An international dialogue recommended allowing 100% duty-free and quota-free (DFQF) entry of products from least developed countries (LDCs) like Bangladesh to the US market for a better and equitable world.
“The developed countries should not impose restrictions on products of LDCs as they have limited export basket,” according to a set of recommendations that emerged out of the two-day meeting concluded in Dhaka on Saturday.
Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), a local think-tank, in association with a host of international organisations arranged the event to prepare a document articulating the LDC deliverables in the context of the current negotiations in Geneva and the upcoming ninth WTO ministerial conference scheduled for December 3-6 in Bali, Indonesia.
CPD Executive Director Mustafizur Rahman unveiled the recommendations at the concluding session of the dialogue, pointing out that the issue of DFQF access of LDC products to the development countries, particularly the United States, remained unsettled for long.
Ninety seven percent of LDC products already enjoy the DFQF in the US, but most of the potential items of the LDCs fall in the rest 3% and not enjoy the DFQF status. For instance, the apparel items of Bangladesh, which is now passing a GSP suspension regime, are not provided with the status.
With 15 overseas participants, including WTO negotiators and ambassadors, officials from WTO secretariat, academics, trade experts and activists, attended the dialogue which was shortened to two days due to 60-hour strike beginning from today morning.
The recommendation covered four areas trade facilitation, agriculture issues, including food security and cotton, DFQF access for the LDCs, and LDC waiver in the services sector.
On DFQF for LDCs, the recommendations included identification of tariff lines to ‘safeguard’ interests of African LDCs and certain countries at similar level of development for time-bound exclusion from the immediate scope of DFQF implementation, stipulating a specific time line for fuller integration of the remaining excluded tariff lines (of the 3%) by the preference giving countries to achieve progressive compliance with the Hong Kong decision on DFQF, strengthening monitoring mechanism in the WTO to advance expeditious implementation of Hong Kong DFQF and measures undertaken since then.
For facilitating trade of LDCs, the recommendations included inking a possible trade facilitation agreement adequately taking into account the institutional capacity of LDCs, giving strong commitment on the provision of technical and financial support for the implementation of a trade facilitation agreement and harmonising aid for trade with other agreements in the WTO.
On agriculture issues, the recommendations included examining to devise a long-term solution for LDCs to benefit from disciplines of agriculture under WTO in the changing environment of global agriculture production, agricultural productivity and changes in climatic conditions, WTO commitment to not imposing any export restrictions to LDCs during times of food shortages, price volatility and high price when members are allowed flexibility through ‘peace clause’ or ‘due restraint’, endorsing the proposal submitted by Cotton Four on October 25, 2013 in both trade as well as development components of cotton, which calls for affirmation and implementation of the Hog Kong mandate, addressing distortions in the cotton sector including elimination of export subsidies and enhanced provision of Technical Assistance and capacity building.
About LDC waiver in the services sector, recommendations included expeditious and effective operationalisation of the LDC services waiver so as to provide meaningful preferences to LDC services and service suppliers, increased technical and financial assistance to strengthen the domestic services capacity of DLCs to take advantage of the preferences and LDCs to continue work after Bali to consolidate a collective request to identify the key sectors and modes of supply to appropriate to them.