WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
WT/MIN(11)/ST/102 
16 December 2011  
 
(11-6691) 
MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE 
Eighth Session Geneva, 15 - 17 December 2011 Original:   English 
 
  
GHANA 
 
Statement by H.E. Ms. Hanna Tetteh 
Minister of Trade and Industry 
 
 
On behalf of the Government and people of th e Republic of Ghana, I first of all wish to 
express my deepest gratitude to the Swiss Governme nt for the warm reception given my delegation, 
since our arrival. 
 
 I also wish to commend the Director-General , the Chair of the General Council, the WTO 
Secretariat and indeed, the entire membership fo r the invaluable contributions made in the 
preparations for this Ministerial and also the hi gh-quality documentation and excellent facilities put at 
our disposal. 
 
 The Doha Development Agenda (DDA) admittedly , is in a crisis.  We are meeting here to 
take decisions which would have far-reaching impl ications for the multilateral trading system in 
general, and more particularly, on the fate of the floundering Doha Development Agenda.  Never in 
the history of multilateral trade negotiations have  we witnessed a negotiating round with such 
fluctuating fortunes, leaving everybody in a state of despondency. 
  Exactly two years ago, we met, collectively r esolved and directed that the Doha Development 
Agenda (DDA), which holds good prospects for the development of our economies, must be 
concluded by 2010.  
 We were guided by the ominous signs of recessi on triggered by the financial crisis leading to 
the global economic meltdown.  Indeed, the de cision was taken as we all acknowledged that 
concluding the DDA would certainly bring calm and r estore confidence to the ailing global economy.  
The comprehensive DDA we have been  pursuing for the past 10 years to date continues to elude us, 
thanks to political inertia. 
 
 We have time and again been assured at va rious international political as well as economic 
fora of time-set conclusion of the DDA and with pledges and commitments of flexibilities to narrow 
existing gaps.  These statements coming from such high-level fora constitute  a tacit acknowledgement 
of the real, not potential benefits that the conclu sion of the DDA within the mandates, could generate 
for all of us.  Rather these statements are not kept to the letter, keeping the negotiations in the present 
state of flux.  Such grandiloquent statements and issuing of communiqués we must admit, are quite clearly, detached from the realities in the negotiati ng rooms in Geneva and elsewhere.   To find 
ourselves in this lock jam with the DDA sufferi ng atrophy is simply unacceptable.  This does not 
augur well for the health of the multilateral trading system.  Indeed, we cannot  stand by and look on 
with despair as such an important round drifts away  slowly into oblivion, when the power and the 
resolve to rescue it, is within our reach.  WT/MIN(11)/ST/102 
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   Our economies, even some of the resilient on es, are not immune to the current disturbing 
developments in the global economy.  We live in an integrated world and the contagion effect is being 
felt by all.  Global trade instability, currency wars , extremely volatile and uns table developments in 
the capital markets leading to low investments, low consumer confidence as demand has contracted, 
proliferation in bilateralism and increase in protect ionism, should remind all of us that the global 
economy is not yet out of recession, in spite of the e normous sacrifices we all continue to make.  Very 
few countries managed to escape the recession.  That  resilience is clearly now waning.  These pose 
considerable risks to global economic recovery, in which we all agree trade has an important role to 
play.  The DDA must be concluded.  
 There are convincing reasons why the DDA must be concluded, and within the scope of the 
mandates.  We cannot turn a blind eye to the consid erable movements made during the past ten years, 
not counting the cost of huge investment –time, hum an and financial - put into the negotiations. We 
have made a lot of sacrifices.   In reality, we ar e very close to a successf ul conclusion with some 
major concessions already made - concessions that  would generate enormous new market access 
opportunities among others, for the entire membership, especially, the poorest in the system. 
  The reform in agriculture would certainly, with the right mix of policies, lift the lives of millions of our farmers out of poverty.  Far-reach ing decisions have been reached on the LDCs.  
These include duty-free, quota-free market access fo r products from LDCs; a services waiver and 
market access for cotton from LDCs.  Slashing high  tariffs and tariff peaks will bring our countries 
closer to the realisation of our industrialisation pros pects.  These are just but few of stabilised areas 
that should give us added momentum to close the remaining gaps and seal a deal for the DDA.     The Doha Round must be brought to an expeditious conclusion.  The risks in not concluding 
the DDA are simply too high.  Indeed, the potent ial in the weakening of the multilateral trading 
system is real.  Its credibility is already on the line.  A rare opportunity of improving the rules of 
liberalised trade with a development dimension, will be  lost and probably never to be recovered.  We 
are all witnesses to the sudden rise in protectionism in the wake of the recessi on, but for the vigilance 
and the monitoring mechanism of the WTO.  With th e rise in unemployment and the persistent large 
external imbalances being experienced in our majo r markets, additional pressures would be brought to 
bear on governments to take protectionist measures,  thus putting further st ress on the multilateral 
trading system.   
  We are witnesses to the emerging trend of the pr oliferation of preferential trading agreements 
that tend to fragment rather than integrate the mu ltilateral trading system.  The institution’s function 
as a legitimate mechanism for resolving trade disput es is contingent on its wider credibility as a forum 
for trade negotiations.  If it fails in its wider mandate , the institution will be weakened in its judicial 
function.    
We must all step up to the plate and show  the necessary will and commitment needed to 
restore the DDA to the level of attention that it deser ves, in order to move the negotiations forward.  
The need to exhibit further flexibilities, show comp romises to narrow the existing gaps and close the 
round is crucial now, more than ever. 
 
The Trade Ministers of the African Union noted at the recent (December 1
st – 3rd 2011) 
Conference in Accra the presence of other very real  threats to the successful completion of the Doha 
Development Round. Some parties favour a ‘plurilatera l’ approach to trade negotiations where groups 
of countries could go off and concl ude agreements on specific issues with benefits not available to 
other members. This approach carries the potential ri sk of undermining the democratic and egalitarian 
approach of the WTO. It also threatens to depriv e developing countries of their voice, by undermining 
their ability to speak collectively. By abandoning th e possibility of a truly comprehensive agreement, 
the so-called 'single undertaking', it would permit  issues of the highest concern to developing  WT/MIN(11)/ST/102 
 Page 3 
 
 
  countries to be swept under the carpet . It is imperative that we addre ss the key concerns of developing 
countries: market access for LDC countries, a wa iver on services and a deal on cotton among others. 
In addition, we must ensure sector specific financ ial and technical assistance and sustainable capacity 
building as an integral part of S&D treatment under WTO agreement and as part of Aid for Trade Plans.  
 
Trade Ministers in Accra also affirmed the need  for the extension of the transition period for 
LDCs to bring their domestic legal systems into c onformity with provisions of TRIPS agreement (it 
will otherwise expire on June 30
th 2013). This must be complement ed with incentives and policies to 
encourage technology transfer to LDCs.  
 
Finally, Trade Ministers in Accra, stressed the impact of high and volatile food prices 
affecting African countries. We call on the Gene ral Council to establish a comprehensive work 
programme on mitigating the impact of food prices.   
 It is admitted that the global economic a nd trading environment has undergone tremendous 
changes over the past decade and th e WTO as an institution needs to ad just to take on the emerging 
issues in the wake of such developments.  To shif t focus and energy to tackling those issues at the 
expense of the DDA would be a costly mistake.  We must first resolve to find solutions to the 
20
th Century issues i.e. the DDA and the overhanging implementation issues arising from the Uruguay 
Round Agreements.  Deliberately allowing the Doha Development Agenda to waste away slowly will 
not be to the advantage of member states.  To opt for plurilateralism means shifting attention to 
bilateralism.  This will only hasten the demise of  multilateralism.  We must resolve right here to 
return to the negotiating tabl e and conclude the DDA.   
  While directing the Membership to resume the negotiations on the DDA, we caution against 
re-interpretation of the mandates and reopening of stabilised areas.  The development component in 
every negotiating track must be observed.  That is the only way we can deliver a development-
oriented, fair, balanced and equitable outcome to the benefit of all.  In an increasingly interdependent 
world, we must all recognise that we have an inter est in spreading the benefits of economic growth as 
widely as possible and in diminishing the risks of either excluding individuals or groups in our own economies or of excluding certain countries or regions  from the benefits of globalisation.  Let us 
resolve to conclude the DDA.  It matters. 
 
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