Overview of trade facilitation work in 2003
In 2003, Members continued their work on trade facilitation under the Doha mandate. Discussions in the first half of the year mainly took place in the Goods Council, where delegations carried out the Work Program they had adopted for the time until the Fifth Ministerial Conference. Two formal meetings (12-13 March and 12-13 June) provided a forum to discuss the three issues Members had decided to take up as core agenda items: (i) GATT Articles V, VIII and X, (ii) trade facilitation needs and priorities of members, especially of developing and least-developed countries, and (iii) technical assistance and capacity building.
SEE
ALSO:
> Trade
facilitation work in 2003
> Trade facilitation work in 2002
> Trade
facilitation work in 2001
> Trade
facilitation in the preparatory work for the Doha Ministerial
Conference, (2001)
> Trade
facilitation work in 2000
> De-restricted
papers submitted until end of 2000
> Work
from mid-1998 until end of 1999
> Trade
Facilitation in the preparatory work for the Seattle Ministerial
Conference (1999)
In the course of those meetings, Members continued their previous discussions of proposals(1) by delegations on how to possibly improve and clarify GATT Articles V, VIII and X. They further outlined some of their trade facilitation needs and priorities and were briefed on various trade facilitation-related technical assistance and capacity building activities undertaken by donor Members, the WTO and other international organizations. Nine written contributions were submitted to the Council, of which 6 originated from Members (Australia G/C/W/466, Canada G/C/W/448, European Communities G/C/W/442 Rev.1, Japan G/C/W/465, New Zealand G/C/W/449, and the United States G/C/W/451), 2 came from observers (OECD , and WCO G/C/W/467) and 1 was prepared by the WTO Secretariat G/C/W/463. Two additional documents summarized the work of the Council (G/L/637 and G/L/665). (For a more detailed overview of the CTG's work on this issue, see its last report to the General Council: G/L/665).
Following the June meeting, trade facilitation work continued
under the auspices of the General Council, with a series of informal
consultations in June, July and August. Those consultations, which
were conducted by the Chairman of the CTG as a “friend” of the Chair
of the General Council, focused on how to approach the decision to be
taken at the Fifth Ministerial Conference in the area of trade
facilitation. A first draft Cancun Ministerial text was circulated by
the GC Chair at the end of July (JOB(03)/150), which was subsequently
revised (24 August,
JOB(03)/150/Rev.1,
and 13 September,
JOB(03)/150/Rev.2).
The final Cancun Ministerial statement noted that, while
“considerable progress” was made, “more work needs to be done in some
key areas to enable us to proceed towards the conclusion of the
negotiations in fulfilment of the commitments we took at Doha”.
Ministers instructed their officials “to continue working on
outstanding issues with a renewed sense of urgency and purpose and
taking fully into account all the views we have expressed in this
Conference”. They further undertook to maintain the convergence where
it had been reached, while “working for an acceptable overall
outcome”. Members reaffirmed all their Doha Declarations and Decisions
and recommitted themselves to working to implement them fully and
faithfully. Full text of the
Ministerial statement.
Notes:
1.
For an overview of all proposals by delegations in the discussion on
trade facilitation, see document “Review, clarification and improvement
of GATT Articles V, VIII and X — Proposals made by Delegations” (G/C/W/434).
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2. The OECD paper was not circulated as a formal CTG document.
Overview of written contributions provided to the CTG on Trade Facilitation in 2003
Symbol |
Member / Other Source |
Date |
Title and Topic |
EC |
10 March 2003 |
Information on Trade Related Assistance by the EC and its Member States |
|
Canada |
10 March 2003 |
Possible Linkages Between Trade Facilitation Principles, Measures, Potential Benefits and Trade-Related Technical Assistance and Capacity-Building |
|
New Zealand |
10 March 2003 |
Trade Facilitation: National Experience |
|
G/C/W/451 |
United States |
11 March 2003
|
Trade Facilitation: An Integrated and Comprehensive Approach to Special and Differential Treatment |
WTO Secretariat |
26 May 2003 |
Selective Bibliography of Literature on GATT Article V |
|
Japan |
6 June 2003 |
International Architecture on Trade Facilitation — The WTO and International Organizations and Framework |
|
Australia |
12 June 2003 |
Trade Facilitation in the WTO: Benefits of a Rules-Based System |
|
WCO |
2 July 2003 |
Capacity Building in Customs |
|
Council for Trade in Goods |
14 July 2003 |
Update to the 2002 Report of the Council for Trade in Goods |
|
Council for Trade in Goods |
4 December 2003 |
Report (2003) of the Council for Trade in Goods |