. /.WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/AG/NG/W/79
28 November 2000
(00-5099)
Committee on Agriculture
Special SessionOriginal:  English
FOURTH SPECIAL SESSION OF THE COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE
15-17 NOVEMBER 2000
Statement by ASEAN
Special and Differential Treatment for Developing Countries in World Agricultural Trade
(G/AG/NG/W/55)
ASEAN is pleased to present its submission in G/AG/NG/W/55, which contains its views on
special and differential treatment in the context of the negotiations on agriculture.
ASEAN remains firmly committed to the continua tion of the reform process in international
trade in agriculture.  This is because ASEAN believ es developing countries have much to gain from a
fair and market-oriented agricultural trading system.  But we also believe that those gains can be
achieved only if agricultural trade liberalization is pursued to the extent that it serves developmentobjectives.  It must take into account the development realities and objectives of developing countries.
Developing countries accepted the obligations in the Uruguay Round in the expectation that
some of their concerns would be addressed through special and differential treatment.  The continued
imbalance and wide gap between the agriculture sector in industrialised and developing countries are
strong cases for special and differential treatment.  The stark difference is highlighted by the fact that
while agriculture remains a marginal economic activity for most developed countries, it accounts forfar larger proportions of employment and national incomes for many developing countries.
Agriculture is often the only form of subsistence livelihood in these countries.
S&D is essential if developing countries are expected to keep in stride with their developed
trading partners.
In its submission, ASEAN suggests a comprehensive approach to S&D.  The paper covers the
three pillars of domestic support, exports subsidies and market access and identifies some key
elements that should be part of specia l and differential treatment provision.
ASEAN is of the view that for S&D to be meaningful, it should extend beyond longer
timeframes for implementation and lesser reduction commitments.  S&D must include adequate
differential obligations for developing countries and the necessary substantive exemptions from
obligations for them related to their development objectives.  S&D should be related to objective
development criteria.  Moreover, it is essential that S&D should also refer to the general obligationsthat Members commit themselves into, particularly developed country Members, so as to ensure that
their policies will allow real market access to developing countries.
In brief, the following are ASEAN’s views on  what these negotiations should be able to
achieve to address the needs of developing countries.G/AG/NG/W/79
Page 2
On export subsidies:
ASEAN believes the negotiation should result to the immediate and complete elimination of
all forms of export subsidies, while maintaining the current flexibility for developing countries in the
Article 9.4.
On domestic support:
In its paper, ASEAN prescribes what the negotiations should achieve in order to rectify the
present imbalance in this pillar and identifies the elements that would continue to be relevant in
allowing developing countries to pursue their development needs, including their legitimate non-trade
concerns.
On market access:
Despite the process achieved in bringing down border protection during the UR, the overall
tariff, tariff peaks and tariff escalation continue to be applied to a wide range of agricultural products.ASEAN is especially concerned that the highest frequencies of tariff levels as well as non-tariff
barriers including SPS measures which continue to proliferate cover a wide range of products of
interest to developing countries.  Thus the negotiations must result in the elimination of tariff
disparities among countries and among commodities.  The negotiations must ensure real market
access for developing countries, by among others, applying tariff reductions and eliminating tariffpeaks and tariff escalation as well as elimination of non-tariff barriers.
Finally, ASEAN believes that the GSP principl es embodied in the Enabling Clause should be
elaborated and maintained in the framework of the Agreement so as to ensure that this principle is
enhanced and not eroded with the process of liberalization.
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