TWN Info Service on WTO and Trade Issues (Jul22/03)
14 July 2022
Third World Network

WTO: DG's "push-back" against members' complaints on opaque MC12 process
Published in SUNS #9613 dated 12 July 2022

Geneva, 8 Jul (D. Ravi Kanth) -- In a member-driven and rules-based World Trade Organization, the director- general Ms Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has "pushed back" against complaints from dozens of WTO members over the lack of transparency and inclusivity in finalizing the decisions/declarations reached at the WTO's 12th ministerial conference (MC12) that concluded on 17 June, said people familiar with the development.

At a heads of delegation (HoD) meeting held on 7 July to review the results from MC12, the DG urged members "to enjoy success", instead of complaining about the controversial "green room" meetings that seemed to have contributed to much of the MC12 decisions/declarations, said people, who asked not to be quoted.

It is somewhat appalling to hear the phrase "push-back" from the DG against the members' grievances centering on how they were excluded from the decision-making process and how decisions were apparently foisted on them at the last minute without giving them time to consult their capitals, said a participant who asked not to be quoted.

According to paragraph 4 of Article VI of the Marrakesh Agreement, "the responsibilities of the Director-General and of the staff shall be exclusively international in character in the discharge of their duties" and "they shall refrain from any action which might adversely reflect on their position as international officials."

At the HoD meeting, the DG went on to defend the process she adopted at MC12, insisting that the doors were open for any country to attend meetings in Room D (at the WTO headquarters, which has capacity for more than 60 members), in the WTO library (which could accommodate around 40 members) and "green room" meetings (up to 20 members), said people, who asked not to be quoted.

At one point in her concluding intervention, she said that the "green room" meetings were open to all members, a comment that provoked members to laugh in apparent disbelief, said people, who preferred not to be quoted.

Interestingly, the DG did not mention the fact that members needed an invitation/pass to participate in small group and "green room" meetings, said people, who asked not to be quoted.

MEMBERS' RESPONSES

Around 40 countries issued their respective comments on the way the process was conducted during the five-and- a-half days of meetings at MC12.

Venezuela, Paraguay, Peru, Ecuador, Chile, Indonesia, India, Turkey, members of the African Group, Russia, which apparently said that it was not invited to any meeting, and Chad, on behalf of the least-developed countries (LDCs), strongly voiced their major grievances as to how they were excluded from the decision-making process, said several trade envoys, who asked not to be quoted.

India apparently said while small missions faced numerous problems in coping with the meetings and developments at MC12, it also faced difficulties, as it could not participate in many small group meetings due to lack of an invitation and the requisite badges, said people who asked not to be quoted.

The situation at MC12 could be likened to adopting questionable "means" to accomplish the "ends" that did not seem to address the major concerns in all areas, particularly the Decision on the TRIPS Agreement, fisheries subsidies, and the exclusion of agriculture, said a trade envoy, while summarizing the issues raised by the developing countries.

Members asked for doing away with the "opaque" processes following MC12. Members spoke more about the allegedly controversial processes adopted than on the results.

Many countries acknowledged the need for more work to be done in all areas.

Asked about institutionalizing the "green room" meetings at MC12, the DG told the SUNS on 17 June, "there were a lot of small group meetings calling different people, and we are not even calling green rooms. They were not so-called green room in my office. You must understand the reason why we called small group meetings, they were not green rooms and because we have a war in Ukraine. It has changed everything, and (when) we negotiate, we can't come into a big room and negotiate because there are members who do not want to negotiate in the same room with Russia. Instead of commending the ability to find a way forward with the small group approaches, you tell me it is a green room. These are not green rooms, it is just that any small group is called a green room. The point is meetings are HoDs and they are working."

The SUNS has previously cautioned about "take-it-or-leave-it" decisions at MC12 in #9563 dated 27 April 2022, and "WTO DG pushes five unresolved MC12 deliverables to ministers" in #9590 dated 8 June 2022, among others.

At the HoD meeting, Indonesia, the coordinator of the G33 group, South Africa, and several other developing countries called for accelerating work on the public stockholding (PSH) issue and the special safeguard mechanism.

South Africa underscored the need for concluding agreements on the permanent solution for public stockholding programs for food security and the discussions to include diagnostics and therapeutics in the Decision on the TRIPS Agreement, said people, who preferred not to be quoted.

Several developing countries underscored the need for speeding up work on the e-commerce moratorium so as to ensure its early termination, instead of waiting till 2024.

NORTHERN COUNTRIES CALL FOR WTO REFORMS

In sharp contrast, the trade envoys of the European Union, Singapore, New Zealand, and Japan lauded the MC12 outcomes, including the processes adopted for accomplishing the difficult results in various areas.

Speaking on the way forward in a rather positive tone, the US emphasized on accelerating the discussions on WTO reforms.

The EU, Singapore, Australia, and New Zealand called for flexible negotiating approaches that could include small group meetings, given the difficulties involved in discussing issues among the 164 members, said a person, who asked not to be quoted.

DG'S RESPONSE

In her concluding remarks at the HoD meeting, the DG said that she wants to "push back" against the complaints, saying that the doors were open for members to attend the "green room" meetings, a comment that raised eyebrows, said several trade envoys.

The DG apparently bemoaned the "negative" views and outlook, a characteristic of Geneva, even when significant outcomes were made in various areas.

While agreeing with some of the concerns raised by members over the lack of transparency and inclusivity, she suggested that there was a communication problem.

She seemed rather upset that instead of celebrating the "success" achieved at MC12, around 40 members spoke about their disappointments and unhappiness about the manner in which MC12 was conducted through an extraordinary exclusionary process, particularly the exclusion of not only the developing countries but more importantly, the least developed countries, said trade envoys, who asked not to be quoted.

The DG gave an account of the decisions/declarations agreed in various areas, while expressing disappointment over the lack of results in agriculture.

She apparently informed members that she is going to convene brainstorming retreats on agriculture after the summer break to discuss how to proceed further on this issue.

She said that the LDCs were open to attend all meetings, suggesting that one member appears to have attended the small group meetings.

Ms Okonjo-Iweala also touched on the need to address the issues in agriculture, which provides around $700 billion in subsidies that could go up to $1 trillion.

She said that the G7 leaders congratulated her for bringing the WTO "back on the rails".

Speaking to the SUNS, a LDC member said that "probably for the first time, in any outcome package of the WTO Ministerial Conference, there was no specific decision for the LDCs."

"The separate LDC graduation-related decision could not be finalized because of opposition from the US (in spite of the continued flexibility from the LDCs in lowering their expectations). Otherwise, the other Members would have supported the outcome regarding the LDC graduation."

CHART OF WORK

The DG apparently circulated the following Implementation Matters from the MC12 Mandates, containing a chart of the work to be done in the run-up to MC13:

(1) DFQF Market Access for LDCs: We instruct the General Council to report on the progress to our next session.

Venue: General Council (via Committee on Trade and Development).

Time-frame: Next session of the Ministerial Conference.

(2) Preferential Rules of Origin for LDCs: Instruct the CRO to report its work to the General Council ahead of the Thirteenth Ministerial Conference.

Venue: Committee on Rules of Origin.

Time-frame: Ahead of MC13.

(3) Trade Facilitation: We instruct the Trade Facilitation Committee to hold a Dedicated Session on transit issues annually until the next review of the Trade Facilitation Agreement is completed.

Venue: Committee on Trade Facilitation.

Time-frame: Annually until the completion of the next TFA review.

(4) Work Programme on Small Economies - Ministerial Decision (WT/MIN(22)/25-WT/L/1136)

Small Economies:

* Instruct the CTD to continue its work in the Dedicated Session on Small Economies under the overall responsibility of the General Council.

* Furthermore, we instruct the Dedicated Session on Small Economies to consider in further detail the various submissions that have been received to date, examine any additional proposals that Members might wish to submit and, where possible, and within its mandate, make recommendations to the General Council on any of these proposals.

* The General Council shall direct relevant subsidiary bodies to frame responses to the trade-related issues identified by the CTD with a view to making recommendations for action.

* The CTD in Dedicated Session shall continue monitoring the progress of the small economy proposals in WTO bodies and in negotiating groups with the aim of providing responses, as soon as possible, to the trade-related issues identified for the fuller integration of SVEs in the multilateral trading system.

Venue: Committee on Trade and Development - Dedicated Session on Small Economies, and General Council.

Small Economies: We instruct the WTO Secretariat to provide relevant information and factual analysis for discussion among Members in the CTD's Dedicated Session on Small Economies, inter alia, in the areas identified in item k of paragraph 2 of the Work Programme on Small Economies and, in particular, to work on integrating small economies into the post COVID-19 economy: effects of the pandemic, challenges and opportunities.

Venue: WTO Secretariat.

(5) TRIPS Non-Violation and Situation Complaints - Ministerial Decision (WT/MIN(22)/26-WT/L/1137)

TRIPS Non-Violation and Situation Complaints: Direct it to continue its examination of the scope and modalities for complaints of the types provided for under subparagraphs 1(b) and 1(c) of Article XXIII of GATT 1994 and make recommendations to the 13th Ministerial Conference.

Venue: TRIPS Council.

Time-frame: MC13 (for making recommendations).

(6) Ministerial Decision on the TRIPS Agreement (WT/MIN(22)/30-WT/L/1141)

TRIPS Waiver: The General Council will review annually the operation of this Decision.

Venue: General Council (via TRIPS Council).

Time-frame: Annually (during effectivity of the waiver).

TRIPS Waiver: No later than six months from the date of this Decision, Members will decide on its extension to cover the production and supply of COVID-19 diagnostics and therapeutics.

Venue: General Council and TRIPS Council.

Time-frame: No later than six months from date of decision (17 June 2022).

(7) Sanitary and Phytosanitary Declaration for the Twelfth WTO Ministerial Conference: Responding to Modern SPS Challenges - Ministerial Declaration (WT/MIN(22)/27-WT/L/1138)

SPS:

* The Ministerial Conference instructs the SPS Committee to further enhance the implementation of the SPS Agreement in an effort to better manage issues related to international trade in food, animals and plants by undertaking a work programme, open to all Members and Observers, consisting of new efforts to identify: (1) challenges in the implementation of the SPS Agreement and the mechanisms available to address them; and (2) the impacts of emerging challenges on the application of the SPS Agreement.

* The SPS Committee will address the outcomes of this work programme and report on key findings and actions undertaken as a result of this work to the thirteenth Ministerial Conference with recommendations, as appropriate.

Venue: SPS Committee.

Time-frame: MC13 (Report and Recommendations, if any).

(8) Ministerial Declaration on the Emergency Response to Food Insecurity (WT/MIN(22)/28-WT/L/1139)

Agriculture Reform - LDCs and NFIDCs: We commit to having a dedicated work programme in the Committee on Agriculture to examine how this Decision (Marrakesh Decision on Measures Concerning the Possible Negative Effects of the Reform Programme on Least-Developed and Net Food-Importing Developing Countries) could be made more effective and operational pursuant to Article 16 of the Agreement on Agriculture and to consider concerns raised by Members in their current and future submissions. The work programme shall consider the needs of LDCs and NFIDCs to increase their resilience in responding to acute food instability including by considering the best possible use of flexibilities to bolster their agricultural production and enhance their domestic food security as needed in an emergency.

Venue: Committee on Agriculture.

Trade and Market Developments: We invite the Secretariat to provide regular updates on trade and market developments in the wake of the current food price spikes and excessive price volatility, in cooperation with other relevant international organizations.

Venue: WTO Secretariat.

(9) Ministerial Declaration on the WTO Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic and Preparedness for Future Pandemics (WT/MIN(22)/31-WT/L/1142)

Pandemic Response: Relevant WTO bodies will, within their fields of competence, and on the basis of proposals by Members, continue or initiate work as soon as possible, to analyze lessons that have been learned and challenges experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Venue: Relevant WTO bodies include the Council for Trade in Goods or its subsidiary bodies (including the Committee on Trade Facilitation, the Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade, the Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, the Committee on Market Access, and the Committee on Agriculture), Trade Policy Review Body, Council for Trade in Services or its relevant subsidiary bodies, Council for Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, Committee on Trade and Development, Working Group on Trade and Technology Transfer and Working Group on Trade, Debt and Finance. +