Bridges Trade BioRes • Volume 4 • Number 21 • 19th November 2004

Costa Rica Proposes Action on Tropical Products at WTO

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On 17 November, Costa Rica, on behalf of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru and Venezuela, presented a proposal at the WTO on tropical products and products providing an alternative to illicit narcotic crops. During the week of 15-19 November WTO Members convened in informal and formal meetings to continue talks on agriculture, the centrepiece of the ongoing Doha Round of trade negotiations. Among the many issues on the table was the Costa Rican proposal, which notes that full liberalisation of markets for tropical products would provide significant development benefits to countries, including in terms of job creation. The submission therefore proposes bringing down tariffs on these products, removing tariff peaks, abolishing quotas on the products, addressing non-tariff barriers and providing most-favoured nation (MFN) treatment. A number of developing countries responded positively to the proposal, and Peru, one of the co-sponsors, pointed out that it sought to show how special and differential (S&D) treatment could be operationalised in the Doha Round in a way that is positive and offensive, rather than defensive in providing developing countries with longer time periods for implementing agreements.

For full coverage of the 15-19 “agriculture week,” see the upcoming issue of BRIDGES Weekly Trade News Digest on 24 November at http://www.ictsd.org/weekly/index.htm

ICTSD reporting.