RESTRICTED
WORLD TRADE WT/BOP/R/23
19February 1997
ORGANIZATION(97-0655)
Committee onBalance-of-Payments Restrictions
NOTE ONTHE MEETING OF7FEBRUARY 1997
1. TheCommittee meton7February 1997under theChairmanship ofMr.Peter Witt(Germany)
andadopted theagenda setoutinWTO/AIR/515.
(1) Election ofChairman
2. Theoutgoing Chairman proposed thatMr.Peter Jenkins (United Kingdom) beelected tothe
Chairmanship. TheCommittee soagreed.
(2) Observer Status forInternational Intergovernmental Organizations
3. TheChairman informed theCommittee that,according totheguidelines adopted inSingapore
(WT/L/161, Annex 3),regular observer status could now begranted tothose international,
intergovernmental, organizations thatalready hadadhocobserver status intheCommittee. Thelist
ofobservers (WT/BOP/INF/3) comprised theACP Secretariat, EBRD, EFTA, OECD, UNCTAD
andtheWorld Bank. TheCommittee agreed togrant regular observer status tothese organizations
andthatfuture requests forobserver status would behandled according totherelevant guidelines.
(3) Membership intheCommittee
4. TheChairman reminded theCommittee that,according toparagraph 5oftheUnderstanding
onBalance-of-Payments Provisions oftheGATT 1994, membership intheCommittee was"open to
allMembers indicating theirwishtoserve onit".WTO Members wishing toserve ontheCommittee
wereinvited toaddress thisrequest inwriting totheDirector-General. Adocument updating thecurrent
listofCommittee members (WT/BOP/INF/2, 3July1996) would becirculated bytheendofthemonth.
Therepresentative ofHong Kong indicated hisGovernment 'swishtojointheCommittee.
(4) Programme of1997 Meetings
5. TheCommittee hadbefore itWT/BOP/W/15, 4February 1997, listing thetentative dates for
consultations. OneMember drew attention totheupcoming consultations withNigeria forwhich a
proper notification would berequired.
(5) Other Business
6. Under "Other Business", therepresentative ofPoland, withreference tothecommunication
submitted inJune1996 (WT/BOP/N/8), informed theCommittee thattheimport surcharge hadbeen
removed asof1January 1997. Headded thatthisinformation would bedulynotified inwriting to
theSecretariat.