ANNUAL 2006 SESSION OF THE PARLIAMENTARY CONFERENCE ON THE WTO Geneva (Switzerland), 1 and 2 December 2006
	Organized jointly by the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the European Parliament

	The Parliamentary Conference on the WTO is a joint undertaking of the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the European Parliament. Its principal objective is to enhance external transparency of the WTO and make this inter-governmental organization accountable to legislators as elected representatives of the people. The sessions of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO are held once a year and on the occasion of WTO Ministerial Conferences. The annual 2006 session of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO took place on 1 and 2 December 2006 at the Geneva International Conference Centre (CICG). Participation in the parliamentary session was guided by the general principles set out in Article 2 of the Rules of Procedure of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO. Preparation of the session is carried out by the Conference Steering Committee which established the session's agenda and programme. As on past occasions, the 2006 annual session of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO was intended primarily for parliamentarians who specialize in matters of international trade in their respective parliaments. The session provided them with an opportunity to obtain first-hand information on recent developments in WTO talks and consider ways of contributing to the revitalization of this process. It was an occasion to exchange views and experiences with colleagues in other parliaments, interact with government negotiators and WTO officials and engage in a dialogue with civil society representatives.

SESSION DOCUMENTS

	Declaration	[English] [French] [English] [French]
	Opening speech of the IPU President, Mr. Pier Ferdinando Casini	[English] [French]
	Opening speech of the Vice-President of the European Parliament, Mr. Manuel António dos Santos	[English] [French]
	Presentation of the draft outcome document by Mr. Geert Versnick, rapporteur	[English] [French]
	Joint statement by the Conference Co-Chairs	[English] [French]
	List of participants	[Bilingual]
	Discussion paper on agenda item 3(a) prepared by Mr. Shakeel Ahmed Yousuf Abdul Razack Mohamed (Mauritius), PC-WTO/2006/3(a)-R.1 (27 October 2006)	[English] [French]
	Discussion paper on agenda item 3(b) prepared by Mr. Sajjad Karim, Member of the European Parliament, PC-WTO/2006/3(b)-R.1 (27 October 2006)	[English] [French]
	Discussion paper on agenda item 3(b) prepared by Senator Donald H. Oliver (Canada), PC-WTO/2006/3(b)-R.2 (13 November 2006)	[English] [French]
	Revised provisional programme	[English] [French]
	Annotated agenda	[English] [French]
	Additonal information on the organization of work	[English] [French]
	Invitation letter (20 July 2006)	[English] [French]
	Practical information note	[English] [French]
	Registration form	[Bilingual]
	Hotel reservation form	[Bilingual]
	Hotel accommodation reminder note (10 October 2006)	[English] [French]
	Second reminder (2 November 2006)	[English] [French]
	Rules of Procedure of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO	[English] [French]
	Steering Committee of the Conference	[English] [French]

RELATED SITES AND DOCUMENTS
	Statement adopted by the thirteenth session of the Steering Committee of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO
	Statement adopted by the twelfth session of the Steering Committee of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO
	World Trade Organization (official web site)
	Committee on International Trade, European Parliament
	Geneva International Conference Centre
	Hong Kong session of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO
	Brussels session of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO
	Cancún session of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO
	Geneva 2003 session of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO
	Final Declaration of the Parliamentary Meeting on the occasion of the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference
	Parliamentary Meeting on International Trade "For a free, just and equitable multilateral trading system: Providing a parliamentary dimension"
Note: Documents in PDF format require Adobe Acrobat Reader

ANNOTATED AGENDA
1.	Adoption of the agenda
2.	Dialogue with Ministers and senior WTO Officials
		The 2006 annual session of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO will be taking place at a time when, in accordance with the initial agreement, the Doha round of multilateral trade negotiations should come to its conclusion. However, the gaps in positions of WTO Members on key questions remain wide, jeopardizing the outcome of negotiations. Participants in the parliamentary session will be able to receive first-hand information on latest developments in the WTO talks, exchange views with top negotiators and put forward their suggestions for possible ways forward.
3.	Debate on substantive themes:
	(a)	Lessons to be learnt from the history of multilateral trade negotiations under WTO auspices
		Conference delegates are invited to focus, from a parliamentary perspective, on lessons to be drawn from the past and present of the multilateral trading system, with the WTO at its centre. Special attention is to be devoted to the issue of parliamentary oversight of trade negotiations.
	(b)	Multilateralism and bilateralism in trade policy
		Regional and bilateral trade agreements have become so widespread that all but one WTO Member are said to be parties to one or more of them. It is estimated that over half of world trade is now conducted under regional agreements and bilateral free trade agreements between countries that are not in the same region. Under this agenda item, Conference delegates will be invited to discuss the consequences of this trend for the global multilateral trading system with WTO at its centre, and to exchange views on the role played by parliaments in overseeing government action in respect of regional and bilateral trade agreements.
4.	Panel discussions
	(a)	Should agriculture be withdrawn from the single undertaking?
		The focus of this interactive session will be on reasons for the stalemate in agriculture talks and on a possible way forward, bearing in mind broader implications of these negotiations for the future of the multilateral trading system. The debate should also cover the issue of responsibility of parliaments vis-à-vis demands by pressure groups to withdraw agriculture from WTO talks completely.
	(b)	How effective is the WTO dispute-settlement system?
		The debate should focus on the relative strengths and weaknesses of the WTO dispute-settlement system, on whether a sustained suspension of the Doha Round is likely to lead to an increase in the number of conflicts referred to WTO dispute-settlement bodies, and on whether the resources of the existing system are suited for such a scenario. Of special interest is the question of whether parliaments should seek to play a greater role in the oversight of WTO litigation process, including the implementation of relevant decisions through national remedial action.
5.	Adoption of the outcome document
		At the end of the session, the participants will be invited to consider and adopt an outcome document, the draft of which will be prepared by the Conference Steering Committee.

Updated on 1 December 2006
PROGRAMME
THURSDAY, 30 NOVEMBER
10:00 - 19:00	Registration of participants
17:00 - 20:00	Pre-Conference session of the Steering Committee (in camera meeting)
FRIDAY, 1 DECEMBER
08:00 - 18:30	Registration of participants
09:30 - 10:00	Inaugural session
	Speeches - Mr. Pier Ferdinando Casini, IPU President - Mr. Manuel António dos Santos, Vice-President of the European Parliament
10:00 - 10:15	Adoption of the agenda and other organizational issues
10:15 - 11:30	Debate on substantive themes
Substantive theme (a)	Lessons to be learnt from the history of multilateral trade negotiations under WTO auspices
	Raporteurs - Mr. Shakeel Ahmed Yousuf Abdul Razack Mohamed, MP (Mauritius) - Mr. Robert Sturdy, Member of the European Parliament
11:30 - 13:00	Dialogue with Ministers and senior WTO Officials. What future for the Doha Round? The benefits of a success, the costs of a failure.
	Panelists - Mr. Kamal Nath, Minister of Commerce and Industry (India) - Mr. Toshikatsu Matsuoka, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Japan) - Ambassador Clodoaldo Hugueney Filho, Permanent Representative of Brazil to the WTO - Ambassador Peter Allgeier, United States Permanent Representative to the WTO - Ambassador Carlo Trojan, Permanent Representative of the European Communities to the WTO
13:00 - 14:30	Lunch break
14:30 - 15:45	Hearing with the WTO Director-General, Mr. Pascal Lamy
15:45 - 16:30	Continuation of the debate on substantive theme (a)
16:30 - 18:15	Interactive panel discussion. Should agriculture be withdrawn from the single undertaking?
	Panelists - Ambassador Crawford Falconer (New Zealand), Chairman of the WTO Committee on Agriculture - Mr. John Dupraz, MP (Switzerland) - Mr. Herbert Oberhänsli, Head of Economic and International Relations, Nestlé
18:45	Reception at WTO
20:00 - 22:00	Steering Committee (in camera meeting)
SATURDAY, 2 DECEMBER
09:30 - 13:00	Continuation and end of the debate on substantive theme (a), followed by
Substantive theme (b)	Multilateralism and bilateralism in trade policy
	Raporteurs - Mr. Sajjad Karim, Member of the European Parliament - Senator Donald H. Oliver (Canada)
13:00 - 14:30	Lunch break
14:30 - 16:30	Interactive panel discussion. How effective is the WTO dispute-settlement system?
	Panelists - Ambassador Muhamad Noor Yacob (Malaysia), Chairman of the WTO Dispute Settlement Body - Mr. Jean-François Bellis, partner, Van Bael & Bellis, member of a WTO Panel - Mrs. Debra P. Steger, Professor, Faculty of Law of the University of Ottawa, Director, EDGE Network
16:30 - 17:30	Continuation and end of the debate on substantive theme (b)
17:30 - 18:00	Closing session
	Adoption of the outcome document
	Raporteur - Mr. Geert Versnick, MP (Belgium)

STEERING COMMITTEE

The Steering Committee of the Conference is currently composed of representatives of the following parliaments and international organizations: Belgium, Canada, China, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, India, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Japan, Kenya, Mauritius, Mexico, Morocco, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, South Africa, Thailand, Uruguay, United Kingdom, United States of America, Commonwealth Parliamentary Assocition, European Parliament, Inter-Parliamentary Union, Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, World Trade Organization.

SESSION PHOTOS