In a meeting this afternoon at the WTO headquarters in Geneva, a tentative accord reached by 54 WTO members on 18 July was confirmed as the basis for implementation work to begin.
Ministers from the participating members will now work to conclude their implementation plans in time for the WTO's 10th Ministerial Conference which will be held in Nairobi this December 2015
The agreement this month is an expansion of the 1996 Information Technology Agreement which involves 81 members. In 2012, members recognized that technological innovation had advanced to such an extent that many new categories of IT products were not covered by the existing agreement. Negotiations began in 2012 to expand the coverage of the accord.
Under the terms of the agreement, the majority of tariffs will be eliminated on these products within three years, with reductions beginning in 2016. By the end of October 2015, each of the participating members will submit to the other participants a draft schedule which spells out how the terms of the agreement would be met.
Participants will spend the coming months preparing and verifying these schedules. The objective is to conclude this technical work in time for the Nairobi Ministerial Conference in December 2015
“Today's agreement is a landmark,” said WTO Director-General Roberto Azevêdo. “Annual trade in these 201 products is valued at over $1.3 trillion per year, and accounts for approximately 7% of total global trade today.
Eliminating tariffs on trade of this magnitude will have a huge impact. It will support lower prices — including in many other sectors that use IT products as inputs — it will create jobs and it will help to boost GDP growth around the world. This is the first major tariff-cutting deal at the WTO in 18 years
The Director-General added that all 161 WTO members will benefit from this WTO agreement, as they will all enjoy duty-free market access in the markets of those members who are eliminating tariffs on these products. The terms of the agreement will be formally circulated to the full membership at a meeting of the WTO General Council on 28 July.
Note
The WTO currently has 161 members
Of the 128 states party to the GATT at the end of 1994, all have since become WTO members except Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
As of 2014, four of the successor states of the SFRY are WTO members (Slovenia, Croatia, Macedonia and Montenegro), and the remaining two (Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia) are observers negotiating membership
The WTO has 23 observer states
Sechelles is the newest full member, joining on 26 April 2015
List of members and accession dates
| Country |
|---|
| Date of Accession | |
|---|---|
 Albania |
8 September 2000 |
 Angola |
23 November 1996 |
 Antigua and Barbuda |
1 January 1995 |
 Argentina |
1 January 1995 |
 Armenia |
5 February 2003 |
 Australia |
1 January 1995 |
 Austria ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Bahrain |
1 January 1995 |
 Bangladesh |
1 January 1995 |
 Barbados |
1 January 1995 |
 Belgium ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Belize |
1 January 1995 |
 Benin |
22 February 1996 |
 Bolivia |
12 September 1995 |
 Botswana |
31 May 1995 |
 Brazil |
1 January 1995 |
 Brunei Darussalam |
1 January 1995 |
 Bulgaria ( EU) |
1 December 1996 |
 Burkina Faso |
3 June 1995 |
 Burundi |
23 July 1995 |
 Cambodia |
13 October 2004 |
 Cameroon |
13 December 1995 |
 Canada |
1 January 1995 |
 Cape Verde |
23 July 2008 |
 Central African Republic |
31 May 1995 |
 Chad |
19 October 1996 |
 Chile |
1 January 1995 |
 China |
11 December 2001 |
 Colombia |
30 April 1995 |
 Costa Rica |
1 January 1995 |
 Croatia ( EU) |
30 November 2000 |
 Cuba |
20 April 1995 |
 Cyprus ( EU) |
30 July 1995 |
 Czech Republic ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Côte d'Ivoire |
1 January 1995 |
 Democratic Republic of the Congo |
1 January 1997 |
 Denmark ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Djibouti |
31 May 1995 |
 Dominica |
1 January 1995 |
 Dominican Republic |
9 March 1995 |
 Ecuador |
21 January 1996 |
 Egypt |
30 June 1995 |
 El Salvador |
7 May 1995 |
 Estonia ( EU) |
13 November 1999 |
| European Union[note 1] |
1 January 1995 |
 Fiji |
14 January 1996 |
 Finland ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 France ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Gabon |
1 January 1995 |
 Gambia |
23 October 1996 |
 Georgia |
14 June 2000 |
 Germany ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Ghana |
1 January 1995 |
 Greece ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Grenada |
22 February 1996 |
 Guatemala |
21 July 1995 |
 Guinea |
25 October 1995 |
 Guinea-Bissau |
31 May 1995 |
 Guyana |
1 January 1995 |
 Haiti |
30 January 1996 |
 Honduras |
1 January 1995 |
 Hong Kong, China[note 2] |
1 January 1995 |
 Hungary ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Iceland |
1 January 1995 |
 India |
1 January 1995 |
 Indonesia |
1 January 1995 |
 Ireland ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Israel |
21 April 1995 |
 Italy ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Jamaica |
9 March 1995 |
 Japan |
1 January 1995 |
 Jordan |
11 April 2000 |
 Kenya |
1 January 1995 |
 Kuwait |
1 January 1995 |
 Kyrgyzstan |
20 December 1998 |
 Laos |
2 February 2013 |
 Latvia ( EU) |
10 February 1999 |
 Lesotho |
31 May 1995 |
 Liechtenstein |
1 September 1995 |
 Lithuania ( EU) |
31 May 2001 |
 Luxembourg ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Macau, China[note 3] |
1 January 1995 |
 Madagascar |
17 November 1995 |
 Malawi |
31 May 1995 |
 Malaysia |
1 January 1995 |
 Maldives |
31 May 1995 |
 Mali |
31 May 1995 |
 Malta ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Mauritania |
31 May 1995 |
 Mauritius |
1 January 1995 |
 Mexico |
1 January 1995 |
 Moldova |
26 July 2001 |
 Mongolia |
29 January 1997 |
 Montenegro |
29 April 2012[26] |
 Morocco |
1 January 1995 |
 Mozambique |
26 August 1995 |
 Myanmar |
1 January 1995 |
 Namibia |
1 January 1995 |
 Nepal |
23 April 2004 |
 Netherlands ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 New Zealand |
1 January 1995 |
 Nicaragua |
3 September 1995 |
 Niger |
13 December 1996 |
 Nigeria |
1 January 1995 |
 Norway |
1 January 1995 |
 Oman |
9 November 2000 |
 Pakistan |
1 January 1995 |
 Panama |
6 September 1997 |
 Papua New Guinea |
9 June 1996 |
 Paraguay |
1 January 1995 |
 Peru |
1 January 1995 |
 Philippines |
1 January 1995 |
 Poland ( EU) |
1 July 1995 |
 Portugal ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Qatar |
13 January 1996 |
 Republic of Korea |
1 January 1995 |
 Republic of Macedonia |
4 April 2003 |
 Republic of the Congo |
27 March 1997 |
 Romania ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Russia |
22 August 2012 |
 Rwanda |
22 May 1996 |
 Saint Kitts and Nevis |
21 February 1996 |
 Saint Lucia |
1 January 1995 |
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
1 January 1995 |
 Samoa |
10 May 2012[26] |
 Saudi Arabia |
11 December 2005 |
 Senegal |
1 January 1995 |
 Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu |
1 January 2002 |
 Seychelles |
26 April 2015 |
 Sierra Leone |
23 July 1995 |
 Singapore |
1 January 1995 |
 Slovakia ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Slovenia ( EU) |
30 July 1995 |
 Solomon Islands |
26 July 1996 |
 South Africa |
1 January 1995 |
 Spain ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Sri Lanka |
1 January 1995 |
 Suriname |
1 January 1995 |
 Swaziland |
1 January 1995 |
 Sweden ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 Switzerland |
1 July 1995 |
 Tajikistan |
2 March 2013 |
 Tanzania |
1 January 1995 |
 Thailand |
1 January 1995 |
 Togo |
31 May 1995 |
 Tonga |
27 July 2007 |
 Trinidad and Tobago |
1 March 1995 |
 Tunisia |
29 March 1995 |
 Turkey |
26 March 1995 |
 Uganda |
1 January 1995 |
 Ukraine |
16 May 2008 |
 United Arab Emirates |
10 April 1996 |
 United Kingdom ( EU) |
1 January 1995 |
 United States |
1 January 1995 |
 Uruguay |
1 January 1995 |
 Vanuatu |
24 August 2012[6] |
 Venezuela |
1 January 1995 |
 Vietnam |
11 January 2007 |
 Yemen |
26 June 2014 |
 Zambia |
1 January 1995 |
 Zimbabwe |
5 March 1995 |
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