17/12/05 HONG KONG,(Bernama) -- The 150- member countries of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) should be prepared to compromise and move from dogmatic positions in order to meet the expectations of global economy stakeholders, said Minister of International Trade and Industry, Datuk Seri Rafidah Aziz.

She said that since the agreement to the Doha Development Agenda way back in 2001, much work has been done to lay the groundwork for achieving consensus in Hong Kong, on the modalities for negotiations of the Round.

However, stock-takes of such work indicates that while there is general agreement on the basic principles such as special and differential treatment for developing countries, and less than full reciprocity in subscribing to particular obligations, there are still divergences in positions pertaining to the details, she said.

These details are leading to contentious debates, and non-convergence, unless members are prepared to compromise and move from dogmatic positions, she said in a statement released here.

"Often we talk of the so-called group of "demandeurs" of particular offers from trading partners, giving rise to the perception that there are those which have to oblige and to give."

However, it must be emphasised that the process of market opening by any country, will involve both costs and benefits, she said,

Meanwhile, a revised ministerial draft is expected to be out today.

The six-day meeting is scheduled to end tomorrow but so far little progress has been made with the EU and US having different views on reducing domestic agriculture subsidies and an aid package for less developed countries.

Rafidah said that an analysis of such costs and benefits by the country, will show what sacrifices, such as in revenue loss, is involved, as compared to benefits to be derived from market liberalisation.

She said that it would be logical to expect that every country would want to ensure that they gain substantially more than what they lose, including ensuring that there is minimal injury to domestic industry and market players.

Therefore, there must be that appreciation of maximum level of tolerance to make sacrifices and to extract only what any country can offer, based upon its level of development and capacity to open any sector of its market, she said.

"Certainly, every WTO Member is a demandeur, that is to say, demanding that the country wants to access into the markets of other members. However, there is that expectation, by the others, for that country's domestic market to also be liberalised, whether in goods or services," Rafidah said.

In reality, many countries have sought, and are seeking market access for its exports, through bilateral, regional or plurilateral trade arrangements. There will be no let-up in such a trend, and market access has become a faster process under such arrangements.

She said that even within the current negotiations, there are already proposals to institute plurilateral arrangements for particular sectors, based on voluntarism. This can be a realistic approach to eventually opening up markets on a multilateral basis.

"The WTO will certainly continue to be relevant, and countries not yet in the fraternity, will continue to seek accession, and binding themselves to commitments of reforms and the necessary bilateral negotiations. However, the WTO processes must not be side-tracked by politics, or constrained by narrow parochialism," she said.

There are common interests involved, as well as a shared responsibility to make the multilateral trading regime function equitably, predictably, and efficiently, she said.

The WTO now has lost its early image of being a reflection of the North-South economic divide, and a forum where developed and developing countries take opposite positions.

"Today the borderless world has eroded such divides, and every WTO Member has the right to put its own issues of interest and concern on the table. Hence, the agenda on Cotton."

However, for developing and least developed countries to assume proactive roles in WTO negotiations, there must be that requisite capacity of negotiators to present their case.

In this context, capacity building measures are important and should be an on-going work programme within the WTO, she said.

As there are accession of new members into the WTO, it should be mindful of the collective responsibility to ensure that the domestic constituencies of every member can truly appreciate, and savour, the benefits and spin-offs from a rules-based global trading system, and the on-going market liberalisation, she added.

The sixth meeting here saw the accession of Saudi Arabia and Tonga.

"Agreements in WTO resulting from negotiations in any Round will entail obligations and responsibilities, which can be onerous. There maybe dislocations in domestic economies, and displacements of workers, as new competition erodes market shares."

It is to be expected that these, and other domestic concern, will be the main determinants of how far any member can go to open up the domestic market. These concerns cannot be marginalised or simply overrun by enthusiastic demands for liberalisation.

Hence, the need for the so-called "balanced" outcome which should not merely refer to the weightage to be given to developing and least developed countries, but more importantly, to the balance between genuine domestic constituency concerns and interests, and the ambition to have a freer global market place, she said.

"Malaysia, as a country with increasing export interest subscribes to such a "balanced outcome. Pragmatism should be the hallmark of our negotiations, with the wisdom to dovetail individual country interests into the overall framework of multilateral trade liberalisation," Rafidah said.

The Hong Kong Ministerial cannot be expected to result in consensus in all areas of negotiations and modalities, "But, what can, and eventually are achieved, should not be made hostages to outcomes in other areas such as agriculture, which has for decades, been a contentious issue."

Should there be the necessary spillover of any negotiation beyond Hong Kong, then the timeframe for eventual conclusion must be short, so as to be credible and to avoid unnecessary delays in the eventual negotiations of the Doha Development Round.

The target to conclude the Doha Round is by end next year, whereby it has to be submitted to the US Trade Promotions Authority before its act expires.

-- BERNAMA