The Hindu Business Line : Group to seek timeframe for cutting farm export subsidies: Kamal Nath

THE first ministerial interaction of G-20 developing countries on the crucial issue of agriculture is all set to demand a timeframe for the elimination of agricultural export subsidies doled out by the developed countries in a period no longer than five years with frontloading of commitments.

Speaking at the inaugural ceremony, the Union Commerce and Industry Minister, Mr Kamal Nath, said there was serious work ahead for the members on the road to the Hong Kong Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) scheduled for later this year. The New Delhi meeting would help in articulating the concerns and positions of developing countries so that they would get reflected adequately in the modalities of the negotiations in different areas as well as the final commitments that members would concur to carry out. "The gathering here today signals a coming together in the common cause of almost the entire developing world," Mr Nath said.

Trade Ministers who took part in the G-20 conclave include Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico, China, Nigeria, Pakistan, Paraguay, South Africa, Tanzania, Egypt, Zimbabwe, while senior officials and envoys to WTO who attended include Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, the Philippines, Thailand and Venezuela.

The common refrain of the trade ministers is that the goal of G-20 is to put an end to trade-distorting policies in agriculture adopted by the developed world and once this is achieved, this will contribute to growth and development of developing countries and enable their positive integration into the world trading system.

This, in essence, they said, would be "a major contribution to the development objectives of the Doha Round".

In the first day meeting, the Ministers deliberated on agriculture issues pertaining to export competition and domestic support and discussed market access issues in the afternoon. On market access, members noted that the critical `gateway' issue for developing countries were related to the issue of conversion of specific duties (non-ad valorem tariffs) to their ad valorem equivalents.

Mr Nath said the tariff reduction formula must have regard to the food security, livelihood and rural development needs of developing countries as recognised in the framework of negotiations agreed by WTO members in July last year, along with special products and special safeguard mechanisms as additional instruments to address specific situations of developing countries.

The trade ministers also exchanged views on other areas of negotiations such as non-agricultural market access (NAMA), services, and development issues so as to have a composite assessment of the current state of play in the ongoing Doha Round of the WTO multilateral trade negotiations.

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