WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/GC/W/500
8 July 2003
(03-3689)
General Council
IMPLEMENTATION ISSUES REFERRED TO WTO BODIES UNDER THE
DOHA MINISTERIAL DECISION ON IMPLEMENTATION-RELATED
ISSUES AND CONCERNS
Note by the Secretariat
This Note has been prepared by the Secretariat on its own responsibility in response to a
request by Members at the 15 May meeting of the General Council for a factual Note on the status of
the implementation issues referred to in a communication from India on this subject in document
WT/GC/W/494.  This Note is without prejudice to the positions of Members on these issues or to their
rights or obligations under the WTO.  The paragraph numbers before each issue below reflect those in
the Doha Ministerial Decision on Implementation-Related Issues and Concerns (WT/MIN(01)/17).For ease of reference, issues are taken up in the same order as that in India's communication.
_______________
I. ISSUES REFERRED TO WTO BODIES WITH THE REQUEST THAT THEY
REPORT TO THE GENERAL COUNCIL BY A SPECIFIC DATE
Issue Work undertaken
Paragraph 1.2:  Article XIII:2(d) of
GATT 1994
Ministerial Decision :
The Ministerial Conference decides as follows:
1.2 Noting the issues raised in the report of
the Chairperson of the Committee on Market
Access (WT/GC/50) concerning the meaning to
be given to the phrase "substantial interest" in
paragraph 2(d) of Article XIII of the GATT 1994,the Market Access Committee is directed to give
further consideration to the issue and make
recommendations to the General Council as
expeditiously as possible but in any event not
later than the end of 2002.Consideration by the Market Access
Committee:
This issue was considered by the Market Access
Committee, which reported to the General
Council in December 2002, inter alia , that there
was a lack of consensus on the recommendations
to be made to the General Council, and referredthe matter to the General Council for
consideration (G/MA/119).
Consideration by the General Council in
December 2002 :
The report of the Market Access Committee was
considered by the General Council in
December 2002 (WT/GC/M/77).  Following the
discussion on the report, the Chairman suggestedthat Members might wish to reflect further overWT/GC/W/500
Page 2
Issue Work undertaken
the end-of-year break on the various views that
had been expressed on this matter, particularly
with regard to the future course of action, and
said that as all delegations were aware, this issue
might be raised again by any Member in anyWTO forum it deemed appropriate, including in
the negotiations under the Doha agenda.
The General Council took note of the report of
the Market Access Committee and of the
statements.
Paragraphs 4.4 and 4.5: Textiles and Clothing
issues
Ministerial Decision :
The Ministerial Conference decides as follows:Requests the Council for Trade in Goods to
examine the following proposals:
4.4 that when calculating the quota levels for
small suppliers for the remaining years of the
Agreement, Members will apply the most
favourable methodology available in respect of
those Members under the growth-on-growth
provisions from the beginning of theimplementation period; extend the same
treatment to least-developed countries; and,
where possible, eliminate quota restrictions on
imports of such Members;
4.5 that Members will calculate the quota
levels for the remaining years of the Agreement
with respect to other restrained Members as if
implementation of the growth-on-growth
provision for stage 3 had been advanced to 1January 2000;
and make recommendations to the General
Council by 31 July 2002  for appropriate action.Consideration by the Council for Trade in
Goods :
This issue was considered by the Council for
Trade in Goods in several formal and informal
sessions (G/C/M/59-62 and 64).  The Goods
Council Chairman reported orally to the GeneralCouncil in July 2002, inter alia , that the required
consensus on the report and on the
recommendations had not been reached, and that
he was consequently not in a position to present a
report with recommendations to the GeneralCouncil (WT/GC/M/75).
Consideration by the General Council in
July 2002:
The report of the Chairman of the Goods Council
was considered by the General Council in
July 2002 (WT/GC/M/75).  Following the
discussion on the report, the Chairman said it was
clear from the discussion that although, inaccordance with the mandate received, this matter
had been examined in the CTG, it had not been
possible to formulate any recommendations for
the General Council by 31 July 2002.  Second, it
was clear that the matter continued to be of great
concern to a substantial number of delegations,
from both importing and exporting countries.Third, it was apparent that there were still
fundamental differences between the views and
understandings of the importing countries and of
the exporting developing countries with respect
to the mandate and possible recommendations.Fourth, delegations had expressed very differing
views on how best to deal with this issue, andWT/GC/W/500
Page 3
Issue Work undertaken
Members had clearly not reached a consensus on
how to resolve it.  In view of this situation and
having examined various possible options, he
proposed that the General Council take note of
the statement by the Chairman of the CTG and ofthose by delegations, on the understanding that
this would not prejudice the various positions
taken by Members, which would be duly
reflected in the minutes of the present meeting.
He was convinced that all Members would use
the summer break to continue to reflect on the
various views that had been expressed.
The General Council agreed to the Chairman's
proposal.
Paragraph 7.4:  Article 18.6 of the Agreement
on Implementation of Article VI of GATT
1994 (Anti-Dumping)
Ministerial Decision :
The Ministerial Conference decides as follows:7.4 Takes note that Article 18.6 of the
Agreement on the Implementation of Article VI
of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
1994 requires the Committee on Anti-DumpingPractices to review annually the implementation
and operation of the Agreement taking into
account the objectives thereof.  The Committee
on Anti-dumping Practices is instructed to draw
up guidelines for the improvement of annualreviews and to report its views and
recommendations to the General Council for
subsequent decision within 12 months.Consideration by the Committee on Anti-
Dumping Practices:
This issue was considered by the Committee on
Anti-Dumping Practices, which reported to the
General Council in December 2002 with a
recommendation for improvements that wouldprovide useful information to Members and the
public, and would enhance transparency under
the Agreement (G/ADP/9).
Consideration by the General Council in
December 2002:
The report of the Committee on Anti-Dumping
Practices was considered by the General Council
in December 2002 (WT/GC/M/77).  Followingthe discussion on the report, the General Council
took note of the report and of the statements, and
approved the recommendation contained in
document G/ADP/9.WT/GC/W/500
Page 4
Issue Work undertaken
Paragraph 8.3:  Agreement on
Implementation of Article VII of GATT 1994
(Customs Valuation)
Ministerial Decision :
The Ministerial Conference decides as follows:8.3 Underlines the importance of
strengthening cooperation between the customs
administrations of Members in the prevention ofcustoms fraud.  In this regard, it is agreed that,
further to the 1994 Ministerial Decision
Regarding Cases Where Customs
Administrations Have Reasons to Doubt the
Truth or Accuracy of the Declared Value, whenthe customs administration of an importing
Member has reasonable grounds to doubt the
truth or accuracy of the declared value, it may
seek assistance from the customs administration
of an exporting Member on the value of the goodconcerned.  In such cases, the exporting Member
shall offer cooperation and assistance, consistent
with its domestic laws and procedures, including
furnishing information on the export value of the
good concerned.  Any information provided inthis context shall be treated in accordance with
Article 10 of the Customs Valuation Agreement.
Furthermore, recognizing the legitimate concerns
expressed by the customs administrations ofseveral importing Members on the accuracy of
the declared value, the Committee on Customs
Valuation is directed to identify and assess
practical means to address such concerns,
including the exchange of information on export
values and to report to the General Council  by the
end of 2002 at the latest.Consideration by the Customs Valuation
Committee :
This issue was considered by the Customs
Valuation Committee, which reported to the
General Council in December 2002 (G/VAL/50),inter alia , that the Committee would require
technical input and advice to further evaluate all
submissions and views, which it has requested
from the Technical Committee on Customs
Valuation (TCCV), and that the TCCV was toconclude its examination and report to the
Committee by 15 May 2003 in order that the
Committee might consider the technical inputs
and advice provided.  The Committee requested
the General Council to take note of the progressto date, to allow it to continue to work under the
existing mandate, and to establish an appropriate
time for reporting on the matter.
Consideration by the General Council in
December 2002 :
The Committee's report was considered by the
General Council in December 2002
(WT/GC/M/77).  Following the discussion on thereport, the General Council took note of the
report and of the progress to date and authorized
the Committee to continue its work under the
existing mandate and to report back to the
General Council once its work had been
completed.
Follow up:
The TCCV submitted its response to the
Committee on 15 May 2003 (G/VAL/54), which
was discussed at the Committee’s meeting on23 May.  The Committee agreed that its incoming
Chairman would consult informally on how
further work should proceed and, in the
meantime, suspended its consideration of this
item.  The Chairman is consulting withdelegations and will report to the Committee on
the outcome of the consultations, at which time
the Committee will decide on how to complete its
mandate, including reporting to the GeneralWT/GC/W/500
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Issue Work undertaken
Council.
Paragraph 10.3:  Agreement on Subsidies and
Countervailing Measures
Ministerial Decision :
The Ministerial Conference decides as follows:
10.3 Agrees that the Committee on Subsidies
and Countervailing Measures shall continue itsreview of the provisions of the Agreement on
Subsidies and Countervailing Measures regarding
countervailing duty investigations and report to
the General Council by 31 July 2002.Consideration by the Committee on Subsidies
and Countervailing Measures :
This issue was considered by the Committee on
Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, whoseChairman reported to the General Council in July
2002 (G/SCM/45), inter alia , that it was his sense
that there existed diverging views on whether and
how the Committee could or should proceed after
the completion of the 31 July 2002 mandate, and
that he had been unable to identify any significant
basis for a consensus on any specific suggestionby the Committee in terms of the substantive
aspects of the review or with respect to any next
step. He had had to conclude that in the context
of the Committee, the discussions of these issues
had been taken as far as possible.
Consideration by the General Council in
July 2002 :
The report of the Chairman of the Committee on
Subsidies and Countervailing Measures was
considered by the General Council at its meeting
in July 2002 (WT/GC/M/75).  Following the
discussion on the report, the General Council
took note of the report by the Chairman of theCommittee and of the statements by delegations.
Paragraphs 12.1(i) and (ii):  Crosscutting S&D
issues
Ministerial Decision :
The Ministerial Conference decides as follows:12.1 The Committee on Trade and
Development is instructed:
(i) to identify those special and differential
treatment provisions that are already mandatory
in nature and those that are non-binding in
character, to consider the legal and practical
implications for developed and developing
Members of converting special and differentialConsideration by the Committee on Trade and
Development in Special Session :
This issue was considered by the Committee on
Trade and Development in Special Session,
which reported to the General Council in July and
December 2002 and in February 2003.  The reportof the Special Session in February 2003
(TN/CTD/7) recommended that the General
Council take note of the recommendations on 12
Agreement-specific proposals on which Members
had agreed in principle, and revert to the questionWT/GC/W/500
Page 6
Issue Work undertaken
treatment measures into mandatory provisions, to
identify those that Members consider should be
made mandatory, and to report to the General
Council with clear recommendations  for a
decision by July 2002;
(ii) to examine additional ways in which
special and differential treatment provisions can
be made more effective, to consider ways,
including improved information flows, in which
developing countries, in particular the least-
developed countries, may be assisted to makebest use of special and differential treatment
provisions, and to report to the General Council
with clear recommendations for a decision by
July 2002;  and
(iii) to consider, in the context of the work
programme adopted at the Fourth Session of the
Ministerial Conference, how special and
differential treatment may be incorporated into
the architecture of WTO rules.
The work of the Committee on Trade and
Development in this regard shall take fully into
consideration previous work undertaken as noted
in WT/COMTD/W/77/Rev.1.  It will also bewithout prejudice to work in respect of
implementation of WTO Agreements in the
General Council and in other Councils and
Committees.of their adoption at a later date.  It further
recommended that the General Council provide
clarification, as it considered appropriate,
regarding paragraph 44 of the Doha Ministerial
Declaration and paragraph 12 of the Decision onImplementation-Related Issues and Concerns,
and the legal and practical means to give effect to
the mandate.  It also recommended that in the
interim, the General Council instruct the Special
Session to suspend further work.
Consideration by the General Council in
February 2003 :
The report of the Special Session of the
Committee on Trade and Development was
considered by the General Council inFebruary 2003 (WT/GC/M/78).  Following the
discussion on the report, the General Council
agreed to a proposal by the Chairman that the
General Council revert to this matter, after having
taken note of the report and of the statements, andinvite its incoming Chairman, in coordination
with the Chairman of the CTD in Special
Session, to undertake consultations immediately
on how to take this very important matter
forward.
Follow-up :
At the May 2003 meeting of the General Council,
the Chairman indicated that in line with themandate given to him, he had started
consultations in March with Members to explore
various ideas on a possible new approach to the
work ahead.  On the basis of these consultations,
he had put forward an approach paper on 7 April
(JOB(03)/68) outlining what he believed to be the
best way to enable Members to move forward.The suggested approach included two
fundamental premises:  (1) all Agreement-
specific proposals on S&D treatment were on the
table and would be considered by Members
without prejudging the results;  and (2) in orderto make the work more efficient, it was suggested
to informally categorize the 88 Agreement-
specific proposals, without in any way implying a
prioritization of these proposals.  Based on this
suggested approach, and following a carefulexamination of all the Agreement-specific
proposals, he had divided these proposals into
three broad categories, and on 5 May had
circulated a paper (Job 3404) reflecting theseWT/GC/W/500
Page 7
Issue Work undertaken
categories in a consolidated list, which would be
the basis for Members' future work with regard to
special and differential treatment.  On the basis of
this approach, the Chairman has been holding
further consultations at the level of PermanentRepresentatives, and will submit a further
progress report to the General Council at its next
meeting, scheduled for 24-25 July.
II. ISSUES REFERRED TO WTO BODIES FOR FURTHER WORK:
Issue Status
Paragraph 3.3:  "equivalence" in the SPS
Agreement
Ministerial Decision :
The Ministerial Conference decides as follow:3.3 Takes note of the Decision of the
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary
Measures (G/SPS/19) regarding equivalence, and
instructs the Committee to develop expeditiously
the specific programme to further the
implementation of Article 4 of the Agreement onthe Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary
Measures.Consideration by the Committee on Sanitary
and Phyto-sanitary Measures :
This issue was considered by the SPS Committee
in 2002.  As part of its report on implementation-
related issues to the TNC in December 2002, the
Committee also reported on this matter, indicating,
inter alia , that work in the Committee had
progressed regularly in line with its Programmefor Further Work adopted in March 2002
(G/SPS/24).
Consideration by the TNC in December 2002 :
The SPS Committee's activities on this issue
formed part of a report submitted to the TNC in
December 2002.  The TNC took note of the
report (TN/C/M/5).
Follow up:
Following the meeting of the SPS Committee on
24-25 June 2003, its Chairman will submit a
report to the General Council on 24-25 July onhis own responsibility which will provide an
update to the information contained in the report
of December 2002.WT/GC/W/500
Page 8
Issue Status
Paragraph 7.2:  Article 15 of the Agreement
on the Implementation of Article VI of the
GATT 1994 (Anti-Dumping)
Ministerial Decision :
The Ministerial Conference decides as follows:7.2 Recognizes that, while Article 15 of the
Agreement on the Implementation of Article VI
of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade1994 is a mandatory provision, the modalities for
its application would benefit from clarification.
Accordingly, the Committee on Anti-Dumping
Practices is instructed, through its working group
on Implementation, to examine this issue and todraw up appropriate recommendations within
twelve months on how to operationalize this
provision.Consideration by the Committee on Anti-
Dumping Practices :
This issue was considered by the Committee on
Anti-Dumping Practices, whose Chairman
reported orally to the General Council inDecember 2002, inter alia , that he had been
unable to identify any significant basis for
consensus on a recommendation by the
Committee responsive to the mandate under
which the discussions had been conducted,although it was clear that the issues raised in the
proposals, as developed and clarified through the
discussions, might yet form the basis for further
discussion, should any Member submit proposals
concerning them for discussion in an appropriateforum. (G/ADP/11).
Consideration by the General Council in
December 2002 :
The report by the Chairman of the Committee on
Anti-Dumping Practices was considered by the
General Council in December 2002
(WT/GC/M/77).  Following the discussion on the
report, the General Council took note of thereport by the Chairman of the Committee and of
the statements.
Paragraph 7.3:  Article 5.8 of the Agreement
on the Implementation of Article VI of the
GATT 1994 (Anti-Dumping)
Ministerial Decision:
The Ministerial Conference decides as follows:
7.3 Takes note that Article 5.8 of the
Agreement on the Implementation of Article VIof the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
1994 does not specify the time-frame to be used
in determining the volume of dumped imports,
and that this lack of specificity creates
uncertainties in the implementation of theprovision.  The Committee on Anti-Dumping
Practices is instructed, through its working groupConsideration by the Committee on Anti-
Dumping Practices :
This issue was considered by the Committee on
Anti-Dumping Practices, which reported to theGeneral Council in December 2002 with a
recommendation concerning the time-period to be
considered in making a determination of
negligible import volumes for the purposes of
Article 5.8 of the Anti-Dumping Agreement(G/ADP/10).  In order to provide guidance in this
regard, the Committee recommended thatWT/GC/W/500
Page 9
Issue Status
on implementation, to study this issue and draw
up recommendations within 12 months, with a
view to ensuring the maximum possible
predictability and objectivity in the application of
time frames.Members determine the volume of dumped
imports with reference to one of three defined
time periods, notify the Committee as to the
chosen methodology to be used in all
investigations and, if in any investigation thechosen methodology was not used, provide an
explanation in the public notice or separate public
report of that investigation.
Consideration by the General Council in
December 2002:
The report of the Committee was considered by
the General Council in December 2002
(WT/GC/M/77).  Following the discussion on the
report, the General Council took note of the
report and of the statements, and also took note ofthe recommendation contained in document
G/ADP/10.
Paragraph 9.1:  Agreement on Rules of Origin
Ministerial Decision :
The Ministerial Conference decides as follows:9.1 Takes note of the report of the
Committee on Rules of Origin (G/RO/48)regarding progress on the harmonization work
programme, and urges the Committee to
complete its work by the end of 2001.Consideration by the Committee on Rules of
Origin :
This issue was considered by the  Committee on
Rules of Origin, whose Chairman submitted areport to the General Council in December 2001
(G/RO/49), and indicated, inter alia , that his
consultations since the circulation of the report
had indicated a growing consensus that the
deadline should be extended to the end of 2002,and that two additional sessions of the CRO
should be held in the first half of 2002 to resolve
remaining issues and to identify a limited number
of core policy-level issues, with a report to be
submitted to the General Council for discussionand decision.  There was also growing consensus
on the need for a specific mandate from the
General Council at the present meeting, in order
to avoid losing momentum.
Consideration by the General Council :
The report of the Committee Chairman was
considered by the General Council in
December 2001 (WT/GC/M/72).  Following the
discussion on the report, the General Council
agreed that the CRO would hold two additionalsessions in the first half of 2002 to resolve
remaining issues, in which it might identify aWT/GC/W/500
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Issue Status
limited number of core policy-level issues which
in its view needed to be reported to the General
Council for discussion and decision at that level.
It also agreed that the outcome of the CRO's
further work would be reported by the Chairmanof the Committee, on his own responsibility, to
the General Council at its first regular meeting
after the end of June 2002, at which point the
matter would be in the hands of the General
Council, and that the deadline for completion of
the harmonization work programme would be
extended to the end of 2002.
Follow Up:
At its meeting in July 2002, the General Council
took note of a report by the Chairman of the CROand of the recommendations contained therein
(G/RO/52), and agreed to hold a first meeting on
the 12 core policy-level issues identified in
paragraph 5.1 of that report (WT/GC/M/75).
At its meeting in December 2002, the General
Council considered a report from its Chairman
and the Chairman of the CRO on the progress to
date.  Following the discussion, and taking into
account the importance of the issues to beresolved and the implications to be considered,
and in the full knowledge of the consequences of
a failure to meet another new deadline, the
General Council agreed to extend, to July 2003,
the deadline for completion of negotiations on thecore policy issues identified in the CRO Chair's
report to the General Council of 15 July 2002.
The General Council also agreed that following
resolution of these core policy issues, the
Committee on Rules of Origin complete its
remaining technical work, including the work
referred to in Article 9.3(b) of the Agreement onRules of Origin, by 31 December 2003
(WT/GC/M/77).
Since December 2002, and at the request of the
General Council Chairman, the Chairman andVice-Chairman of the CRO have been holding
intensive consultations with a view to progressing
this issue, and will report to the General Council
at its next meeting, scheduled for 24-25 July.WT/GC/W/500
Page 11
Issue Status
Paragraph 10.1: Annex VII(b) of the
Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing
Measures
Ministerial Decision :
The Ministerial Conference decides as follows:10.1 Agrees that Annex VII(b) to the
Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing
Measures includes the Members that are listedtherein until their GNP per capita reaches US
$1,000 in constant 1990 dollars for three
consecutive years.  This decision will enter into
effect upon the adoption by the Committee on
Subsidies and Countervailing Measures of anappropriate methodology for calculating constant
1990 dollars.  If, however, the Committee on
Subsidies and Countervailing Measures does not
reach a consensus agreement on an appropriate
methodology by 1 January 2003, themethodology proposed by the Chairman of the
Committee set forth in G/SCM/38, Appendix 2
shall be applied. A Member shall not leave
Annex VII(b) so long as its GNP per capita in
current dollars has not reached US $1000 basedupon the most recent data from the World Bank.Consideration by the Committee on Subsidies
and Countervailing Measures :
This issue was considered by the Committee on
Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, which
reported to the Council for Trade in Goods at theend of 2002, inter alia , that at its May 2002
regular meeting, and in the absence of any
proposals concerning methodology, the
Committee had agreed to revert to this matter as
and when any proposal might be received, andthat as of the end of 2002 no such proposals had
been received (G/L/585).
Accordingly, the methodology referred to in
G/SCM/38, Appendix 2, entered into force on1 January 2003.
Paragraph 11.2:  Article 66.2 of the TRIPS
Agreement
Ministerial Decision :
The Ministerial Conference decides as follows:11.2 Reaffirming that the provisions of Article
66.2 of the TRIPS Agreement are mandatory, it isagreed that the TRIPS Council shall put in place
a mechanism for ensuring the monitoring and full
implementation of the obligations in question.
To this end, developed-country Members shall
submit prior to the end of 2002 detailed reports
on the functioning in practice of the incentives
provided to their enterprises for the transfer oftechnology in pursuance of their commitments
under Article 66.2 of the TRIPS Agreement.
These submissions shall be subject to a review in
the TRIPS Council and information shall be
updated by Members annually.Consideration by the TRIPS Council :
This issue was considered by the TRIPS Council,
which in February 2003 adopted a Decision onthe Implementation of Article 66.2 (IP/C/28).
The arrangements set out in this Decision are
subject to review, with a view to improving them,
after three years by the TRIPS Council in the
light of the experience.WT/GC/W/500
Page 12
III. REQUEST TO THE DIRECTOR-GENERAL TO CONTINUE HIS COOPERATIVE
EFFORTS WITH INTERNATIONAL STANDARD-SETTING ORGANIZATIONS ON
SPS AND TBT TO FACILITATE ACCORDING PRIORITY TO THE
PARTICIPATION OF LDCS
ISSUES
Paragraph 3.5:  Agreement on the Applicatio n of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures
Ministerial Decision:
The Ministerial Conference decides as follows:
3.5 (i) Takes note of the actions taken to date by the Director-General to
facilitate the increased participation of Members at different levels of development in
the work of the relevant international standard setting organizations as well as his
efforts to coordinate with these organizations and financial institutions in identifyingSPS-related technical assistance needs and how best to address them; and
(ii) Urges the Director-General to continue his cooperative efforts with
these organizations and institutions in this regard, including with a view to according
priority to the effective participation of least-developed countries and facilitating theprovision of technical and financial assistance for this purpose.
Paragraph 5.3:  Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade
Ministerial Decision:
The Ministerial Conference decides as follows:
5.3 (i) Takes note of the actions taken to date by the Director-General to
facilitate the increased participation of Members at different levels of development in
the work of the relevant international standard setting organizations as well as his
efforts to coordinate with these organizations and financial institutions in identifyingTBT-related technical assistance needs and how best to address them; and
(ii) Urges the Director-General to continue his cooperative efforts with
these organizations and institutions, including with a view to according priority to the
effective participation of least-developed countries and facilitating the provision oftechnical and financial assistance for this purpose.
WORK UNDERTAKEN
The activities of the WTO Secretariat in this regard have continued.  On SPS-related
matters, the heads of the WTO, FAO, OIE, W HO and World Bank issued a joint statement at
the Doha Ministerial Conference, reaffirming their common objectives relating to the
participation of developing countries in the development and application of sanitary and
phytosanitary measures.  The five organizations also made a formal commitment to work
together to further exploit the synergies between the organizations in technical assistance.
This joint commitment in Doha led to the establishment, during the course of 2002, of
the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF).  This fund, established by the World
Bank, will be administered by the WTO with the partnership of the FAO, OIE, WHO and
World Bank.  The STDF is to be used to facilitate the coordination of the delivery ofWT/GC/W/500
Page 13
development assistance in SPS-related areas by the partner institutions, and to enhance the
capacity of developing countries to effectively participate in the development of international
standards, to benefit from international trade by meeting these standards, and to implement
the obligations and take advantage of the rights arising from the SPS Agreement.1  This new
mechanism, with the formal and direct involv ement of the relevant standard-setting bodies
and the World Bank, is expected to provide concrete results for developing-country Members.
At the same time, the other international organizations have also pursued their own
mechanisms to facilitate the effective participation of developing countries in standard-setting
activities, and this has become a priority issue for many organizations.  One noteworthy
outcome was the launch, in February 2003, of the FAO/WHO Trust Fund for the Participation
of Developing Countries and Countries in Transition in the Work of the Codex AlimentariusCommission.
On TBT-related matters, in 2001-2002, the WTO Secretariat, in cooperation with the
International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the Codex Alimentarius
Commission (Codex), held five regional workshops (Bangkok, Belgrade, Bogotá, Cairo andNairobi) aimed at identifying possible actions to enhance the participation of developing
countries in international standardization.  The participants in these workshops
(representatives of standardization stakeholders) identified the obstacles to participation and
sought possible solutions.  The results of these regional workshops were reported at a wrap-up
workshop held back to back with the ISO General Assembly in September 2002.  Mr. Ravier,the then Deputy Director General, attended  that workshop where a list of recommended
actions was drawn up and submitted to the ISO General Assembly for decisions and action.
A task force was established to develop an operational programme of action and to identify
actions that could be implemented immediately.  This programme was presented to the ISO
Council at its March 2003 meeting and was adopted by that Council.  Actions are beingimplemented to enhance the participation of developing countries in the work of ISO.
This year, regional workshops with similar objectives have been organized by the
Secretariat for the Latin American countries and the SADC region.  This time, with the
cooperation of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) and the International
Organization of Legal Metrology (OIML).  A different approach was adopted to avoid
repeating what had been achieved in 2001-2002.  The workshops were structured to focus onthe practical approaches of national coordination, regional cooperation as well as the use of
electronic means to enhance participation.
6. At the same time, parallel to these efforts, the TBT Committee is mandated to
developing a TBT-related technical cooperation programme before the end of this year, underthe Third Triennial Review of the TBT Agreement.  This programme covers also the elements
which were mandated to the Director-General by the General Council and by Ministers to
assist developing country Members.  Attention had been given to avoiding the duplication of
work in this regard, taking into account the work of the TBT Committee.
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1G/SPS/GEN/37.