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16 May 2022, Geneva
I would like to begin by extending my warm welcome to all participants present here today, and thank the Secretariat for the excellent organization of this event. I would like to pay my special tribute to the Director-General for attending this Dialogue again despite her busy schedule.
Last September in Montreux, thanks to the contribution from participants and speakers, the 4th South-South Dialogue achieved great success, providing a peculiar platform for members to share views on how trade can help LDCs to address vaccine inequity, drive their economic recoveries from the pandemic, and foster deeper integration into regional and global value chains. It was notably one of the few large in-person WTO activities in the past year.
Today, while the impact of Covid-19 is still lingering, food crisis and energy shock add to the global challenges. The FAO Food Price Index for March shows a 12.6 percent increase in global food price compared to February, reaching the highest level since the index was launched in 1990. Many developing and LDCs are once again trapped in the fighting against hunger and poverty, in the overlapping health crisis of Covid-19.
Global challenges need global cooperation. As Dr Ngozi pointed out in her recent speech, the nature of the problems we confront today require multilateralism and multilateral cooperation. A fragmented world would be poorly equipped to respond effectively to global challenges. Our time requires true multilateralism.
Multilateralism requires “sincere dialogue”. That is why the China Programme is always committed to enhancing communication and coordination among developing and LDCs through all its five pillars, including the pillar of South-South Dialogue.
Over the past 20 years, China spared no efforts in helping developing members, particularly LDCs to integrate into the multilateral trading system. China is one of those developing countries that rendered duty-free treatment to LDCs at the earliest time. Since 2008, the LDCs export to China has accounted for a quarter of their total export volume, making China the largest market for LDCs. We also listen very carefully to LDCs of the challenges that graduated LDCs are facing. And China’s preferential treatment to LDCs also applies to the graduated LDCs in the transitional period.
Furthermore, China Programme has helped six LDCs accede to the WTO.
Since 2017, China has strengthened cooperation with the WTO under the South-South Cooperation Assistance Fund, and carried out cooperative projects in “Aid for Trade” to help other developing members benefit from global value chains.
Last week, China announced in GC meeting that it is ready to opt out the flexibility of TRIPS waiver under discussion. And we hope this will help achieve a TRIPS waiver outcome at an earliest date, to benefit developing members and LDCs in genuine needs.
Colleagues,
It is widely acknowledged that the WTO is facing unprecedented difficulties and challenges. People all agree that we need reform. For developing members and LDCs, the long overdue “rule deficit”, or explicitly “development deficit” in reality, has been our longtime concern. Three quarters of WTO members are developing and least developed, most of whom failed to fully participate in the Uruguay Round. The launch of Doha Round once gave us hope, but the outcome is too limited to help this organization achieve its goals set in Marrakesh.
The reform must respond to the call of developing and LDCs. China welcomes LDC’s proposal on WTO reform. We appreciate the group’s insightful thoughts on the WTO reform at this crucial moment.
We share LDCs’ view in their proposal that WTO reform process should be open, inclusive and transparent. We hope that LDC’s longstanding concerns on the better use of S&DT and on their capacity to engage in the multilateral trading system could be fully taken into the process of WTO reform. It is also essential that WTO reform needs to fit the economic and political realities of the 21st century, notably by taking concrete actions to narrow the digital divide.
Of course WTO reform will never be easy and quick, but “a review of human history teaches us that the more difficult things get, the greater the need grows to stay confident. Problems are not to be afraid of, as it is one problem after another that have driven the progress of human society forward.”
Before the postponement of MC12 last year, members have agreed on the outcome document with regards to a paragraph of WTO facilitating the smooth and sustainable transition for members after graduation from the LDC category. Most members have agreed on the paragraph of WTO reform proposed by ACP Group. Moreover, members have already reached consensus on the paragraph of dispute settlement. We hope these elements could be locked properly at MC12 and serve as the basis of our work after MC12.
China remains confident that through our collective efforts, the WTO can make its rules more balanced to meet its liability of development through future reform. China is ready to work with you to blaze a trail of reform. With patience, beliefs and actions.
I look forward to today’s discussion and wish the Dialogue a great success!
Thank you.
