43rd Cairns Group Ministerial Meeting in UAE

The Ministerial Meeting was chaired by Mr. Don Farrell, Senator and Minister for Trade and Tourism, and Mr. Tim Ayres, Senator and Assistant Minister for Trade at the Australian Ministry of Trade and Tourism. The meeting saw the participation of Ministers, Deputy Ministers, Ambassadors, and Heads of Delegations from 20 Cairns Group member countries. Mr. Nguyen Hong Dien, Minister of Industry and Trade and Head of the Vietnamese delegation, also attended the meeting.

During the opening speech, Minister Don Farrell welcomed Ukraine as a full member of the Cairns Group and congratulated Thailand on assuming the position of Deputy Chair for the first rotation of the Group. Mr. Don Farrell noted that the Meeting was organized amidst notable challenges encountered within agricultural negotiations at the WTO. Namely, the landscape of agricultural reform at the WTO has failed to see improvements since the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference; agricultural negotiation remains a challenging aspect; WTO member states hold conflicting views regarding negotiation, and many members are reluctant to adopt changes. Consequently, Mr. Don Farrel encouraged the Cairns Group members to strengthen their efforts in protecting and reforming the multilateral trading system, with a focus on developing towards agriculture. He emphasized that agriculture stands as a crucial tool in this process.

During his speech at the meeting, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien stated that as an active member of the WTO and the Cairns Group, Vietnam calls on all members to commit to achieving an open, market-oriented, and equitable playing field in agricultural trade. Moreover, Vietnam welcomes new initiatives and efforts to promote negotiations for mutual benefit. These contents must be adjusted accordingly to suit the level of development and enforcement capacity of various economies. Additionally, new initiatives and efforts must be feasible, and avoid the burden of new obligations. Vietnam reaffirms its commitment to working with other Group members to make progress in priority areas, to support the multilateral trading system. Minister Nguyen Hong Dien believes that the 43rd Cairns Group Ministerial Meeting in Abu Dhabi will yield positive and substantive results, thereby resulting in a practical contribution to promoting fair agricultural trade.

As a summary of the discussion outcomes, the Chairperson of the Cairns Group reaffirmed that agricultural trade reform is a complex and challenging issue, but failure to reform will result in significant consequences. As a result, negotiations at the upcoming MC13 will require immense efforts from stakeholders. Additionally, the Group rejects the notion that the MC13 conference should merely offer an inconclusive program, and it does not endorse a narrow commitment package solely focused on issues surrounding export restrictions and transparency. The Group believes that all raised issues must be subject to fair and equitable examination. The Meeting also demonstrated the resolute viewpoints of its members regarding the Group's common goal of fully implementing the reform tasks as stipulated in Article 20 of the WTO Agreement on Agriculture. Members also reaffirmed that the Group's proposals in previous documents will serve as the foundation for negotiations concerning domestic support and public stockholding for food security (PSH).

During the meeting, the Ministers and Heads of Delegations of the 20 member countries also adopted the Statement of the 43rd Cairns Group Ministerial Meeting.

The Cairns Group is an alliance of 20 agricultural exporting countries, accounting for nearly 30% of global agricultural exports. The Group's official members include Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Paraguay, Peru, the Philippines, South Africa, Thailand, Ukraine, Uruguay, and Vietnam. Australia currently holds the Chairmanship of the Group.

Vietnam has attended the Cairns Group Ministerial Meetings as an observer on multiple occasions. Vietnam became an official member of the Group at the 9th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC9) held in Bali in 2013.