  
PRESS RELEASE 
 
PRESS/354 
11 September 2003 
 
(03-4734) 
ACCESSIONS 
Ambition achieved as ministers se al Cambodia membership deal  
WTO ministers approved Cambodia’s membership agreement today (11 September 2003), putting 
the Southeast Asian country in line to become the WTO’s 147th member and the first least-
developed country to join the WTO through the full working party negotiation process.  
Cambodia still has to ratify the agreed terms and inform the WTO. Thirty days after that it will 
become a member. Cambodia applied to join the WTO in late 1994.  
“The swift conclusion of Cambodia’s membership negotiation shows that the new guidelines to 
allow least-developed countries to negotiate membership more easily are working,” said WTO Director-General Supachai Panitchpakdi. 
 
“It is also a signal that WTO member governments are serious in their commitment to improving developing countries’ and least-developed countries’ participation in the world trading system,” 
Dr Supachai said. 
 Cambodia’s Commerce Minister Cham Prasidh, said: “We managed to secure a package of 
commitments and concessions we feel was the most affordable and possible deal for Cambodia’s 
accession, bearing in mind Cambodia’s little political and economic weight and its current reliance on external assistance from the major donor countries who are also WTO members.” 
 
According to the latest WTO data, Cambodia’s merchandise exports were US$1.4 billion in 2002, and its imports were US$2.0 billon. 
What Cambodia has promised 
Cambodia’s terms of accession are spelt out in the membership agreement which consists of a report from the working party that negotiated the deal, and schedules or lists of commitments on 
import duties for goods and market access for service providers. 
 The working party took note of Cambodia’s commitments, for example: 
 
State ownership and privatization : Privatization was carried out during a first phase 
from 1991 to mid-1993, and a second phase starting in April 1995. Cambodia will ensure 
transparency, and keep WTO members informed and also provide periodic reports on other issues 
related to its economic reform as relevant to its obligations under the WTO.  PRESS/354 
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Pricing policies : From accession, in the application of price controls, Cambodia will apply price 
controls in a way that is consistent with the WTO, and take account of the interests of exporting 
WTO members. Cambodia has published a list of goods and services subject to state control.  
Trading rights (the right to import and export) : Responding to a comment that its 
restrictions on imported pharmaceuticals and veterinary medicines could discriminate in favour of domestic production of similar products, Cambodia said that no later than 1 June 2005, it would 
amend its legislation, and ensure that its laws and regulations are in full conformity with its WTO 
obligations.  
Other customs duties and charges : Cambodia will ensure these comply with WTO provisions 
from the date of accession and will be bound at zero.  
Tariff rate quotas, tariff exemptions : Cambodia confirmed that it would respect WTO 
disciplines on tariff rate quotas.  
Cambodia said that upon accession to the WTO, any tariff exemptions would only be implemented 
in conformity with the relevant WTO provisions.  
Fees and charges for services rendered : All fees and charges collected for services related 
to imports and exports will conform with the provis ions of WTO agreements, and from the date of 
accession, Cambodia will not apply, introduce or reintroduce any fees and charges for services 
rendered that were applied to imports ad valorem (i.e. as a percentage of the prices). 
 
Application of internal taxes : From the date of accession, Cambodia will apply its domestic 
taxes in strict compliance with Article 3 of GATT and in a non-discriminatory manner to imports 
regardless of country of origin. GATT Article 3 deals with “national treatment” (or non-discrimination between locals and foreigners) in taxation. 
 
Quantitative import restrictions, includ ing prohibitions, quotas and licensing 
systems : No later than 1 June 2005, Cambodia will el iminate quantitative restrictions on imports 
of fertilizers, pesticides and other agricultural inputs and establish a WTO-consistent method of 
registration and review of imported agricultural  chemicals. From 1 January 2007 Cambodia will 
rely on the provisions of the Technical Barriers to Trade Agreement to regulate domestic and 
international trade in these items. 
 From accession, Cambodia will not introduce, re-i ntroduce or apply other non-tariff measures such 
as licensing, quotas, prohibitions, bans and other restrictions having equivalent effect that could 
not be justified under the provisions of the WTO Agreements.  
Customs valuation : Cambodia will fully implement the Customs Valuation Agreement from 
1 January 2009.  
Rules of origin : Cambodia will comply fully with the provisions of the WTO Rules of Origin 
Agreement by 1 January 2005, parts by 1 January 2004.   
Other customs formalities : A dispute settlement mechanism within the Cambodian Customs 
Service to handle complaints about customs practices from traders and governments will be established before 1 January 2005. 
 
Preshipment inspection : From accession the Cambodian government will take full 
responsibility to ensure that the operations of the preshipment inspection companies retained by PRESS/354  
Page 3 of 4 
 
 
Cambodia meet the requirements of the WTO agreements. Cambodia’s preshipment inspection 
regime will be temporary and will cease when the Customs and Excise Department is able to carry 
out the functions currently performed by pr eshipment inspection service providers. 
 
Anti-dumping, countervailing duties, safeguard regimes : Cambodia will not apply any 
anti-dumping, countervailing or safeguard measure until it has notified and implemented appropriate laws and regulations conforming with the WTO agreements. After that, Cambodia will 
also only apply any anti-dumping duties, counter vailing duties and safeguard measures in full 
conformity with the relevant WTO provisions.  
Export restrictions : Cambodia restricts exports of rice, round logs, unprocessed timber, 
forestry products, antiques more than 100 years old, narcotic drugs and poisons, weapons, explosives, ammunition, and vehicles and machin ery for military purposes. From the date of 
accession, Cambodia will ensure that restrictions comply with WTO agreements. 
 
Export subsidies : Cambodia will comply with the Subsidies Agreement from accession. It will 
either eliminate the existing system of remission of import fees and waiver of duty for certain 
goods used by certain investors, or establish a functioning duty drawback system consistent with WTO provisions, through amendment of the Law on  Investment, as necessary, by the end of 2013. 
 
Industrial policy, including subsidies : These subsidies are to be notified from the date of 
accession. 
 
Standards and certification : Cambodia will gradually implement the Technical Barriers to 
Trade Agreement. Full implementation will start from 1 January 2007 without recourse to any 
further transitional period.  
 
Sanitary and phytosanitary measures : Cambodia will gradually implement the SPS 
Agreement, with full implementation by 1 Janua ry 2008. Cambodia will consult with WTO Members 
upon request if they deem that any measures app lied during the transition period affected their 
trade negatively. 
 
Trade-related investment measures (TRIMs) : Cambodia will not maintain any measures 
inconsistent with the TRIMs Agreement and will apply the TRIMs Agreement from the date of 
accession without recourse to any transitional period. 
 
State trading entities : Cambodia will apply its laws and regulations governing the trading 
activities of state-owned enterprises in full conf ormity with the provisions of the WTO Agreement. 
 
Free zones, special economic areas : Free zones or special economic areas, including special 
promotion zones established in accordance with the Law on Investment, will be fully subject to the 
coverage of WTO agreements and its commitments in its Protocol of Accession to the WTO Agreement. Cambodia will ensure enforcement of its WTO obligations in those zones or areas. In 
addition, from the date of accession goods produced in these zones or areas under tax and tariff 
provisions that exempt imports and imported inputs  from tariffs and certain taxes will be subject 
to normal customs formalities when entering the rest of Cambodia, including the application of 
tariffs and taxes. 
 
Transit : Cambodia will apply any laws, regulations an d practices governing transit operations and 
would act in full conformity with the provisions of the WTO agreements.  
 PRESS/354 
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Agricultural policies : Cambodia binds its agricultural export subsidies at zero, and will not 
maintain or apply any export subsidies for agricultural products. 
 
Textiles regime : Textiles and clothing import quotas that other members apply to imports from 
Cambodia will have growth rates applied as provid ed for in the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing 
shall be applied, from the date of Cambodia’s accession. These growth rates will end when the 
Agreement on Textiles and Clothing terminates (in 2005). 
 
Trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights (TRIPS) : Cambodia will apply the 
TRIPS Agreement no later than 1 January 2007, with some protection provided in the interim. 
 
Transparency : From the date of accession, all laws and regulations will be published according 
to WTO requirements, and on a website from 1 January 2004. 
 
Regional trade agreements : Cambodia’s only regional trade agreement is within ASEAN (the 
ASEAN Free Trade Area). In this, Cambodia will gradually eliminate tariffs on essentially all ASEAN 
products by 2015. Details will be notified to the WTO. 
  
The countries that negotiated with Cambodia 
Working party members : Australia, Canada, China, EU, India , Japan, Rep. Korea, Malaysia, 
New Zealand, Panama, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, United States, Venezuela  
Chairperson : A. Meloni (Italy) 
Cambodia’s Working Party was established on 21 December 1994. Cambodia submitted a 
Memorandum on its Foreign Trade Regime in June 1999. Replies to questions concerning the 
Memorandum were circulated in January 2001, the latest revisions and updates arriving in March 2003. 
 
The 14 November 2002 meeting was the working party’s third. It marked an advancement of the accession process because for the first time members focused on ideas for a draft Working Party 
Report and, thereby, concentrated on agreeing Cambodia’s terms of entry. 
 The 16 April 2003 meeting was the first to consider the report. The final revision was approved at 
the last working party meeting on 22 July 2003. 
Next 
After the Cancún Ministerial Conference has approv ed the package, Cambodia will then have to 
ratify the agreement and inform the WTO. It will become a full member 30 days later. 
  
For more information go to the WTO webiste: 
Cambodia’s accesion 
http://www.wto.org/english/thew to_e/acc_e/a1_cambodge_e.htm  
Cambodia’s main page: 
http://www.wto.org/english/thew to_e/countries_e/cambodia_e.htm  
  
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