WTO members advance on plans to deepen exchanges on environmental measures
Jun 19, 2024
The chair of the WTO's Committee on Trade and Environment (CTE) announced that three selected topics for thematic sessions were chosen based on consultations with members. The chair clarified that other issues raised by members could also be considered for future discussions. On the first topic of trade-related climate measures, members will further elaborate on framing the issue before it is taken up at the thematic session scheduled for October 10 during Trade and Environment Week.
Trade and Environment Week will feature a high-level panel discussion, additional events organized by interested delegations, and a meeting of the CTE.
Members also considered two new proposals. One proposal from China titled “Advancing Multilateral Discussions on Trade-Related Climate Measures (TrCMs)” suggests ideas to foster more engagement on this topic, including transparency and understanding of TrCMs and consistency and interoperability of different TrCMs. Members expressed general support and interest in further exploring this proposal.
The second proposal is from the African Group, titled “Policy Space for Industrial Development — Advancing WTO Committee Work to Support Structural Transformation and Industrial Development in Developing Countries.” The African Group indicated it would formally present a concrete work program at the General Council meeting in July. India reiterated its previous request to initiate discussions on the role of technology transfer for environmental solutions.
Several coordinators of the Dialogue on Plastics Pollution and Environmentally Sustainable Plastics Trade (DPP) — Australia, Barbados, and Ecuador — briefed the committee on developments from its second pre-plenary meeting held on June 13. They welcomed three new co-sponsors — Brazil, Montenegro, and Mozambique — bringing total DPP membership to 82.
New Zealand provided an update as coordinator of the Fossil Fuels Subsidy Reform Initiative following its meeting held on May 28.
Canada, co-convenor with Costa Rica of the Trade and Environmental Sustainability Structured Discussions (TESSD), briefed the committee on meetings of its four working groups held June 17-18.
The committee also received updates from the Secretariat of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) regarding INC negotiation processes as well as from the WTO Secretariat about climate change-related work. This includes preparations for WTO participation at COP29 later this year and details about the recently launched Action on Climate and Trade (ACT) initiative. Members particularly welcomed efforts related to COP29 as well as ACT—a joint World Bank-World Economic Forum-WTO Secretariat initiative aimed at fostering international cooperation and capacity-building activities to help developing economies leverage trade for climate action.
The next CTE meeting is scheduled for October 11.
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