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11.12.2020 |
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WTO
Members Discuss Farm Support Measures, Transparency of Policies in Response
to COVID-19 |
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WTO |
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WTO Members Discuss Farm Support Measures, Transparency
of Policies in Response to COVID-19
At a meeting of the Committee on Agriculture on 30 November-1
December, WTO members looked back at 25 years of the Agreement on Agriculture and
discussed ways to further enhance the Committee’s monitoring of the implementation
of the Agreement. Members also reviewed recent farm policies, including measures
in response to COVID-19. The importance of transparency of members’ farm policies
figured prominently in the discussions.
In addition,
the Committee undertook two annual exercises: the follow-up to the Marrakech Ministerial
Decision on Measures Concerning the Possible Negative Effects of the
Reform Programme on Least-Developed and Net Food-Importing
Developing Countries (the NFIDC Decision) and the annual consultation on members'
participation in the growth of world trade in agricultural products within the framework
of the commitments on export subsidies under the Agreement on Agriculture.
The annual
monitoring exercise on the NFIDC Decision and discussions on measures taken in response
to COVID-19 also benefitted from the participation of international organizations
that are observers to the Committee.
The Committee
continued to examine members' agriculture support policies, including those related
directly or indirectly to exports.
Australia's
support measures, including the International Freight Assistance Mechanism, were
subject to questions by India. Indian export subsidies for skimmed milk powder and
Canadian dairy policies were also subject to scrutiny. Several questions were posed
to the United States in relation to the recently introduced support packages in
the form of the US Coronavirus Food Assistance Program and the Market Facilitation
Program and whether the US would remain within its WTO support limit.
Japan
continued to focus on members' export restrictions on food products. Australia questioned
China's cotton policies and sought an assurance about non-discrimination towards
Australian cotton suppliers in the Chinese market. Russia's certification of exported
products as well as some of its export-limiting measures were also examined during
the meeting.
Australia
and India posed questions to the European Union about its agricultural support and
other measures announced in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The European Union
and the United Kingdom responded to specific concerns by several members related
to their bilateral trade potentially crowding out the most-favoured
nation tariff quotas. Border measures taken by Egypt,
Nigeria, the Philippines and Sri Lanka, alleged discrimination in Cote d'Ivoire's
tax on alcohol as well as certain issues raised previously were also debated at
the meeting.
Breach
of domestic support commitments by China, Israel and Turkey were discussed. The
members concerned provided updates on the current status as well as on efforts to
return to compliance.
The specific
issues raised at the meeting and members' responses may be viewed in the Agriculture Information Management System (AG-IMS).
The Committee
continued to review the impact of COVID-19 on agriculture. The European Union, Norway
and Switzerland provided new reports or updates on their COVID-19 measures.
The WTO
Secretariat produced a compilation of members' ad hoc reports on COVID-19 related
agricultural measures (G/AG/W/209). A
similar compilation was circulated by the Ottawa Group - a group of 13 WTO members
that supports reforms to the multilateral trading system - on measures undertaken
by its members (G/AG/GEN/177).
The World
Food Programme (WFP), an observer to the Committee, urged
members to support Singapore's joint proposal (TN/AG/46/Rev.2) calling for the exemption
of the WFP's purchases of foodstuffs for non-commercial humanitarian purposes from
the application of export prohibitions or restrictions.
The monitoring
of the Bali Tariff Rate Quota
Decision was discussed. Members highlighted the need for a robust
follow-up to the recommendations
approved by the General Council in 2019 following a review of the implementation
of the decision. A solution to the outstanding issue of the scope of the underfill mechanism was also emphasized.
Tariff
rate quotas (TRQs) allow import quantities inside a quota to be charged lower duties
than those outside. The mechanism was agreed as a means of allowing exporters some
access to other countries’ markets when the normal tariffs on imports are high.
The underfill mechanism deals with cases when the fill rate of a
TRQ in any given year is below 65% or the fill rate is not reported. In the absence
of an improvement in the fill rate or a satisfactory resolution of the concern,
the importing WTO member may be obliged to change the management of its TRQs.
The Chair,
Ms Maria Escandor (the Philippines),
indicated she would commence discussions on the triennial review of the Nairobi Export Competition
Decision at the next informal meeting of the Committee in March 2021.
On the
issue of transparency and efficiency of the Committee's review process, Paraguay
presented an analysis of members' responses to questions raised over the last three
years. It suggested several ideas to improve the quality and timeliness of these
responses. Members welcomed the WTO Secretariat's efforts to maintain and continuously
upgrade the Agriculture Information
Management System (AG IMS) and made suggestions on how to further
improve it.
The Committee
carried out its annual follow-up to the Marrakesh NFIDC Decision by examining members'
policies in favour of developing countries. The review
was based principally on members' reported actions on food aid and on technical
and financial assistance in their annual notifications to the Committee. The discussions
also benefitted from a background note (G/AG/W/42/Rev.21) by
the Secretariat.
Another
Secretariat background note (G/AG/W/32/Rev.19 and
Corr.1) containing
global exports statistics on selected commodities facilitated the discussion on
members' participation in world agricultural trade within the framework of export
subsidy commitments.
Another
Secretariat background note (G/AG/W/32/Rev.19 and
Corr.1) containing global exports statistics on selected commodities facilitated
the discussion on members' participation in world agricultural trade within the
framework of export subsidy commitments.
The Secretariat
organized an information session in the margins of the November meeting to present
enhancements to the Question
and Answers function of the AG IMS. It also presented a study entitled
"The value of the Committee
on Agriculture: Mapping Q&As to trade flows".
At a
side event at the end of the meeting, the Inter American Institute for Co-operation
on Agriculture (IICA), an ad hoc observer to the Committee, presented an analysis of IICA countries'
participation in the Committee and the associated challenges.
The Committee
meeting was followed by the 2020 edition of the Agriculture Symposium on 2-3 December
whose theme was “Agricultural trade and food system transformation”. The symposium,
held in a virtual format, was also an occasion to commemorate the 25 years of the
Agreement on Agriculture. A video of the full event, the programme
and other background documents are available here.