Developments Since the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference

The document details the status of the Doha Ministerial Declaration's mandates on the relationship between WTO rules and multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs), the liberalisation of environmental goods and services, and the integration of sustainable development into trade negotiations. It highlights significant deadlocks, including the observer status of MEA secretariats due to geopolitical conflicts and disagreements over the definition of environmental goods, particularly regarding process and production method (PPM) criteria.

• The negotiating mandate for trade and environment is strictly limited to existing WTO rules and specific trade obligations in multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs), ensuring it does not "add to or diminish the rights and obligations of Members under existing WTO Agreements".
• Negotiations on the relationship between MEAs and the WTO are following a three-phase approach: examining individual MEAs, identifying specific trade obligations within them, and identifying relevant WTO rules.
• The granting of observer status for MEA secretariats at Committee on Trade and Environment (CTE) special sessions is blocked by a geopolitical conflict involving the Arab League's application, which was rejected by the US and Israel because the League's charter calls for a trade boycott on Israel.
• Disagreements persist over the definition of environmental goods; while many members support an 'end-use' approach based on APEC and OECD classifications, the EU's proposal to include products made in an environmentally sound manner was rejected by most members, especially developing countries, who fear the use of process and production method (PPM) criteria to restrict market access.
• Negotiations on environmental services are being handled by the Council for Trade in Services (CTS) using a 1991 classification list (sewage, refuse disposal, sanitation, and 'other'), though the EU argues this no longer reflects market realities.
• Debates regarding the Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) and the environment are stalled, specifically concerning the relationship between TRIPs, the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD), and the protection of traditional knowledge (TK).

APA

International Institute for Sustainable Development (2003). Developments Since the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/wto_trade.pdf

Chicago

International Institute for Sustainable Development. Developments Since the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference. 2003. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/wto_trade.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=International Institute for Sustainable Development |title=Developments Since the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference |date=February 2003 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/wto_trade.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{internationalinstituteforsustainabledevelopment2003developments, author = {{International Institute for Sustainable Development}}, title = {{Developments Since the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2003}, month = feb, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/wto_trade.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }