Joint Ministerial Statement — Agreement on Climate Change, Trade, and Sustainability

We, the Ministers responsible for Trade for Costa Rica, Iceland, New Zealand, and Switzerland, as signatories to the Agreement on Climate Change, Trade, and Sustainability (ACCTS) issue this statement on the occasion of the 14th WTO Ministerial Conference in Yaoundé, Cameroon on 29 March 2026.

On this occasion in Yaoundé, we reiterate our support for the rules-based multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization (WTO) at its core.

We applaud the ongoing efforts of the WTO to promote sustainable development and the preservation and protection of the environment. This includes the work of the Trade and Environmental Sustainability Structured Discussions, Dialogue on Plastics Pollution, the Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform Initiative and discussions under the Committee on Trade and Environment.

We are reminded of the objective behind ACCTS as a forward-looking agreement intended to help lead a path forward on trade and environmental issues in a way that builds upon the WTO multilateral framework. The ACCTS offers a clear and credible blueprint for advancing international, rules-based trade, that balances decarbonisation and sustainability objectives with economic growth.

• We reiterate the ongoing and critical nature of environmental and climate change challenges and the opportunities and relevance of trade policy, including:
• the mutual supportiveness of trade and environmental policy and the importance of coordinated international action and cooperation;
• the importance of intensifying trade in environmental goods and services;
• the growing importance of ecolabels and the role of trade policy in supporting their quality and effectiveness; and
• the critical challenge of disciplining and eliminating harmful fossil fuel subsidies.

The ACCTS is fully consistent with WTO rules and we welcome accession by any WTO member that can meet the principles for accessions(external link)once the ACCTS is in force. The ACCTS is an initiative that can meet the needs of developing members and recognises the needs of low-income, remote, and vulnerable communities. With this in mind, we reaffirm our invitation to all WTO members to consider joining ACCTS in order to magnify its contribution to tackling climate change and fostering sustainability.

On this occasion, we also welcome progress made in our ongoing efforts to bring the ACCTS into force as soon as possible. The ACCTS has now been ratified by New Zealand and Iceland.

The ACCTS is a dynamic pathfinder agreement. We intend to meet in the margins of the Future Investment and Trade Partnership (FIT-P) Ministerial Meeting in New Zealand in 2026 to discuss ways to further realise the agreements objectives.

Share:

• Share on Facebook
• Share on Twitter
• Share on LinkedIn
• with Weibo