Engaging with Stakeholders in the WTO AoA Negotiations and Challenges for ASEAN Consolidation

1. Engaging with Stakeholders in the WTO AoA Negotiationsand Challenges for ASEAN Consolidation Plenary Session on “ASEAN and the WTO, AFTA and the FTAs” Regional Conference on Civil Society Engagement with the ASEAN October 3-5, 2005 Bangkok, Thailand

2. TFWARDepartment of AgriculturePhilippines Task Force on WTO AoA Renegotiations Institutionalizing the consultative mechanism to facilitate and ensure participation of various stakeholder sectors concerned in the on-going negotiations

3. TFWARDepartment of AgriculturePhilippines • Created in1998 • The stakeholder consultative-participatory assembly that deliberates positions for recommendation to the Secretary of Agriculture • Membership: • farmers’ and producers’ groups, industry associations, NGOs from the major commodity groups (grains, livestock and poultry, fruits and vegetables, fisheries) • other government agencies

4. TFWARDepartment of AgriculturePhilippines • The mandated negotiations in agriculture cannot be successfully engaged by government negotiators alone • Lacking the necessary logistics during the initial phases of the negotiations, the Philippines could only snipe at the well prepared proposals of other WTO members • 1st necessary condition: The negotiators require the confidence of full support and participation not only of the country’s political leadership but also that of its stakeholders

5. TFWARDepartment of AgriculturePhilippines • 2nd necessary condition: Negotiators also require substantive and technical depth on all issues pertaining to the negotiations • TFWAR Core Group, since 2002 • volunteer technical experts from TF WAR • conducts necessary technical and substantive work in the development of proposals and positions on issues

6. TFWARDepartment of AgriculturePhilippines With consistent political support from stakeholders, not once did political leaders reject TFWAR’s negotiating framework

7. Level of Engagement in the NegotiationsBringing the Philippines’ Negotiating Framework in the International Level • Alliances • G20 • G33 • Cairns Group Without coordinated coalitions such as G20 and G33, developing countries individually cannot hope to achieve anything in the negotiations except waiting outside of the green rooms

8. Level of Engagement in the NegotiationsBringing the Philippines’ Negotiating Framework in the International Level • G20: solid coalition of diverse developing countries • G20 net exporting countries (Brazil, Argentina, Chile, South Africa, Thailand) • G20 net importing countries (India, Indonesia,Philippines, smaller Latin American countries) • G33: SP and SSM Alliance, +40 developing countries led by Indonesia and the Philippines • Cairns Group: from four continents, 17 members ranging from OECD countries to the least developed

9. Level of Engagement in the NegotiationsBringing the Philippines’ Negotiating Framework in the International Level • Proposals • Special and Differential Treatment (with ASEAN) • Interlinkage of Commitments (MA, DS, EC) • Automatic Countervailing Mechanism (with Argentina) • Food Security Mechanism (with Indonesia)

10. Level of Engagement in the NegotiationsBringing the Philippines’ Negotiating Framework in the International Level • Member of ‘Green Room’ process since Cancun, at the technical, senior official and ministerial levels • Co-coordinator and founder of the SP and SSM Alliance, the first purely developing country bloc in the WTO, with Indonesia • Capital-based senior officials and TF Core members attend negotiating sessions

11. General Negotiating Objectives • Continuation of the trade reform program – the developed must deliver, now • Interlinkage of commitments in the market access, domestic support, export competition pillars • More meaningful SND for developing as integral in all results • Adequate protection of strategic and vulnerable sectors • Full consistency with Doha mandate

12. “ASEAN and the WTO, AFTA and the FTAs” As a member of the ASEAN, the Philippines is engaging FTA negotiations with ASEAN dialogue partners. • ASEAN-China • ASEAN-India • ASEAN-ROK ASEAN + 1 • ASEAN-Japan • ASEAN-Australia and NZ

13. “ASEAN and the WTO, AFTA and the FTAs” • Why ASEAN+1? • Political, strategic and economic importance of ASEAN • ASEAN economically small • Can ASEAN be a hub? • Divergent national interests make collective negotiation difficult

14. “ASEAN and the WTO, AFTA and the FTAs” • Some issues and concerns… • Issue of big power dominance • Need to be WTO-consistent with comprehensive sectoral coverage and no higher barriers for non-members • Are RTAs WTO-plus or WTO-minus? • Treatment of agriculture, services, competition policy, foreign investment, environment, labor standards

15. “ASEAN and the WTO, AFTA and the FTAs” • The Philippines remains an active member of the WTO and pursues positions in negotiations to provide adequate flexibility to developing countries • The WTO agreements guide the multilateral trading system of its members. All in all, members of the WTO account for 97% of world trade. Juxtaposed with other regional and bilateral trading arrangements, the WTO agreement appears as the most transparent and harmonized system in dealing with trade agreements and disciplines. Moreover, negotiations in the WTO serve as the parameters for bilateral and regional agreements. • The Philippines also ensures that agreements in FTAs are consistent with commitments in the WTO. This ensures that such FTAs contribute to global market liberalization.

16. “ASEAN and the WTO, AFTA and the FTAs” • Although active in bilateral trade talks, the Philippines remains pragmatic in approaching FTAs. • The government believes that it should focus on what is doable, allowing member countries to liberalize at their own pace. • The Philippines goes for full compliance consistent with national domestic capability to participate meaningfully and substantially in economic integration initiatives.

17. Two Basic Challenges to Developing Countries and Alliances • the formation of effective and working broad coalition bound by common objectives • coping and prevailing, as a united front, in the increasingly detailed and technical debates …and ASEAN • G20 (Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand) • G33 (Indonesia, Philippines) • Cairns Group (Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand)

18. Role of CSOs • In both, civil society must play a significant role beyond parallel discussions to the negotiations • The united front of civil society must be able to define, in consultation with developing country blocs, a framework of engagement and coordination covering all the issues, inclusive, most importantly, of substantive and technical support

19. Maraming salamat po at mabuhay!