Challenges

The accession of the Republic of Belarus to the World Trade Organization (WTO) is an important priority under its national trade policy. WTO membership would help to attract foreign investments, integrate Belarus in international trade and improve the environment for the export of Belarusian goods and services to the markets of WTO member States. Securing national interests and benefits for private businesses is a key pillar of the country’s accession to WTO.

All the partners of Belarus within the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) are WTO members: Kyrgyzstan, since 1998; Armenia, since 2003; the Russian Federation, since 2012; and Kazakhstan, since 2015. This partnership allows Belarus to maximize coordination of the accession terms and accelerate the accession process while ensuring that commitments assumed under WTO are compatible with maintaining opportunities for developing and deepening Eurasian integration.

Belarus has entered the final stage of negotiations, formulating the final commitments before WTO. Nevertheless, both government bodies and the business community have insufficient knowledge of the broad range of issues related to WTO accession and their impact on the country’s socio-economic development. The relevant department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is understaffed, which does not allow to provide a full range of legal support and counselling services to government bodies and other stakeholders on foreign trade issues and relevant regulations within WTO.

The country does not have institutions with appropriate expertise and experience to offer counselling on a broad range of issues and to provide expert services on foreign economic activity, foreign trade and the facilitation of WTO membership.

Toward a Solution

The transition from the preparatory to the final stage of the negotiation process in acceding to WTO required additional support for the national negotiating panel and consolidation of all parties engaged in negotiations. National specialists and experts will undergo training at a ‘school of negotiations’ and prepare to implement Government decisions during the post-accession stage.

The goal of the project is to assist the Government of Belarus in acceding to WTO by strengthening national expertise and raising public awareness of the process and impact of WTO accession. The key project objectives are to perform analytical studies leading to action-oriented recommendations on issues related to WTO accession; implement training activities for national organizations, institutions and government agencies on various aspects; and conduct an information and education campaign to improve public awareness regarding WTO rules and the country’s accession process. Target audiences will include the business community, academia and the media.

Achieving these key project objectives will help to improve the country’s negotiating position and the competence of its presentation in WTO accession. It will also raise awareness among responsible government officials and business community representatives of foreign trade policy in the context of WTO accession. Furthermore, it will contribute to training specialists in line ministries and agencies to enhance professional skills related to multilateral agreements under WTO and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade in the context of achieving national goals on foreign trade, both at the national level and within integration associations to which Belarus is a party.

In the medium term, the key result of the project will be the accession of Belarus to WTO on terms that are favourable to the country and Eurasian integration. This will improve the country’s long-term trade and economic cooperation with the rest of the world, help to attract foreign investments and strengthen its export position through the liberalization of terms of access to foreign markets for its domestic products. It will also enhance EAEU positions in the region.

The project’s activities benefit the government bodies and organizations responsible for promoting Belarus in the WTO accession process. The successful implementation of the project also benefits regional governments, line universities and research institutes focused on foreign trade, as well as business associations and entrepreneurs. The project contributes to raise awareness among the population and business representatives about WTO-related issues.

To strengthen the capacity of experts in public institutions on various aspects of WTO accession, a National Centre on WTO will be established. The Centre will:

• Support the country’s membership in WTO.
• Analyse the economic impacts of its accession.
• Develop recommendations on improving Belarusian legislation on foreign trade, in line with the provisions of WTO basic agreements.
• Offer expertise in formulating positions at international trade negotiations, drafting international economic agreements and addressing problems regarding access to foreign markets and settlement of international trade disputes.
• Build up national expertise on trade policy and WTO legal matters to reduce the country’s dependency on foreign consultants and organizations for expert and legal support in resolving disputes within WTO.
• Provide expert support for participation in WTO bodies.

The National Centre on WTO will maintain close collaboration with the Centre of Expertise on WTO of the Russian Federation and the Centre of Trade Policy Development under the Ministry of National Economy of Kazakhstan.1 This collaboration will strengthen the centres’ expert capacity, creating synergies and improving efficiency in the use of intellectual resources from Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia. This will generate substantial financial savings in upholding common interests and addressing potential common problems in the context of WTO membership.

The National Centre on WTO will implement all functions of the project, conducting analytical research and offering training, education and counselling on a broad range of issues. Upon completion of the project, the Centre will take over. Representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus have already studied the experience of the centres in Russia and Kazakhstan to develop the concept of the National Centre on WTO. Other countries could replicate the establishment and operation of a national centre as well. In that regard, the concept has been shared with the United Nations Development Programme in Uzbekistan.

The sustainability of the project outcomes will be ensured. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus has a strong interest in applying this international expertise and employing the established expert community, which has extensive knowledge and competencies in the areas of international trade and law.