WTO Seeks Fresh Momentum as Fisheries and Agriculture Talks Test Path to Progress

Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, speaking as chair of the committee, acknowledged that several members had raised concerns about the need to accelerate negotiations since MC14.

WTO members are looking for ways to give trade negotiations fresh momentum after six months of relatively modest activity following the 14th Ministerial Conference in Yaoundé. A meeting of the Trade Negotiations Committee on 1 October brought delegation heads together to assess the negotiating agenda, hear updates from the chairs of negotiating bodies and discuss how to move their work forward. Fisheries subsidies and agriculture offered signs of constructive engagement, with unresolved questions about how to turn that engagement into progress.

Trade Negotiations Need Renewed Attention

Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, speaking as chair of the committee, acknowledged that several members had raised concerns about the need to accelerate negotiations since MC14. She described the overall pace of activity as relatively modest and encouraged delegation heads to use the meeting to exchange views on both the current position and the steps needed to advance talks. Her message placed the WTO's negotiating role alongside its continuing reform efforts, stressing that negotiating agreements remains an essential part of the organisation's work.

Chairs from five negotiating bodies established by the committee reported on developments in their respective talks, allowing members to consider where discussions stand across the agenda. The fisheries and agriculture updates highlighted a shared interest in moving forward, though members still need to settle questions about the basis for renewed negotiations and the order in which issues should be addressed. The reports pointed to practical suggestions and continued engagement as possible foundations for further work.

Fisheries Talks Show Signs of a Possible Way Forward

Ambassador Leslie Ramsammy of Guyana, who chairs negotiations on additional provisions for the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies, said recent discussions had left him cautiously optimistic about finding a viable path forward. His assessment followed the first round of "Fish Week" negotiations held the previous week and bilateral consultations with 24 members and groups of members. He reported that members continued to express urgency about the talks, with strong support for returning as soon as possible to negotiations centred on draft text.

The outstanding question concerns which text or negotiating basis members should use when those discussions resume. Ramsammy said no member had proposed starting from scratch or abandoning the substantial work developed over many years, suggesting that the existing negotiating record remains valuable despite the lack of agreement on the next step. That position gives members a body of work to draw on as they seek a basis for tackling unresolved issues and restarting detailed discussions.

Agriculture Remains a Priority as Members Debate Next Steps

Ambassador Ali Sarfraz Hussain of Pakistan, chair of the agriculture negotiations, reported on the negotiating group's meeting of 23 September, where most members reaffirmed agriculture as a core priority. Differences persisted over whether, and how, talks should give priority to issues covered by previous decisions. The discussion showed that support for agriculture negotiations does not automatically settle the question of sequencing, leaving members to work through competing views about which matters should receive attention first.

Hussain welcomed members' constructive engagement and the numerous concrete suggestions they offered for advancing the negotiations, identifying those contributions as an encouraging part of the latest discussion. Further agriculture meetings are scheduled for 27 October and 23 November, giving members opportunities to develop their proposals and address the differences raised in September. The committee's broader discussion reflected the need to turn this willingness to engage into sustained negotiating activity across the WTO agenda.