Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO), reported on the seven ongoing WTO accessions: Comoros, Timor-Leste, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ethiopia, Sudan and Uzbekistan.
«I am pleased to note that work on the accessions of Comoros and Timor-Leste could be completed in 2023,» said Okonjo-Iweala, in a recent report.
WTO Accessions
Of the ongoing accession processes, those of two Least Developed Countries, namely Comoros and Timor-Leste, were the most active and the closest to the finish line in their negotiations.
Comoros
The Comoros applied for WTO membership in March 2007. The Working Party was established in October 2007 and held its first meeting in December 2016.
It held its seventh meeting on May 19, 2022.
To date, seven bilateral market access agreements have been signed and deposited with the Secretariat.
Technical work on the recast of the draft Schedules of Goods and Services has been completed.
The draft Working Group report is in its fourth revision, circulated in October 2022. The eighth meeting of the Working Group was held on January 19, 2023.
Timor-Leste
Timor-Leste applied for WTO membership in November 2016.
The Working Party was established in December 2016 and held its first meeting in October 2020.
The third and fourth meetings of the Working Party were held on April 29 and September 30, 2022, respectively.
As of the end of December 2022, two bilateral market access agreements have been signed and deposited with the Secretariat, and bilateral negotiations are ongoing with eight interested Members. Multilateral negotiations are being conducted on the basis of the draft Working Group report circulated in August 2022.
The fifth meeting of the Working Group is scheduled for the first quarter of 2023, once the necessary documents have been submitted.
Azerbaijan
This nation applied for WTO membership in June 1997.
The Working Party was established in July 1997 and held its first meeting in 2002.
It held its 14th meeting in July 2017.
To date, four bilateral market access agreements have been signed and deposited with the Secretariat, and bilateral negotiations are ongoing with a number of interested Members.
In preparation for the 15th meeting of the Working Group, the fourth revision of the draft Working Group report was circulated in July 2021.
The 15th meeting is scheduled to take place in the first half of 2023, once a new Chair of the Working Group has been appointed.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina applied for WTO membership in May 1999.
The Working Party was established in July 1999 and held its first meeting in 2003. It held its 13th meeting in February 2018.
To date, 16 bilateral market access agreements have been signed and deposited with the Secretariat, and bilateral negotiations with one Member are pending.
Multilateral negotiations are ongoing based on the eighth revision of the draft Working Group report, circulated in October 2017. The 14th meeting of the Working Group will be convened once the pending bilateral negotiation on market access has been concluded. No progress was made on 2022.
Ethiopia
Ethiopia applied for WTO membership in January 2003.
The Working Party was established in February 2003 and held its first meeting in May 2008. At its fourth meeting in January 2020, the Working Party agreed to transform the factual summary of the issues raised into elements of a draft Working Party report.
Bilateral negotiations are ongoing with several interested Members.
The fifth meeting of the Working Group will be convened once the necessary documents for negotiations have been submitted.
No progress was made in 2022.
Sudan
Sudan applied for WTO membership in October 1994.
The Working Party was established in October 1994 and held its first meeting in 2003.
After years of stagnation, the Working Party resumed its work in January 2017 and held its fourth meeting in July 2017.
To date, three bilateral market access agreements have been signed and deposited with the Secretariat, and bilateral market access negotiations are ongoing with several interested Members.
At its fifth meeting in July 2021, the Working Group agreed to transform the factual summary of the issues raised into elements of a draft Working Group report.
The sixth meeting will be held once the necessary documents for negotiations have been submitted.
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan applied for WTO membership in December 1994.
The Working Party was established in December 1994 and held its first meeting in 2002.
After years of stagnation, the Working Party resumed its work and held its fourth meeting in July 2020 and its fifth meeting in June 2022.
Bilateral negotiations are ongoing with several interested Members. In preparation for the sixth meeting of the Working Group, a revised factual summary of the issues raised was circulated in November 2022.
