RESTRICTED
WORLD TRADE WT/COMTD/W/33
31October 1997
ORGANIZATION(97-4794)
Committee onTrade andDevelopment
Eighteenth Session
17November 1997
IMPLEMENTATION OFURUGUAY ROUND PROVISIONS
INFAVOUR OFDEVELOPING COUNTRY MEMBERS
Note bytheSecretariat
ThisnotecompilesinformationontheimplementationoftheUruguayRoundresultsduring1997
provided bytheSecretaries ofthedifferent WTO Bodies.1Theinformation provided below doesnot
cover allthelegalinstruments resulting fromtheUruguay Round fortworeasons: notallinstruments
contain provisions iffavour ofdeveloping country Members and,second, theinformation received
todatedoesnotcover allrelevant WTO Bodies.2Also, onlythose provisions which areaction-oriented
andaretherefore relevant forthereview havebeenincluded. Provisions contained inthePreamble
ofthevarious agreements aswellasthose intheDecision onMeasures inFavour ofLeast-Developing
Countries (LDCs) havenotbeenincluded, astheydonotprovide foraction perse,butrather describe
thebackground against which action istobetaken.3
Inthefollowing, theleft-hand column summarizes theaction-oriented provisions infavour
ofLDCs. Theright-hand column indicates therelevant information -thatis,theextent towhich the
provision hasbeenimplemented. General observations appear asthefirstentryintheright-hand column
(therefore thereisnocorresponding textintheleft-hand column). Inturn,ifnocomments werereceived
withrespect tospecific provisions, thentheright-hand column isblank. Finally, provisions relating
toLDCs havebeengrouped attheendofthecommentaries oneachoftheagreements.
1Document WT/COMTD/W/16 anditstwoaddenda contain information relating to1996.
2Replies received atalater stage willbeincluded inanAddendum tothisdocument.
3Oneexception, however, istheAgreement onAgriculture. Foracomprehensive description ofallspecial
provisions relating todeveloping countries seeADescription oftheProvisions Relating toDeveloping Countries
intheUruguay Round Agreements, Legal Instruments and Ministerial Decisions ,COM.TD/W/510,
2November 1994.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page2
Provision Implementation
Understanding onBalance-of-Payments Provisions
During 1997, eight Members, including five
developing countries, have heldconsultations inthe
Committee. Onedeveloping country (Turkey)
eliminated BOP measures on1January 1997.
Assisting inpreparing documentation forthe
consultations (Para. 12).
ForLDCs only
Simplified procedures forconsultations (Para. 8).Bangladesh heldconsultations under simplified
procedures. Itwasdetermined thatfull
consultations would bedesirable andBangladesh
wasinvited toconsider holding such consultations
intheautumn of1998 or,inanycase, before
May 1999.
Agreement onAgriculture
Developing countries aretomake notifications on
domestic support onlyevery twoyears; LDCs are
tonotify annually buttheCommittee on
Agriculture may, upon request, setaside parts of
thenotification requirements.
Much technical assistance work withrespect tothe
Agreement hastaken place. TheSecretariat has
provided technical assistance inthree main ways:
(i)through contacts withdelegations andcapital-
based representatives inGeneva (including in
seminar format); (ii)through direct contacts with
capital-based officials viatelephone andfax,etc.;
and(iii)through missions tocapitals bystafffrom
theDivision. Thefirsttwocategories, virtually a
daily business, cover thebroadest range of
Members andissues andrelate directly toalarge
variety ofspecific requests from Members, while
themissions have frequently focused onimproving
thegeneral understanding oftherules and
commitments affecting trade inagricultural
products andallow theSecretariat toalsoreach
some developing countries andLDCs which are
notrepresented inGeneva.
Inimplementing their commitments, developed
country Members aretotakeintoaccount the
needs oftheLDCs (Preamble).Schedules ofdeveloped country Members show
commitments ofgreater-than-average reductions in
tariffs onproducts ofinterest toLDCs (e.g.
average reduction intropical agricultural products
tariffs of43%) andoften their accelerated
implementation.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page3
Provision Implementation
Exclusion ofsome domestic support policies from
thereduction commitments (Art. 6:2).Alldeveloping countries tookaccount ofthe
provision intheestablishment oftheir Schedules.
Ofthe37domestic support notifications received
from developing countries relating tothe1995 and
1996 implementation years, 27notifications show
recourse totheprovision.
Greater deminimis allowance ondomestic support
(Art. 6:4).Alldeveloping countries tookaccount ofthe
provision intheestablishment oftheir Schedules.
Ofthe37domestic support notifications received
from developing countries relating tothe1995 and
1996 implementation years, 12notifications show
recourse totheprovision.
Lower export subsidy reduction commitments
(Art. 9:2(b)(iv)).
Exclusion ofsome export subsidies from the
reduction commitments (Art. 9:4).Alldeveloping countries tookaccount ofthe
provision intheestablishment oftheir Schedules.
Ofthe51export subsidy notifications received
from developing countries relating tothe1995 and
1996 implementation years, 9notifications show
recourse totheprovision.
Thedisciplines onexport prohibition and
restriction onlyapply todeveloping countries
which arenet-exporters oftheconcerned foodstuff
(Art. 12:2).Nodeveloping countries hasnotified the
introduction ofsuch ameasure.
Special anddifferential (S&D) treatment inrespect
ofcommitments shall beapplied inlinewiththe
Agreement andtheSchedules (Art. 15).TheSchedules ofdeveloping countries andLDCs
reflect theflexibility onceiling bindings, longer
implementation period andlower reduction
commitments intariffs, domestic support and
export subsidies.
Actions forimplementing, andmonitoring ofthe
implementation oftheDecision onNet-Food
Importing Developing Countries (Art. 16).Seepages 19and20ofthisdocument.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page4
Provision Implementation
Consideration ofS&D treatment inthenegotiations
onthecontinuation ofthereform process in
agricultural trade (Art. 20(c)).Following theSingapore Ministerial Conference
(SMC), aprocess ofanalysis andinformation
exchange hasbeen established asprovided forin
paragraph 12ofG/L/131 andasagreed by
Ministers.4Theprocess isbeing conducted inthe
form ofopen-ended informal meetings ofthe
Committee onAgriculture, usually scheduled back-
to-back withtheformal meetings soastominimize
travel timeandcosts forcapital-based
representatives. Ithasinvolved alldeveloping
countries andmany have participated actively in
discussions. InSeptember 1997, three developing
countries (together) have introduced aninformal
paper intotheprocess providing fordetailed
discussions onissues ofinterest todeveloping
countries.
More flexible criteria andconditions toexempt
some domestic support policies from thereduction
commitments (Annex 2,paras. 3-4).Alldeveloping countries tookaccount ofthe
provision intheestablishment oftheSchedules.
Several notifications ofdomestic support measures
reflect theuseoftheprovision.
Developing countries have more flexible criteria
fordeferring tariffication forcertain products, and
therequired market opening insuch cases is
substantially lower (Annex 5,Section B).Two Schedules from developing countries reflect
recourse tothisprovision.
ForLDCs only
Norequirement toundertake reduction
commitments (Art. 15:2).Used byallLDCs intheestablishment of
Schedules.
Agreement onSanitary andPhytosanitary Measures (SPS)
AMember shall accept other Members 'SPS
measures asequivalent iftheexporting Member
demonstrates thatitsmeasures achieve the
importing Member 'sappropriate level ofSPS
protection (Art. 4:1).Several developing countries have reported tothe
SPSCommittee thattheyhave entered into
consultations withother Members andachieved
bilateral recognition oftheequivalence ofspecific
SPSmeasures. Explanation oftheequivalency
provision isfeatured inthetechnical assistance
provided bytheSecretariat.
4WT/MIN(96)/DEC, paragraph 19.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page5
Provision Implementation
Recognition oftheconcepts ofpest- ordisease-free
areas andlowpestordisease prevalence
(Art. 6:1-3).With theaimofhaving their territories (orparts
thereof) recognized aspest- ordisease-free areas
orareas oflowpestordisease prevalence, a
number ofdeveloping countries initiated
negotiations andriskassessment procedures with
importing Members. Some ofthese negotiations
have been successfully concluded andtrade has
therefore been facilitated between theMembers
concerned. Therelevant standard-setting bodies
have developed guidelines fortherecognition of
pest- ordisease-free areas.
Facilitate theprovisions ofassistance tohelp
developing countries incomplying withtrading
partners 'requirements (Art. 9:1).
Providing assistance where substantial investments
arerequired forcomplying withtrading partners '
requirements (Art. 9:2).Considerable technical assistance hasbeen
provided bytheSecretariat, bothatandfrom
headquarters andintheform ofmissions to
capitals. TheSecretariat hasorganized various
regional seminars incooperation withother
international organizations. TheSecretariat has
alsosubstantially contributed toanumber of
seminars organized byMembers orbyother
international organizations.
Ateach meeting oftheSPSCommittee, Members
areinvited toidentify specific needs fortechnical
assistance, orassistance which theycanprovide.
TheSecretariat reports onitsrecent andscheduled
technical assistance, andtheobserver international
organizations provide detailed information oftheir
programmes. TheFAO hasnumerous
programmes focusing onmeeting multilateral trade
requirements, inparticular regarding food safety
andCodex standards. Intheareas ofanimal and
plant health, therelevant standard-setting
organizations have alsoengaged insuch technical
assistance activities, though onamore limited
scale.
Consideration ofspecial needs inthepreparation
andapplication ofSPSmeasures (Art. 10:1).
Longer time-frames forcompliance withnewSPS
measures (Art. 10:2).
Specified, time-limited exceptions inwhole orin
partfrom obligations under thisAgreement maybe
granted upon request (Art. 10:3).While theimplementation ofthetransparency
provisions hasbeen identified asaserious problem
formany developing countries, nodeveloping
countries hasasyetrequested anyexceptions from
theobligations oftheAgreement. TheSecretariat
provides detailed information regarding the
transparency provisions aspartofitstechnical
assistance, including ontheproper completion of
notification formats.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page6
Provision Implementation
Encourage andfacilitate developing countries '
active participation ininternational organizations
related toSPSregulations (Art10:4).Efforts have been made toschedule SPS
Committee meetings back-to-back withmeetings of
therelevant international organizations, tofacilitate
theparticipation ofdeveloping countries inboth.
TheFAO (both Codex andIPPC) andtheOIE
regularly holdmeetings indeveloping countries.
Furthermore, FAO hassponsored theparticipation
ofdeveloping countries inspecial workshops which
areheldinconjunction withCodex meetings.
Delayed implementation forsome obligations for
LDCs (5years) andfordeveloping countries (2
years) (Art. 14).Although thetransition period fordeveloping
countries elapsed attheendof1996, nospecific
requests forS&D treatment have been made.
Infrastructure shortages withregard toSPS
services aswellasdeficient functioning ofnational
regulatory bodies areamong possible problem-
causing areas.
Allow areasonable interval between thepublication
andentry intoforce ofaSPSregulation (Annex B,
para. 2).
TheSecretariat istodraw theattention of
developing countries tonotifications relating to
products ofparticular interest tothem (Annex B,
para. 9).TheSecretariat hasdone soonseveral occasions
Agreement onTextiles andClothing
More favourable growth factor forsmall exporters,
newentrants andpossibly LDCs (Art. 1:2,2:18).
Some small exporters move ahead onestage inthe
growth process (Art. 2:18).Under Article 2:18, theannual quota growth rates
inthequota carried overfrom theformer MFA
were advanced byonestage forallexporters
falling within thecriteria setoutinthatArticle.
Thiscovered 12developing countries (ofwhich 2
LDCs) inCanada, 2developing countries inthe
ECand18developing countries (ofwhich 1LDC)
intheUS.
Consideration ofparticular interests ofcotton-
producing exporting Members (Art.1:4).Nospecific measure bearing reference tothis
provision hasbeen notified, although some
Members have provided notifications with
comments ontheir approach tothisprovision.
AMember mayautonomously eliminate any
restrictions5(Art. 2:15).Norway eliminated anumber ofrestrictions as
from 1.1.96 which benefit 12developing country
Members.
5May benefit allMembers, andnotonlydeveloping countries/LDCs.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page7
Provision Implementation
More favourable treatment regarding the
application ofquota levels, growth rates and
flexibility inthetransitional safeguard forsmall
suppliers, newentrants andpossibly LDCs
(Art. 1:2,6:6(b)).Noinformation hasbeen provided innotifications
ofsafeguard actions ontheextent towhich
recourse wasmade tothisprovision insetting the
parameters ofsuch actions.
Special consideration oftheexport needs of
Members dependent onwool exports inthe
application ofquota levels, growth rates and
flexibility inthetransitional safeguard
(Art. 6:6(c)).Nosafeguard action involving exports ofthis
category ofMember hasbeen notified.
More favourable treatment regarding the
transitional safeguard applied onsome products
exported byMembers active inoutward-processing
trade (Art. 6:6(d))TheUShasprovided more favourable treatment to
these products exported by6developing country
Members.
Notransitional safeguard tobeapplied on
developing country Members 'exports ofhandloom
fabrics orcertain handmade products ofthecottage
industry (Annex, para. 3).Nosafeguard action involving exports ofthese
categories ofproducts hasbeen notified.
ForLDCs only
Significantly more favourable treatment regarding
thetransitional safeguard (Art. 6:6(a)).Nosafeguard action involving exports ofLDCs has
been notified.
Agreement onTechnical Barriers toTrade (TBT)
Allow areasonable interval between thepublication
andentry intoforce ofatechnical regulation and
requirements concerning conformity assessment
procedures (Art. 2:12, 5:9).
TheSecretariat istodraw theattention to
notifications relating toproducts ofparticular
interest todeveloping countries (Art. 10:6).WT/COMTD/W/33
Page8
Provision Implementation
Advice onthepreparation oftechnical regulations,
upon request (Art. 11:1).
Advice andassistance fortheestablishment of
national standardizing bodies andtheparticipation
ininternational standardizing bodies, upon request
(Art. 11:2).
Advice andassistance fortheestablishment of
regulatory bodies orbodies fortheassessment of
conformity withtechnical regulations, andonthe
methods tobestmeet technical regulations, upon
request (Art. 11:3).
Advice andassistance fortheestablishment of
bodies fortheassessment ofconformity with
standards, upon request (Art. 11:4).
Advice andassistance onthesteps tobetaken to
have access tosystems forconformity assessment,
upon request (Art. 11:5).According toaformal decision bytheTBT
Committee, specific needs fortechnical assistance,
aswellasinformation thatmaybeprovided by
potential donor Members ontheir technical
assistance programmes, maybecommunicated to
Members through theSecretariat andonan
informal basis, ifsoagreed. Members willtake
intoaccount theprovisions ofArticle 11:8 ofthe
TBT Agreement when considering requests for
technical assistance from LDCs. Even ifthe
information wasmultilateralized inthismanner,
technical assistance would continue tobeprovided
onabilateral basis. Technical assistance will
remain anitemoftheagenda oftheTBT
Committee onapermanent basis, andwould be
included intheagenda ofaregular meeting ofthe
Committee upon request.
Ensuring fullimplementation oftheprovisions of
theTBT Agreement, especially those infavour of
developing andleast-developed country Members,
isamong theissues being examined bytheTBT
Committee foritsfirstTriennial Review ofthe
Implementation andAdministration ofthe
Agreement (Article 15:4). TheTriennial Review
willbecarried outinNovember 1997.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page9
Provision Implementation
Assistance inensuring thatpreparation and
application oftechnical regulations, standards and
conformity assessment procedures donotcreate
unnecessary obstacles toexports (Art. 12:7).InNovember 1996, theSecretariat, jointly withthe
International Standards Organization and
International Trade Centre, organized aseminar
fortheSouthern African countries ontheTBT
Agreement andtheRôle ofStandards inTrade
Promotion. Thegoaloftheseminar was
threefold: toprovide technical assistance tonew
Members, tohelpbuild human andinstitutional
resources, andtohelpMember governments, as
wellasproducers andexporters, particularly from
developing countries, tobenefit fully from theTBT
Agreement. Asimilar seminar tookplace in
August 1997 inBerlin toEastern European
countries. Anadditional seminar isscheduled for
December inNew Delhi involving Southern Asian
countries.
TheSecretariat isalsolooking intothepossibilities
ofcoordinating itstechnical assistance activities
withMembers andother international andregional
intergovernmental bodies which areplanning to
provide technical assistance. InSeptember 1996,
theSecretariat participated inatraining seminar
forALADI countries on"Standards andtheWTO
Agreement onTBT, organized bytheOrganization
ofAmerican States inSeptember.
Consideration ofspecial needs ofLDCs inthe
implementation andoperation oftheAgreement
(Art. 12:2).
Consideration ofspecial needs ofLDCs inthe
preparation andapplication oftechnical
regulations, standards andconformity assessment
procedures (Art. 12:3, 12:9).
Facilitation ofparticipation ofrelevant bodies in
LDCs ininternational standardizing bodies and
international systems forconformity assessment
(Art. 12:5).
Examination byinternational standardizing bodies
ofthepossibility ofpreparing international
standards forproducts ofspecial interest toLDCs,
upon request (Art. 12:6).
Periodical examination ofthespecial and
differential treatment provided toLDCs
(Art. 12:10).TheTBT Committee hasconducted thisperiodical
examination atitsmeeting of16October 1996.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page10
Provision Implementation
Agreement onTrade Related Investment Measures (TRIMs)
Exceptions forLDCs from theprohibition of
TRIMs contained inArticle 2(Art. 4).Thisprovision does notcallforanyaction onthe
partoftheTRIMs Committee.
Members arerequired tonotify anyexisting
TRIMs which areinconsistent withtheAgreement
within aperiod ofninety days after theentry into
force oftheWTO Agreement (Art. 5:1).Forstates andseparate customs territories eligible to
become original Members ofWTO thatacceded to
theWTO after theentry intoforce oftheWTO
Agreement, theGeneral Council adopted, inApril
1995, arecommendation stating thatthe90days
period would startfrom thedateoftheir acceptance
oftheWTO Agreement.
Transition period fortheelimination ofTRIMs
inconsistent withtheAgreement extended from 2
years (fordeveloped country Members) to5years
fordeveloping country Members andto7years
LDCs (Art. 5:2).Outofthe25Members whohave made
notifications ofmeasures under Art.5:1-therefore
being abletobenefit from thetransition periods -
22aredeveloping country Members and1isan
LDC.
TheCouncil forTrade inGoods mayextend the
transition periods upon request byadeveloping
country Member oraLDC (Art. 5:3).Theissue ofthepossible extension oftransition
periods bytheCouncil forTrade inGoods hasnot
yetarisen.
Agreement onAnti-Dumping
TheAdHocGroup onImplementation is
addressing practical issues involved inanti-
dumping investigations, andhowdifferent
Members approach resolving those questions. This
islikely tobeofsignificant benefit inassisting
Members, andparticularly developing country
Members andnewusers ofanti-dumping measures,
inunderstanding andimplementing theAgreement.
TheSecretariat hasanactive programme of
workshops andtraining. Anumber ofMembers
have provided technical assistance andtraining in
areas relevant totheoperation oftheAgreement.
TheCommittee hasexpressed encouragement and
support forthese efforts.
Special regard tospecial situation ofdeveloping
countries when considering theapplication ofanti-
dumping measures (Art. 15).Some oftheanti-dumping legislation and
regulations reviewed bytheCommittee reflect this
provision. Inthecontext ofthereview of
notifications ofanti-dumping actions, no
developing country hasraised aquestion
concerning theapplication ofthisprovision.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page11
Provision Implementation
Exploring constructive remedies before applying
anti-dumping duties (Art. 15).Some oftheanti-dumping legislation and
regulations reviewed bytheCommittee reflect this
provision. Inthecontext ofthereview of
notifications ofanti-dumping actions, no
developing country hasraised aquestion
concerning theapplication ofthisprovision.
Agreement onCustoms Valuation
Delayed application oftheprovisions ofthe
Agreement (Art. 20:1).Invoked by49developing countries (ofwhich 10
LDCs).
Delayed application ofthecomputed value method
(Art. 20:2).Invoked by44developing countries (ofwhich 8
LDCs).
Technical assistance ingeneral, upon request
(Art. 20:3).TheWorld Customs Organization (WCO) is
conducting anextensive programme oftechnical
assistance.
Reservation concerning minimum values
(Annex III,para. 2).Invoked by28developing countries (ofwhich 6
LDCs).
Reservation concerning reversal ofsequential order
ofArt.5and6(Annex III,para. 3).Invoked by44developing countries (ofwhich 8
LDCs).
Reservation concerning application ofArt.5:2
whether ornottheimporter sorequests (Annex III,
para. 4).Invoked by43developing countries (ofwhich 7
LDCs).
Upon request, preparation ofastudy onthe
problem regarding thenon-inclusion inthecustoms
value ofspecial discounts andcommissions
obtained bysoleagents, soleconcessionaires and
soledistributors, (Annex III,para. 5).
Preparation bytheWCO ofstudies inareas of
potential concern todeveloping countries (Text 2
oftheDecision relating totheAgreement).TheTechnical Committee oftheWCO finalized its
consideration ofadaftcasestudy related toan
importation byasoledistributor.
Agreement onImport Licensing Procedures
Consideration ofdeveloping countries 'economic
development purposes andfinancial andtrade
needs toprevent trade distortions arising from an
inappropriate operation ofadministrative
procedures used toimplement import licensing
régimes (Art. 1:2).
Upon invocation, delay byamaximum oftwo
years oftheimplementation ofsome obligations
related toautomatic licensing (Art. 2:2and
Footnote 5).24developing countries (including 3LDCs) have
invoked thisprovision.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page12
Provision Implementation
Better treatment intheallocation ofquotas
administered through animport licensing system
when itconcerns products originating in
developing countries andinparticular LDCs (Art.
3:5(j)).
Agreement onSubsidies andCountervailing Measures
TheSecretariat andanumber ofMembers have
provided technical assistance andtraining inareas
relevant totheoperation oftheAgreement. The
Committee hasexpressed encouragement and
support forthese efforts.
Developing country Members areentitled to
transition periods orareexempted from the
prohibition ofexport subsidies andsubsidies
contingent ontheuseofdomestic over imported
goods (Art. 27:2)Numerous developing country Members have
invoked thisS&D when notifying pursuant to
Article 25.
When theGNP percapita ofanAnnex VII(b)
country reaches US$1,000 perannum, such
Member becomes subject totheprohibition of
granting export subsidies (Art. 27:2).TheCommittee onSubsidies tooknotethatthe
GNP percapita perannum of3developing
countries listed inAnnex VII(b) have exceeded this
figure.
More favourable dispute resolution during the
transition period (Art. 27:7).
Developing country Members arenotsubject tothe
Article 6:1presumption ofserious prejudice.
Rather, there must beapositive demonstration that
Article 6:1subsidies provided byadeveloping
country Members arecausing serious prejudice
(Art. 27:8).
Limitations onserious prejudice cases regarding
developing country Members 'subsidies (Art.
27:9).
Application ofdefined threshold forclassifying the
volume ofsubsidized imports asnegligible, and
more favourable threshold forclassifying thelevel
ofsubsidization asdeminimis (Art. 27:10, 27:11).Some ofthecountervailing dutylegislation and
regulations reviewed bytheCommittee include
provisions relating tosuch favourable treatment.
Noactionability under multilateral rules ofdirect
forgiveness ofdebtandcertain other subsidies in
thecontext ofaprivatization programme
(Art. 27:13).TheCommittee received anddiscussed one
notification made pursuant tothisprovision.
Review oftheconsistency ofaMember 's
countervailing measure withspecial anddifferential
treatment, upon request (Art. 27:15).WT/COMTD/W/33
Page13
Provision Implementation
Agreement onSafeguards
TheWTO Secretariat andanumber ofMembers
have provided technical assistance andtraining in
areas relevant totheoperation oftheAgreement.
TheCommittee onSafeguards hasexpressed
encouragement andsupport forthese efforts.
Developing countries sexports aretobeexempted
from safeguard measures provided theyremain
below acertain threshold (Art. 9:1).Thefollowing Members have applied safeguard
measures pursuant totheAgreement: Brazil, Korea
andtheUnited States. Each ofthese Members has
notified regarding theexemption ofdeveloping
countries 'exports which arebelow thespecified
threshold. Other Members 'legislation and
regulations reviewed bytheCommittee alsoreflect
thisprovision.
Developing countries smayapply safeguard
measures forlonger timeperiods andre-impose
them after shorter periods (Art. 9:2).Because thesafeguard measures which have been
applied todateareintheir initial period of
application (where theAgreement provides no
S&D treatment fordeveloping countries) this
provision remains unused forthetimebeing.
Some ofthesafeguard legislation andregulations
reviewed bytheCommittee reflect thisprovision.
TRIPS Agreement
Transition period fordeveloping countries (Art.
65:2 and65:4) andforLDCs (Art. 66:1).While these transition periods apply automatically
andnonotification isrequired, some Members
have indicated totheTRIPS Council their
intentions withrespect tothetransition periods.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page14
Provision Implementation
Developed country Members aretoprovide
technical andfinancial cooperation infavour of
developing countries andLDCs, upon request (Art.
67).Technical cooperation hasbeen aprominent issue
intheTRIPS Council andontheagenda ofall
regular meetings oftheCouncil. Inorder to
ensure thatinformation onavailable assistance is
readily accessible andtofacilitate themonitoring
ofcompliance withtheobligation ofArticle 67,
developed country Members have agreed topresent
descriptions oftheir relevant technical andfinancial
cooperation programmes andtoupdate this
annually. Forthesakeoftransparency,
intergovernmental organizations have also
presented, ontheinvitation oftheCouncil,
information ontheir activities. Inaddition, the
WTO Secretariat hasprovided information onits
technical cooperation intheTRIPS area. (Forthe
information provided in1996, seedocuments
IP/C/W/34-36 andaddenda.) Thisyear, the
information willbeupdated intime forthe
Council 'smeeting inSeptember, which istohave
aspecial focus ontechnical cooperation. (The
information willbecirculated inIP/C/W/-series of
documents.) Developing countries have been
encouraged toindicate their technical cooperation
needs totheCouncil. Developed country
Members have agreed tonotify contact points in
their administrations fortechnical cooperation on
TRIPS (seedocument IP/N/7, revisions and
addenda). Inaddition, theSecretariat has
organized, jointly withtheInternational Bureau of
WIPO, twoworkshops onspecific aspects of
technical cooperation. Thepurpose ofthese
workshops, which were organized inconjunction
withthesessions oftheCouncil, wastoenable an
exchange ofviews ontechnical cooperation needs
andexperiences related totheimplementation of
theTRIPS Agreement. Furthermore, the
Agreement between theWIPO andtheWTO (in
force since 1.1.96) provides forcooperation
between thetwoorganizations intheareas oflegal-
technical assistance andtechnical cooperation
relating totheTRIPS Agreement, including the
requirement thattheInternational Bureau ofWIPO
make available todeveloping countries Members of
theWTO, butnotofWIPO, thesame legal-
technical assistance relating totheTRIPS
Agreement asitmakes available toMember States
ofWIPO which aredeveloping countries (the
WTO Secretariat isrequired toreciprocate).
Pursuant tothis,thetwoSecretariats cooperate
regularly intheir technical cooperation activities.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page15
Provision Implementation
ForLDCs only
Incentives toenterprises andinstitutions in
developed country Members territories forthe
purpose ofpromoting andencouraging technology
transfer toLDCs(Art. 66:2).Implementation ofthisprovision hasnotyetbeen
addressed intheTRIPS Council.
Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU)
Special attention todeveloping country Members '
particular problems andinterests during
consultations (Art. 4:10).TheSecretariat isusually notinvolved inbilateral
consultations between Members under theDSU
andithasnospecific information onhowthis
provision hasbeen implemented byMembers. No
LDCs have been involved indisputes as
complainants orrespondents, orasthird parties in
panel proceedings.
Indisputes between adeveloping andadeveloped
country Member, theinclusion ,upon request, of
atleast onepanellist from adeveloping country
Member inthepanel (Art. 8:10).TheSecretariat does notsystematically keep
records ofsuch requests. TheSecretariat knows of
nocasewhere arequest foradeveloping-country
panelist hasnotbeen satisfied. Outofthe12
disputes involving adeveloping country Member,
10panels include apanelist from adeveloping
country Member.
Possible extension ofperiods forconsultations,
agreed byparties ordecided byChairman of
Dispute Settlement Body (DSB), indisputes
involving ameasure taken byadeveloping country
Member (Art. 12:10).TheChairman oftheDSB hasnotformally acted
under thisprovision. TheSecretariat knows ofno
specific agreement between Members based onthis
provision. Itshould benoted, however, thatmost
panel requests aremade more than60days after
thestartoftheconsultation period.
Incases where thedefendant party isadeveloping
country Member, sufficient timeisaccorded to
prepare andpresent argumentation before the
panel (Art. 12:10).Thetimeperiods forsubmission ofmaterial are
normally agreed byconsensus. Thisprovision has
been cited indiscussing such timeperiods, but
panels have notmade specific rulings based onit.
Indisputes where oneormore Members isa
developing country Member, explicit indication is
made inthepanel report ofhowS&D provisions
raised were considered (Art. 12:11).Todate, nopanel report hascited thisprovision in
either the"Findings" section orinthedescription
oftheparties 'arguments.
Incases ofmatters affecting theinterests of
developing country Members, particular attention
ispaidinthesurveillance oftheimplementation of
recommendations orrulings (Art. 21:2).Totheknowledge oftheSecretariat thisprovision
hasnotbeen cited bydeveloping country
Members. Only oneadopted panel report
involving developing country Members hasnotyet
been implemented.
Incases brought bydeveloping country Members,
consideration ofwhat further action might betaken
(Art. 21:7 and21:8).Totheknowledge oftheSecretariat thisprovision
hasnotbeen cited bydeveloping country
Members. Only oneadopted panel report
involving developing country Members hasnotyet
been implemented.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page16
Provision Implementation
Indisputes involving ameasure taken byaLDC,
particular consideration isgiven tothespecial
situation oftheLDC atallstages ofthedispute
(Art. 24:1).LDCs have notbeen involved indispute settlement
proceedings todate.
Indisputes involving ameasure taken byaLDC,
duerestraint isexercised inusing thedispute
settlement mechanism (Art. 24:1).TheSecretariat isusually notinvolved inbilateral
consultations between Members under theDSU
andithasnospecific information onhowthis
provision hasbeen implemented byMembers. No
LDCs have been involved indisputes as
complainants orrespondents, orasthird parties in
panel proceedings.
TheWTO Secretariat istoprovide qualified legal
advice andassistance todeveloping country
Members intheevent ofadispute (Art. 27:2).TheTechnical Cooperation andTraining Division
employs twoconsultants, whoareeach available
onedayaweek andwhoprovide such advice.
Occasionally, others arehired toprovide advice in
aspecific dispute.
Trade Policy Review Mechanism
Reviews ofseven developing countries, including
oneleast developed country (LDC) arebeing held
during 1997. Byend-1997, reviews willhave been
heldfor61Members (counting theEUasone),
including 41developing countries ofwhich 4are
LDCs (Benin, Bangladesh, Uganda andZambia);
17Members have been reviewed twice ormore.
The1998 programme willadd11Members which
have notpreviously been reviewed, including
6LDCs (Burkina Faso, Guinea, Lesotho, Mali,
Solomon Islands andTogo). Onpresent WTO
membership, 46Members, including 19LDCs,
willthenremain tobereviewed.
Some flexibility might beneeded byLDCs in
compiling their reports (Section D).
Assistance inthecompilation ofnational reports,
upon request (Section D).TheSecretariat continues toprovide technical
assistance onrequest forMembers under review.
Decision onMeasures inFavour ofLDCs
Extended timeperiod topresent Schedules of
Concessions andCommitments (Para. 1).
Regular reviews forensuring expeditious
implementation ofallspecial anddifferential
measures (Para. 2(i)).Thisdocument hasbeen prepared aspartofsuch
anexercise.WT/COMTD/W/33
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Provision Implementation
Autonomous implementation, inadvance and
without staging, ofUruguay Round concessions on
tariffs andnon-tariff measures (Para. 2(ii)).Attheoccasion oftheHigh-Level Meeting on
Integrated Initiatives forLeast-Developed
Countries 'Trade Development heldon27-
28October 1997, Canada offered theacceleration
to1998 ofmost ofitsUruguay Round tariff
reductions currently scheduled forimplementation
on1January 1999.
Consideration ofimproving preferential treatment
(Para. 2(ii)).Attheoccasion oftheHigh-Level Meeting
(mentioned above), anumber ofMembers, both
developed anddeveloping, made announcements of
neworadditional preferential market access
measures forleast-developed countries taken or
proposed tobetaken soon.
Special consideration ofexport interests when
applying import restrictions (Para.2(iv)).
Increased technical assistance indeveloping,
strengthening anddiversifying production and
export bases including those ofservices
(Para. 2(v)).TheHigh Level Meeting (mentioned above)
endorsed the"Integrated Framework forTrade-
related Technical Assistance, including forHuman
andInstitutional Capacity-Building, toSupport
Least-developed Countries inTheir Trade and
Trade-related Activities" (WT/LDC/HL/1/Rev.1).
TheFramework seeks toincrease thebenefits that
least-developed countries derive from thetrade-
related technical assistance available tothem from
thesixorganizations involved indesigning this
Framework: ITC, IMF, UNCTAD, UNDP, World
Bank andWTO, aswellasfrom other multilateral,
regional andbilateral sources.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page18
Provision Implementation
Theproblems oftheLDCs shall bekeptunder
continuous review andcontinuous efforts shall be
made toadopt positive measures which facilitate
theexpansion oftheir trading opportunities
(paragraph 3).Pursuant tothemandate received from theWTO
Ministerial Conference inSingapore, theHigh-
Level Meeting onIntegrated Initiatives forLeast-
developed Countries 'Trade Development took
place on27and28October inWTO. Itwasbeing
organized withthesupport andactive participation
oftheSecretariats ofUNCTAD, ITCandUNDP,
andthestaffoftheIMF andtheWorld Bank. The
main objectives ofthisMeeting were toenable
Members toannounce improved market access for
least-developed countries, andtoendorse the
Integrated Framework forTrade-Related Technical
assistance, (both mentioned above). TheMeeting
encouraged allWTO members tokeep under active
review alloptions forimproving market access for
least-developed countries presented inthe
Comprehensive andIntegrated WTO Plan of
Actions forLeast-developed Countries andto
monitor theimplementation ofthecommitments
made inthisregard. TheMeeting also
recommended totheWTO thatafullreport onthe
outcome andfollow-up oftheMeeting and
announcements ofimplementation ofautonomous
market access measures andcommitments in
favour ofleast developed countries beprepared by
theDirector-General oftheWTO andsubmitted to
theWTO Ministerial Conference inMay 1998.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page19
Provision Implementation
Decision Relating toLDCs andNetFood-Importing Developing Countries (NFICs)
Thefollow-up oftheDecision hasrepresented an
important partofthework oftheCommittee on
Agriculture. Agreement wasfound onanumber
ofelements related totheDecision. That is,(i)an
annual review (November) oftheimplementation
oftheDecision; (ii)notification requirements,
notably fordeveloped country Members, for
actions taken under theDecision; (iii)the
establishment ofaWTO listofNFICs, which
comprises currently the48LDCs asdefined by
theUnited Nations and18LDC Members. In
addition totheannual reviews oftheDecision in
theCommittee onAgriculture which were
undertaken, inter alia,onthebasis ofsome 20
notifications received from Members onthe
subject, theCommittee made specific
recommendations totheSingapore Ministerial
Conference (SMC) which were adopted. The
recommendations, which aresetoutbelow, have
been followed-up intherelevant bodies and
monitored within theCommittee onAgriculture.
Periodical review ofthelevel offood aid
(Para. 3(i)).TheSMC agreed that, inanticipation oftheexpiry
ofthecurrent Food AidConvention (FAC) inJune
1998 andinpreparation fortherenegotiation ofthe
FAC, action beinitiated in1997 within the
framework oftheFAC, under arrangements for
participation byallinterested countries andby
relevant international organizations asappropriate,
todevelop recommendations withaview towards
establishing alevel offood aidcommitments,
covering aswide arange ofdonors anddonable
foodstuffs aspossible, which issufficient tomeet
thelegitimate needs ofdeveloping countries during
thereform programme. Inresponse, several
meetings have taken place within theframework of
theFAC. Theprocess isongoing. The
Committee onAgriculture continues itsmonitoring
role.
Adoption ofguidelines toensure thatanincreasing
proportion ofbasic foodstuffs isprovided
(Para. 3(ii)).Itwasagreed thattherecommendations referred to
above should include guidelines toensure thatan
increasing proportion offood aidisprovided to
least-developed andnetfood-importing developing
countries infully grant form and/or onappropriate
concessional terms inlinewithArticle IVofthe
current FAC, aswellasmeans toimprove the
effectiveness andpositive impact offood aid.WT/COMTD/W/33
Page20
Provision Implementation
Consideration torequests fortheprovision of
technical andfinancial assistance toimprove
agricultural productivity andinfrastructure
(Para. 3(iii)).Ministers alsocalled ondeveloped country WTO
Members tocontinue togivefullconsideration in
thecontext oftheir aidprogrammes torequests for
theprovision oftechnical andfinancial assistance
inthislight.
Ensuring thatanyagreement relating toagricultural
export credits makes appropriate provision for
differential treatment (Para. 4).Ministers reaffirmed thecommitment attheSMC.
Possibility ofdrawing ontheresources of
international financial institutions incases ofshort-
term difficulties infinancing normal levels of
commercial imports (Para. 5).AttheSMC itwasagreed thatWTO Members, in
their individual capacity asmembers ofrelevant
international financial institutions, takeappropriate
steps toencourage theinstitutions concerned,
through their respective governing bodies, to
further consider thescope forestablishing new
facilities orenhancing existing facilities for
developing countries experiencing Uruguay Round-
related difficulties infinancing normal levels of
commercial imports ofbasic foodstuffs.
ForLDCs only
Establishing alevel offood aidcommitments
sufficient tomeet legitimate needs during the
reform programme (Para. 3(i)).
Decision onNotification Procedures
Some developing countries mayneed technical
assistance inmeeting their notification (Part III).TheWTO Secretariat hasprepared apractical
handbook onnotification obligations.