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TWN
Info Service on Sustainable Agriculture
WTO: South countries demand talks on WTO reforms under GC's
direction Geneva, 15 Jun (D. Ravi Kanth) -- Many developing countries drawn from the African Group, as well as India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Cuba issued a powerful statement on 14 June on how the proposed WTO reforms must be conducted after the World Trade Organization's 12th ministerial conference (MC12), said people familiar with the development. The signatories of the joint statement include the African Group (Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cabo Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt, Eswatini, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe), India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Cuba. In their statement, the signatories said they "recognize the institutional challenges that the WTO is facing, including the imbalances in the rules that have impacted Members, particularly developing countries, including least developed countries, from effectively shaping rules, or influencing decision-making in the WTO." "We agree that these challenges need to be addressed in a systematic, transparent, and inclusive manner amongst all Members." They said that "taking note of the calls for reforming the WTO, we reiterate our commitment towards developing a common understanding, through multilateral engagement, the institutional challenges that Members seek to address in the dispute settlement function, negotiating function, monitoring and implementation." In this regard, the signatories said, "we support the commencement of a review in the General Council to identify the institutional challenges facing the multilateral trading system on the basis of written submissions by Members." "The review shall consider measures to facilitate the effective, full, and inclusive participation of developing countries, including least developed countries, in the multilateral trading system and its decision-making processes, and re-balance the inequitable trade rules from the Uruguay Round," they argued. Further, the signatories underlined that the WTO reforms "shall also safeguard the necessary policy space needed for developing countries for their structural transformation, industrialization and economic recovery." Reaffirming Article IX:1 of the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, "we reiterate that the review shall be consistent with the principles and objectives of that Agreement and its multilateral trade agreements." In conclusion, the 55 developing countries said unambiguously that "the General Council, through its regular bodies, shall consider the most appropriate institutional arrangements for handling the review, and report on progress to the Thirteenth Session of the Ministerial Conference." The joint statement from these countries strikes at the heart of WTO reforms, as it opposes the "top-down" approach allegedly adopted by the United States, the European Union, and other industrialized countries who insisted that the WTO General Council (GC) can oversee the negotiations on this issue but not directly conduct them, SUNS was told. + WTO: Facilitators allegedly playing "partisan" role in talks on deliverables Published in SUNS #9596 dated 16 June 2022 Geneva, 15 Jun (D. Ravi Kanth) -- The facilitators on the five proposed deliverables for the World Trade Organization's 12th ministerial conference (MC12) seem to be playing an increasingly "partisan" role by adopting alleged "rigged" methods and in some cases openly siding with members opposed to the permanent solution for public stockholding (PSH) programs for food security, and even on fisheries subsidies, said people who asked not to be quoted. Several members on 14 June raised sharp concerns over the facilitator for agriculture, Ms Betty Maina, Cabinet Secretary for Trade of Kenya, for allegedly siding with Brazil, Uruguay, and Paraguay, who opposed the mandated issue of the permanent solution for (PSH) programs, said people, who asked not to be quoted. During a small-group meeting, Ms Maina is understood to have said that she shares the "frustration" of Brazil on the issue of the permanent solution for PSH programs as demanded by India, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka among others, raising concerns about her "impartial" and "independent" role as an honest broker on resolving these issues, said people familiar with the development. For the past three days, Ms Maina has allegedly supported the opponents of the permanent solution, sometimes openly and other times subtly, said people, who asked not to be identified. "This is unusual and we are unhappy with the facilitator taking sides," said a person, who asked not to be quoted. Meanwhile, the small-group discussions on 14 June appear to have turned into an apparent shouting match by Brazil, Uruguay, and Paraguay against India for demanding the mandated permanent solution for PSH programs, said people familiar with the development. US TEXTUAL CHANGES The United States on 14 June inserted several changes in the draft text issued by the chair of the Doha agriculture negotiations, Ambassador Gloria Abraham Peralta of Costa Rica, last week, bringing about parity in finalizing the modalities on PSH, domestic support, market access, and even on transparency provisions, said people, who asked not to be quoted. In a proposal replete with textual changes in all areas, the US has made further negotiations somewhat difficult, said people familiar with the proposal. The US proposal was issued to members in the early morning of 14 June. The proposal, seen by the SUNS, almost put paid to any decision, said people, who asked not to be quoted. Meanwhile, at a small-group meeting on fisheries subsidies, the facilitator, Trade Minister Damien O'Connor of New Zealand, seems to have placed a package and asked the participants to say "YES" or "NO". The participants in the meeting included the US, the EU, Mexico, Jamaica, Fiji, Indonesia, and South Africa among others. India was present in other small-group meetings but not in this meeting, said people who asked not to be quoted. The package presented by the facilitator contained 7+2 years of a "peace clause" for special and differential treatment (S&DT) for developing countries to continue with subsidies in the overcapacity and overfishing pillar, as compared to the 25 years demanded by India, Indonesia, and many other countries. The facilitator also proposed language on several other controversial issues. Subsequently, the facilitator asked for responses. The trade ministers of Mexico, the European Union, Canada, and Fiji said "YES" to the facilitator's call, while Jamaica, on behalf of the ACP (African, Caribbean, and Pacific) group, Indonesia, and South Africa said "NO" in their nuanced positions, said people, who asked not to be quoted. When SUNS asked whether this is the method adopted by the facilitator, a senior capital-based trade official said that it is "baseless" and "not correct". The problem is that the facilitators are being assisted by the chairs of the different bodies dealing with the five deliverables and they seem to be blindly following the chair's positions as though there was consensus on them, said a trade negotiator, who asked not to be identified. If the facilitators' decisions are going to be foisted on the larger membership, it could lead to ugly outcomes, the trade negotiator warned. The text of the US proposal on the draft text on agriculture is as follows: "1. We commit to continue our negotiations to establish a fair and market-oriented agriculture trading system by reducing support and protection progressively and substantially in achieving meaningful reform, recalling existing negotiating mandates. We reaffirm that special and differential treatment for developing countries is an integral part of all the negotiating topics listed below. Particular consideration shall be given to the needs of least-developed and net food-importing developing countries. Non-trade concerns, including food security and the protection of the environment shall also be taken into account in all areas of these negotiations. 2. We resolve to intensify our negotiations on the topics listed below, with a view to agreeing and adopting modalities and other outcomes, based on progress achieved by Members to find consensus on their different areas of interest by the Thirteenth Session of the Ministerial Conference (MC13). These negotiations shall build on progress made thus far in the negotiations under the auspices of the Special Session of the Committee on Agriculture (CoA-SS), including in dedicated sessions, and Members' existing and future submissions. Technical discussions shall support the negotiations to facilitate informed participation by all Members. Domestic Support 3. We shall continue comprehensive negotiations on domestic support after MC12, in particular, to substantially reduce trade-distorting domestic support and to improving all disciplines, within a reasonable timeframe to be agreed by Members, in accordance with the reform programme provided for in Article 20 of the AoA and the modalities that will be agreed and adopted by MC13. 4. Unless otherwise provided, Members' contributions to the outcomes of these negotiations will be determined according to modalities to be agreed by Members post-MC12. In this respect, the needs of low-income or resource-poor farmers in developing countries shall be taken into account in these negotiations. Public Stockholding for Food Security Purposes [1] 5. Recalling the Ministerial Decision of 7 December 2013 (WT/MIN(13)/38 - WT/L/913), the General Council Decision of 27 November 2014 (WT/L/939) and the Ministerial Decision of 21 December 2015 (WT/MIN(15)/44 - WT/L/979), and recognizing the importance attached to public stockholding programmes for food security purposes (PSH) by many developing country Members, including least developed and net food importing developing countries and the food security of other Members, we shall continue our negotiations to agree and adopt a permanent solution to the PSH issue by MC13. 6. These comprehensive negotiations shall consider, inter alia, an assessment of the external reference price [2], programme and product coverage, limits on public stockholding programmes, transparency and safeguards/anti-circumvention, and legal certainty. 7. The negotiations shall continue to be held in dedicated sessions of the CoA-SS. The General Council shall regularly review progress on the basis of reports provided by the CoA-SS. Market Access 8. We shall continue negotiations on market access after MC12 with a view to improving substantially and progressively agricultural market access opportunities for all Members within a timeframe to be agreed by Members, in accordance with the reform programme provided for in Article 20 of the AoA and the modalities that will be agreed and adopted by MC13. Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM) 9. Pursuant to the Nairobi Ministerial Decision (WT/MIN(15)/43 - WT/L/978, we shall continue negotiations on a special safeguard mechanism for developing country Members in dedicated sessions of the CoA-SS as envisaged under paragraph 7 of the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration (WT/MIN(05)/DEC) to agree and adopt modalities by MC13. 10. The General Council shall regularly review progress in these negotiations. Export Restrictions 11. Bearing in mind Article 12 of the AoA, we shall continue negotiations with the aim of enhancing transparency and predictability of export prohibitions and restrictions and improving relevant disciplines, and to agree and adopt modalities by MC13. To this end, and taking into account Article 12.2, we agree to work towards assessing and clarifying Article 12 of the AoA. Export Competition 12. Taking note of the Nairobi Ministerial Decision on Export Competition (WT/MIN(15)/45- WT/L/980), and in accordance with the reform programme provided for in Article 20 of the AoA, we shall continue negotiations to enhance disciplines on export credits, export credit guarantees or insurance programmes, agricultural exporting state trading enterprises and international food aid, and the modalities to be agreed and adopted by MC13. These disciplines shall aim at ensuring that there is no circumvention of export subsidy elimination commitments and to prevent non-commercial transactions from being used to circumvent such commitments. Special consideration shall be given to the needs and circumstances of least-developed and net food-importing developing countries. Cotton 13. We undertake to continue negotiations after MC12 with a view to reducing trade-distorting domestic support for cotton in accordance with modalities to be agreed by MC13 and in line with the mandate to address it ambitiously, expeditiously, and specifically within the agriculture negotiations taking into account, in particular, the overall domestic support negotiations. 14. We undertake to continue holding Dedicated Discussions on cotton on a bi-annual basis, as mandated by paragraphs 5, 6 and 7 of the Bali Ministerial Decision on Cotton (WT/MIN(13)/41 - WT/L/916) and confirmed in paragraph 14 of the Nairobi Ministerial Decision on Cotton (WT/MIN(15)/46 - WT/L/981). 15. We note that the development-related aspects of cotton are addressed under the Director- General's Consultative Framework Mechanism on Cotton and welcome the work undertaken in this context, which will continue to be handled as provided for in paragraph 12 of the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration (WT/MIN(05)/DEC) and in paragraphs 10, 11, 12 and 13 of the Nairobi Ministerial Decision on Cotton. Transparency 16. Pursuant to Article 18 of the AoA, we agree to make the necessary efforts to provide outstanding notifications prioritizing from the year 2010. We agree to work in the Committee on Agriculture (CoA) to review, update and streamline as necessary the transparency provisions contained in document G/AG/2 and consider possibly including necessary elements, such as value of production data, as well as other agriculture-related transparency requirements by the date of MC13. Due consideration shall be given to the capacity constraints faced by some developing countries, especially the least developed among them. 17. We invite the WTO Secretariat to pursue efforts to assist developing country Members, upon their request, to comply with the relevant notification and other relevant transparency and monitoring requirements, including through ad hoc advice, technical assistance and capacity-building support. We request the Secretariat to provide information on a regular basis to the CoA on these activities. 18. We request the WTO Secretariat, in consultations with Members, to develop, maintain and update on a regular basis a domestic support analytical tool based on Members' notifications, Members' official sources, and recognized international sources in consultation with concerned Members. 19. We agree to the continuation of discussions, on a without prejudice basis, on transparency of changes to MFN applied ordinary tariff rates, including for shipments en route. [1] This proposed Decision acknowledges that some Members have submitted proposals on a permanent solution on PSH for consideration by Ministers. [2] This issue would be considered more broadly in the context of current AoA disciplines." The prospects for any agreement on the draft decision on agriculture reform, the draft declaration on trade and food security, and the draft decision on food purchases made by the World Food Programme (WFP) are all mired in differences among many countries on the one side, and several other countries like India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan on the other, said people, who asked not to be quoted. +
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