Plastics Dialogue Discusses Revised Draft Ministerial Statement Ahead of MC14

At a meeting on 27 January, WTO members participating in the Dialogue on Plastics Pollution and Environmentally Sustainable Plastics Trade (DPP) focused their discussions on a revised draft ministerial statement for the 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14), scheduled to take place next March in Cameroon. The statement was first introduced by the co-coordinators at a meeting in November and has since been updated following intensive consultations over the past two months with a view to finalizing the text in the lead-up to MC14.

1. Context

· Meeting held on 27 January 2026.

· Focus: revised draft ministerial statement for the 14th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC14) in Cameroon (March 2026).

· Dialogue on Plastics Pollution and Environmentally Sustainable Plastics Trade (DPP) launched in Nov 2020, now has 83 co-sponsors representing ~90% of global plastics trade.

2. Leadership

· Chaired by Barbados, China, Ecuador, Morocco, with Australia and Fiji as co-coordinators.

· Co-coordinators emphasized the importance of delivering a statement at MC14, balancing diverse member views.

3. Draft Statement

· Reflects two years of Dialogue progress.

· Sets out a high-level roadmap for work post-MC14 leading up to MC15.

• Attached: five updated technical documents covering:

o Monitoring trade flows of plastics.

o Trade-related plastics measures.

o Regulation of single-use plastics.

o Goods, services, and technologies for waste management.

o Plastic substitutes and alternatives.

4. Member Reactions

· Broad appreciation for co-coordinators’ consultations and streamlined text.

· Members stressed the Dialogue’s value in advancing trade-related solutions to plastics pollution.

· Additional suggestions and clarifications were offered to refine the statement.

5. Technical Developments

· Highlighted update of the Harmonised System (HS2028) for customs classification.

· Introduced new subheadings for single-use plastics and plastics embedded in goods.

· WTO Dialogue’s contribution explicitly recognized in shaping HS2028.

6. Next Steps

· Co-coordinators will revise the text based on feedback.

· Members urged to maintain collaboration and flexibility to achieve balanced outcomes.

· Statement aims to both mark achievements and chart future work.

Overall Takeaway

The Plastics Dialogue is preparing a ministerial statement and technical package for MC14 that consolidates progress on plastics trade and pollution solutions, while laying out a roadmap for continued work toward MC15. It underscores WTO’s growing role in tackling plastics pollution through trade policy.

[ABS News Service/30.01.2026]

The meeting was chaired by Barbados, China, Ecuador and Morocco-the co-coordinators of the DPP along with Australia and Fiji. The co-coordinators opened the meeting by reaffirming the importance of delivering a ministerial statement at MC14. They said the revised statement reflects efforts to accommodate the full spectrum of members' comments and strike a balance among diverse views. It aims not only to highlight the progress made by the Dialogue over the past two years, but also to set out a high-level roadmap for a concrete and pragmatic work plan for the period after MC14 up to the 15th Ministerial Conference.

Attached to the statement are five updated technical documents outlining the Dialogue's technical work on identifying trade-related solutions to plastics pollution. These cover the monitoring of trade flows of plastic inputs and products; the adoption of trade-related plastics measures; the regulation of single-use plastic products; goods, services and technologies for waste management; as well as plastic substitutes and alternative materials to single-use plastics.

Members expressed appreciation for the co-coordinators' continued efforts to consult with delegations and streamline the text, underscoring the importance of using the ministerial statement to both mark the Dialogue's achievements and chart the way forward. Many members stressed that the Dialogue serves as a valuable platform for advancing trade-related solutions to reduce plastics pollution. Members also offered additional suggestions and sought clarification on specific issues.

The co-coordinators acknowledged members' engagement and dedication to finalizing the statement. They said they would further reflect on the feedback received and revise the text accordingly, calling on members to maintain a spirit of collaboration and flexibility to achieve balanced outcomes acceptable to all participants.

The co-ordinators also highlighted the recently published update of the Harmonised System for customs classification (HS2028). These amendments introduced new and more granular subheadings for plastic products, including specific single-use plastics and plastics embedded in goods, and explicitly recognised the contribution of the WTO Dialogue on Plastic Pollution in supporting this process.

Launched in November 2020 by a group of WTO members, the Dialogue on Plastics Pollution currently consists of 83 co-sponsors, representing almost 90 per cent of global trade in plastics.