|
The twelve year odyssey for Saudi Arabian trade negotiators and World Trade Organization officials comes to a conclusion tomorrow in Geneva at a signing ceremony marking the Kingdom's WTO accession. Michel Cousins, writing in
Arab News today, provided an incisive review of the process and insight into what WTO accession will mean for the Kingdom. We are pleased to share that article for your consideration.
Investments to Look Up After Formal WTO
Accession
Michel Cousins, Arab News
JEDDAH, 10 November 2005 � Saudi Arabia�s
accession to the World Trade Organization as its 149th member will
be formally agreed to tomorrow at a meeting of the body�s
General Council in Geneva.
Leading the Saudi delegation, the Minister of
Commerce and Industry, Dr. Hashem Yamani, will sign the accession
papers on behalf of the Saudi Council of Ministers. Membership
takes effect 30 days after signing � which will allow Saudi
Arabia to take a full part in the WTO ministerial summit in Hong
Kong next month.
The accession, approved in principle by the WTO
last month, brings to a close 12 years of tough and complex
negotiations. The Kingdom originally applied in June 1993 to join
the General Agreement on Tariff and Trade (GATT), which was then
succeeded by the WTO.
It was hoped that the process would be complete
by the end of last year but negotiations dragged on. The last
hurdle, and one of the toughest, was the talks with the US, which
were only completed in September. Bilateral agreements with most
other countries were completed over a year ago.
Membership will bring no overnight changes. The
Kingdom, one of the last major economies outside the WTO, has been
changing its commercial and economic laws over the past few years
to comply with the WTO�s rules. Where it has been noticeable and
where it has had the greatest effect so far is in the
distribution, telecommunication, banking and insurance sectors.
Last month Yamani, who has led the Saudi
negotiating team, called the decision to invite Saudi Arabia �a
victory for the principles and objectives of the multilateral
trading system.� The country had sought WTO membership, he said,
because �We pride ourselves on having an open and liberal trade
regime and believe in the market mechanism� as a means to growth
and development. �Our road to accession has been long but
finally rewarding,� Yamani said. Saudi Arabia had made �far-reaching,
very substantial and commercially meaningful concessions and
commitments on goods and services� that would benefit its
trading partners.�
Commenting at the same time, WTO chief Pascal
Lamy spoke of the decision to admit the Kingdom as �historic,�
both for the WTO and for the multilateral trading system. �I
know the negotiations have been difficult and long. But I also
know that both Saudi Arabia and the members have gone the extra
mile to ensure the success that we see today.�
The Council of Ministers last month authorized
Yamani to sign WTO accession documents, which include 38 bilateral
agreements with member states, an accession protocol and the final
report of the working team.
Expectations are that WTO accession will boost
foreign investment in the Kingdom, providing funds for
diversification of the largely oil-based economy, and bring new
export opportunities for Saudi firms, especially in the
petrochemical industry.
Support for the Kingdom�s WTO membership has
been whole-hearted from the country�s chambers of commerce
according to Dr. Ghassan Al-Sulaiman, chairman of Jeddah Chamber
of Commerce and Industry. �We don�t want to be among the few
countries excluded from the global alliance and its benefits,�
he told Arab News.
Source: Arab
News
[Reprinted with permission]
|
