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PRESS/TPRB/290 
5 November 2007 
 
(07-5144) 
TRADE POLICY REVIEW: ORGANIZATION OF EASTERN CARIBBEAN STATES 
Continued reform would expand the benefits of closer integration 
in the world economy 
Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the 
Grenadines, WTO Members of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), have taken steps to further liberalize and facilitate trade since their last Review in 2001. These important 
reforms could be consolidated by strengthening the institutional and legal framework, particularly 
if they were anchored through multilateral commit ments, according to a WTO Secretariat report on 
the trade practices and policies of the OECS-WTO Members. 
 
OECS-WTO Members have continued to move successf ully away from agriculture to services, in 
particular tourism. The small production base of  these countries, however, makes them vulnerable 
to external shocks. This may be addressed in pa rt by reinforcing their fiscal position through 
measures such as tax reforms and reducing the incentives granted to selected activities. The report also stresses the benefits OECS-WTO Members derive from their participation in the 
multilateral trading system. 
 The WTO reports (Overview and national reports), along with national statements and a joint 
policy statement by the OECS-WTO Members, w ill be the basis for the second TPR of the 
Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (WTO Members) by the Trade Policy Review Body of the WTO on 5 and 7 November 2007. 
 
The following documents are available in MS Wo rd format on the WTO web-site. They can be 
downloaded at http://www.wto.org/english/ tratop_e/tpr_e/tp290_e.htm  
 
• Secretariat reports 
> Contents and summary observations  
> Economic environment  
> Trade and investment regimes  > Trade policies and practices by measure  
> Trade policies by sector  
> Appendix tables  
• Joint policy statement by the OECS-WTO Members 
• Reports by the OECS-WTO Members PRESS/TPRB/290 
Page 2 of 2 
 
 • Chairperson’s concluding remarks  
• Minutes of the meeting (available appr oximately six weeks after the meeting). 
Note 
Trade Policy Reviews are an exercise, mandated in the WTO Agreement, in which member 
countries’ trade and related policies are examined and evaluated at regular intervals. Significant 
developments that may have an impact on the global trading system are also monitored. For each review, two documents are prepared: a policy stat ement by the government of the member under 
review, and a detailed report written independently by the WTO Secretariat. These two documents 
are then discussed by the WTO’s full membership in  the Trade Policy Review Body (TPRB). These 
documents and the proceedings of the TPRB’s meetings are published shortly afterwards.  
 
Print copies of the TPR publications are available for sale from the WTO Secretariat, Centre William Rappard, 154 rue de Lausanne, 1211 Genève 21 and through the on-line bookshop at 
https://secure.vtx.ch/shop/boutiques/wto_index_boutique.html  or follow this path :  
www.wto.org >resources > publications > trade policy reviews   
The TPR publications are also available from our co-publisher Bernan Press , 4611-F Assembly 
Drive, Lanham, MD 20706-4391, United States 
Next reviews: 
Thailand: 26 and 28 November 2007 
Turkey: 10 and 12 of December 2007 
 
For a full list of previous trade policy reviews and the full programme of future reviews go to 
http://www.wto.org/english/trat op_e/tpr_e/tpr_ e.htm#reviews 
or follow this path : www.wto.org > trade topics > trade policy reviews 
 
  
END