Inside US Trade / Vol. 19, No. 13
WORK PROGRAMME FOR THE SECOND PHASE OF THE NEGOTIATIONS FOR CONTINUING THE REFORM PROCESS UNDER ARTICLE 20 OF THE AGREEMENT ON AGRICULTURE
* Nature and scope of Work Programme: work in depth on all issues and options for policy reform set out in Members' proposals, with further elaboration as appropriate.
* Basis of work: Article 20, negotiating proposals submitted by Members and their additional elaborated proposals.
* Special and differential treatment is an integral part of all elements of the negotiations.
* Organisation of Work Programme: work to be conducted in informal and formal meetings of the Special Sessions; Chair to prepare reports on the informal meetings and prepare annotated agendas ahead of the meetings.
* Sequencing of Work Programme and Timetable: three Special Session meetings to be held back-to-back with the regular meetings of the Committee on Agriculture in September and December 2001 and in March 2002 (each of these Special Sessions would convene informally and conclude with short formal meetings), plus three informal Special Session meetings in May and July 2001 and in February 2002. Any additional meetings would be scheduled by the Chair after consultations with Members.
* Review of progress of the negotiations shall take place in the formal March 2002 meeting.
Without prejudice to Article 20, which details the objective of the negotiations and the factors to be taken into account, the Chair recommends the following list of trade and non-trade issues drawn from Members' proposals for the first two/three meetings:
- Tariff quota administration
- Tariffs
- Amber Box
- Export subsidies
- Export credits
- State trading enterprises
- Export restrictions
- Food security
- Food safety
- Rural development
The foregoing work programme is adopted without prejudice to the decisions that may be taken at the fourth Ministerial Conference.
Seventh Special Session, Committee on Agriculture 26 - 28 March 2001
STATEMENT BY THE CHAIRMAN ON THE FIRST PHASE OF THE NEGOTIATIONS ON AGRICULTURE
AMBASSADOR JORGE VOTO-BERNALES
This meeting is the seventh Special Session and marks the end of the first phase of the negotiations. As was agreed in March last year at the first Special Session, we must now take stock of the progress made so far in the negotiations.
The Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture and the related commitments in each Member's WTO Schedule of commitments were the first steps in a longer term reform process in agricultural trade as recognized in the Preamble and Article 20 of the Agreement. Article 20 required that the negotiations on continuing the reform programme be initiated one year before the end of the implementation period.
For the past twelve months the Committee on Agriculture meeting in Special Session has been negotiating the continuation of the reform process as required by Article 20 of the Agreement on Agriculture and in accordance with the decision of the General Council in February 2000.
In my view a great deal of progress has been achieved under the work programme established in March last year for the first phase of the negotiations. It is important of course that this momentum is sustained into and throughout the next phase of the negotiations.
In all, 44 negotiating proposals and 3 technical papers have been submitted by a total of 125 WTO Member countries covering the different issues related to agriculture trade that are of major and fundamental interest and importance to the participating countries concerned. In addition the Secretariat has made available 27 background papers at the request of Members in order to facilitate the negotiating process.
The examination of these proposals and submissions has been both detailed and intensive. This I am sure has contributed to heightening our appreciation of the wide range of interests involved, as well as the complexity of many of the issues which will have to be addressed in more detail in the next phase of the Article 20 negotiations.
In a sense the first phase of the negotiations, although it has involved a great deal of work in capitals and in the Special Session meetings, has been relatively straight forward. Its importance lies in the fact that the basic positions of participants are now on the table. The next phase will represent the beginning of a more challenging process.
At your request I have conducted extensive informal consultations on how the second phase of the Article 20 negotiations should be structured and organized. I would like to thank all delegations for their contributions and assistance in this regard. I am encouraged to believe that the draft work programme under consideration constitutes a finely balanced basis for the next phase of the negotiations.
I would now like to open the floor for Members to make their respective statements in the context of the stock-taking exercise.
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