Digest Content
- USTR Announces Conclusion of WTO Quota Negotiations with the European Union
- Talks on domestic regulation in services focus on disciplines in regional trade accords
- First meeting held to advance work on trade and environmental sustainability
- Civil society call for fishing subsidies deal welcomed by Dr Ngozi and negotiations chair
- Talks kick off for Brazil’s accession to government procurement pact
USTR Announces Conclusion of WTO Quota Negotiations with the European Union
The Acting United States Trade Representative, María Pagán, today announced the conclusion of negotiations with the European Union (EU) on adjustments to the EU’s WTO tariff rate quotas (TRQ) as a consequence of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the EU. The agreement, after two years of negotiations under WTO procedures, will determine how to split TRQ quantities between the EU-27 and the United Kingdom (UK).
“I am pleased that we have concluded these negotiations with the EU, marking an important milestone and clarifying an important trade issue related to the UK’s exit from the EU,” said Acting USTR Pagán. “Once implemented, this agreement will provide market access certainty for U.S. producers and exporters to the EU.”
The agreement will be signed and implemented after formal approval procedures are completed by the EU.
Talks on domestic regulation in services focus on disciplines in regional trade accords
Participants in the talks on domestic regulation in services explored at a virtual meeting on 4 March equivalent disciplines in regional trade agreements, such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). The disciplines under negotiation at the WTO and the RCEP regulatory disciplines share the same goal, speakers at the meeting emphasised – to lock in good regulatory practices, increase certainty and predictability for service suppliers, and thus improve economic efficiency overall.
Participants are developing disciplines concerning licensing and qualification requirements and procedures as well as technical standards for suppliers of services. A “far advanced” negotiating text capturing the progress made in 2020 was circulated by the chair, Jaime Coghi Arias of Costa Rica, in December 2020.
The chair said the talks are on track to be finalized at the Twelfth Ministerial Conference (MC12) which members recently agreed would take place the week of 29 November 2021 in Geneva.
The negotiating text contains flexibilities to help governments implement the measures domestically while remaining free to pursue their national policy objectives. The group of participants comprises 63 WTO members – both developing and developed countries – accounting for over 70 per cent of world services trade.
Participants noted that, given that more and more countries at different levels of development are adopting comparable domestic regulation disciplines in regional trade agreements, more WTO members should be encouraged to join the talks. The outcome secured within the WTO framework would be of great benefit for services suppliers across the world, they stressed. They also underlined the relevance of the disciplines in promoting economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
A total of 57 participants have submitted draft schedules indicating how the proposed disciplines would be incorporated in their WTO commitments. Kazakhstan, which will be chairing MC12, is the latest participant to have submitted its draft schedule, in January 2021.
The next meetings are scheduled for 14 April, 10 May, 10 June, and 15 July.
First meeting held to advance work on trade and environmental sustainability
The first meeting of WTO members taking part in a new initiative aimed at advancing work on trade and environmental sustainability took place virtually on 5 March. Participants outlined their views on what the priority issues for discussion should be and what concrete outcomes could be delivered at the WTO’s 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12) and beyond.
Launched last November by 53 WTO members, the Trade and Environmental Sustainability Structured Discussions (TESSD) are intended to complement the existing work of the Committee on Trade and Environment and other relevant WTO committees and bodies. The initiative is open to all WTO members and will also involve outreach to representatives from the business community, civil society, international organizations and academic institutions.
Participants suggested possible deliverables for the WTO’s next Ministerial Conference, to be held in Geneva the week of 29 November 2021. Many identified setting parameters for negotiations on liberalizing trade in environmental goods and services and agreeing on a work programme for addressing other pressing issues in the longer term as goals for MC12.
Some of the issues suggested by participants as possible topics for discussion include: trade and climate change; decarbonizing supply chains; the circular economy; biodiversity loss; fossil fuel subsidies; and border carbon adjustments measures.
Many members who took the floor also emphasized the importance of broadening participation in the discussions, ensuring the special needs of developing and least developed countries are taken into account, and avoiding duplication of efforts with the work currently taking place in the relevant WTO committees and bodies.
The next meeting of the TESSD will take place on 27-28 May.
Further information on the TESSD initiative is available here: https://www.wto.org/english/news_e/news20_e/envir_17nov20_e.htm
Civil society call for fishing subsidies deal welcomed by Dr Ngozi and negotiations chair
Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala welcomed civil society’s plea for a successful conclusion to the fisheries subsidies negotiations, illustrated through a fish ice sculpture set up by a coalition of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in front of the WTO headquarters on 1 March 2021. Dr Okonjo-Iweala visited the sculpture accompanied by the chair of the negotiations, Ambassador Santiago Wills of Colombia.
Dr Okonjo-Iweala and Ambassador Wills met with representatives of the Stop Funding Overfishing Coalition, made up of 175 NGOs, which had set up the ice installation titled “Stop the Fish Meltdown” to highlight their call for an end to harmful fishing subsidies.
The latest cluster of meetings for fisheries subsidies negotiations concluded on 19 February 2021.
Talks kick off for Brazil’s accession to government procurement pact
Brazil’s WTO Ambassador, Alexandre Parola, said that GPA accession is a priority for Brazil in view of the opportunity it provides for furthering the country’s integration into the world economy. He said that, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Brazil was able to circulate a “very ambitious” and “comprehensive” initial market access offer, which could add up to USD 145 billion per year to the procurement market covered by the GPA. As the first country in Latin America to seek accession to the GPA, Brazil was eager to prove that “the benefits of becoming a party to the GPA are accessible to all members of the WTO”.
Brazil’s Secretary of Foreign Trade, Lucas Ferraz, said that the country is seeking “a smooth, reciprocal and swift accession” and remains open for discussion with parties “to move forward as quickly as possible”.
The Committee praised Brazil for sending a very encouraging signal during the COVID-19 crisis and for submitting accession documents that constitute “a sound basis” for starting negotiations. Brazil’s accession would be a valuable development for the GPA, they said. Brazil submitted its application to join the GPA in May 2020.
In addition to the initial market offer circulated last month, Brazil submitted replies to a checklist of issues regarding its government procurement legislation in October 2020. Brazil will be negotiating its terms of participation with the GPA’s 48 WTO members. These terms are set out in each party’s schedule (available from the e-GPA portal), which defines its commitments with respect to:
- the procuring entities whose procurement processes will be open to foreign bidders;
- the goods, services and construction services open to foreign competition;
- the threshold values above which procurement activities will be open to foreign competition; and
- exceptions to the coverage.
Progress was also made at the meeting on the GPA accession of China, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, North Macedonia, and Russia. Information on these talks can be found here. The Committee also considered matters related to the implementation of the Agreement and the Committee’s agreed Work Programmes.
The GPA is a plurilateral WTO Agreement, meaning that not all WTO members are parties to it. While it is open to all WTO members, the GPA is binding only for those members that have joined it.
The Agreement aims to open up government procurement markets to foreign competition in a reciprocal manner and to the extent agreed between GPA parties. It also aims to make government procurement more transparent and to promote good governance. Reciprocal market opening assists GPA parties in purchasing goods and services that offer the best value for their money. The Agreement provides legal guarantees of non-discrimination for the goods, services and suppliers of GPA parties in covered procurement activities, which are worth an estimated USD 1.7 trillion annually. Government procurement typically accounts for about 15 per cent of developed and developing countries’ GDP.
The next meeting of the Committee on Government Procurement is scheduled to take place on 2 June.