RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONTN/CTD/W/3
24 May 2002
(02-2885)
Committee on Trade and Development
Special SessionOriginal:  English
SPECIAL AND DIFFERENTIAL TREATMENT PROVISIONS
Joint Communication from the African Group in the WTO
The following communication has been received from the above delegation on 15 May 2002.
_______________
I. INTRODUCTION
The Mandate
1. The Doha Ministerial Declaration1 put appropriate emphasis on operationalising and
strengthening special and differential treatment provisions.  In paragraph 44 of the Declaration,
Ministers noted the proposal in document WT/GC/W/442 by a group of developing countries for aFramework Agreement on Special and Differential Treatment.  Paragraph 44 of the Doha Ministerial
Declaration states:
44. We reaffirm that provisions for special and differential treatment are an
integral part of the WTO Agreements.  We note the concerns expressed regarding
their operation in addressing specific constraints faced by developing countries,
particularly least-developed countries.  In that connection, we also note that some
Members have proposed a Framework Agreement on Special and DifferentialTreatment (WT/GC/W/442).  We therefore agree that all special and differential
treatment provisions shall be reviewed w ith a view to strengthening them and making
them more precise, effective and operational.  In this connection, we endorse the
work programme on special and differential treatment set out in the Decision on
Implementation-Related Issues and Concerns.
2. This mandate is further elaborated in the Decision on Implementation Issues and Related
Concerns
2 in paragraph 12 on cross cutting issues, which states:
12.1  The Committee on Trade and Development is instructed:
(i) To identify those special and differential trea tment provisions that are already mandatory in
nature and those that are non-binding in character,  to consider the legal and practical implications
for developed and developing Members of converting special and differential treatment measures into
                                                     
1 WT/MIN(01)/DEC/1
2 WT/MIN(01)17TN/CTD/W/3
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mandatory provisions, to identify those that Members consider should be made mandatory, and to
report to the General Council with clear recommendations for a decision by July 2002;
(ii) To examine additional ways in which special and differential treatment provisions can be
made more effective, to consider ways, including improved information flows, in which developing
countries, in particular the least-developed countries, may be assisted to make best use of special anddifferential treatment provisions, and to report to the General Council with clear recommendations
for a decision by July 2002;
 and
(iii) To consider, in the context of the work programme adopted at the Fourth Session of the
Ministerial Conference, how special and differential treatment may  be incorporated into the
architecture of WTO rules.
The work of the Committee on Trade and Development in this regard shall take fully into
consideration previous work undertaken as noted in WT/COMTD/W/77/Rev.1.  It will also be without
prejudice to work in respect of implementation of WTO Agreements in the General Council and in
other councils and committees.
3. The case for special and differential treatment in the WTO has long been recognised and a
series of provisions in the agreements attest to this.  Credit must be given to Members and the WTOas an institution in giving due priority to spec ial and differential treatment and taking appropriate
measures within their respective scope.  But on the whole the operationalisation, implementation or
compliance with these provisions has been less than fully satisfactory and this is the reason the
Ministers mandated further work in the Committee on Trade and Development.  The Note prepared
by the Secretariat in document WT/COMTD/W/77/Rev.1 is a comprehensive exploration of thespecial and differential treatment provisions in the WTO Agreement and how Members and the WTO
as an institution have implemented them.  Having considered the Note, the conclusion agreed by the
Ministers is that further work should be done to operationalise and strengthen the provisions.
Meaning and Forms of Special and Differential Treatment
4. Special and Differential Treatment is a core principle of the WTO framework, and is to be
distinguished from that generally available under the WTO Agreements to other Members.  It is
accorded exclusively to developing and least developed countries.
5. Provisions in the WTO Agreements show the variety of forms that special and differential
treatment takes.  Some of these forms include:
(a) Specific regimes or provisions for the right of developing country governments to
assist their domestic industries, such as Article XVIII of GATT 1994.
(b) Fast track and flexible regimes or procedures in enforcement of the rights of or
against developing countries and in requirements on developing countries, such as the
Decisions referred to in the DSU for procedures where developing and least
developed countries are involved in the disputes, or the special procedures under the
Subsidies and Antidumping Agreements.
(c) Waiver for collective efforts among developing countries to accord preferential
treatment to one another; usually done in the context of broad programmes for
economic cooperation and economic development.TN/CTD/W/3
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(d) Provision for special measures by developed countries to provide preferential market
access for products from developing countries.  Part IV of GATT 1994 and the
Enabling Clause place emphasis on access to developed country markets for products
of export interest to developing countries under provisions that could be made more
binding.
(e) Inclusion in the objectives and principles of the agreements in terms of targets to be
achieved. Article IV of GATS envisages that developing countries need to have an
equitable share in services trade and developed countries should assist them to take
up available opportunities.  Generally, the principles of the WTO as stated in the
preamble to the WTO Agreement include the recognition of the need for positive
efforts to ensure that developing and least-developed countries secure a share in the
growth of international trade commens urate with their development needs.
(f) Inclusion in the agreements of provisions requiring developing and least-developed
countries to undertake only such commitments or obligations as are consistent with
their development needs and within their means, such as Part IV of GATT 1994 and
the Decision on Measures in Fav our of Least-Developed Countries.
(g) Provisions for technical assistance to developing and least-developed countries.
(h) Provisions for transition periods for developing and least-developed countries.
(i) Binding obligations to address important needs.  Article 66.2 of the TRIPS
Agreement provides for technology transfer to least-developed countries in
mandatory terms or under binding provisions.
6. Of these various forms of special and differential treatment, some have tended to be more
effective or meaningful than others but the entire scheme of the provisions and the present approach
need fundamental improvement.
(a) Provisions on special regimes according developing and least-developed country
governments certain rights notwithstanding the general provisions of agreements (that
is, (a) to (c) above), have been meaningful to the extent that some governments havebeen able to resort to them. But it has been common for governments to be prevailed
upon to give up rights available or policy flexibility under the WTO Agreements.  In
this regard, coherence in global economic policy making and implementation would
be necessary to ensure the use of the flexibility allowed developing and least-
developed countries.
(b) Inclusion in the objectives and principles of the WTO agreements as well as appeals
to developed countries to accord special and differential treatment to developing andleast-developed countries ((d) to (g) above) has served to demonstrate the need for
operationalising the provisions, for they have remained largely unimplemented. In
this regard, the provisions on objectives and principles could be made more directive
in nature, and supported by clear and precise obligations and rights to operationalise
them.
(c) Transition periods ((h) above) for developing and least developed countries have on
the whole been inadequate.  It is likely th at this inadequacy has resulted from the
subjective or rather arbitrary manner the length of the transition periods has been
determined and the lack of proper programmes designed to phase in transition
periods.  In this regard, transition periods should be determined in an objectiveTN/CTD/W/3
Page 4
manner that relates to the actual process of adjustment and development to social
economic levels that ensure equitable and beneficial participation in the relevant
agreements; and the right to obtain extensions of transition periods could be made
straightforward and unconditional for developing and least developed countries that
would need such extensions.
(d) Provision for mandatory obligations ((i) above) has been useful in demonstrating that
special and differential treatment can take the form of binding obligations that can be
operationalised in accordance with established practice in the WTO that however can
be improved upon for instance through better reporting and monitoring procedures.
In this regard, cross-cutting reporting and enforcement procedures are important if
they come with the necessary authority to require compliance with recommendations.
Action to Take
7. The various categories of special and differential treatment suggest various ways to improve
the provisions on the basis both of the experience with the provisions and of the need for better ways
to achieve the objectives of the WTO as an institution boldly aiming to improve living conditions of
people particularly in developing and least-developed countries.  Special regimes on rights ofdeveloping and least-developed country governments ne ed to be fully recognised and respected by all
Members in their policies within the framework of the WTO and other organisations.  To this end,
there is need to clarify and highlight the various provisions giving developing and least-developed
country governments certain rights relating to sp ecial and differential treatment within the WTO
framework.  The non-binding provisions need to be made binding in order to provide some means andimprove prospects for securing their implementation.  The mandatory obligations need to be
highlighted so that they can be implemented i mmediately and unconditionally.  The approach to
technical assistance and transition periods should be re-considered to ensure that the objectives are
satisfactorily achieved.  Transition periods should primarily function as adjustment periods along well
defined and adequately funded schedules or phases.  In addition to making the special and differentialtreatment provisions binding, it is important that they are effectively operationalised.  This requires an
exercise to be undertaken and a decision taken on the details and means of making the provisions
stronger, more precise, more effective and more operational through a process of refining the
language of the provisions, detailing out some elements of operationalising the provisions, and
setting-up appropriate institutions and mechanisms for monitoring and enforcement.
8. In this exercise, it is well to bear in mind that these special and differential treatment
provisions were already negotiated in the adoption of existing agreements.  They were included aspart of the settlements negotiated and arrived at, with the clear understanding that the balance they
aimed to achieve was necessary and constituted benefits for developing and least-developed countries
within the meaning of the WTO Agreement.  This entitled developing and least-developed countries
to legitimate expectations that these obligations relating to special and differential treatment would be
faithfully implemented and complied with.  Impeding the attainment of these benefits relating tospecial and differential treatment is an issue for the WTO as an institution to resolve and to do so
efficaciously.
9. Two ways in which special and differential treatment provisions could be made mandatory or
confirmed to be mandatory are:
(a) Through amendment to the language used in special and differential treatment
provisions of the Agreement in question;  and/orTN/CTD/W/3
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(b) Through authoritative interpretation of special and differential treatment provisions of
the WTO Agreements, under Article IX:2 of the WTO Agreement and the Doha
mandate on special and differential treatment.
10. There is need for amendment of the special and differential treatment provisions of WTO
Agreements to convert non-mandatory provisions into mandatory ones.  In essence, amendment of therelevant provisions would involve replacing the term s "should" or "may" with the term "shall", while
leaving the rest of the provisions mostly unchanged.  However, in some cases, amendments to
strengthen the provisions could require re-writing the language of the provisions or deletions of some
phrases therein.
11. Authoritative interpretation of the special and differential treatment provisions of WTO
Agreements would convert non-mandatory provisions into mandatory ones, especially where their
meaning despite the wording indicates that they are of a directive or binding nature, through adopting
interpretations to be applied to specific provisions.  The interpretations would define the meaning to
be put to specific provisions and would become part  and parcel of the provisions.  Since the General
Council has the authority to adopt authoritative interpretations of the provisions of a WTO agreement,
a draft decision(s) to adopt such interpretations could be adopted by the Committee on Trade and
Development, and forwarded to the General Council (through the CTG) in order to formalise thechange.
12. Article IX:2 of the WTO Agreement requires that adoption of authoritative interpretations
should not be used in a manner that undermines the provisions on amendment of the WTO
Agreement.  In this regard, it is important to point out that the Ministerial Declaration and the
Decision contain the mandate to re-write or rephrase the provisions for purposes of making themstronger, more precise, more effective and operational.
II. CROSS CUTTING ISSUES
13. The operationalisation of special and differential treatment provisions requires:
(a) Clear legal rights to enforce the provisions as binding obligations;
(b) Provisions setting out the details and mechanisms for implementing and complying
with the binding provisions;
(c) Appropriate institutions to determine issues concerning implementation and
compliance with the obligations, and to make authoritative recommendations that
Members are to comply with;  it being unde rstood that these institutions include the
Committee on Trade and Development and its subsidiary bodies as well as the
Dispute Settlement Body and the General Council;
(d) Capacity to, successfully initiate and pursue actions in the institutions, obtain
recommendations, and enforce compliance with the recommendations;
(e) Monitoring mechanisms to follow up implementation and compliance with relevant
provisions, regularly produce reports on developments, and undertake sensitisation
activities to promote implementation and compliance with the obligations;  and
(f) Regular evaluation in the Committee on Trade and Development, the General
Council, and the Ministerial Conference, with a view to ensuring the attainment of the
objectives and compliance with the principles of special and differential treatment.TN/CTD/W/3
Page 6
14. Accordingly, Members should adopt a decision(s) in accordance with the mandate under
paragraph 44 of the Declaration and paragraph 12.1 of the Decision on Implementation Issues and
Related Concerns adopted by Members at the Fourth Session of the Ministerial Conference, as
proposed in this document.
Principles
15. Special and differential treatment as long recognised in GATT and the WTO, is a right for
developing and least developed country Members.  Developed country Members and the WTO as an
institution, by itself or in collaboration with other organisations, are to accord special and differential
treatment to developing and least developed country Members in view of their development needs and
resource constraints.
16. The development needs of developing and least-developed country Members require special
domestic policies, measures and laws as well as direct assistance for enhanced access to global and
regional markets, domestic implementation of obligations, administrative and continuous compliance
with obligations, and enforcement of  their rights under the agreements.  Resource constraints in the
form of human, financial, and institutional shortfalls require technical, financial and various types of
assistance to supplement domestic resources and establish or strengthen domestic institutions.
17. The operation of special and differential treatment provisions needs to be improved upon
against the background of current provisions, enhancing their strengths and redressing their
weaknesses.  The mandatory provisions should be implemented immediately and unconditionally.
The best endeavour provisions should be understood to be binding and enforceable, and likewise any
special and differential treatment provisions should  be included in future agreements with the full
knowledge that they will be clearly enforceable.  The decisions(s) adopted in this regard and all
provisions for special and differential treatment wi ll be among the covered agreements so that the
Dispute Settlement Body can enforce them under the Dispute Settlement Understanding.
Objectives
18. Special and differential treatment is an integral part of the WTO Agreement, including the
Multilateral Trade Agreements.  Accordingly, it is provided for and shall be faithfully operationalised
in order to improve living conditions in the developing and least-developed country Members and to
effectively secure their equitable and beneficial participation in the multilateral trading system, fully
gaining from development opportunities opened up.  Special consideration shall always be given to
the level of development of the Members.
19. Special and differential treatment shall aim, to address and resolve the imbalances between
developed country Members and developing and least developed country Members, to ensure equity
in the totality of obligations and rights, to support developing and least developed country Members
to undertake adjustments that are necessary for them  to meaningfully benefit from the agreements, to
effectively ensure the success of export and production diversification programmes of developing and
least developed country Members, and to secure for them market access in the multilateral tradingsystem that will facilitate their rapid economic development;
20. Assistance to developing and least developed country Members shall be coherent with their
broad development needs.  In this regard, it shall be part of and fit within the comprehensive solutions
and programmes adopted by those Members;  and it shall not be piecemeal, isolated nor inconsistent
with their long term programmes and needs.  Assi stance shall provide short and long term solutions to
the problems faced by developing and least developed Members to implement and comply with their
obligations and exercise their rights.TN/CTD/W/3
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Capacity building
21. In addition to solving the problems of implementation and compliance, developing countries'
capacity to negotiate should also be improved.  Capacity refers to capacity to implement and comply
with the agreement, capacity to negotiate on any is sues arising from but particularly those relating to
the operation and improvement of the agreement, capacity for domestic industries to compete in the
multilateral trading system, and capacity for domestic institutions to protect the public interest in areas
directly related to the agreement.
22. Binding commitments to be operationalised under clearly scheduled programmes and
activities necessary for any social economic, institutional, legal and other adjustments in favour of
developing and least-developed country Members to ensure they have all the requisite capacity shall
be a condition precedent for the adoption of any agreements relating to the World Trade Organisation.
Transition periods
23. Transition periods shall be designed to provide developing and least-developed country
Members with a period of time that is adequate,
(a) To carry out institutional changes and adjustments that may be necessary for them to
address their supply side and other resource constraints;
(b) To attain a level of socio-economic development commensurate with obligations
under and that enables them to beneficially and equitably participate in the
agreements; and
(c) To attain socio-economic growth and development rates that will sustainably ensure
continuous improvement in living conditions.
24. Accordingly,
(a) Transition periods shall not be arbitrarily set or inadequate.  They shall be based on
objective criteria, and a preponderance of studies acceptable to all Members that
show undoubted projections and conclusions, that demonstrate under a clear scheduleof progress the attainment of the required capacity and of socio-economic
development levels for purposes of the agreements;  and
(b) Developing and least-developed country Members shall always have a right to extend
transition periods provided that they shall notify the World Trade Organisation and
when requested commence consultations in the relevant councils and committees.
Special and differential treatment obligations
25. (a) Provisions for special and differential treatment shall always be implemented and
complied with immediately and unconditionally.
(b) This Decision shall be included in the cove red agreements within the meaning of the
Dispute Settlement Understanding.
(c) Without prejudice to the rights of Members to enforce special and differential
treatment in accordance with the Dispute Settlement Understanding, any Member
who considers that any provision for special and differential treatment is unlikely to
be or is not being implemented or complied with, may notify a monitoring body ofTN/CTD/W/3
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the Committee on Trade and Development, which shall make recommendations to
Members.
(d) Notwithstanding any provision in the Agreements of the World Trade Organization,
special and differential treatment shall be included in agreements with the clear
understanding and on the basis that they shall be fully binding on Members andenforceable by developing and least developed country Members.
(e) In any Agreements that have objectives and principles of a special and differential
treatment nature, the substantive provisions shall detail out in binding obligations the
operationalisation of those objectives and principles.
(f) Special and differential treatment commitments shall be inscribed in schedules of
commitments or concessions of Members.  A Member considering that any
commitment it makes of a special and differential treatment nature should not beinscribed in its schedule of commitments or concessions shall first obtain the consent
of other Members in the General Council in order for that Member to be excluded
from the requirement under this paragraph to inscribe special and differential
treatment commitments in Members’ schedules of commitments or concessions.
Monitoring of Implementation and Compliance
26. (a) A Special and Differential Treatment Monitoring Body shall be established under the
Committee on Trade and Development, to monitor the implementation of and
compliance with special and differential treatment provisions in accordance with this
Decision and all relevant Agreements of the WTO, facilitate consultations andco-operation among Members, and advise the Committee on Trade and Development.
(b) The Committee on Trade and Development shall keep special and differential
treatment provisions under review and shall make recommendations on their
implementation.
27. The Annexes shall be an integral part of this Decision, and the Committee on Trade and
Development may recommend to the General Council modifications as necessary.
Training Programmes
28. The planning and provision of technical and financial assistance including the formulation of
training programmes such as seminars and workshops, shall be in accordance with and meet the
criteria set out in Annexes I and II respectively to this Agreement.
Mandatory Provisions
29. The provisions set out in Annex III to this Decision are mandatory obligations, which shall be
implemented immediately and unconditionally.  Developed country Members shall notify the laws,
measures and policies they adopt in this regard, and report semi-annually on how they are
implementing them to the Committee on Trade and Development.  Where the obligations fall upon
developed country Members individually or collectiv ely, the Dispute Settlement Understanding shall
govern the enforcement procedures.TN/CTD/W/3
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Currently Non-Mandatory Provisions
30. (a) The provisions set out in the Annex IV to this Decision shall be binding and
enforceable obligations in favour of developing and least developed country
Members that, accordingly, may request the Special and Differential TreatmentMonitoring Body of the Committee on Trade and Development to make
recommendations to secure compliance, including through action for enforcement in
accordance with the Dispute Settlement Understanding.  Where the obligations fall
upon developed country Members individually or collectively, the Dispute Settlement
Understanding shall govern the enforcement procedures.
(b) Developed country Members shall adopt laws, measures and policies to implement
the provisions in Annex IV, and shall notify them and report semi-annually to the
Committee on Trade and Development on how they are implementing them.
Coherence in International Organisations
31. (a) The provisions on increasing trade opportunities and safeguarding the interests of
developing and least developed country Members, in Annexes III and IV to this
Decision, shall be implemented and operationalised individually and collectively by
the Members and by the WTO through the Secretariat and co-operating institutions
particularly UNCTAD, on the basis of objective criteria that shall be designed toclearly assist the evaluation of progress a nd the extent of attainment of the goals of
increasing trade opportunities and safeguarding the interests of developing and least
developed country Members.
(b) The WTO shall, in collaboration with other intergovernmental organisations, aim
within its mandate to facilitate the achievement of the international development
goals agreed in the Millennium Declaration.
32. Necessary resources shall be set aside specifically for implementing this Decision.
33. The provisions in Annexes III and IV to this Decision set out certain rights of developing and
least developed country Members in terms of flexibility of commitments, action and use of policy
instruments.  Members shall respect these rights in their laws, measures and policies pursued underbilateral and regional arrangements as well as within the WTO and other organisations, to promote
coherence in global policymaking and implementation.TN/CTD/W/3
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ANNEX I
Criteria for Technical and Financial Assistance
1. Training courses shall be sustainable. Sustainability shall require, inter alia,
(a) follow up training,
(b) readily useable local infrastructure for keeping current on relevant developments in
the field,  and
(c) the targeting of different knowledge levels of trainees in a manner that increasingly
equips developing and least developed c ountry Members with progressively higher
levels of skills in all relevant fields.
2. The long-term and integral components of capacity building shall include the establishment of
reference and research libraries, the introduction of relevant courses in institutions of learning at
university level, and the planned and predictable availability of opportunities for training in other
jurisdictions so as to have domestic skills conversant with regimes of other Members;
3. Training shall be relevant to identified prioriti es and effective in directly helping the redress
of bottlenecks faced by Members.  In this regard it shall be directed towards addressing,
(a) implementing obligations,
(b) effectively participating in negotiations on a consistent basis,
(c) achieving the clear and unequivocal inclusion of their concerns in instruments
adopted by WTO bodies,
(d) equitably taking up and utilising opportunities availed under the multilateral trading
system and other market access arrangements;  and
(e) achieving acceptable or high levels of domestic economic growth.
4. Capacity building shall aim for the attainment in developing country Members of projected
levels of skills required in government departments, in diplomatic missions and their line ministries,
and in negotiating teams.  The developing country Member concerned shall establish the appropriate
levels.  The levels shall relate inter alia to experience and training of individuals in relevant
disciplines and the number of personnel.
5. Transparent, inclusive, fair, and fully accepted  institutional arrangements for ensuring the
proper functioning of capacity building programmes and activities shall always be in place as a
condition precedent for the commencement of transition periods.
6. There shall be,
(a) prior assessment and costing of implementation, and of compliance and adjustment
requirements of developing and least developed country Members,
(b) the determination of ability to meet these requirements;  andTN/CTD/W/3
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(c) the prior establishment of binding rules on the subsequent execution of modalities for
meeting these requirements bearing in mind that these requirements will have
financial, human resource, and socio-economic implications.
7. Capacity building shall assist,
(a) a proper integration in developing country Members among all relevant government
departments to address the cross-cutting and multi-disciplinary nature of WTO
obligations and rights,
(b) the establishment of a functioning link between developing country capitals and their
Geneva missions, and
(c) mechanisms for co-ordinating capacity bui lding activities in Geneva and in the
capitals that come under the auspices of participating donor facilities including theWTO secretariat.
8. The success of capacity building shall not be reckoned or assessed on the basis of the quantity
of money pledged or spent; nor on the basis of the number of technical missions, or of seminars and
workshops.  In this regard, the success of capacity building shall be assessed taking into account all
the criteria in this Annex and the objectives of the WTO.
9. (a) With respect to negotiations, capacity building shall aim to provide practical material
and skills on how to negotiate and on issues for consideration, rather than only further
introductory courses and seminars designed for new or mid-career government
officials.  While the trade policy courses should continue, there shall be coursesdesigned for government officials with a good working knowledge of the WTO
system, aimed at assisting the internalisation of negotiating procedures and
mechanisms in relation to their issues and priorities as individual Members or regions
or groups of Members.
(b) In this regard and with respect to capacity building for decisions on negotiations to be
taken at the 5
th Session of the Ministerial Conference, capacity building shall not take
the form of persuading developing country officials on positions they should take
particularly on the Singapore issues of investment, competition, transparency in
government procurement and trade facilitation.  Rather, it should aim for the in-depth
internalisation of issues and all options relating to investment, competition,
transparency in government procurement, trade facilitation and other related issues.
10. With respect to new obligations proposed in negotiations, the general guidelines shall be that
existing domestic laws shall not need to undergo major changes.  Where any major changes would be
required, new obligations will be considered only if the Members already have in place the relevantly
skilled people, the institutional framework and financial resources to undertake the required changes.TN/CTD/W/3
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ANNEX II
Criteria in the Formulation of Seminar and Workshop Programmes
1. Seminars shall target the different knowledge levels on WTO agreements of government
officials in and issues of concern for developing and least country Members, and specific elements of
WTO work programmes.  It is understood that new officials or officials unfamiliar with the WTO
Agreement may benefit from introductory courses and seminars.  And it is understood that officials
that have been working on WTO matters for a while and who may be the government negotiators, will
need seminars that explore issues and options for country positions at some length and with some
detail, rather than generalisations or introductions.
2. Seminars shall have a degree of continuity, through follow up seminars and continuous access
to current literature.  This continuity shall not be in the form of mere repetition of the seminars
previously given, but of building upon previous seminars into deeper discourses and research
coursework.  So, the preparation of seminars for a capacity building programme should have along-term framework, with projected results or products in terms of trained officials and levels of
training to be attained over a given framework of time.  It would be upon governments and their
officials to try to ensure that the officials benefit from this continuity.
3. Seminars shall normally be situated or localis ed in the territories of Members and regions, in
addition to those that are given at the WTO secretaria t.  When situated in territories of Members and
regions, they shall be directly linked into the curricula of institutions of high learning particularly at
university level. Some seminars should be given as part of the courses at these institutions of learning.
University teaching staff should be involved as trainers on seminars given to government officials and
civil society.  And the seminars should be schedul ed within or make part of the long-term capacity
building programmes within the country or region.
4. Seminars and workshops shall include the specific subject of special and differential
treatment, to assist in ensuring that th e provisions are utilised to the maximum.TN/CTD/W/3
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ANNEX III
Mandatory Special and Differential Treatment Obligations
Provisions aimed at increasing the trade opportunities of developing country Members
• GATT 1994:  Article XXXVII:1(a) and 4; Article XXXVIII:2(c) and 2(e).
• Agreement on Textiles and Clothing:  Article 2.18.
• GATS:  Article IV:1 and IV:2
Provisions under which WTO members should safeguard the interests of developing country
Members
• GATT 1994:  Article XXXVI:9;  Article XXXVII:1(b) and (c), 2(a) and (b)(i), 3(a)-(c), and 5;
Article XXXVIII:1, 2(a), (b), (d), (f).
• The Decision on Measures Concerning the Possible Negative Effects of the Reform
Programme on Least-Developed and Net Food-Importing Developing country Members:Paragraphs 3(i)-(ii);  Paragraph 4;  and Paragraph 6.
• Application of SPS Measures:  Article 10.1;  Annex B, paragraph 2;  Annex B, paragraph 9.
• Textiles and Clothing:  Article 6.6(b), 6.6(c) and Annex, paragraph 3(a).
• Technical Barriers to Trade:  Article 10.6;  Article 12.1;  Article 12.2;  Article 12.3;
Article 12.5; Article 12.8;  Article 12.9;  Article 12.10.
• Implementation of Article VI of GATT 1994:  Article 15.
• Implementation of Article VII of GATT 1994:  Annex III.5.
• Decision on Texts Relating to Minimum Values and Imports by Sole Agents, Sole
Distributors, and Sole Concessionaires:  Text 1
• Import Licensing Procedures:  Article 1.2.
• Subsidies and Countervailing Measures:  Article 27.15.
• Agreement on Safeguards:  Article 9.1.
• Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes:  Article 8.10;
Article 12.10;  Article 12.11;  Article 21.7;  Article 21.8.
• GATS:  Article XV.1 and Article XIX.3.
Technical Assistance
• The Decision on Measures Concerning the Possible Negative Effects of the Reform
Programme on Least-Developed and Net Food-Importing Developing country Members:Paragraph 3 (iii).
• Application of SPS Measures:  Article 9.1 and 9.2
• Technical Barriers to Trade:  Article 11.1;  Article 11.2;  Article 11.3;  Article 11.4;
Article 11.5;  Article 11.6;  Article 11.7;  and Article 12.7.
• Implementation of Article VII of GATT 1994:  Article 20.3.
• GATS:  Article XXV:2 and Paragraph 6(c)  of the Annex on telecommunications.
• TRIPS:  Article 67.
• Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes:  Article 27.2
Least-developed country Members
PROVISIONS AIMED AT INCREASING TRADE OPPORTUNITIES :
• The 1999 Decision on waiver for preferential tariff treatment of LDCs
• TRIPS Agreement:  Article 66.2.
Decision on Measures in Favour of Least-Deve loped  country Members: paragraph 2(ii) (second
sentence) and paragraph 3.TN/CTD/W/3
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PROVISIONS AIMED AT SAFEGUARDING THE INTERESTS OF LEAST -DEVELOPED  COUNTRY MEMBERS :
• Agreement on Agriculture:  Article 16.1 and 16.2. (Least-developed and Net Food-Importing
Developing  country Members).
• Agreement on Textiles and Clothing:  Article 6.6(a).
• GATS:  Article IV:3 and XIX:3.
• Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes:  Article 24.1
and 24.2
• Decision on Measures in Favour of Least-Devel oped  country Members:  paragraphs, 2(i), and
2(iv).
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE :
• Technical Barriers to Trade:  Article 11.8
• Decision on Measures in Favour of Least-De veloped  country Members:  Paragraph 2(v).TN/CTD/W/3
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ANNEX IV
Currently Non Mandatory Special and Differential Treatment Obligations
Provisions aimed at increasing the trade opportunities of developing country Members
• GATT 1994:  Article XXXVI.2-5.
• The Enabling Clause:  para 2(a).
• Agreement on Agriculture:  Preamble.
• GATS:  Preamble.
Provisions under which WTO members should safeguard the interests of developing country
Members
• GATT 1994:  Article XXXVI:6 and 7.
• Application of SPS Measures:  Article 10.2 and Article 10.4.
• Decision on Texts Relating to Minimum Values and Imports by Sole Agents, Sole
Distributors, and Sole Concessionaires:  Text 2.
• Import Licensing Procedures:  Article 3.5 (a)(iv); Article 3.5 (j).
• Subsidies and Countervailing Measures:  Article 27.1
• Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes:  Article 4.10;
Article 21.2
• GATS:  Preamble; Article XII.1
Least-developed  country Members
PROVISIONS AIMED AT INCREASING TRADE OPPORTUNITIES :
• Enabling Clause:  paragraph 2d.
• Agreement on Textiles and Clothing:  Footnote to Article 1.2
• Decision on Measures in Favour of Least-Deve loped country Members:  paragraph 2(ii) (first
sentence).
PROVISIONS AIMED AT SAFEGUARDING THE INTERESTS OF LEAST -DEVELOPED  COUNTRY MEMBERS :
• Decision on Measures in Favour of Least-Deve loped  country Members:  paragraph 2(iii).
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