EU positive, US still stiff on extending trade benefits to graduating LDCs

Negotiators say gaining support from the US would be difficult as Bangladesh is set to demand that the World Trade Organization (WTO) extend trade benefits to graduating Least Developed Countries (LDCs) including Bangladesh for at least six to nine years after 2026 at the 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12).

“The EU showed a soft stance in favour of the extension of trade benefits (beyond 2026), but the US is still opposing,” the senior secretary of the commerce ministry of Bangladesh, Tapan Kanti Ghosh, told the media after the first day of meetings of the ministers and LDC representatives on Sunday.

All the LDCs in their forum meeting demanded an extension for the LDC trade benefit to retrieve the economy after the Covid-19 global pandemic and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

“We have just started negotiation. We are hopeful of a positive outcome,” Ghosh added. “Bangladesh has sought the continuation of fisheries subsidies already,” he further said.

The four-day 12th Ministerial conference began in Geneva on Thursday.

The LDC countries, led by the Central African country, Chad, had submitted a petition to the WTO in October 2020 demanding the extension.

The LDC group hopes that US support can be achieved following negotiations at the ongoing MC12 meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, organised jointly by the governments of Switzerland and Kazakhstan.

According to the WTO charter, trade rules are okayed following consensus among all member countries of the organisation, meaning all members must endorse a proposal to make it effective.

Bangladesh’s Commerce Minister, Tipu Munshi, in his opening speech, urged the global leaders and WTO not to ban the export of any food item for any reason.

“The food crisis, along with economic downturns, is imminent. Small and vulnerable economies are suffering the most. We urge members not to impose export restrictions on products which are essential for our survival, particularly relevant to our food security, public health and long-term development goals in the LDCs” Munshi said in his speech delivered at the conference meeting.

“This is painful to note that to respond to the pandemic, the WTO could not deliver any results to date. Some of us could not prioritize human needs over profit maximization. I hope, during the upcoming food crisis and economic recession, the WTO shall play its role to ensure certainty and predictability,” he added.

Hafizur Rahman, director-general of WTO Cell under the commerce ministry said Bangladesh has also been negotiating for an extension of the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) up to January 2033 as Bangladesh has been enjoying the facility as a LDC.

However, with the LDC graduation, the current TRIPs facility will come to an end, and the prices of medicine will go up in the domestic markets because of the discontinuation of the patent right for generic medicine.

Food crisis and fuel price hike became a major negotiating issue at the 12 WTO ministerial conference.

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, director-general of the WTO, at a press conference also said the food crisis has become another challenge for the world because of the Russia and Ukraine war.

On fisheries subsidies, the WTO DG hinted that they may conclude at the end of the four-day negotiation as the member countries also want a ban on subsidies on marine fishing.

The MC12 is scheduled to come to an end on June 15, and Bangladesh hopes that the closing session will have a positive outcome.