WORLD TRADE G/L/148
21February 1997
ORGANIZATION(97-0726)
RULES OFPROCEDURE FOR MEETINGS OFTHE
COMMITTEE ONMARKET ACCESS
Approved bytheCouncil forTrade inGoods on1December 1995
TheRules ofProcedure formeetings oftheGeneral Council shallapply mutatis mutandis for
meetings oftheCommittee onMarket Access, except asprovided below:
(i) Rule1ofChapter I(Meetings) shallbemodified toreadasfollows:
TheCommittee onMarket Access shallmeetasnecessary, butnotlessthanonceayear.
(ii) Thefollowing footnote shallbeadded toRules 2,3and4:
Itisunderstood thatitisdesirable thatanotice convening ameeting, thelistofitems proposed
fortheagenda ofthatmeeting andthedocumentation forconsideration atthatmeeting beissued at
leastthree weeks inadvance ofthemeeting.
(iii) Rule4ofChapter II(Agenda) shallbemodified toreadasfollows:
Requests foritems tobeplaced ontheagenda ofaforthcoming meeting shallbecommunicated
totheSecretariat inwriting, together withtheaccompanying documentation tobeissued inconnection
withthatitem. Documentation forconsideration atameeting shallbecirculated notlaterthanten
calendar daysprior tothedatesetforthemeeting.
(iv) Rule5ofChapter II(Agenda) isnotapplicable.
(v) Rules 12,13and14ofChapter V(Officers) shallbemodified toreadasfollows:
Rule12
TheCommittee onMarket Access shallelectaChairperson*andmayelectaVice-Chairperson
fromamong therepresentatives ofMembers. Theelection shalltakeplace atthefirstmeeting ofthe
yearandshalltakeeffect attheendofthemeeting. TheChairperson andVice-Chairperson shallhold
office untiltheendofthefirstmeeting ofthefollowing year.
Rule13
IftheChairpersonisabsentfromanymeetingorpartthereof,theVice-Chairpersonshallperform
thefunctions oftheChairperson. IfnoVice-Chairperson waselected oriftheVice-Chairperson is
*TheCommittee onMarket Access shallapply therelevant guidelines contained inthe"Guidelines forAppointment ofOfficers
toWTO Bodies" (WT/L/31 dated 7February 1995).
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Page2
notpresent, theCommittee onMarket Access shallelectaninterim Chairperson forthatmeeting or
thatpartofthemeeting.
Rule14
IftheChairperson cannolonger perform thefunctions oftheoffice, theCommittee onMarket
Access shalldesignate theVice-Chairperson referred toinRule12or,ifnoVice-Chairperson was
elected, itshallelectaninterim Chairperson toperform those functions pending theelection ofanew
Chairperson.
(vi) Rule16ofChapter VI(Conduct ofBusiness) isnotapplicable.
(vii) Rule33ofChapter VII(Decision-Making) shallbemodified toreadasfollows:
Where adecision cannot bearrived atbyconsensus, thematter atissue shallbereferred to
theCouncil forTrade inGoods.
(viii) Rule34ofChapter VII(Decision-Making) isnotapplicable.