Ambassador Le Thi Tuyet Mai, Head of Vietnam’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations (UN), World Trade Organisation (WTO) and other international organisations in Geneva (Photo: VNA)The Vietnamese delegation activelyparticipated in the discussions with the aim of reaching consensus and promotingnegotiations in order to early achieve satisfactory solutions for all parties,towards realising the sustainable development goal (SDG) 14.6 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development of the UN.
At a meeting ofheads of delegation tothe WTO,Chair of the WTO negotiating group,Ambassador Santiago Wills of Colombia, briefed the participants on the workthat has been done since January 2021.
Wills reiterated that the WTO members should begin to express their views on anacceptable outcome that can lead the successful conclusion of negotiations,aiming to protect aquatic resources worldwide.
Many statements delivered at the meeting noted the differences of views on thethree issues discussed in the latest negotiation round, while proposing to usemany different forms of negotiation to find solutions to narrowing the differences.
A number of members welcomed the call of new WTO Director-General NgoziOkonjo-Iweala on February 15 to introduce the WTO’s new rules on fisheriessubsidies as soon as possible in 2021.
The next round of negotiations on fisheries subsidies will start on March 15. WTOmembers can also conduct consultations before the next round of negotiations.
The WTO’s 11th Ministerial Conference (MC11) and SDG 14.6give negotiators the task of securing an agreement on eliminating subsidies forillegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing and to prohibit certain formsof fisheries subsidies that contribute to overcapacity and overfishing by theend of 2020. WTO members committed to build on their 2020 progress and reach aresolution in 2021.
SDG 14.6, part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Developmentadopted by all United Nations member states, including Vietnam, in 2015,affirms the WTO's role in the global fisheries subsidies agenda.
It targets to “by 2020, prohibitcertain forms of fisheries subsidies which contribute to overcapacity andoverfishing, and eliminate subsidies that contribute to IUU fishing, andrefrain from introducing new such subsidies, recognising that appropriate andeffective special and differential treatment for developing and least developedcountries should be an integral part of the WTO fisheries subsidiesnegotiation.”/.
VNA
