JUST before the Cancun Ministerial Conference (CMC), there was a great deal of uncertainty since a draft declaration was tabled by the Chairman of the WTO Council a few days prior to the meeting. This unapproved text that became a document personally presented by said Chairman provoked further uncertainty, creating spaces for proposals to be presented separately and which reached the Conference without any clear expectations.
This was compounded by the fact that the draft declaration shifted the focus of the Doha Work Programme (DWP) and also raised concerns on the part of developing countries over adherence to all the dates established for the adoption of the important decisions of the Ministerial Conference in Doha.
Additionally, in light of the possible problems anticipated during the Ministerial Conference, the developed countries together with the WTO Secretariat, tried to play down the significance of said problems, seeking to reassure the other countries that the Conference was merely an average review to discuss its successes or failures. A disappointment similar to that of Seattle was expected.
For Cancun, it was clear that the Development Round, the name given to the Doha Ministerial Conference and its work programme, was the main point of interest for developing countries, and without having any clear indicators that this work programme would be brought to fruition, most WTO Member Countries (developing countries) did not anticipate a positive outcome that would fulfill their own aspirations.
Agriculture was one of the principal topics, however, there was no indication that any developments would be made. The United States and the European Union presented a proposal that was incorporated by the Chairman of the WTO Council into the draft declaration as an annex. Regrettably, this annex is a different version to the text that served as the basis for the negotiations, which resulted in an inappropriate slant that veered significantly from the Doha Ministerial Declaration and consequently, it was rather difficult for developing countries to support the document of the Chairman of the Council since it conflicted with countries' interests.
The sensitivity and complexity of the agriculture issue have complicated the negotiation, and one of the hopes was that the conference could at least provide political guidelines to direct the process after Cancun. One of the most sensitive aspects is internal support measures and export subsidies.
Furthermore, developing countries must ensure the flexibility that would allow them to adequately apply policies on food safety, rural development and the fight to reduce or eradicate poverty. WTO negotiations must also consider among other aspects, the cutting of existing tariff preferences, the incorporation of disciplines on export credits and the situation concerning developing countries that are net food importers.
The negotiations agenda of the WTO focuses on other delicate issues such as market access for non-agricultural products, services with all the complications involved in negotiating the four trade modalities in this area, the so-called Singapore issues (investments, transparency in government procurement, trade facilitation and negotiations on the intellectual property agreement) and the theme of the Doha Ministerial Council on access to medicines, in addition to other topics such as the
protection of biodiversity, negotiations on the environment, and a topic that has not been developed since Doha, Special and Differential
Treatment, for which 88 different proposals were being considered before Cancun.
Together with the agriculture issue, it has been considered that they are among the most important topics for developing countries, particularly the small or more vulnerable economies.
In its consultations held during the initial days, the Conference showed no signs of consensus not being reached. The Singapore issues provoked lengthy discussions, some until 4.00 in the morning, but as time passed, serious difficulties persisted and the standstill was the main setback. To salvage the meeting, the Ministers decided that it was necessary to continue working toward achieving progress and so they indicated that they would observe the commitments made in Doha.
In the end, the officials were mandated to work with determination on the matters pending. They called upon the Chairman of the Council to Coordinate with the WTO Director General for a meeting of high-level officials to be held no later than December 15, 2003.
The Ministers pledged to maintain the levels of agreement achieved to date, which would allow an overall acceptable outcome and reaffirmed all Doha Declarations and Decisions, making a commitment to work toward applying them completely and faithfully.
Finally, agreement could not be reached on a venue or date for the next Ministerial Conference, which also leaves a very bad taste in light of the high degree of frustration resulting from the fact that there was no progress in the significant issues included on the agenda.
(Luis Noriega is the Trade Director of the Association of Caribbean States