTO bodies was positive and 
appropriate, and Cuba hoped that  it would be favourably received by the rest of the membership. 
76. The representative of El Salvador asked the Chai rperson about the status of the consultations 
regarding the revision of document WT/L/510, which the Chair had agreed to undertake upon 
completion of the appointment process.  He also aske d the Chair, if possible, to take his delegation 
into consideration in her consulta tions, since El Salvador had raised  a number of concerns regarding 
this process. 
77. The Chairperson said she would undertake cons ultations, as agreed by the General Council. 
78. The General Council took note of the statements. 
8. Decision on an extension of the period fo r the acceptance by Members of the Protocol 
Amending the TRIPS Agreement – Statement by the Director-General 
79. The Director-General, speaking under "Other Business", recalled that on 30 November 2011, 
the General Council had unanimously adopted a deci sion by which the period for the acceptance of 
the Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement had been extended until 31 December 2013.  In his 
capacity as depositary of the 2005 Protocol Amendi ng the TRIPS Agreement, he wished to draw 
attention to the importance of accepting the Protocol to permit its entry into force.   This was needed to 
give legal certainty to this additional pro-health flexibility for the more vulnerable Members.  While a 
number of Members had accepted it in recent months, acceptance by two-thirds of the Members was required for the Protocol to take effect.  He  encouraged Members who had not yet accepted the 
Protocol to consult with their Governments so  that domestic procedures to accept it could be 
completed in due course.  He emphasised that this was not a narrow administrative matter or a 
technical legal question – the need to im plement the amendment had been affirmed inter alia  by 
ECOSOC at Ministerial Level,  the UN General Assembly, the WHO, UNAIDS and UNDP.  He  WT/GC/M/136 
 Page 25 
 
 
  again stressed that when accepting the Protocol, a Member did not need to implement domestic 
legislation that would permit it to use the flexib ilities itself.  Many Members had accepted the 
amendment without implementing it in domestic law.   A Member's acceptance simply confirmed the 
existing political agreement that the new flexibility in troduced by the Protocol should be open to other 
Members to make use of, if they so wished. 
80. The General Council took note of the statement. 
9. Chairmanships of the Working Parties on the Accession of Liberia and on the Accession 
of Afghanistan – Statement by the Chairperson 
81. The Chairperson, speaking under "Other Bu siness", informed Members that following 
consultations with members of the Working Party and the authorities of Liberia, and in keeping with 
usual WTO practice, it had been agreed that Mr Joakim Reiter (Sweden) would serve as Chairman of 
this Working Party.  Also, following consultati ons with members of the Working Party and the 
authorities of Afghanistan, and in keeping with usual WTO practice, it had been agreed that 
Mr Roderick Van Schreven (Netherlands) would serve as Chairman of this Working Party.  On behalf 
of the General Council, she wished to thank both in dividuals for agreeing to serve as Chairs of these 
Working Parties. 
82. The General Council took note of the statement. 
10. Administrative Measures for Members in  arrears – Statement by the Chairperson 
83. The Chairperson, speaking under "O ther Business", recalled that at its meeting in May 2006, 
the General Council had approved a recommendati on from the Committee on Budget, Finance and 
Administration regarding revised Administrative M easures for Members in arrears.  Among these was 
a requirement that at each meeting of the Genera l Council, the Chairman of the Committee on Budget, 
Finance and Administration should provide informat ion with regard to which Members were under 
Administrative Measures in Categories II through IV.  She wished to begin by inviting the Chairman 
of the Budget Committee, Mr Zananavicius (Lithuania) , to provide the Council with this information. 
84. Mr Zananavicius (Lithuania), Chairman of the Committee on Budget, Finance and 
Administration, listed the Members under Categories II through IV of the Ad ministrative Measures as 
at 30 April 2012.  There were two Members in Category II: Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 
and Grenada.  There were two Members in Cate gory III: Dominica and the Bolivarian Republic of 
Venezuela.  There was one Member in Category IV : Guinea-Bissau.  Since the last progress report, 
Solomon Islands and Nicaragua had paid up their a rrears, and Chad, Djibouti and Sierra Leone had 
accepted a payment plan. 
85. The Chairperson said that under the revised Ad ministrative Measures, she was also required 
at each Council meeting to request those Members in  Categories III and IV of the Measures to inform 
her, before the next meeting of the General Counc il, as to when their payment of arrears might be 
expected. 
86. The General Council took note of the statements. 
 
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 WT/GC/M/136 
Page 26  
 
  ANNEX 
Statement by Montenegro 
 
 
Let me express great pride and satisfaction to be  participating in the General Council meeting 
as the representative of Montenegro, a young state th at has now become a full-fledged WTO Member.  
I am especially honoured to be here on toda y's occasion which marks the first step toward 
Montenegro's future engagement as the 154th Member of this most important trade organization.  The full-fledged membership has been the result and recognition of the progress that Montenegro has 
made in modernizing its economy and governance, and of  the continuing efforts of its Government in 
the first six years of the Montenegrin state.  Our previous involvement has demonstrated that we are 
an open society, striving and ready to respect the pr inciples of transparency and the rule of law.  
Montenegro is aware of the advant ages of membership in the WTO, such as settlement of disputes in 
a constructive way, a system based on internationa l rules instead of power, the growth of foreign 
trade, greater choice of quality goods and service s, improved transparency and competition, and 
control of corruption.  The international rules embodied in the WTO will provide greater opportunities 
in the global market for Montenegro 's companies and will also help attract foreign direct investment.  
The exposure and participation of Montenegro's co mpanies in the global market is one of the key 
objectives of our country's membership in the WTO,  which will lead to greater liberalization and 
development of industries, agriculture, tourism and en ergy.  In particular, we appreciate the principle 
of encouraging the development and economic reforms which we e xpect will make a positive impact 
on the Montenegrin economy.  Allow me once agai n to express warm gratitude to all WTO staff 
which helped us in the process of accession, an d to the Members that supported Montenegro's 
candidacy to become a WTO Member.  We realize that this new status carries with it duties and 
obligations.  I can assure you th at Montenegro will strive, thro ugh close cooperation within this 
organization, to contribute to its efficiency by wo rking according to its principles.  In concluding, I 
wish speedy and successful accession for the current  and future candidates for WTO membership. 
 
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