WTO members promise for the first time to abolish export subsidies for agricultural products

From 15 to 19 December, the tenth WTO Ministerial Conference was held in Nairobi, Kenya. Minister of Commerce Gao Hucheng led a Chinese delegation composed of the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Agriculture, the General Administration of Customs and the WTO delegation to attend the meeting.

After negotiations, the meeting adopted the Nairobi Ministerial Declaration and nine ministerial decisions, committing to continue to push forward the Doha agenda: first, WTO members committed themselves for the first time to completely eliminate agricultural export subsidies and reached new multilateral disciplines on export financing support, cotton and international food aid; second, reached the first WTO tariff concession agreement in nearly 18 years-the "Information Technology Agreement" expansion agreement, involving US $1.3 trillion in international trade; third, effectively granting preferential treatment to least developed countries in preferential rules of origin and service exemptions; The fourth is to formally approve Afghanistan and Liberia's accession to the WTO.

During the conference, the Chinese delegation held high the banner of supporting multilateralism, adhered to the development goals, issued a Chinese voice, put forward China's plan, promoted peace, promoted talks and facilitated, and made important efforts for the conference to achieve results.

Prior to the Conference, the Round Table on LDCs 'Accession to WTO, sponsored by the Chinese Government and co-sponsored by the WTO Secretariat and the Kenyan Government, was attended by representatives from 40 LDCs. At the roundtable meeting, my delegation introduced China's WTO accession and opening-up experience, which was well received by all parties. The delegation engaged in dialogue and active coordination with the four African cotton countries to explore ways to strengthen cooperation through Aid for Trade.

Reporters learned that this year marks the 20th anniversary of the founding of the WTO, which is the first time that the WTO Ministerial Conference has been held on the African continent. More than 3000 delegates from 162 members attended.