. /.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
WT/MIN(11)/ST/127 
15 December 2011 
 (11-6878) 
MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE 
Eighth Session Geneva, 15 - 17 December 2011 Original:   French 
 
  
REPUBLIC OF BENIN ON BEHALF OF BURKINA FASO, 
AS COORDINATOR OF THE COTTON-4 
 
Statement by H.E. Ms Madina Sephou 
Minister of Industry, Trade, and Small 
and Medium-Sized Enterprises 
 
 
 On behalf of the co-sponsors of the Sectoral Initiative in Favour of Cotton, generally referred 
to as the C4, I would like to begin by indicating our support for the positions expressed by Bangladesh 
on behalf of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) , Kenya on behalf of the African Group, and 
Mauritius on behalf of the ACP countries.   I also wish to convey to the WTO Director-Gener al our satisfaction with his action at the head 
of our Organization. 
  The C4 welcomes this Eighth Ministerial Conferen ce, in which it had invested high hopes of 
resolving the recurring issue of cotton.  
 The cotton issue, need I remind you, ultimately  became emblematic of the Doha Round and, 
above all, a test case for development.   You will recall that the Hong Kong Ministerial Conference in December 2005 decided on ambitious, expeditious and specific treatment for cotton.  
 The fact is, however, that there has been no pr ogress on the cotton issue si nce then.  The C4 is 
therefore seizing the opportunity provided by this forum to appeal once agai n to all WTO Members, 
and in particular the United States, to show flexibilit y in order for us to make headway on this matter 
as quickly as possible.  The C4 supports any move that shows Members' willingness to remedy the problems faced by the millions of cotton-growers in our countries every day. 
 
 To give fresh impetus to the negotiations, on 2 November 2011 the C4 proposed a draft decision on cotton for the Eighth Ministerial Conference.   After more than three weeks of discussions 
and consultations in every possible format, it was agreed that the cotton issue be raised in the 
framework of the "Elements for Po litical Guidance" of this Conference.  That was the minimum level 
of convergence we were able to reach, whereas the tr ue target of our combat is, and will remain, the 
trade-distorting cotton subsidies that were at the heart of our draft decision.   Nevertheless, the C4 welcomes the reaffi rmation of the commitment made in 2005 in 
Hong Kong to address cotton "ambitiously , expeditiously and specifically". 
 
 Looking beyond 2011, the C4 and the other Afri can cotton-producing countries reiterate their 
appeal to WTO Members in general, and to the pr otagonists of the cotton dossier in particular, to WT/MIN(11)/ST/127 
Page 2  
 
  engage effectively in the negotiations, on the basis of the fund of experience contained in the draft 
modalities on agriculture of 6 December 2008, keepin g in view the need fo r coherence between the 
trade and development aspects of the issue.   As we have repeatedly stated, the solution to  the cotton issue must be based on a systemic 
approach and there will have to be clear and precise figures to finalize the outcomes. 
  The result to achieve must have an impact on the subsidy policies of the countries concerned as well as on the international market for cotton.  
 The negotiating process must be continued from the start of 2012 and without change;  it must 
remain a multilateral, transparent, inclusive and bottom-up process.   Concerning the development aspect of cotton, we  would like to express renewed gratitude to 
all of the donors at the bilateral, subregional, re gional and multilateral levels for their invaluable and 
numerous forms of support.  However, the cont ributions of developmen t partners under this 
"development" aspect would currently appear to be more and more seriously out of kilter with the 
needs expressed.  To maximize their impact, we  would very much wish to see the gap between 
commitments made to date and actual disbursements closed as soon as possible.   With this in mind, the C4 has also chosen to  focus more closely, in the negotiations, on the 
necessary objective link between the developm ent aspect of cotton and the Aid-for-Trade 
(AfT) initiative, and in the future to go beyond  the national projects and create a framework 
conducive to the development of multidimensional and integrated joint programmes or projects for 
submission to development partners.  
 We hope that this new approach will prevent a host of contributions spread over a multitude 
of scattered projects adopted at sector level in each of our countries and rather aim for a group dynamic with emphasis laid on collective proj ects that are innovativ e, multidimensional and 
integrated at C4 level and more generally across all 36 African cotton-producing countries. 
  However, while appreciating the importance of development aid in favour of cotton, we wish 
here to emphasize that, in our view, the trade asp ect remains the most appropriate solution for our 
endangered cotton sector.   For this reason, we strongly appeal for the rapi d conclusion of the Doha Agenda, in line with 
the mandate concerning cotton in the Minist erial Declaration adopted in Hong Kong in 
December 2005. 
 
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