Being updated
Context
Functions and Activities
Early Warning System
Partners
The Future
List of Non-Resident members and observers of the
WTO
Evolution of the Non-Resident Members and Observers of the WTO and AITIC Membership (from 2004 to 2009)
I.
Context

AITIC was created in 1998 by
the Swiss government in order to assist the less-advantaged countries
(LACs) to benefit from the multilateral trading system, in particular
by helping them to participate more actively in the work and negotiating
activities of the WTO and other international trade-related organisations
based in Geneva, especially UNCTAD and the ITC. The LACs are the 50 least-developed
countries as defined by the United Nations, some low income developing
countries and some economies in transition. These countries face structural
and institutional constraints and have not been active in the multilateral
trading system.
AITIC provides three main types
of assistance to LACs. First it prepares Background Notes on key WTO issues.
Second it organises training workshops on topics about which delegates
from these countries wish to be better informed. Finally, it provides
free and continuous personalised assistance to officials from LACs who
are involved in WTO activities and negotiate on a day-to-day basis. The
latter is probably the most original aspect of the support provided by
AITIC: LACs' needs differ, sometimes markedly, and thus assistance ought
to be tailored to the specific beneficiary and its particular interests.
From its inception, AITIC has
been keenly aware of the fact that some delegates from LACs are peripheral
to the multilateral trading system and therefore need more sustained assistance.
At present, 28 of the 151 members (of which 20 are members and 8 are observers)
of the WTO do not have a permanent Mission in Geneva. The officials from
these countries trying to monitor WTO issues are therefore at a significant
disadvantage in terms of access to information and their ability to influence
the decision-making process.
After twenty months of constant
work with the non-residents, AITIC became aware of their pressing needs.
To contribute to enhancing their presence in Geneva, AITIC decided to
establish a permanent facility to cater for their specific requirements.
In consequence, and with the assistance of the Swiss authorities, it established
a Non-Residents' Unit in October 2000.
The salient features of the
AITIC Non-Residents' Unit are described in this brochure.
II. Functions
and Activities

In the post-Doha period and in view of the new negotiations
of the Doha Work Programme, the needs of the non-residents have become
more acute. In this connection, AITIC's different forms of assistance
to the non-residents will keep the negotiating priorities at the centre
of its various functions and activities of the Non-Residents' Unit, which
are as follows:
• Analytical
- to draw up a list of the specific needs of every non-resident;
- to draw up a list of assistance priorities for every
non-resident;
- to institute a procedure to evaluate the assistance
provided.
• Assistance
- to liaise with a "Contact Point" established
with the officials handling WTO matters in the capital of each non-resident
or in the accredited mission outside Geneva;
- to communicate regularly with the Contact Point (telephone,
e-mail, fax, mail, personal visits, etc.) in order to keep up to date
with WTO activities and to enable assistance to be reoriented quickly
if necessary;
- to continue to develop the "typical" AITIC
activities of personalised assistance for non-residents, particularly
by means of regular visits, especially to Brussels;
- to inform non-residents on assistance provided by
the trade-related agencies in Geneva or elsewhere;
- to collaborate with the trade-related agencies or
regional secretariats (Commonwealth Secretariat; ACP Antenna) assisting
non-residents;
- to continue supplying non-residents with Background
Notes and targeted analyses of the various areas of activity of the
WTO;
- to select those documents of greatest importance and
topical interest to non-residents, to provide summaries and translations
of the most significant papers quickly.
• Logistics
- to provide temporary offices, meeting rooms, secretarial
services and Internet access, etc., to non-resident officials attending
meetings in Geneva;
- to provide access to AITIC's reference centre;
- to facilitate the establishment of permanent missions
in Geneva by acting as a 'transition facility'.
III.
Early Warning System

From June 2002 to July 2005, AITIC was bringing out the Early Warning System (EWS) for the non-resident members and observers of the WTO. The EWS was one of the fundamental operational mechanisms of the Non-Residents’ Unit. The concept had emerged from informal discussions with the representatives of the non-residents and covered the following points: determining the key external trade sector(s) for each non-resident; monitoring from Geneva the WTO meetings relating to these sectors; keeping non-residents informed prior to and following each meeting; advising non-residents as early as possible of the orientation of WTO discussions directly related to these key sectors, to enable the former to intervene before critical decisions are taken in their absence; facilitating the presence of representatives from non-residents at WTO meetings of importance to them.
However, since similar information is now made available by WTO in its Non-Resident Newsletter as Tentative Programme and Details of the WTO Meetings, AITIC ceased the publication of the EWS from July 2005. The decision was reached by AITIC Members to avoid duplication of efforts. Suggestions and views on the discontinuation of AITIC’s EWS are welcome.
IV. Partners

The partners of the Non-Residents'
Unit are clearly identified and of two types:
• the beneficiaries, who are the 28 Member countries
and observers of the WTO without permanent Missions in Geneva and some
regional trade and economic resident and non-resident organisations such
as Commonwealth Secretariat, SIECA, ACP Antenna;
• the donors and financial backers who are either
States or organisations. At present, the Swiss government is the largest
contributor to AITIC, although organisations such as the WTO, UNCTAD,
the World Bank, the World Customs Organization and the private sector, Société Générale de Surveillance, or
private law firms have made a variety of contributions.
Collaboration with other organisations
In 2002, AITIC formalised its
collaboration with UNCTAD and the Agence intergouvernementale de la
Francophonie (AIF). A Memorandum of Understanding with UNCTAD
was signed to support the trade negotiating capacity of the developing
countries and economies in transition, particularly the least-developed
and those that are not represented in Geneva. With the AIF a Memorandum
of Agreement was concluded through which the AIF would finance a Francophone
international trade expert to assist the non-resident LDCs and to finance
part of AITIC's translation activities.
V. The Future
Following the signature of
the AITIC Initiative on Trade Related Capacity Building and Greater Participation
in the International Trading System at the WTO's Doha Ministerial Conference,
alternative approaches to funding are currently being investigated. The
Initiative set up a Task Force to explore the feasibility of transforming
AITIC into an intergovernmental organisation.
VI. List of Non-Resident members and observers of
the WTO (October 2009)

Country |
WTO Status |
AITIC Member |
Represented from capital |
Represented from Europe |
LDC |
Working Language French |
Working Language English |
Commonwealth |
Antigua-and-Barbuda |
Member |
● |
|
London |
|
|
● |
● |
Bahamas |
Observer |
|
|
London |
|
|
● |
● |
Belize |
Member |
|
|
Brussels |
|
|
● |
● |
Dominica |
Member |
● |
|
London |
|
|
● |
● |
Equatorial Guinea |
Observer |
|
Malabo |
|
● |
● |
|
|
Fiji |
Member |
|
|
Brussels |
|
|
● |
● |
Gambia |
Member |
● |
|
Brussels |
● |
|
● |
● |
Grenada |
Member |
|
|
Brussels |
|
|
● |
● |
Guinea Bissau |
Member |
|
|
Brussels |
● |
● |
|
|
Guyana |
Member |
● |
|
Brussels |
|
|
● |
● |
Malawi |
Member |
|
|
Brussels |
● |
|
● |
● |
Maldives |
Member |
|
Male |
|
● |
|
● |
● |
Papua New Guinea |
Member |
|
|
Brussels |
|
|
● |
● |
St Kitts and Nevis |
Member |
|
|
Brussels |
|
|
● |
● |
Saint Lucia |
Member |
● |
|
London |
|
|
● |
● |
St Vincent and the Grenadines |
Member |
|
|
Brussels |
|
|
● |
● |
Samoa |
Observer |
● |
Apia |
|
● |
|
● |
● |
Sao Tome and Principe |
Observer |
|
|
Brussels |
● |
● |
|
|
Seychelles |
Observer |
● |
|
Brussels |
|
|
● |
● |
Sierra Leone |
Member |
|
|
Brussels |
● |
|
● |
● |
Solomon Islands |
Member |
|
|
Brussels |
● |
|
● |
● |
Suriname |
Member |
● |
|
Brussels |
|
|
● |
|
Tajikistan |
Observer |
|
Dushanbe |
|
|
|
● |
|
Togo* |
Member |
● |
|
Brussels |
● |
● |
|
|
Tonga |
Member |
|
Nuku’alofa |
|
|
|
● |
● |
Vanuatu |
Observer |
● |
|
Brussels |
● |
|
● |
● |
26 |
|
11 |
5 |
21 |
11 |
4 |
22 |
20 |
* Currentlly using AITIC's Non-Residents' Unit
VII. Evolution of the Non-Resident Members and Observers of the WTO and AITIC Membership (from 2004 to 2009)

Pays
|
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
2009 |
Antigua and Barbuda |
|
|
Armenia |
|
|
|
Bahamas |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Belize |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Burkina Faso |
|
|
Central African Republic |
|
|
|
Chad |
|
|
Dominica |
|
|
Equatorial Guinea |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Fiji |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gambia |
|
Grenada |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Guinea Bissau |
|
|
|
|
|
Guyana |
|
Lao People’s Dem. Republic |
|
|
|
|
Malawi |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Maldives |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Montenegro |
|
|
|
Namibia |
|
|
Niger |
|
|
|
|
|
Papua New Guinea |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Saint Lucia |
|
Samoa |
|
|
Sao Tome and Principe |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Seychelles |
|
|
|
|
|
Sierra Leone |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Solomon Islands |
|
|
|
|
|
|
St Kitts and Nevis |
|
|
|
|
|
|
St. Vincent and the Grenadines |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Suriname |
|
|
|
|
Swaziland |
|
|
|
Tajikistan |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Togo |
|
Tonga |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Vanuatu |
|
Total NR WTO |
35 |
32 |
30 |
30 |
27 |
26 |
Total NR AITIC Members |
6 |
10 |
11 |
12 |
12 |
12 |
% NR AITIC Member / NR WTO member |
17.14% |
31.25% |
36.67% |
40.00% |
44.44% |
46.15% |
|
AITIC Membership |
|
|
|
Resident |
|