RESTRICTED
WORLD TRADE G/RO/W/21
23October 1997
ORGANIZATION(97-4610)
Committee onRules ofOrigin
DRAFT
REPORT (1997) OFTHE COMMITTEE ONRULES OFORIGIN
TOTHE COUNCIL FOR TRADE INGOODS
1. TheAgreement onRules ofOrigin (theAgreement) entered intoforce on1January 1995.
2. ParticipationintheCommitteeonRulesofOrigin(theCommittee)isopentoallWTOMembers.
Observer governments intheGeneral Council oftheWTO haveobserver status intheCommittee.
Inaddition, representatives oftheACP, EFTA, IADB, IMF, ITCB, OECD, UNCTAD,WCO and
theWorld Bank attend meetings oftheCommittee inanobserver capacity.
3. TheCommittee heldfourmeetings on6February, 15May, 3October and21November 1997
(G/RO/M/9, 10,11and12). TheCommittee atitsmeeting inMayelected Ms.Lourdes A.Berrig
(Philippines) asChairperson andMr.Andreas A.Gaarder (Norway) asVice-Chairman for1997.
4. InconnectionwiththeHarmonizationWorkProgrammefortheharmonizationofnon-preferential
rules oforigin, assetoutinPartIVoftheAgreement, theCommittee:
- reviewed fiveReports fromtheTechnical Committee onRules ofOrigin (theTechnical
Committee) totheCommittee (G/RO/9, 11,15,18and19);
- welcomed, atthemeeting inMay, adoption oftheManagement Planfor1997 bythe
TechnicalCommitteewhichwasaimedatensuringthetimelycompletionofthetechnical
work;
- adopted, atthemeeting inOctober, theproduct-specific rules concerning Chapters
25-27, 41,43and91,ascontained indocument G/RO/W/22;
- atthemeeting inNovember, ...
5. Pursuant toArticle 5.1andparagraph 4ofAnnex IIoftheAgreement, allMembers arerequired
tonotify theirrulesoforigin, judicial decisions andadministrative rulings ofgeneral application relating
torules oforigin. Todate, [56]Members hadmade notifications relating tonon-preferential rules
oforigin and[58]Members hadmade notifications relating topreferential rules oforigin.
[tobefinalized inlightofdiscussions atthemeeting inNovember 1997]