E-commerce Joint Statement Initiative Negotiations Among World Trade Organization Members: State of play and the impacts of COVID-19

The document provides a stocktaking of the e-commerce JSI negotiations among 86 WTO members, highlighting how the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated digital adoption while exacerbating the digital divide. It details the establishment of ten small negotiating groups to narrow differences on issues like consumer protection and spam, while noting persistent divergence on data flows and privacy. The brief also examines the separate WTO Work Programme on E-Commerce, specifically the contentious moratorium on customs duties on electronic transmissions, and the limited progress in addressing the needs of MSMEs, LDCs, and gender equality.

• The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the adoption of e-commerce, with some business operations and supply chains digitizing at a rate seven years faster than the pre-pandemic period. Regional platforms saw significant growth, such as Africa's Jumia Technologies AG reporting a 51% year-on-year increase in annual active consumers in Q1 2020, and Latin America's Mercado Libre reporting a 45.2% growth in unique active users in Q2 2020.
• The pandemic highlighted a significant digital divide, where e-commerce acceleration occurred primarily in developed and high-income developing economies. Internet usage growth in Q1 2020 was 12.8 percentage points higher in high-income countries compared to only 1.3 percentage points in lower-middle-income countries.
• As of February 2021, 86 WTO members are participating in the e-commerce JSI, representing over half of all WTO members and 90% of global trade. This group includes six African members (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cte dIvoire, Kenya, and Nigeria) and four least developed countries (Benin, Lao PDR, Myanmar, and Burkina Faso).
• Negotiations have been split into ten small groups to accelerate progress on specific issues. By February 2021, the group on "spam" (unsolicited commercial messages) had finalized a clean text. Other areas showing progress include consumer protection, e-signatures, and paperless trading, though some members like Guatemala and Ecuador seek longer implementation periods for consumer protection rules.
• Significant divergence remains regarding data flows, access, and privacy. The EU emphasizes fundamental rights, the US advocates for free cross-border data flows for business purposes, and China views data flows as subject to security preconditions.
• There is ongoing conflict regarding the moratorium on customs duties on electronic transmissions. While some developed members want to make the moratorium permanent, others, including Indonesia, oppose its extension. India and South Africa have urged for deeper discussions on the moratorium's revenue and industrialization impacts to inform decisions at MC12.
• Progress in addressing the needs of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), gender equality, and LDCs has been limited. Only Canada advanced gender-inclusive provisions, and China and Indonesia were the only JSI participants to submit text proposals on capacity building and technical assistance for developing countries or LDCs.

APA

Ismail, Y. (2021). E-commerce Joint Statement Initiative Negotiations Among World Trade Organization Members: State of play and the impacts of COVID-19. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-06/e-commerce-negotiations-wto-members-covid-19-en.pdf

Chicago

Ismail, Yasmin. E-commerce Joint Statement Initiative Negotiations Among World Trade Organization Members: State of play and the impacts of COVID-19. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2021. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-06/e-commerce-negotiations-wto-members-covid-19-en.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Ismail |first1=Yasmin |title=E-commerce Joint Statement Initiative Negotiations Among World Trade Organization Members: State of play and the impacts of COVID-19 |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=April 2021 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-06/e-commerce-negotiations-wto-members-covid-19-en.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{ismail2021ecommerce, author = {Ismail, Yasmin}, title = {{E-commerce Joint Statement Initiative Negotiations Among World Trade Organization Members: State of play and the impacts of COVID-19}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2021}, month = apr, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-06/e-commerce-negotiations-wto-members-covid-19-en.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }