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 As Chairman of the World Trade Organization Hong Kong Ministerial Conference, Mr. John Tsang, also the Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), had an ideal vantage point from which to summarize the achievements of the December conference.
Calling the Ministerial Declaration a significant advance, Mr. Tsang said, “To be honest, the outcome has exceeded my expectations. We have pulled a rabbit out of the hat.”
Mr. Tsang described the work of the conference as having have built a platform which will allow WTO members to complete the Doha Development Agenda by the end of 2006. The World Bank estimates that a successful conclusion to the Doha Round could add US$300 billion annually to the world economy over the next decade, and lift some 140 million of the world's poorest people out of poverty.
Mr. Tsang described the 6th Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization as a clear win for development, listing the following achievements:
1. Securing of an end date for all export subsidies in agriculture;
2. An agreement on cotton;
3. A solid result on duty-free, quota-free access for the Least Developed Countries;
4. Paving the way for full modalities in the spring in agriculture and NAMA;
5. In services, an agreed text which should help accelerate the liberalization of trade in services
“These are no mean achievements,” said Mr. Tsang. “And so long as we continue to embrace the spirit of Hong Kong, we are well on the way to achieving what we set out to do in Doha four years ago.” He added that the conference had shown that the bottom-up approach is a wise way of achieving consensus in this member-driven organization.
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