December 2018
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N° 90 — December 2018 Second Regional Dialogue on WTO Accessions for the Greater Horn Accessions Strategic Objectives of Africa, Djibouti, 3-6 December 2018 Domestic reform instrument Systemic update The Second Regional Dialogue on WTO Governments from the region: Comoros, Market access expansion Accessions for the Greater Horn of Africa took Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan. place in Djibouti from 3 to 6 December 2018. Equatorial Guinea also participated on a self- International cooperation for trade The event was organized by the WTO funded basis. Other participants included Secretariat in partnership with the representatives of recently acceded Members Inside this issue: Government of Djibouti and the International (Afghanistan, Montenegro and Yemen) and Trade Centre (ITC). The thematic focus of this Djibouti, development partners (The • Second Regional Dialogue on WTO Accessions for year's Regional Dialogue was "Trade for Peace Intergovernmental Authority on the Greater Horn of Africa — Djibouti, 3-6 through WTO Accessions". More than 80 Development, The Trade Policy Training December 2018 participants attended the Dialogue, including Centre in Africa, The United Nations LDC Accessions: Comoros, Ethiopia, ministers, senior officials and private sector Economic Commission for Africa and The Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan representatives from the LDC Acceding World Bank) and international experts. Non-LDC Accessions: Equatorial Guinea • 2018 Strategic Focus: Bosnia and Herzegovina • Accession Working Parties State of Play: - Algeria, Azerbaijan, The Bahamas, Belarus and Uzbekistan • Technical Assistance and Outreach activities: Accessions Annual Outreach to Regional Groups — November 2018 Upcoming activity: Seminar on WTO Accessions Rules (4-15 February 2019) • 2018 DG Annual Report on WTO Accessions • Update of Accessions Commitments Database (ACDB) • Testimony from a Young Professional: Participants of the Second Regional Dialogue on WTO Accessions for the Greater Horn of Africa Ms Feruza Nabiyeva (Kazakhstan) • WTO Accession Progress Tracker and Evolving The Dialogue was jointly opened by H.E. Mr. from the region (see next section for details Work Programme Abdoulkader Kamil Mohamed, Prime Minister on these accessions). A Report of the outcome • Accessions Anniversary Dates — Article XII of Djibouti; H.E. Mr. Hassan Houmed Ibrahim, of the Regional Dialogue has been circulated Members — December Minister Delegate for Trade, SMEs, Crafts, to WTO Members and Observers at the Tourism and Formalization of Djibouti; • Accessions Toolbox request of the Government of Djibouti in Ambassador Alan Wm. Wolff, WTO Deputy document with joint symbols: WT/ACC/34; Director-General; and Mr. Rajesh Aggarwal, WT/GC/198; WT/COMTD/LDC/27. Stay connected Chief, Trade Facilitation and Policy for Business, ITC. Their remarks acknowledged the timely nature of the Dialogue's 'Trade for Peace' theme at a time when the Greater Horn of Africa is experiencing positive social, political and economic developments. Participants engaged in a rich, informative and interactive dialogue over several sessions that spanned four days. The sessions discussed various aspects of WTO accession, including, (i) its interface with the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA); Opening ceremony by H.E. Mr. Abdoulkader Kamil (ii) the emerging best-practices in the Mohamed, Prime Minister of Djibouti and Ambassador preparatory and negotiating phases of the Alan Wm. Wolff, WTO Deputy Director-General process; (iii) the role of the Accession Chief Negotiator; and, (iii) the inclusiveness of the private sector and other stakeholders in the Ambassador Chiedu Osakwe (Nigeria), Ambassador accession process. The Regional Dialogue also Mohammad Hagjo (Afghanistan), Ms Emilia served as a platform to share recent progress Malavoloneque (Grupo Neosol), Ms Mariam Soumaré and challenges in the five on-going accessions (WTO) and Mr Michael Ferrantino (World Bank) Ambassador Kadra Ahmed Hassan, Permanent Representative of Djibouti in Geneva 1 N° 90 — December 2018 Second Regional Dialogue on WTO Accessions for the Greater Horn of Africa, Djibouti, 3-6 December 2018 (cont’d) The participants in the Regional Dialogue attended the opening ceremony of Djibouti's Second International Trade Fair and visited the Port of Djibouti, the Doraleh Multipurpose Port and the Djibouti International Free Trade Zone (DIFTZ). On the margins of the Dialogue, Ambassador Alan Wm. Wolff, WTO Deputy Director- Lecture at the University of Djibouti by Ambassador Alan Wm. Wolff General, held bilateral meetings with several representatives of the Government of Djibouti, including H.E. Mr. Ismaïl Omar For more information on the Guelleh, President of the Republic of Djibouti. Regional Dialogue, please visit At these meetings, the Djibouti authorities the dedicated website at: reaffirmed their commitment to the https://www.wto.org/english/ Multilateral Trading System and the work of Visit of Djibouti port and the International Free thewto_e/acc_e/ Trade Zone (DIFTZ) the WTO, and highlighted the importance of prog2ndreginaldialogu18_e.htm trade facilitation and e-commerce for the economy of Djibouti. LDCs Accessions Comoros: Ambassador Assoumani Youssouf on trade licensing, intellectual property rights, Sudan: H.E. Mr. Musa Mohamed Karama, Mondoha, Permanent Representative of the investment and government procurement. Minister of Industry and Trade, stressed that Union of the Comoros to the African Union, The importance of technical assistance for trade played a key role in fostering peace and reported that two customs-related, WTO building capacity was stressed. stability, and in particular, the accession to the compliant, reform measures had been rule-based multilateral trading system was successfully adopted. The next step in the considered as a catalyst for Government's accession process is the submission by efforts to undertake necessary economic Comoros of replies to questions, which will be reforms to promote the rule of law and good the basis for the Secretariat to update the governance. draft Report for the next meeting of the Working Party. Ethiopia: Mr. Geremew Ayalew Haile, Minister Counsellor at the Permanent Mission of Ethiopia to the WTO, reported that Prime Bilateral Meeting with Delegation of Somalia — Minister Abiy Mohamed had appointed Mr. Djibouti, -3 6 December 2018 Mamo Mihretu as Chief Trade Negotiator Meeting with Minister Karama — Khartoum, Sudan, 9 December 2018 responsible for WTO accession, and that the South Sudan: H.E. Mr. Agak Achuil Lual objective of the Government was to resume Manok, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Following the Regional Dialogue, the the accession process with a view to its early Trade, Industry and EAC Affairs, stated that Secretariat undertook a technical mission to conclusion, so as to support the Government's South Sudan's aspiration for joining the WTO Khartoum on 8-13 December 2018. The reform agenda. was part of its broad commitment to promote objective of the mission was to collect an open free market economy. South Sudan information to update the Factual Summary of At the invitation of the Government, the was developing its MFTR, and it planned to Points Raised so as to reflect the trade policy Secretariat will undertake a technical mission establish an Inter-Ministerial Steering developments of 2018. During the mission, to Addis Ababa, from 14 to 18 of January Committee and to appoint a Chief Negotiator the Secretariat met with Minister Karama and 2019. The objective of the mission is to shortly. the Technical Committee, which included update the full set of the accession representatives of the line-ministries involved documentation, including the Factual Prior to the Regional Dialogue, the WTO in the accession process. The agreed next Summary of Points Raised, required for the Secretariat undertook a mission to Juba, on steps at the end of the mission included, inter resumption of the Working Party in the spring 28-30 November 2018. The mission's main alia, the circulation of the updated Factual of 2019. objective was to review the work undertaken Summary and other negotiating inputs in on the draft MFTR, which will be finalised for January 2019. On 12 December, Ambassador Morten circulation to WTO members before the end Jespersen (Denmark) was appointed by the of December. General Council as Chairperson of the Working Party on the Accession of Ethiopia. Somalia: H.E. Mr. Dahir Adan Abdullah, State Minister for Commerce and Industry, noted that his Government was currently finalizing the Memorandum on the Foreign Trade Technical Assistance mission to Khartoum— Regime (MFTR). Moreover, Somalia had been 8-13 December 2018 undertaking reforms, such as, enacting laws Bilateral Meeting with Delegation of South Sudan — On 12 December, Mr. Katsuro Nagai (Japan) Djibouti, -3 6 December 2018 was appointed by the General Council as Chairperson of the Working Party on the Accession of Sudan. 2 N° 90 — December 2018 Second Regional Dialogue on WTO Accessions for the Greater Horn of Africa, Djibouti, 3-6 December 2018 (cont’d) Non-LDCs Accessions Equatorial Guinea: A 3-person delegation, led by Mr. Expedito Genaro Osâ Nsomboro Okomo, Focal Point of the Enhanced Integrated Framework, participated in the Second Regional Dialogue on a self-funded basis. Equatorial Guinea, whose Working Party was established in 2008, is currently preparing the MFTR. At the request of the Government, the Secretariat plans to undertake a technical mission to Malabo,