Bridges Weekly Trade News Digest • Volume 8 • Number 33 • 6th October 2004
WTO Agriculture Session Addresses Next Steps From July Framework
Following on from an informal meeting on 24 September (BRIDGES Weekly, 29 September 2004), WTO Members convened on 6 October for an informal special (negotiating) session of the Committee on Agriculture. Discussions, chaired by Ambassador Tim Groser of New Zealand, focused mainly on how to carry the momentum forward from the recent July framework agreement (see BRIDGES Weekly, 3 August 2004). The July agreement, which gave a much-needed boost to the Doha Round, established a framework for conducting future substantive trade negotiations, including in agriculture. The informal talks are being held in advance of a formal special session of the Committee on Agriculture on 8 October.
A number of Members said the talks should aim to complete full "modalities" in agriculture by the next WTO Ministerial Conference in Hong Kong in December 2006, though they were cautious not to make this a firm deadline.
Many Members pointed out that further technical work needed to be conducted in a range of areas. The EC, for instance, pushed for geographical indications and non-trade concerns, while Colombia and Ecuador said they wanted tropical products and crops grown as replacements for illicit narcotics on the agenda. Jamaica advocated for the preservation of preferences. However, Costa Rica, Colombia and Ecuador voiced concerns about preferences, with Costa Rica saying that although it had benefited from preferential market access, the gains it had acquired were far less than the costs of the obstacles to market access that preferences presented. Ecuador said that it had not been included in consultations on preferences because it is not a member of any group. The G-20 group of developing countries emphasised that the real problem that needed to be addressed was trade-distorting domestic support in developed countries.
Indonesia, together with many members of the G-33 (Friends of Special Products) group emphasised the importance of special products and a special safeguard mechanism for developing countries. They said they should not have to reduce tariffs or expand quotas on special products, and that these and the special safeguard mechanism should be flexible and "user-friendly" enough to allow them the freedom to meet their development objectives.
Speaking for the African Group, Nigeria urged that a sub-committee on cotton referred to in the July framework be set up quickly, and said it would submit proposals on this. Benin said the sub-committee should discuss both the development and trade aspects of the cotton issue.
On process, many delegations said that regardless of what was included in the agenda for negotiations, the list of topics should be announced in advance so that countries could prepare their positions. The EU suggested that in order to speed up work, some working groups could meet in between the negotiating sessions. Egypt was willing to consider this provided small delegations would not be over-stretched. However, the G-10 group of pro-multifunctionality industrialised countries opposed the disproportionate role accorded oto a small group of countries (understood to be a reference to the self-appointed role of the Five - Australia, Brazil, EU, India and US). Chair Groser said he would attempt to strike a balance between organising the talks flexibly and setting up a structure that allows delegations to prepare in advance for the topics to be discussed.
On 7 (and possibly 8) October, Members are scheduled to engage in informal technical negotiations on a number of areas, including: domestic support (green box); export competition (how to achieve parallelism through definitions for export credits, export credit guarantees or insurance programmes, trade-distorting practices of exporting state trading enterprises, and food aid practices as described in the framework); market access (ad valorem equivalents of specific duties; and a special safeguard mechanism for developing countries.
BRIDGES Weekly will report further on the meetings in next week’s edition.
ICTSD reporting.