The NGMA also heard presentations by three regional standards-related organizations. The NGMA's next meeting will take place August 2-6, 1999. The FTAA NGAG held its fourth meeting on May 24-26. The general view was that better implementation of the WTO SPS Agreement in the hemisphere would facilitate trade. The next meeting of the NGAG is scheduled for September 27-30.
All meetings are in Miami, FL, unless otherwise noted above.
The negotiating groups in their meetings from July through September will focus on developing the annotated outlines of their respective chapters for provision to the Ministers at their next meeting on November 3-4 in Toronto. The FTAA is a comprehensive free trade area, so it will add on to the WTO in that sense. The multilateral process will run in tandem with the FTAA negotiations and will provide a higher baseline from which the FTAA will spring. The FTAA goals will shift favorably as the WTO moves forward.