PREFACE

With the successful commencement of the Doha Round of Trade Negotiations, developing countries need to acquire a much more proactive and coordinated approach in their future participation, and thus intensive collaborative preparation for WTO negotiation.

NAM CSSTC and Ministry of Primary Resources (MIPR) took the initiative to provide government officials, private sectors and other parties concerned with a forum to discuss and share best practices in addressing WTO-related issues. Issues to be discussed cover the most important issues to be negotiated in the Doha Round. The Meeting of Experts and Decision Makers on “Government-Business Collaboration in Addressing WTO-Related Issues”

The Meeting of Expert and Decision Makers on Government-Business Collaboration in Addressing WTO-Related Issues “was then conducted in Bandar Seri Begawan on 27-28 January 2003. The forum is intended to provide an overview of the WTO, its various agreements and the ways in which they interrelate. It should be the first essential step in helping government officials and other parties recognize their role in trade matters.

The meeting focused on WTO-related issues within the context of how to build the nation’s capacity to take advantage of the globalized trading system and conforming the national trade policy and regulatory framework to Multilateral Trading System. Furthermore the meeting also highlighted the mechanism for interaction between government and business in the formulation, implementation and monitoring policies.

NAM CSSTC invited experts, policy makers and business practitioners of selected NAM member countries who were directly involved in formulating, and implementing national trade policies, and institutional capacity building to deliberate on the relevant aspects WTO issues. NAM CSSTC presents this report for the consideration of NAM governments, policy makers and business community in NAM countries, to enrich their thinking on this particular issue and provide a stimulus to take further necessary actions. This meeting was financed by the Government of Brunei Darussalam