5 September 1990

 

 

Subject: Committee on Government Procurement

Informal Working Group on Negotiations

 

PROCEDURES FOR FURTHER ARTICLE IX:6(B) NEGOTIATIONS

 

(A) BROADENING OF THE AGREEMENT TO FURTHER PROCUREMENT ENTITIES

1. Interested Parties are invited to table, by 24 September 1990 if possible, offers for the inclusion of further procurement entities in

Annex I to the Agreement. In addition to lists of procurement entities the offers should contain:

- where available, information on the value of procurement above SDR 130,000 during a recent period and the products procured, both on an indicative basis;

- any conditions on which the offer is based, including modifications to the text of the Agreement, or derogations required (e.g. by way of notes in Annex I) which would be required for coverage of regional and local government entities and entities other than central, regional and local governments whose procurement policies are substantially controlled by, dependent on, or influenced by, central, regional or local governments.

2. Interested Parties are also invited to submit requests to their trading partners for the inclusion of procurement entities in Annex I to the Agreement.

(B) POSSIBLE EXPANSION OF THE COVERAGE OF THE AGREEMENT TO INCLUDE SERVICE CONTRACTS

3. Interested Parties are invited to table offers for the inclusion of

service contracts into the Agreement by 24 September 1990, if possible.

 

 

 

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4. Such offers, which would be without prejudice to delegations' positions in the GNS Negotiations, should contain:

- where available, information on the value of typical service contracts awarded above SDR 130,000 by entities presently Code-covered, and entities offered for inclusion under (A) above, during a recent period, on an indicative basis;

- any conditions on which the offer is based, including modifications to the text of the Agreement, or derogations (e.g. by way of notes in Annex I) which would be required for the offer to be maintained.

5. Interested Parties are also invited to submit requests to their trading partners for the inclusion of service contracts in the Agreement.

(C) IMPROVEMENTS IN THE AGREEMENT

6. Apart from improvements proposed as conditions for offers referred to in paragraphs 1 and 4 above, interested Parties may submit additional proposals for other improvements in the text of the Agreement, not later than 24 September 1990.

 

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7. In the forthcoming period every effort should be made by Parties to provide one another, upon request, with information regarding procurement in their respective countries including indications as to the legal nature of entities, the legislative regulatory bases for their procurement, their procurement volumes, and main products and services procured, to the extent that such details are available.

8. In the process of the exchange of offers and requests between the Parties, a copy of each offer and request should be lodged with the GATT secretariat for confidential circulation to the other Parties.

9. The tabling of offers will be followed by intensive negotiations between the Parties. The negotiations will take place on the basis of mutual reciprocity having regard to the provisions of Article III relating to developing countries.

10. Stock-taking and assessment of offers, requests and proposed changes to the text of the Agreement, will take place at the meeting of the Informal Working Group on Negotiations on 1-4 October 1990. The Group will hold a further meeting in the week of 5 November 1990.

 

Technical Barriers to Trade Division

Let/1705