. /.   WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/MIN(09)/ST/133 
28 January 2010 
 (10-0465) 
MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE 
Seventh Session Geneva, 30 November - 2 December 2009 Original:   French 
 
  
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO 
 
Statement by Mr Albert Kwete Minga Bope
 
Secretary-General for Foreign Trade  
   Let me begin by thanking the Swiss Gove rnment for its warm welcome, and the 
Director-General and Secretariat of the WTO for their excellent organization of this meeting. 
 
 Since the last Ministerial Conference in H ong Kong in December 2005, the global situation 
has drastically changed, especially from an economic, trade and development perspective. 
  The food, energy and financial crises we ar e experiencing each constitute a challenge and a 
concern in their own right, yet they form a whole.  In  this context, therefore, we must work together 
on the basis of mutual solidarity to prepare ourselves for what lies ahead. 
  In relation to the Doha Deve lopment Round of multilateral trad e negotiations, I should like to 
underscore the following points:  
- The consequences of the global financial a nd economic crisis must not be used as a 
pretext for protectionism.  The Democra tic Republic of the Congo calls upon all 
WTO Members to resist the temptation to adopt protectionist measures; 
 
- the development dimension must remain at the heart of the negotiations, as agreed at 
the Doha Conference of 2001; 
 
- the Democratic Republic of the Congo is in  favour of "an early harvest" of the first 
ripe fruits of the Doha Round negotiations in the areas where there is already a 
consensus on issues of specific relevan ce to least developed countries (LDCs), 
namely: 
 
(a) the implementation by all WTO Members of duty-free and quota-free market 
access for all LDCs; 
 
(b) a waiver granting preferential and mo re favourable treatment to services and 
service suppliers of LDCs; 
 
(c) an ambitious, expeditious and speci fic outcome for cotton trade-related 
aspects, in particular the elimination of trade-distorting domestic support measures and export subsidies, and the granting of duty-free and quota-free market access for cotton and cotton by-products originating from LDCs. 
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  - The establishment, in the context of the current global economic and financial crisis, 
of a "safety net" mechanism for African cotton-producing LDCs to address revenue losses as a result of declining prices in the in ternational markets is urgently required, 
together with implementation of the commitment by WTO Members contained in the July Package of 2004 and the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration of 2005. 
 
 In order to implement the TRIPS Agreement,  we ask developed and emerging developing 
countries to provide all LDCs with financial and technical assistance in assessing their needs and 
strengthening their capability to fulfil th eir obligations under this Agreement. 
 
 With reference to the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF), devel opment partners should 
fulfil their pledges and provide additional resources.   The WTO Aid for Trade process is extremely u seful.  While it is easier to provide and 
implement Aid for Trade on a bilateral basis, th e multilateral process and institutional role of the 
WTO give it essential anchorage and ensure a systematic approach. 
  Accession for developing countries, and partic ularly least developed countries, should be 
facilitated rather than pointlessly rendered cumbersome  or slow.  Similarly, it is neither necessary nor 
fair to ask acceding countries to grant greater mark et access than existing - including the original - 
WTO Members, or to undertake "WTO-plus" obligations. 
 
 A swift conclusion to the Doha Round of trad e negotiations is absolutely essential for each 
and every one of us.  Without it, the poorest c ountries will suffer and years of progress will be 
undermined.  I invite you all to do everything possible to prevent this from becoming a reality. 
 
 The Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen represents an historic opportunity to reach a 
viable and effective solution.  This solution, alo ng with all other related measures in the future - 
including those likely to affect trade - should be  adopted with the changing needs of developing 
countries in mind, and be based on the principle of shared but differentiated responsibility.  The 
Democratic Republic of the Congo supports the est ablishment of a mitigation fund that would address 
the development concerns of these countries. 
 
 In conclusion, we support the statements a nd recommendations made by the African Group, 
the least developed countries and the ACP Group, sin ce they reflect the consensus reached by us all. 
 
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