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On December 13th representatives from 148 countries will meet in Hong Kong for the 6th WTO Ministerial Conference. This conference will be crucial in enabling the 4 year-old Doha Development Agenda negotiations to move forward sufficiently to conclude the round in 2006.
The world has a lot to gain from a successful Doha outcome, and even more to lose if the Round fails to produce meaningful results.
Developed and developing nations alike have come to realize the power of trade to accelerate economic advancement and reduce poverty. Mexico knows this better than most countries, having signed free-trade agreements with 43 nations and seen the results - exports have increased by 262% since 1993, and GDP has grown by 30%.
The Doha Development Agenda would open up global trade in agriculture, non-agricultural goods, and services to an extent never before achieved. The United States is committed to a successful Hong Kong Ministerial Conference and to the conclusion of an ambitious Doha Round in 2006. In response to calls for U.S. leadership in the WTO, President Bush authorized a bold and detailed proposal that would slash tariffs, subsidies, and other barriers to trade in farm and manufactured products. Our agriculture proposal requires deep cuts in tariffs and the total elimination of trade-distorting subsidies - down to zero within 15 years – and would result in a fundamental reform of our farm sector.
The U.S. offer, however, is not unilateral - it is contingent on bold reforms from all countries participating in the WTO process. The EU and G-20 have been urged to improve market access for agricultural products and cut domestic support programs. At the same time, other countries must improve market access for industrial goods and indicate greater willingness to negotiate freer trade in services.
Much remains to be done, and time is dwindling. If we hope to conclude the negotiations by the end of 2006, we must come out of Hong Kong with the mandate and the momentum to move forward quickly. This will require all the WTO members to work closely and intensively with each other to find common ground and to keep focused on the key goals of the conference. It is our responsibility - the U.S., Mexico, and all those countries that recognize the enormous power and potential of free trade - to ensure that the Doha Development Agenda fulfills its potential to open markets and help millions of people rise up out of poverty.
Antonio O. Garza, Jr.
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