Summarizing his informal consultations with members last week, the Chair of the negotiations, Ambassador Alparslan Acarsoy of Türkiye, highlighted a recurring emphasis on the need to rebuild trust among members.
The Chair highlighted a widespread desire to resume negotiations as soon as possible and to focus on substance, with the goal of initiating text-based talks early enough before the 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14).
There was a suggestion, he noted, to enhance political leadership by convening periodic negotiation meetings at the Head-of-Delegation level to review progress and to involve senior officials in addressing particularly intractable issues.
General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala
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Regarding the procedural steps forward, the Chair outlined two suggestions from the consulted members. One option is to establish informal small groups on various topics, each led by key proponents. The second option is for the Chair to appoint facilitators to lead such thematic negotiations.
Other recommendations included setting milestones in the lead-up to MC14, adopting a comprehensive approach in the negotiations, and considering the relevance of past mandates when defining priorities.
Members welcomed the Chair’s efforts to advance the negotiations and shared their views on the way forward. Members emphasized "the importance of inclusiveness and transparency" and "the central role of the Committee on Agriculture in Special Session as the primary forum for negotiations."
Questions were raised about "the possible structure of the suggested thematic working group discussions." Some members called for pragmatic interest-based discussions, while others emphasized "the need to honour past mandates" or underscored "the need for a balanced and realistic approach across the board."
Several members also called for fresh perspectives. They noted "the quality of discussions held on agriculture during the Public Forum" and suggested convening additional seminars to introduce new insights into negotiations.
The African Group and Cairns Group informed delegates that their bilateral meetings have been conducted weekly since resuming after summer break. These technical-level discussions aim to find common ground and draft modalities across all topics, particularly domestic support and public stockholding for food security purposes. They stressed participants' willingness "to engage constructively" and expressed hope that a joint proposal will be submitted soon.
The Chair encouraged members "to engage in substantive discussions on specific topics," citing ongoing collaboration between African Group and Cairns Group as positive examples.
On the same day, members participated in dedicated sessions on public stockholding and Special Safeguard Mechanism.
Brazil presented its submission titled “Dialogue on sustainable agriculture in the multilateral trading system” (JOB/AG/261), also circulated in July. Brazil emphasized "the urgent need to address more forcefully... critical sustainability challenges," aiming for WTO disciplines that support sustainable food systems without unnecessary trade restrictions or weakening efforts against hunger and poverty.
The submission noted this issue's cross-cutting nature across committees and called for General Council leadership with a retreat later this year followed by a report at a senior officials' meeting next year.
Members welcomed Brazil’s initiative. Many expressed willingness "to engage in thematic discussions" at proposed retreats. Specific topics suggested included technology transfer, climate-smart agriculture, precision farming, and trade-restrictive measures under environmental protection guise.
Several members stressed jointly addressing environmental, economic, social dimensions of sustainability encompassing food security and small farmers' livelihoods.