Members adopted the Abu Dhabi Ministerial Declaration, where they committed to preserve and strengthen the ability of the multilateral trading system, with the WTO at its core, to respond to current trade challenges.
Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and MC13 Chair, thanked members for their active engagement during the Conference. He noted that while not everything that delegations set out to accomplish could be delivered, the commitment shown will further strengthen the multilateral trading system.
On dispute settlement reform, members adopted a Ministerial Decision recognizing the progress made with the view to having a fully and well-functioning dispute settlement system accessible to all members by 2024.
Ministers adopted a Ministerial Decision that responds to a 23-year-old mandate to review special and differential treatment (S&DT) provisions for developing and least developed countries (LDCs) with a view to making them more precise, effective and operational.
On electronic commerce, ministers adopted a Ministerial Decision instructing the General Council to hold periodic reviews on the E-commerce Work Programme with a view to presenting recommendations for action to the Ministerial Conference. Members also agreed to maintain the current practice of not imposing customs duties on electronic transmissions until the 14th Session of the Ministerial Conference (MC14) or 31 March 2026, whichever is earlier. The moratorium and the Work Programme will expire on that date.
Ministers also adopted a Ministerial Decision to extend the moratorium on non-violation and situation complaints regarding the Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) until MC14.
"In the second wave of fisheries subsidies negotiations, you narrowed some outstanding gaps, but several more remain," said DG Okonjo-Iweala. "While I had hoped that we could finish these negotiations in Abu Dhabi, you have prepared the ground for its conclusion at the next Ministerial Conference, if not earlier. The livelihoods of 260 million people who depend directly or indirectly on marine fisheries are at stake."
On agriculture, despite the intense negotiations during MC13, members were not able to find convergence. Divergences remained on public stockholding (PSH) for food security purposes and in respect of timelines, expected outcomes and the scope of the flexibility to be provided to food imports by the most vulnerable countries from export restrictions.
MC13 also saw the entry into force of new disciplines on services domestic regulation, which is expected to lower trade costs by over USD 125 billion worldwide. Supported by 72 WTO members, this joint initiative is designed to facilitate services trade by streamlining and simplifying regulatory procedures.
Co-sponsors of three environmental initiatives at the WTO presented at the Conference the next steps they are taking to advance work on plastics pollution, environmental sustainability, and fossil fuel subsidy reform.
Find all MC13 documents here.
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here