Bridges Weekly Trade News Digest • Volume 6 • Number 3 • 29th January 2002

WTO Development Committees Convene; Technical Assistance On The Table

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CTD to revamp technical assistance (TA) plan

At its 22 January meeting, the Committee on Trade and Development’s (CTD) discussions centred mainly on a draft Coordinated Secretariat Annual Technical Assistance Plan (ATAP) for 2002 (WT/COMTD/W/95, dated 3 January). The ATAP is an annual note from the Secretariat outlining its intended Technical Assistance aims for the year. In light of the pervasive presence of technical assistance commitments in the various Doha texts (see BRIDGES http://www.ictsd.org/weekly/01-12- 20/story1.htm), many Members are keen to see its final structure.

The Plan for 2002 sees itself as one out of four levels of action being taken on TA by the WTO, alongside the Integrated Framework (inter- agency plan to assist least-developed countries on trade-related matters); coordinated delivery with the OECD; and other inter-agency collaborations (especially on issues requiring such coordination - such as the ‘Singapore Issues’ of Investment, Competition, Government Procurement, and Trade Facilitation). Sources say that the theme that seems to prevail in TA discussions is the WTO’s push to share the responsibilities of the Doha TA commitments across a wide spectrum of organisations.

While the Plan states its focus as integrating the demands of the Doha Ministerial Declaration, and specified that it is a ‘demand-driven’ document, the CTD agreed to perform further editing. One delegate from a developed country indicated that this move was being taken so as to "better accommodate all the elements of the Doha Declaration" and because of concerns that it was in fact not demand-driven, but rather what the Secretariat wanted to do. The delegate noted the need to "blend an operational approach with a strategic plan."

One key item that has reportedly raised concerns amongst the ‘Quad’ group of Canada, the EC, Japan and the US is how to deal with ad-hoc requests for TA. Reports indicate that the Quad is seeking a better balancing act of flexibilities and limitations. However, one source noted of these developments that "developed country Members, and in particular the Quad, were trying to dictate and limit the scope for developing countries to design a TA plan that was best suited to their needs, as opposed to the needs of the Quad." As evidence of this, they pointed to the heavy focus on TA for the Singapore Issues –of which many developing countries are not demandeurs — which has an entire annex unto itself.

Another draft of the ATAP is expected in the next few weeks.

A final item of discussion was the adoption of the Future Activities of the WTO Training Institute (WT/COMTD/W/89/REV.1).

The 38th session of the CTD is to be held on 16 February 2002, at which new Chairs for both the CTD and the LDC Sub-Committee are scheduled to be elected.

LDCs put off adoption of work programme

The first meeting of the Sub-Committee on Least Developed Countries (LDCs) of 2002 came to a quick halt on 25 January, as no consensus prevailed on the adoption of the proposed Work Programme for 2002 (WT/COMTD/LDC/W/23; see BRIDGES Weekly 16 October 2001). The current proposal includes, inter alia, seminars on Trade Policy Reviews and Technical Assistance, Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs), trade policy courses, and a joint seminar on the Integrated Framework - in addition to 2 more official Sessions of the LDC Sub- Committee.

One observer noted that Sub-Committee Chairperson Simon Fuller moved to postpone the adoption, such that further consultations could be taken in hopes of attaining consensus. In light of the need for the Chair to report this work programme to the first General Council meeting of the year on 13 February, the Sub-Committee is expected to reconvene sometime next week.

ICTSD Internal Files.