International Trade and Development

A/RES/53/170No PDF available

Who created this mandate?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 91aTrade and development, published in 1999.

What other versions does this mandate have?

33 versions · 1994–2025

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/80/121

2025A/RES/80/121International trade and developmentLatestCompare with previous version
2024A/RES/79/195International trade and developmentCompare with previous version
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2022A/RES/77/151International trade and developmentCompare with previous version
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Versions are identified automatically by matching titles within the same organ (~97% accuracy on a manual audit).

What subjects does this mandate have?

16 topics

Africa Dispute Settlement Economic Integration Economies in Transition Globalization Investments Landlocked Developing Countries Least Developed Countries Multilateral Trade Negotiations Small Island Developing States Sustainable Development Technical Cooperation Trade Expansion Trade Facilitation Trade Liberalization Trade Policy

What does this mandate say?

25 operative paragraphs

Recognizes the importance of the expansion of international trade as an engine of growth and development and, in this context, the need for expeditious and complete integration of developing countries and countries with economies in transition into the international trading system, in full cognizance of the opportunities and challenges of globalization and liberalization and taking into account the circumstances of individual countries, in particular the trade interests and development needs of developing countries;

Renews its commitment to uphold and strengthen an open, rule-based, equitable, secure, non-discriminatory, transparent and predictable multilateral trade system, which contributes to the economic and social advancement of all countries and peoples by promoting the liberalization and expansion of trade, employment and stability and by providing a framework for the conduct of international trade relations;

Deplores any attempt to bypass or undermine multilaterally agreed procedures on the conduct of international trade by unilateral actions inconsistent with the multilateral trade rules and regulations, including those agreed upon in the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations;

Reaffirms the role of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development as the focal point within the United Nations for the integrated treatment of development and related issues in the areas of trade, finance, technology, investment and sustainable development;

Requests the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to continue, on the basis of the outcome of its ninth session, to identify and analyse the implications for development of issues relevant to investment, taking into account the interests of developing countries and bearing in mind the work undertaken by other organizations;

Notes with appreciation the initiative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to invite the executive secretaries of the United Nations regional commissions to participate in the discussions of the Trade and Development Board, and encourages the continuation of such a practice in the future;

Notes the increasing importance and application of electronic commerce in international trade, and in this context welcomes the summit of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development on the theme “Partners for Development”, held at Lyon, France, from 9 to 12 November 1998, and urges the Conference, in cooperation with other relevant bodies of the United Nations system, to continue to assist developing countries, in particular the least developed countries, and, in this regard, also notes the needs of the economies in transition;

Reiterates the importance of continued trade liberalization in developed and developing countries, including in sectors of export interest to developing countries, through, inter alia:

Substantial reductions of tariffs, the rolling back of tariff peaks and the removal of tariff escalation;

The elimination of trade-distorting policies, protectionist practices and non-tariff barriers in international trade relations;

Ensuring that resort to anti-dumping duties, countervailing duties, and phytosanitary and technical standards is subjected to effective multilateral surveillance so that such measures respect and are consistent with multilateral rules and obligations and are not used for protectionist purposes;

The improvement and renewal, by preference-giving countries, of their Generalized System of Preferences schemes with the objective of integrating developing countries, especially the least developed countries, into the international trading system and of finding ways and means to ensure more effective utilization of the Generalized System of Preferences schemes, and in this context reiterates its original principles, namely, non-discrimination, universality, burden-sharing and non-reciprocity;

Also reiterates that it is an ethical imperative for the international community to arrest and reverse the marginalization of the least developed countries and to promote their expeditious integration into the world economy and, as declared in the ministerial communiqué on market access adopted by the Economic and Social Council on 8 July 1998,1 that all countries should work together towards further enhanced market access for exports from least developed countries within the context of supporting their own efforts at capacity-building; welcomes the initiatives taken by the World Trade Organization in cooperation with other organizations in the implementation of the Plan of Action for the Least Developed Countries adopted at its first Ministerial Conference, held at Singapore from 9 to 13 December 1996, including through effective follow-up to the High-level Meeting on Integrated Initiatives for Least Developed Countries’ Trade Development, held at Geneva on 27 and 28 October 1997; recognizes that the full implementation of the Plan of Action requires further progress towards duty-free imports from the least developed countries; and invites the relevant international organizations to provide enhanced technical assistance to help strengthen the supply capacity of the least developed countries so as to help them to take the fullest possible advantage of trading opportunities arising from globalization and liberalization;

Stresses the urgent need to facilitate the integration of the countries of Africa into the world economy, and in this context welcomes the action-oriented agenda for the development of Africa contained in the report of the Secretary-General on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa, and endorses the call contained in the ministerial communiqué for continued efforts to enhance market access for products of export interest to African economies and support for their efforts at diversification and building of supply capacity, and in this context requests the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to continue its contribution to the implementation of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s, taking into account the agreed conclusions of the Trade and Development Board at its forty-fifth session;

Also stresses the need to give special attention, within the context of international cooperation on trade and development issues, to the implementation of the many international development commitments geared to meeting the special development needs and problems of small island developing States and of landlocked developing States and to recognize that developing countries that provide transit services need adequate support in maintaining and improving their transit infrastructure;

Reiterates the importance of the effective application by all members of the World Trade Organization of all provisions of the Final Act Embodying the Results of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations, taking into account the specific interests of developing countries so as to maximize economic growth and developmental benefits for all, and the need for the effective implementation of the special provisions in the multilateral trade agreements and related ministerial decisions in favour of developing countries, including special and preferential treatment, and urges Governments and concerned international organizations to apply effectively the Ministerial Decision on Measures Concerning the Possible Negative Effects of the Reform Programme on Least Developed and Net Food-importing Developing Countries;7

Also reiterates that it is important that the momentum towards increased trade liberalization, particularly as regards products of interest to developing countries, be maintained and given attention in the work leading up to the third Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization and that further liberalization be sufficiently broad-based to respond to the range of interests and concerns of all members, within the framework of the World Trade Organization, and in this regard invites the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to provide analytical support and technical assistance to developing countries for their effective participation in multilateral trade negotiations and in their formulation of a positive agenda for future trade negotiations;

Welcomes the launching of the substantive preparatory process for the tenth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, to be held at Bangkok in 2000, by the Trade and Development Board at its forty-fifth session, with a view to the finalization of the agenda of the Conference by the Board at its nineteenth executive session, in December 1998, and considers that the tenth session of the Conference will provide an important opportunity for the United Nations system and the international community to make a collective reflection on development;

Emphasizes the importance of the strengthening of, and the attainment of greater universality by, the international trading system and of accelerating the process directed towards accession to the World Trade Organization of developing countries and countries with economies in transition, and also emphasizes the necessity for Governments members of the World Trade Organization and relevant international organizations to assist non-members of the World Trade Organization so as to facilitate their efforts with respect to accession in an expeditious and transparent manner, on the basis of World Trade Organization rights and obligations, and for the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and the World Trade Organization to provide technical assistance, within their mandates, that will contribute to the rapid and full integration of those countries into the multilateral trading system;

Stresses the need for improved measures to address the effects of the financial crisis on the international trading system and the development prospects of developing countries and the countries affected by the crisis, emphasizing that keeping all markets open and maintaining continued growth in world trade are key elements in overcoming the crisis, and in this context rejects the use of any protectionist measures; at a broader level, there is a need for greater coherence between the development objectives agreed to by the international community and the functioning of the international trading and financial system, and in this context calls for close cooperation between the organizations of the United Nations system and the multilateral trade and financial institutions;

Recognizes the importance of open regional economic integration in the creation of new opportunities for expanding trade and investment, stresses the importance of those initiatives being in conformity with World Trade Organization rules, where applicable, and, bearing in mind the primacy of the multilateral trading system, affirms that regional trade agreements should be outward-oriented and supportive of the multilateral trading system;

Reiterates that, in line with Agenda 21 and the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, Governments should have as their objective to ensure that trade and environmental policies are mutually supportive so as to achieve sustainable development and that, in so doing, their environmental policies and measures with a potential trade impact are not used for protectionist purposes, and encourages the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to continue its work on trade, environment and development;

Strongly underlines the need for technical assistance to enable developing countries to take the fullest possible advantage of the dispute settlement mechanism of the World Trade Organization, based on multilaterally agreed rules and regulations, and in this context emphasizes the importance of enabling the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to provide technical assistance to developing countries, in particular the least developed countries and small island developing States, in this area, and welcomes its collaboration with the relevant organizations of the United Nations system, the Bretton Woods institutions, the World Trade Organization, the Bank for International Settlements and other relevant organizations in the course of its work;

Emphasizes that the dispute settlement mechanism of the World Trade Organization is a key element with regard to the integrity and credibility of the multilateral trading system and the full realization of the benefits anticipated from the conclusion of the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations;

Requests the Secretary-General of the United Nations, in collaboration with the secretariat of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, to report to the General Assembly at its fifty-fourth session on the implementation of the present resolution, developments in the multilateral trading system and the implementation of the ministerial communiqué on market access adopted by the Economic and Social Council on 8 July 1998.

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