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Info Service on WTO and Trade Issues (Mar26/19) Geneva, 18 Mar (D. Ravi Kanth) — Amid growing turmoil over the lack of transparency and inclusiveness in the process for the World Trade Organization’s 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14), getting underway in Yaounde, Cameroon in just eight days, WTO Director-General Ms. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on 17 March issued a restricted document outlining the “revised modalities, schedule of MC14 sessions and Minister-Facilitators.” The move follows a letter from five countries -Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Guyana, India, and South Africa – that raised sharp concerns about the process-related challenges at MC14. Trade envoys, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the DG appears to have made modest changes while retaining several allegedly questionable, non-transparent features regarding the process to be adopted at MC14. Though the five countries wrote to the General Council (GC) chair – who directs the process during ministerial conferences – the DG sought to make changes in her role as chair of the Doha Trade Negotiations Committee (TNC), which operates under the GC chair, envoys said. In the restricted document (WT/MIN(26)/INF/9/Rev.1), a copy of which was seen by the SUNS, the DG thanked “all Members for participating in the consultations since last year on the Road to Yaounde document, including the Schedule of MC14 Sessions, and for the constructive feedback provided. I have reflected on Members’ inputs together with the General Council Chair and the WTO Reform Facilitator, as reflected below.” Key revisions include: Opening Session and Group Photo: The Opening Session will now end with a short celebration of the entry into force of the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies, followed by a group photo. Ministerial Sessions: Further information has been added to the schedule on how sessions on Fisheries Subsidies, Agriculture and Development will be structured. WTO Reform Breakout Sessions: These will encourage open, focused dialogue. Participation in each breakout room will be limited to a minister plus two delegates, with interpretation in all three WTO languages. Listening-in facilities will allow members to follow discussions in groups to which they are not assigned. “We were able to do the six listening-in rooms as Members had requested but access to the listening-in rooms will be limited to one delegate per Member per room given the constraints,” the document states. The audio feed in listening-in rooms will be in English only. “Given the constraints I previously communicated, this arrangement has not been easy, but we have gone to great lengths for purposes of transparency and inclusion to do the best we can to find a practical balance so that all Members can feel included and engaged in the discussions.” Breakout Groups: For each topic, there will be six breakout groups of approximately 20 to 30 ministers or heads of delegation. Ministers will rotate across topics. Each group will be guided by a Minister Facilitator for WTO Reform and will be balanced to represent different levels of development, regions and perspectives. Breaks are scheduled between sessions to allow ministers sufficient time to move to their next group. Breakout group assignments will be announced on the first day of the conference. WTO Reform Transparency Session: This session, starting at 19h30, will have two parts: * First, Minister Facilitators will present a short, consolidated report per topic: foundational issues and WTO principles, decision-making, past mandates, development, level playing field issues and any other matter raised by ministers related to post-MC14 reform work. Their reports will be under their own responsibility, non-binding and without prejudice. Each facilitator will also prepare a short, non-attributed written summary to be annexed, later compiled into a single “takeaways” document for circulation after the conference. “These summaries are neither negotiated nor consensus texts and carry no binding effect. They are intended solely as reference points.” * Second, ministers will finalize the draft Ministerial Statement and Work Plan, with the floor opened for any minister who wishes to intervene. Minister Facilitators: Their primary role is to foster genuine dialogue and candid exchanges to guide substantive work beyond MC14. Each will be supported by a dedicated Secretariat team for notetaking and logistics. “The responsibility for conducting and guiding the discussions – and for preparing any reports or related documents for Ministers’ consideration throughout the Ministerial Conference – rests with the Minister Facilitators working with Members. Secretariat staff will provide support under their guidance and instructions only.” Additional changes in response to feedback: * Start times: Sessions will begin at 10h00 on 26-27 March and 09h00 on 28-29 March, addressing concerns about the previous 07h00 start. * Opening Session: Now three hours instead of four, balancing concerns about length with the Host’s request. * Breaks: Lunch and other breaks are now clearly indicated, with meeting rooms available for bilateral or group coordination meetings. * Breakout topics streamlined: Ministerial Conversation on Foundational Issues; Breakout on Decision-Making and Past Mandates; Breakout on Development; Breakout on Level Playing Field Issues. * Groups scaled back to six, with six listening-in rooms. There will now be one Minister-Facilitator per group instead of two. * One WTO Reform transparency plenary scheduled for Friday, 27 March at 19h30. * Ministerial Sessions on specific areas will be held in plenary on Saturday, 28 March, with a session on development issues added and more time allocated for agriculture. * Closing Session: An Informal HODs meeting will precede the closing session. MC14 will finish no later than 13h00 on 29 March. Schedule Overview: * 24-25 March: Side events, bilateral and group meetings. * 26 March: Opening Session (10h00-13h00) with welcome remarks, formal transmittal of work, explanation of conduct of sessions, Fisheries Subsidies celebration and group photo. Afternoon breakout: Ministerial Conversation on Foundational Issues (15h00-18h00), followed by reception. * 27 March: WTO Reform breakout sessions on Decision-making/Past Mandates (10h00-12h00), Development (14h00-16h00), Level Playing Field Issues (16h30-18h30). Transparency Plenary (19h30). * 28 March: Ministerial Sessions: DS Reform update (09h00-09h30), Fisheries Subsidies (09h30-10h30), IFDA incorporation (10h30-12h00), E-Commerce (14h00-15h30), Agriculture (15h30-18h00), Development including LDC issues (18h00-20h00). * 29 March: Informal HODs (09h00-12h00), Formal Closing Session (12h00-13h00). Notes: * Pre-recorded general statements (max 5 minutes) will be available on the WTO website. * Breakout groups will be balanced by geography, development level, and diversity of perspectives. A separate information note on WTO Reform has been circulated as WT/MIN(26)/INF/15. * Ministerial Sessions will be chaired by Minister-Facilitators. * The Informal HODs on 29 March will hear reports from facilitators and consider potential outcomes. The formal closing session will gavel final decisions. Minister-Facilitators appointed: * WTO Reform: Espen Barth Eide (Norway), Todd McClay (New Zealand), Han-Koo Yeo (Republic of Korea), Chris Bryant (United Kingdom), Grace Fu (Singapore), Manuel Tovar Rivera (Costa Rica) * Fisheries Subsidies: Francisco Tiu-Laurel (Philippines) * IFDA: Dwight Fitzgerald Bramble (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines), Jumoke Oduwole (Nigeria) * E-Commerce: Kamina Johnson Smith (Jamaica) * Agriculture: Syed Tauqir Hussain Shah (Pakistan) * Development/LDC Issues: Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana (Cameroon), MC14 Chairperson. Structural Adjustments The revised MC14 modalities circulated on 17 March introduce some structural adjustments to the organisation of ministerial discussions, including a more defined breakout format and the consolidation of thematic areas under the WTO reform track. Ministers will meet in breakout groups organised around guiding questions and Minister-Facilitators will prepare summaries of the key takeaways from each group, which will then feed into a single consolidated document capturing the discussions across the different sessions. The revised approach clarifies the sequencing and structure of the breakout discussions and the preparation of the overall “takeaway” document, said trade envoys, who spoke to the SUNS. However, it largely maintains the facilitator-driven process for capturing and reporting the outcomes of ministerial exchanges, trade envoys said. The concerns raised by Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Guyana, India and South Africa in their letter to the General Council chair appear to have been only partially reflected, said one of the participants, who asked not to be quoted. While the revised MC14 modalities provide greater clarity on how the breakout discussions will be organised and how the resulting “takeaways” will be compiled, they do not explicitly create space for ministers to discuss specific reform proposals or the substance of draft outcome texts. The modalities continue to rely on facilitator summaries rather than establishing an annex or other mechanism to record members’ views verbatim, which was one of the central suggestions made in the letter. As a result, the concerns expressed by the five countries regarding transparency and the accurate reflection of members’ positions largely remain unresolved. +
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