WTO members consider new e-commerce proposal and previous submissions ahead of MC14

At a meeting on the Work Programme on E-Commerce on 3 March, WTO members considered a proposal to establish a Committee on Digital Trade as part of a draft decision on e-commerce for the 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14), which will take place from 26 to 29 March in Yaound�, Cameroon. Members also continued discussions on the reinvigoration of the Work Programme and on the moratorium on the imposition of customs duties on electronic transmissions on the basis of two other proposals.

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• Work Programme on E-Commerce
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Switzerland, on behalf of co-sponsors, presented�the proposalfor the Ministerial Conference to mandate the establishment of a Committee on Digital Trade that would build on the work done under the Work Programme and provide a stable forum for digital trade discussions at the WTO. This would be in addition to an extension of the moratorium on the imposition of customs duties on electronic transmissions. Members provided their initial comments on the proposal and also expressed views on two previous submissions: one by the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Groupproposing the reinvigoration of the Work Programme with a focus on the development dimension and the extension of the moratorium until the following ministerial conference; and one by the United States and co-sponsorsfor a permanent moratorium.

The facilitator of the Work Programme on Electronic Commerce, Ambassador Richard Brown of Jamaica, welcomed members' active participation and called on proponents to try to find landing zones. "While there are some areas of convergence, some critical substantive differences remain. In this regard, I would like to ask the proponents to engage with each other, to try and identify any common elements, areas of flexibility and the possible way forward," he said.

He said discussions will continue ahead of the General Council meeting on 10-11 March to try to identify common elements for a draft ministerial decision.

The facilitator also noted that the early version of a database compiling technical assistance and capacity building on e-commerce is now available for members to review and provide feedback on.

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