WORLD TRADE GPA/19
29October 1997
ORGANIZATION(97-4747)
Committee onGovernment Procurement
REPORT (1997) OFTHE COMMITTEE ONGOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT
I. GENERAL
1. ThisReport issubmitted pursuant toArticle XXIV:7(a) oftheAgreement onGovernment
Procurement, which requires theCommittee toreview annually theimplementation andoperation of
theAgreement andtoinform annually theGeneral Council ofdevelopments during theperiods covered
bysuchreviews.
2. TheAgreement onGovernment Procurement entered intoforceon1January 1996. Theperiod
covered inthisReport isJanuary-September 1997, buttheReport alsoreflects, where necessary, the
work oftheCommittee in1996 (GPA/8 andAdd.1). TheCommittee onGovernment Procurement
heldthree meetings in1997: on24February, 21Mayand29September (GPA/M/5-7).
3. ThefollowingWTOMembersarePartiestotheAgreement:Canada;theEuropeanCommunities
andfifteen member States; Hong Kong, China; Israel; Japan; Korea; Liechtenstein; theKingdom
oftheNetherlands withrespect toAruba; Norway; Singapore; Switzerland andtheUnited States.
NineWTO Members haveobserver status: Argentina; Australia; Bulgaria; Chile; Colombia; Iceland;
Panama; Poland; andTurkey. Two non-WTO members, Chinese Taipei andLatvia, andtwo
intergovernmental organizations, IMFandtheOECD, alsohaveobserver status.
II. IMPLEMENTATION OFTHE AGREEMENT
Modifications ofAppendices totheAgreement
4. Article XXIV:6 oftheAgreement requires Parties tonotify rectifications ofapurely formal
nature orother modifications relating toAppendices Ithrough IV,which setoutthemutually agreed
coverage provided under theAgreement. Consequential rectifications ormodifications become effective
oncetheyareagreed topursuant totheprocedures under thisArticle.
5. Since the1996Report oftheCommittee, theEuropean Community andtheUnited States have
notified modifications toAppendix Iconsequent ontheenlargement oftheEuropean Communities
on1January 1995 toinclude Austria, Finland andSweden. These modifications entered intoforce
on16January 1997 (WT/Let/135). Following anagreement reached between Switzerland andthe
United States, theGeneral Notes toAppendices IofSwitzerland andoftheUnited States havebeen
modified (GPA/W/41 and42)toreflect thereciprocal extension ofthescope oftheAgreement. These
modifications entered intoforce on22June1997(WT/Let/146). Israel andtheEuropean Community
modified their respective Appendices Ireflecting anagreement reached between thetwoParties
(GPA/W/54andGPA/W/55).Themodificationsenteredintoforceon28September1997(WT/Let/184)
andon29September 1997(WT/Let/185). Pursuant totheaccession ofHong Kong totheAgreement
on19June1997, Norway, theEuropean Community andSwitzerland madeconsequential modifications
totheirrespective General Notes toAppendix Ireflecting theextension ofthescope oftheAgreement
toHong Kong (GPA/W/43, GPA/W/44 andGPA/W/47 andAdd.1). These modifications entered
intoforce on29June1997 (WT/Let/152), on9July1997 (WT/Let/162) andon23October 1997GPA/19
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(WT/Let/194).Duringthereviewperiod,Japan(GPA/W/27andGPA/W/31),Switzerland(GPA/W/45),
Norway (GPA/W/46) andHong Kong, China (GPA/W/56) made rectifications ofaformal nature
relating totheirAppendices. Inaccordance withtheprocedures ofArticle XXIV:6, theserectifications
werecertified respectively on5November 1996 inWT/Let/119, on4January 1997 inWT/Let/134,
on16August 1997 inWT/Let/164, on12July1997 inWT/Let/163, andon5October 1997 in
WT/Let/183). Proposals formodifications relating toAppendices 1-IVhavealsobeennotified by
theEuropean Community (GPA/W/51). Theprocedures areunder wayforputting thesemodifications
intoeffect inaccordance withArticle XXIV:6.
6. TheCommittee alsodiscussed thefollow-up toCanada 'soffer, contained initsAppendix I,
Annexes 2and3,tocover sub-central government entities andenterprises inalltenProvinces, onthe
basisofcommitments received fromtheProvinces, withafinallisting tobeprovided within 18months
aftertheconclusion oftheAgreement. Canada 'sstated position since theentry intoforce ofthe
Agreement, linking thetabling ofitsschedule atthesub-central leveltoachieving increased market
access insectors ofpriority interest toCanadian suppliers andimproving security ofmarket access
through circumscribing theuseofsmall business andother set-aside exceptions under theAgreement,
remained unchanged. Some other Parties expressed theirdisappointment overthesituation, stressed
theneedforCanada tohonour itscommitments andconsidered thattheproblems raised byCanada
withrespect toexpanded coverage oftheAgreement could onlybeaddressed onceCanada hadcome
forward withoffers pursuant toitscommitments initsAnnexes 2and3.Canada hasasserted that
itdidnotundertake obligations regarding Annexes 2and3,andhasreiterated thatitscoverage was
tobebased oncommitments received from theProvinces. Canada hasalsoasserted that,asno
commitments havebeenreceived, itisunder noobligation toputforward anofferunder theseAnnexes.
Loose-leaf System forAppendices
7. Asagreed atitsmeeting of4June1996, theCommittee willestablish aloose-leaf system with
legal effect tomaintain uptodate theAppendices totheAgreement. Atitsmeeting on
24February1997,theCommitteeagreedtotheproceduresforsubsequentmodificationstotheloose-leaf
system (GPA/W/35). Inaddition tobeing made available inhard-copy form, theloose-leaf system
andfuture neworreplacement pages willbecirculated toParties andotherWTO Members inelectronic
formthrough theWTO Document Dissemination Facility. Anup-to-date copyoftheloose-leaf system
willalsobeavailable tothegeneral public through thegovernment procurement siteontheWTO Home
PageontheInternet.
Government Procurement SiteontheWTO Home Page
8. AsiteonGovernment Procurement wasestablished attheWTO Home PageontheInternet
inorder toprovide information tothepublic atlarge ondevelopments relating totheAgreement on
Government Procurement. Thesection ofthesiteontheAgreement onGovernment Procurement
includes anoverview, thetextoftheAgreement, alistofMembers andobservers, atableofthresholds
ofindividual Parties, information onthework oftheCommittee (Decisions oftheCommittee, Annual
Report totheGeneral Council) andinformation ondispute settlement. Where appropriate, linkage
isprovided toWTO documents on-line. Anup-to-date copyoftheloose-leaf system ofAppendices
willalsobeaccessible onthissite. Other sections onthissiterelate totheactivities oftheWorking
Group onTransparency inGovernment Procurement andoftheWorking Party onGATS Rules. Links
arealso provided toother sites ongovernment procurement. The site address is
http://www.wto.org/wto/govt/govt.htm.GPA/19
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Accessions
9. Pursuant totheCommittee 'sDecision ontheAccession ofHong Kong of5December 1996
(GPA/9), Hong Kong deposited itsinstrument ofaccession on20May1997. TheAgreement entered
intoforce forHong Kong on19June1997 (GPA/14 andWT/Let/141). Asforeseen inparagraph 3
oftheDecision, Hong Kong willdelay theapplication ofparagraphs 2-8ofArticle XXoftheAgreement
onchallenge procedures foraperiod ofnomorethanoneyearaftertheentryintoforceoftheAgreement
forHong Kong. Before itsaccession totheAgreement, Hong Kong forwarded acommunication to
theCommittee concerning acommitment withrespect toprocurement bytwoelectrical utility companies
which werenotsubject togovernment control inHong Kong (GPA/11). Asindicated inparagraph 5
above, theEuropean Community, Norway andSwitzerland notified modifications totheGeneral Notes
totheirrespective Appendices Itoreflect theextension oftheAgreement asregards theaward of
contracts intheelectricity sector withrespect tothesuppliers andservice providers inHong Kong
(GPA/W/44, GPA/W/43 andGPA/W/47 andAdd.1).
10. Pursuant totheCommittee 'sDecision ontheAccession ofLiechtenstein of24February 1996
(GPA/3), ofwhich theone-year validity period wasextended foraperiod ofsixmonths, i.e.until
27August 1997attherequest ofLiechtenstein (GPA/W/34 andGPA/M/5, paragraph 35),Liechtenstein
deposited itsinstrument ofaccession on19August 1997. TheAgreement entered intoforce for
Liechtenstein on18September 1997 (GPA/16 andWT/Let/166).
11. Pursuant totheCommittee 'sDecision ontheAccession ofSingapore of20September 1996,
inviting Singapore toaccede ontheterms attached tothatDecision (GPA/6), Singapore deposited its
instrument ofaccession on20September 1997. TheAgreement entered intoforce forSingapore on
20October 1997 (GPA/18 andWT/Let/179).
12. Chinese Taipei applied foraccession totheAgreement inJune1994 (GPA/IC/5). Atits
May1997meeting, theCommittee wasinformed oftheimprovements thatChinese Taipei hadmade
inthesecond revision ofitsofferofMarch 1997following bilateral consultations heldwithinterested
Parties (GPA/SPEC/1/Rev.1).
13. Inaccordance withacommitment undertaken byPanama intheReport oftheWorking Party
ontheAccession ofPanama totheWTO (WT/ACC/PAN/19, paragraphs 68and116andProtocol,
PartI,paragraph 2),Panama applied foraccession totheAgreement andtabled aninitial offerofits
entities on24June1997 (GPA/W/53 andGPA/SPEC/3).
Decisions onProcedural Matters
14. Inaccordance withtheDecision ontheProcedures fortheNotification ofNational Implementing
Legislation andtheChecklist ofIssues (GPA/1/Add.1), Parties agreed tonotify theirlegislation no
laterthan31December 1996. Asof1November 1997, fourdelegations -Canada, Korea, Norway
andSwitzerland -havenotified theirnational implementing legislation including theirresponses to
theChecklist ofissues (GPA/10, GPA/12/Rev.1, GPA/13 andGPA/15).
15. Inaccordance withtheDecision onModalities forNotifying Threshold Figures inNational
Currencies (GPA/1, Annex 3),allParties havenotified thresholds intheirrespective national currencies
fortheperiods 1996-97 (GPA/W/12 andAddenda 1-8).
16. InaccordancewithitsDecisiononProceduresfortheCirculationandDerestrictionofDocuments
(GPA/1/Add 2),theCommittee agreed toderestrict thedocuments listed indocument GPA/16 on
20May1997.GPA/19
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Statistical Reporting
17. Article XIX:5 requires Parties tocollect andprovide onanannual basis statistics ontheir
procurements covered bytheAgreement. NoParties haveprovided statistics ontheirprocurements
covered bytheAgreement in1996.
Other Matters Raised byParties
18. AtitsFebruary andMay1997 meetings, theCommittee tooknoteofstatements concerning
thelegislation enacted bytheStateofMassachusetts regulating Statecontracts withcompanies doing
businesswithorinMyanmar(GPA/M/5,paragraphs47-52andGPA/M/6,paragraphs19-21).Arequest
forinformation byJapan, pursuant toparagraphs 1and3ofArticle XIXoftheAgreement anddated
10March 1997 (GPA/W/39) wasresponded tobytheUnited States on8August 1997(GPA/W/52).
Arequest forconsultations bytheEuropean Communities wascommunicated on20June1997pursuant
toArticle 4.4oftheDSU (WT/DS88/1-GPA/D2/1). Inacommunication dated 27June1997, Japan
requested tojointhose consultations under Article 4.11oftheDSU (WT/DS88/2). Inasubsequent
communicationdated18July1997,Japanalsorequestedconsultationsregardingthismatter(WT/DS95/1-
GPA/D3/1). Inacommunication dated 23July1997, theEuropean Communities requested tojoin
those consultations under Article 4.11oftheDSU (WT/DS95/2).
19. AtitsFebruary andMay1997 meetings, theCommittee tooknoteofstatements concerning
aprocurementtenderpublishedbytheMinistryofTransportofJapantopurchaseMTSATSatellite-based
Augmentation System (MSAS) (GPA/M/5, paragraphs 53-55 andGPA/M/6, paragraph 22).Arequest
forconsultations bytheEuropean Communities wascommunicated on26March 1997 pursuant to
Article 4.4oftheDSU (WT/DS73/1-GPA/D1/1). TheUnited States request of9April 1997 tojoin
theconsultations (WT/DS73/2) pursuant toArticle 4.4oftheDSU wasaccepted byJapan on
14April1997(WT/DS73/3).Inacommunicationdated31July1997,theEuropeanCommunitynotified
thatithadfound amutually agreed solution withJapan within themeaning ofArticle 3.6oftheDSU
(WT/DS73/4/Rev.1 andGPA/D1/2/Rev.1). Pursuant toArticle 3.6oftheDSU, theUnited States
hasrequested information regarding themutually agreed solution reached between thetwoParties.
20. AtitsMay 1997 meeting, theCommittee tooknoteofastatement concerning arecent
supercomputer procurement bytheUnited States (GPA/M/6, paragraphs 23-26).
III. MODALITIES FOR THE REVIEW OFTHE AGREEMENT
21. Article XXIV:7(b) and(c)oftheAgreement callsontheParties, notlaterthantheendofthe
third yearfrom thedateofitsentry intoforce, toundertake further negotiations, withaview to
improving theAgreement andachieving thegreatest possible extension ofitscoverage among allParties
andeliminating anyremaining discriminatory measures andpractices. Asstated inits1996 Report
totheGeneral Council, theCommittee agreed toundertake anearly review, starting in1997 withan
examination ofmodalities. Thereview will,inparticular, cover thefollowing elements: simplification
andimprovement oftheAgreement, including, where appropriate, adaptation toadvances inthearea
ofinformation technology; expansion ofthecoverage oftheAgreement; andelimination of
discriminatorymeasuresandpracticeswhichdistortopenprocurement(GPA/8andAdd.1).Anobjective
ofthereview istheexpansion ofthemembership oftheAgreement bymaking itmore accessible to
non-Parties. Inthisconnection, acommunication wassentbytheChairman oftheCommittee tothe
WTO Members, drawing theirattention, aswellastheattention ofgovernments which areintheprocess
ofacceding totheWTO, tothereview andinviting them toparticipate asobservers inthemeetings
oftheCommittee (WT/L/206). Thework wasinitiated inFebruary, MayandSeptember 1997 in
informal consultations andonthebasisofproposals byvarious Parties. Inthenextsuchconsultations,
tobeheldinNovember 1997, theCommittee willhave focused discussions on:issues ofnon-GPA/19
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discriminationinconnectionwithinformationtechnology;improvementstothestructureandpresentation
oftheAgreement; anddiscriminatory provisions inAppendices onthebasisofwritten proposals from
Parties. Thestatus ofthediscussion oftheelements ofthereview iscontained inaninformal Checklist
ofissues which isregularly updated.