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TWN
Info Service on WTO and Trade Issues (Oct23/13) Yerevan, 11 Oct (D. Ravi Kanth) — Members of the World Trade Organization on 10 October discussed the slate of issues prepared by WTO Director-General, Ms Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, for the Senior Officials Meeting (SOM) that commences on 23 October, but doubts continue to persist on whether any meaningful outcomes will emerge from this high-profile event, said people familiar with the discussions. The SOM is being specifically convened to prepare the possible deliverables as well as to provide guidance for the negotiations in the run-up to the WTO’s 13th ministerial conference (MC13) that will be held in Abu Dhabi in February 2024. The DG, Ms Okonjo-Iweala, apparently suggested on 3 October the agenda for the upcoming capital-based SOM, to be held in the member-driven and rules-based inter-governmental body on 23-24 October, said people familiar with the development. The agenda includes the controversial non-mandated issues, on which members have apparently expressed their views and sought discussions at the upcoming SOM (see SUNS #9868 dated 5 October 2023). At an informal Heads of Delegation (HoD) meeting on 10 October, the DG said that the SOM “will be structured with a view to ensuring full participation, inclusiveness, and transparency.” In a restricted document (Job/TNC/112) circulated on 3 October, the DG suggested the issues and the structure for the two-day SOM being held at the WTO. She said, “The priority topics that seem to be emerging for more focused deliberations in breakout sessions by Senior Officials are the following: a. Agriculture including Food Security – Many delegations underscored the need to have a holistic conversation among Senior Officials on agriculture including food security. They attached high importance to the role of their respective agriculture sectors in economic development, livelihoods and food security needs amongst others and have stressed that agriculture reform is a fundamental topic with a mandate that precedes other topics. Given that a clear pathway in progressing the agriculture negotiations has been elusive for a while, it was evident in my consultations that there should be a dedicated space for agriculture including food security during the SOM. In this regard, it was pointed out that the nature of the discussion should be geared towards seeking political guidance and as appropriate, resolving specific issues to enable breakthroughs in the near future. b. Development including LDC Graduation – With the recurring calls for discussing and delivering developmental outcomes, it was apparent in consultations for this area to have a dedicated space for discussion at the SOM. I heard from delegations that such discussions should focus on development beyond LDC Graduation. On LDC Graduation, the expectation is that Senior Officials would bless and celebrate outcomes or depending on where work is by the SOM resolve specific issues for a breakthrough and conclusion of this issue. Based on Members’ views, it seems that a broader discussion on Trade and Development could focus on political guidance to advance work under paragraph 2 of the MC12 Outcome Document, building on development discussions Members have had since MC12 in the General Council, CTD, CTD SS and other WTO Bodies. c. Second Wave of the Fisheries Subsidies Negotiations (Fish 2) – Given the nature of the ongoing technical discussions in the NGR, time could be provided for Senior Officials to reiterate political support and strong re-commitment to continue the current negotiations in the NGR with the objective of concluding the negotiations as soon as possible at the latest by MC13. d. Dispute Settlement Reform – Both in Geneva and in my visits to several capitals, Dispute Settlement Reform is the top priority of Members. With Ministers’ commitment at MC12 to “conduct discussions with the view to having a fully and well-functioning dispute settlement system accessible to all Members by 2024”, there is a high interest for Senior Officials to have a space at the SOM to reiterate political support in this regard and share their views. At the same time, I heard (i) calls for allowing technical discussions on this matter to continue in Geneva among Members and (ii) that the nature of the discussions at the SOM should be political support to facilitate the Membership in fulfilling the commitment made by Ministers at MC12. e. Subjects for Deliberation – From my consultations, it was clear that Senior Officials would need the space to discuss current global issues affecting the Membership. At the same time, I also heard Members note that we should not overload the agenda of Senior Officials. As such, providing space for Senior Officials to discuss two topics – “Trade and environmental sustainability” and “Trade and Industrial Policy” were the areas that were most frequently mentioned, and I would suggest that we plan these deliberations.” However, the DG’s reflections as spelled out on the five topics remain somewhat unclear. For example, the DG did not even mention two mandated issues – the permanent solution for public stockholding (PSH) programs for food security and the special safeguard mechanism (SSM). Her reflections, if anything, suggest “kicking the can down the road”, said people familiar with the discussions. At a time when the WTO appears unable to work on the mandated issues, it seems somewhat difficult to explain why deliberations are needed on the non-mandated issues at this juncture, said a person, who asked not to be identified. While the issue of “trade and environmental sustainability” is primarily being pushed by the European Union and the United States, the African Group has underscored the need to discuss “trade and industrial policy”. A retreat convened recently on trade and industrial policy apparently did not serve any purpose, said participants who took part in the retreat. In her report to members, the DG said, “let me be clear … The suggestion for topics (trade and environmental sustainability and trade and industrial policy) that I have made – based on what I heard from you – should not imply that the other areas that Members have mentioned are less important or of lesser priority or that they will not form part of the MC13 agenda.” “While many of you called for a focused SOM agenda and avoiding a Christmas tree approach, after listening to your views, I thought that it might also be useful to provide an opportunity for Senior Officials to engage in plenary for one and a half hours on Other Areas in view of MC13.” She said, “some of these, which are highlighted in this report, include WTO Reform in general, Conduct of Ministerial Conferences, E-Commerce Work Programme and Moratorium, MC12 Decision on the TRIPS Agreement, SPS, Incorporation of JSIs and Accessions.” The DG added, “Given the topics I have suggested based on Members’ views, I have put forward the structure annexed to this report, for your consideration. This structure builds on the views I have heard from Members in May and incorporates Members’ suggestions both from the July TNC and the 15 September consultations. a. Day 1: i. The first day of the SOM will start at 8am with an Opening Session and Scene Setting. Chairs and Facilitators will update Senior Officials on the ongoing processes in their respective areas. The floor will not be opened. ii. This will be followed by breakout sessions. * Given the nature of expected discussion – that is, political guidance and resolving specific issues as appropriate, the Agriculture including food security and Development including LDC Graduation breakout sessions will each be allotted two hours. * Given the ongoing technical discussions, the nature of expected discussion on DS Reform and Fish 2 will be to reiterate political support and strong re-commitment to continue the technical negotiations with the objective of concluding them as soon as possible. As such, only one hour has been dedicated to each of these breakout sessions. iii. To provide the opportunity for all Senior Officials to actively engage in these discussions, they will each be assigned to one of the three breakout groups. Following what I heard from Members, the groupings will be designed to reflect balance and representation based on region, views, and interests. The list will be circulated closer to the meeting. iv. There will be listening-in rooms within the WTO building so that Members, on a first-come, first-served basis, listen to the discussions of the breakout group of their choice. v. On Day 1, Senior Officials will have a two and a half-hour break for lunch and for self-organized bilateral or group meetings among Members and/or self-organized meetings with Chairs and Facilitators in the Geneva processes. vi. After the last breakout session, we will have a one-and-a-half-hour plenary for Senior Officials to engage and exchange views on Other Areas in view of MC13. Senior Officials will be invited (if they wish) to make comments or ask questions on any other areas. Some of these areas, which are highlighted in this report, include WTO Reform in general, Conduct of Ministerial Conferences, E-Commerce Work Programme and Moratorium, MC12 Decision on the TRIPS Agreement, SPS, Incorporation of JSIs and Accessions. vii. At the end of Day 1, I will host a reception and a Fish ratification ceremony in the Atrium. b. Day 2: i. The second day of the SOM will officially start at 8am with a two-hour plenary. During the plenary, facilitators will report on the discussions from the previous day’s breakouts. In addition, Senior Officials would have the opportunity to bless the Reform-by-Doing work and express views on any other matter. ii. There would be a 30-minute coffee break before deliberations on two subjects – Trade and Environmental Sustainability and Trade and Industrial Policy. Two-hours each would be devoted to this in two large breakout groups. iii. There would then be a one and half-hour break for bilaterals and meetings in other configurations – before having a closing and way forward session from 5pm. iv. As I earlier noted, a Chair’s Summary will also be provided containing all work done by Senior Officials for the past two days including any action taken and any political guidance or instruction provided. This would then be reflected in an outcome document that Senior Officials can take with them as they head back to capital.” +
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