DILI, 05 october 2023 (TATOLI) – The Council of Ministers authorized on wednesday, the conclusion of negotiations for Timor-Leste’s accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The Council of Ministers also approved authorization for the signing of the necessary agreements, to be led by the Chief Negotiator for Timor-Leste’s Accession to the WTO, the Deputy Prime Minister, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, and Minister for Tourism and the Environment, Francisco Kalbuadi Lay, from 7 to 11 october, in Geneva, Switzerland.
Timor-Leste has been granted WTO observer status since 2016, and the country keeps working to take another step towards fulfilling the membership terms to become a full member of the organization.
As part of the accession process, WTO accession candidates need to sign bilateral deals with interested WTO members which include both agriculture and tariffs on non-agricultural products and also cover several service sectors. The commitments undertaken in these bilateral deals will apply to all WTO Members once the candidate’s accession is final, according to the EU.
Earlier this year, the European Union (EU) and Timor-Leste signed a deal concluding the bilateral market access negotiations on services and goods as part of Timor-Leste’s accession process to the WTO.
Timor-Leste’s WTO accession process started on december 7, 2006, through the establishment of the Working Group.
On november 2016, Timor-Leste submitted its application for accession to the WTO in November 2016 as part of a broader national trade strategy to integrate the country further into the world economy to promote economic growth and development.
The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is the only international organization that regulates international trade activities. WTO was founded in 1995 and its existence is based on an agreement whose objective is to help producers of goods, exporters, and importers in each of the member countries to carry out their commercial activities in accordance with international rules, guaranteeing security and transparency.
Journalist: José Belarmino De Sá
Editor: Filomeno Martins
