EN—2017—Issue 1

WTO ACCESSIONS NEWSLETTER

…safeguarding, enlarging and strengthening the rules-based multilateral trading system

WTO ACCESSION DEVELOPMENTS – SECRETARIAT REPORT TO MEMBERS

Page 1

69th Newsletter

Accessions Strategic Objectives

Domestic reform instrument

Systemic update

Market access expansion

International cooperation for trade

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Inside this issue:

ACCESSION OF BELARUS: Eighth meeting of the

Working Party, 24 January 2017

ACCESSION OF SUDAN: Third meeting of the

Working Party 31 January 2017

FIRST INFORMAL GROUP ON ACCESSIONS

Thursday, 26 January 2017

Agenda:

Accession Working Parties Strategic Focus:

Belarus, Comoros, Lebanon and Sudan

Expression of Interest: South Sudan

Technical Assistance and Outreach Activities:

Experience-Sharing Lunch Dialogue on

WTO Accessions with H.E Mr. Axel Addy

Course on Goods Schedules for Acceding

Governments

Fifth China Round Table; and,

Post Accession Activity - Afghanistan

Divisional Staff Movements: Mr. Mustapha Sekkate

and Ms. Danijela Gacevic

Accession Anniversaries: Ecuador, Chinese Taipei,

Mongolia and Viet Nam

Chaired by the WTO Secretariat (Maika Oshikawa, Officer in Charge of the Accessions Division).

Accession of Belarus Eighth meeting of the Working Party

Accession of Belarus—Pre-meeting with H.E. Kemal Madenoglu (Turkey), Chairperson of the Working Party

Geneva, 23 January 2017

The Working Party on the Accession

of Belarus held its 8th meeting on 24 January 2017. This was the first

formal meeting of the Working Party

since May 2005. The meeting was chaired by Ambassador Kemal

Madenoglu (Turkey). The delegation of Belarus was led by Mr. Andrei

Yeudachenka, First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, and comprised 35

senior government officials from

Minsk, including Chief Negotiator Ambassador Vladimir Serpikov.

First Deputy Foreign Minister

Yeudachenka stated that WTO accession was a priority for the

Government of Belarus. Specifically, President Lukashenka had given

political support to the reactivation

and acceleration of the WTO accession process in March 2016 and

domestic trade negotiating capacity had been reinforced and streamlined

accordingly.

WTO Members welcomed formal

resumption of the accession of Belarus, which is the last chapter of

the accessions of the Eurasian Economic Union to the WTO,

following the WTO memberships of the Russian Federation in 2012 and

Kazakhstan in 2015. The Working

Party reviewed the Elements of a Draft Report of the Working Party, in

conjunct ion with supporting documentation. Belarus reported the

conclusion of 10 bilateral market access agreements as well as the on-

going negotiations with interested Members.

As next steps, Members were invited to submit written questions and

comments by 21 February; and

Belarus was requested to provide replies to Members' questions as well

as additional negotiating inputs. The next cycle of Working Party

meetings, including a plurilateral meeting on agriculture, will be

scheduled once the negotiating

inputs are submitted by Belarus. On the margins of the Working Party

meeting, the delegation of Belarus met with Director-General Roberto

Azevêdo, and held meetings with the

Working Party Chairperson and the Accession Team. Background Information on the

Accession of Belarus

Belarus applied to join the GATT on

23 September 1993. The GATT accession Working Party was

established on 27 October1993 and was transformed into a WTO

Accession Working Party in1995. The

Memorandum on the Foreign Trade Regime was submitted on 16

January1996. Before its 8th

meeting on 24 January 2017, the Working

Party met seven times between 1997 and 2005, and then held its meetings

in informal mode between 2005 and 2013.

Director-General Roberto Azevêdo meeting with H.E. Mr. Andrei Yeudachenka, First

Deputy Foreign Minister of Belarus - Geneva, 23 January 2017

Accession of Belarus—8th Working Party Meeting Geneva, 24 January 2017

Delegation of Belarus Geneva, 24 January 2017

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WTO ACCESSIONS NEWSLETTER

Accession of Sudan Third meeting of the Working Party

The Working Party on the Accession

of Sudan held its 3rd meeting on 31 January 2017. The meeting, which

was held 13 years after its previous

formal meeting, was chaired by Mr. Ryosuke Kuwana (Japan). The 15-

member delegation of Sudan was led by H.E. Mr. Osman Ahmed Fadul

Wash, Minister of International Cooperation, and included Chief

National Negotiator Dr. Hassan

Ahmed Taha Ahmed, senior government officials from various

ministries, and representatives from parliament and the private sector.

Minister Wash stated that Sudan had

undertaken economic reforms, and WTO accession had been an integral

part of its reform process. He assured

the Working Party of the high-level pol it ica l commitment of his

Government to accede to the WTO, and in part i cu la r , i t s f i rm

determination to do so by the 11th WTO Ministerial Conference. He

called on Members to accelerate the

negotiations in consideration of Sudan's status as a least developed

country (LDC).

WTO Members welcomed the full resumption of Sudan's accession

process. Several Members pledged

to provide support the accession of Sudan; in particular, Japan made an

announcement of a $100,000 donation, while China reported on its

support through the China Program. The Working Party examined Sudan's

foreign trade regime on the basis of the updated Memorandum on the

Foreign Trade Regime and its

su pport ing docu ment s , and

rev iewed Sudan's legis lat ive

developments on the basis of the updated Legislative Action Plan.

Sudan reported that it had

concluded bilateral market access negotiations with 2 Members.

Regarding next steps, Members were

invited to submit written questions and comments by 28 February at the

latest; and Sudan was requested to

provide replies to Members' questions as well as additional

negotiating inputs. The Secretariat was requested to explore the base

for updating the 2004 Factual Summary of Points Raised, based on

the inputs to be provided by Sudan.

On the margins of the Working Party

meeting, the delegation of Sudan met with Director-General Roberto

Azevêdo, and held meetings with the Working Party Chairperson and the

Secretariat. Several bilateral meetings were also held with interested

Members during the delegation's

stay in Geneva from 30 January to 3 February.

Background Information on the

Accession of Sudan

Sudan applied to join the WTO on 11

October 1994. The Working Party on the Accession of Sudan was

established on 25 October 1994. The Memorandum of the Foreign

Trade Regime was circulated on 26 January 1999. The Working Party

held its 1st and 2

nd meetings in 2003

and 2004. After a long period of

inactivity, the delegation of Sudan

led by H.E Dr. Kamal Hassan Ali, former Minister of International

Cooperation, addressed the General

Council in 27 July 2016, seeking Members' support for the re-

activation of Sudan's accession process.

Director-General Roberto Azevêdo and H.E. Mr. Osman Ahmed Fadul Wash,

Minister of International Co-operation - Geneva, 1 February 2017

Accession of Sudan—Pre-meeting with Mr. Ryosuke Kuwana,

Chairperson of the Working Party - Geneva, 30 January 2017

Accession of Sudan—3rd Working Party Meeting Geneva, 31 January 2017

Accession of Sudan—De-briefing meeting with Mr. Ryosuke Kuwana and the Secretariat

Geneva, 3 February 2017

Accession Working Parties: Strategic Focus

Comoros: Following the 1st Working

Party meeting held on 2 December 2016, Comoros submitted a

substantive set of documents,

including replies to Members' questions, a revised legislative action

plan and an updated TRIPS checklist. On the basis of these inputs, the

Secretariat is preparing a Factual Summary of Points Raised. This

document will provide the basis for

discussions at the 2nd Working Party Meeting, which is tentatively

scheduled for April 2017.

Lebanon: Beirut has been in regular

contact with the Secretariat since last December regarding the preparation

of the negotiating inputs, which

would serve as the basis for the resumption of the Working Party. The

Secretariat is planning a technical mission to Beirut in February to work

with the technical team on the finalization of the negotiating inputs,

which include an updated version of

the draft 2009 Working Party Report. The next Working Party meeting is

tentatively scheduled in the 2nd

quarter of 2017.

Expression of Interest

South Sudan: Juba has been in

regular contact with the Secretariat since last December. The Secretariat

has been informed that South Sudan

intends to submit an application for WTO accession in the coming weeks.

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WTO ACCESSIONS NEWSLETTER

Technical Assistance and Outreach Activities

Experience-Sharing Dialogue on LDC

Accessions with H.E Mr. Axel Addy of Liberia, 18 January, Geneva

On 18 January 2017, the Accessions Division organised a dialogue for

LDC Acceding Governments with H.E. Mr. Axel Addy, Minister of

Commerce and Industry of Liberia and former Chief Negotiator for the

WTO accession.

The purpose of the dialogue was to

foster an informal experience-sharing among LDC representatives -

Comoros, Ethiopia, Sudan and Timor-Leste - on best practices in LDC

accessions, building on the accession experience of Liberia.

Minister Addy provided substantive insights on the key elements that

enabled the fast-tracked conclusion of the accession of Liberia. The

elements included: (i) the high level political commitment from H.E.

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf; (ii)

the appointment of a Chief

Negotiator with a ministerial rank; (iii) the establishment an inter-ministerial

taskforce on WTO accession; (iv) the

adoption of an accession roadmap/negotiating strategy by the cabinet;

(v) active engagement by the Working Party Chairperson, including

to mobilise technical assistance and donor support; and, (vi) extensive

technical support provided by the

Secretariat.

Post Accession Training Activity for Afghanistan, 23-27 January, Geneva

In partnership with the U.S Department of Commerce, the WTO

Secretariat organized a training activity on the post-accession

implementation of Afghanistan's WTO commitments from 23 to 27

January in the WTO building.

Sixteen government officials of Afghanistan participated in the

training. The delegation was led by H.E. Mr. Mohammad Qurban Haqjo,

Deputy Minister of Commerce and

Industries. The activity provided in-depth training on key aspects of

Afghanistan's access ion -speci f ic

commitments including on notification.

Upcoming Activities

Fifth China Round Table, 20-23

March, Siem Reap, Cambodia The Fifth China Round Table will take

place from 20-23 March 2017 in Siem Reap, Cambodia. The thematic focus

of this year's China Round Table is

"Best Practices on the Accessions of Least Developed Countries". This

high level event will be opened by H.E. Mr. Hun Sen, Prime Minister of

Cambodia. The Fifth China Round Table will provide a platform for

acceding LDCs and Article XII LDCs to exchange experiences and lessons

learned from their accessions.

Invitations are being sent to the acceding LDCs, Article XII LDC

Members, selected WTO Members and international organisations. [For

more information, please visit the dedicated webpage: https://

www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/

acc_e/chinaround2017_e.htm

Course on Goods Schedules for Acceding Governments, 27-31

March, Geneva

In response to the positive feedback

received on the first Training Course on Trade in Services for Acceding

Governments of last November, the Secretariat is now planning to hold a

Training Course on Goods Schedules

for WTO Accession from 27 to 31 March 2017 in Geneva. This course

will be jointly organised by the Accessions Division and the Market

Access Intelligence Section of the Economic Research and Statistics

Division. The main objective of the goods course is to provide in-depth

training on all accession-relevant

aspects of trade in goods, with a focus on scheduling techniques,

s e c t o r a l a p p r o a c h e s a n d consolidation. It will also provide a

platform for exchanging views with Goods negotiators from recently

completed accessions. In addition to

the acceding governments, a limited number of places are available to

interested Members which are engaged in bilateral market access

negotiations.

Dialogue on LDC Accessions with H.E. Mr. Axel Addy Geneva, 18 January 2017

Director-General Roberto Azevêdo and H.E. Mr. Mohammad Qurban Haqjo, Deputy

Minister for Commerce and Industries of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan

- Geneva, 27 January 2017

Informal Group on Accessions meeting - Geneva, 26 January 2017 Meeting with H.E. Mr. Pan SORASAK, Minister of

Commerce (Cambodia) Geneva, 24 January 2017

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WTO ACCESSIONS NEWSLETTER

Divisional Staff Movements

Accession Anniversaries - January

This year, the Accessions Division produced its first-ever calendar highlighting the WTO accession anniversaries of all 36 Members

that acceded to the WTO pursuant to Article XII of the Marrakesh

Agreement.

The Accessions Division would like to extend a Happy WTO

Accession Anniversary to Ecuador, Chinese Taipei, Mongolia and

Viet Nam. These 4 Members officially joined the WTO in the month of January.

Ecuador Mongolia

Chinese Taipei

Viet Nam

Ecuador is the 1st economy that joined

the WTO pursuant to Article XII of the Marrakesh Agreement and became the

129th

Member of the WTO on 21 January

1996.

Mongolia is the 3rd

economy that

joined the WTO pursuant to Article XII of the Marrakesh Agreement

and became the 131st Member of

the WTO on 29 January 1997.

Chinese Taipei is the 16th

economy

that joined the WTO pursuant to Article XII of the Marrakesh

Agreement and became the 144th

Member of the WTO on 1 January

2002 .

Viet Nam is the 22nd

economy that joined

the WTO pursuant to Article XII of the Marrakesh Agreement and became the

150th

Member of the WTO on 11 January

2007.

Upcoming anniversaries in February

Lao People's Democratic Republic:

2 February 2013

Armenia: 5 February 2003

Latvia: 10 February 1999

From the WTO Accessions Family, we wish you a prosperous 2017!

Mr. Mustapha Sekkate

As of January 2017, Mr. Mustapha Sekkate was internally transferred from the

Accessions Division to the Institute for

Training and Technical Cooperation (ITTC). Mustapha served as Working Party

Secretary on the accessions of Algeria and Comoros, and contributed to other

accession dossiers including Kazakhstan, Lebanon and Sudan. The Accessions

Division would like to thank him for his

work and dedication and wishes him the

very best at ITTC.

Ms. Danijela Gacevic

The newest member of the Accessions Division is Ms. Danijela Gacevic who

joined the WTO in January 2017 under

the newly established Young Professional Programme (YPP). Danijela worked for the

Ministry of Economy of Montenegro since September 2007, and was a member of

the Montenegrin negotiating team for WTO accession concluded in 2011. She

was also involved in the negotiations on

free trade agreements with Ukraine and EFTA countries. The Accessions Division

would like to extend a warm welcome to Danijela.

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WTO ACCESSIONS NEWSLETTER

List of WTO Accessions Working Party Chairpersons

No. Government Date Working Party

established Working Party Chairperson

1. Algeria 17 June 1987 H.E. Mr. Gustavo Miguel Vanerio Balbela (Uruguay)

2. Andorra 22 October 1997 Pending

3. Azerbaijan 16 July 1997 H.E. Dr. Walter Werner (Germany)

4. The Bahamas 18 July 2001 H.E. Mr. Wayne McCook (Jamaica)

5. Belarus 27 October 1993 H.E. Mr. Kemal Madenoğlu (Turkey)

6. Bhutan* 6 October 1999 H.E. Mr. Thomas Hajnoczi (Austria)

7. Bosnia and Herzegovina 15 July 1999 H.E. Dr. Rajmund Kiss (Hungary)

8. Comoros, Union of the* 9 October 2007 H.E. Mr. Luis Enrique Chávez Basagoitia (Peru)

9. Equatorial Guinea* 5 February 2008 Pending

10. Ethiopia* 10 February 2003 H.E. Dr. Steffen Smidt (Denmark)

11. Iran 26 May 2005 Pending

12. Iraq 13 December 2004 H.E. Mr. Omar Hilale (Morocco)

13. Lebanese Republic 14 April 1999 Mr. Jean-Paul Thuillier (France)

14. Libya 27 July 2004 Mr. Victor Echevarría Ugarte (Spain)

15. Sao Tomé and Principe* 26 May 2005 Pending

16. Serbia 15 February 2005 H.E. Mrs Marie-Claire Swärd Capra (Sweden)

17. Somalia* 7 December 2016 Pending

18. Sudan* 25 October 1994 Mr. Ryosuke Kuwana (Japan)

19. Syrian Arab Republic 4 May 2010 Pending

20. Timor-Leste* 7 December 2016 Pending

21. Uzbekistan 21 December 1994 H.E. Mr. Seokyoung Choi (Korea)

* Least-developed country (LDC)

WTO ACCESSIONS NEWSLETTER

Accession Working Parties Evolving Calendar of Accession Meetings (ECAM)

Accession Working Party Chairpersons Accession Commitments Database (ACDB)

WTO Director-General's Annual Reports on Accessions

WTO Accessions Internship - "China Programme"

Handbook on Accessions to the WTO Accession processes of Article XII Members, click here

Accession-Related Technical Assistance Activities WTO Accessions Newsletters

Accession Portal on the WTO Website (En, Fr, Es)

Contact the WTO Accessions Division Secretariat: accessions.newsletter@wto.org

Other accessions events

Page 6

Evolving Calendar of Accessions Meeting (ECAM)

Date Event

20-23 March 2017 5th China Round Table, Siem Reap, Cambodia

27-31 March 2017 Geneva-based training on goods for selected acceding governments and Members

[8-12 May 2017] [Regional Dialogue on WTO Accessions for the Greater Horn of Africa in Nairobi, Kenya]

[September 2017] [Trade Policy Forum on Central Asia and the Multilateral Trading System, Astana, Kazakhstan]

Accessions Toolbox

DATE WORKING

PARTY MEETING STATUS ROOM

2017

[April 2017] Comoros 2nd

Meeting of the Working Party on the

Accession of Comoros Convening Notice pending TBC

[Second Quarter 2017] Lebanon 18th Meeting of the Working Party on

the Accession of the Lebanese Republic Convening Notice pending TBC

[Second Quarter 2017] Sudan 4th

Meeting of the Working Party on the

Accession of Sudan Convening Notice pending TBC

[1st half of 2017] Belarus 9th

Meeting of the Working Party on the

Accession of Belarus Convening Notice pending TBC

[1st half of 2017] Algeria 13th Meeting of the Working Party on

the Accession of Algeria Convening Notice pending TBC

[1st half of 2017] Azerbaijan 14th Meeting of the Working Party on

the Accession of Azerbaijan Convening Notice pending TBC

[1st half of 2017] Bosnia and

Herzegovina

13th Meeting of the Working Party on

the Accession of Bosnia and

Herzegovina (AM) Convening Notice pending TBC