BRICS Ministers Demand more from Doha
The
BRICS Trade and Economic Ministers reviewed the global economic situation and
noted with concern the continuing difficulty faced by many countries and underscored
the need for greater policy coordination to ensure a stable and thriving global
economy. In such a scenario, the Ministers emphasi-sed
the need to resist protectionist tendencies and to promote international trade
as an engine of economic growth and development, while respecting the WTO
consistent policy space available to developing countries to pursue their
legitimate objectives of growth, development and stability. The Ministers noted
that subsidies in agriculture by some developed countries continue to distort
trade and undermine the food security and development prospects of developing
countries particularly LDCs, and urge that such form of protectionism be
shunned.
The
Ministers of BRICS WTO members expressed deep concern at the current impasse in
the Doha Development Round, and reiterated that they remain fully committed to
an early conclusion of the negotiations based on the progress made in the Round
since 2001. Towards this end, the Ministers expressed their willingness to explore
outcomes in specific areas where progress is possible while preserving the
centrality of development in the Doha mandate and within the overall framework
of the single undertaking. It is of utmost importance that negotiations on any
components of the Doha Round are consistent with the existing mandates. The
Ministers did not support any plurilateral
initiatives that go against the fundamental principles of transparency,
inclusiveness and multilateralism. The Minister believed that such initiatives
not only distract Members from striving for a collective outcome but also fail
to address the development deficit inherited from previous negotiating rounds
The Ministers reiterated that they attach great importance to
an open and rule-based multilateral trading system, and in this context, they
underlined the central role of the WTO in safeguarding and strengthening the
rules with specific reference to the concerns of developing countries and in
particular LDCs.
The Ministers welcomed Russia’s determination to participate
in a constructive and active manner in the DDA negotiations once full
membership is attained. A balanced DDA outcome will strengthen and further
develop the multilateral trading system.
BRICS Ministers look forward to UNCTAD XIII next month in
Doha. They reaffirmed the important role of UNCTAD in the area of trade,
development and interrelated issues and believe that its mandate should be
maintained and strengthened.
The
Ministers took note of the discussions in the Contact Group on Economic and
Trade Issues (CGETI) on Russia’s proposal for setting up BRICS Projects
Platforms/ technology pool for joint projects development.
The Ministers directed their officials to explore ways and
means for enhancing and furthering intra-BRICS cooperation especially in the
areas of customs cooperation, exchange of experiences in trade facilitation,
investment promotion SME cooperation and trade data collection and
harmonisation, e-commerce cooperation and intellectual property rights
cooperation.
Ministers also agreed that officials should work together to
ensure that BRICS members enhance their trade, including of higher value added
manufactured products, to support industrialisation and employment in their
countries.