JEDDAH, 10 November 2005 — Saudi Arabia’s accession to the World Trade Organization as its 149th member will be formally agreed to tomorrow at a meeting of the body’s General Council in Geneva.
Leading the Saudi delegation, the Minister of Commerce and Industry, Dr. Hashem Yamani, will sign the accession papers on behalf of the Saudi Council of Ministers. Membership takes effect 30 days after signing — which will allow Saudi Arabia to take a full part in the WTO ministerial summit in Hong Kong next month.
The accession, approved in principle by the WTO last month, brings to a close 12 years of tough and complex negotiations. The Kingdom originally applied in June 1993 to join the General Agreement on Tariff and Trade (GATT), which was then succeeded by the WTO.
It was hoped that the process would be complete by the end of last year but negotiations dragged on. The last hurdle, and one of the toughest, was the talks with the US, which were only completed in September. Bilateral agreements with most other countries were completed over a year ago.
Membership will bring no overnight changes. The Kingdom, one of the last major economies outside the WTO, has been changing its commercial and economic laws over the past few years to comply with the WTO’s rules. Where it has been noticeable and where it has had the greatest effect so far is in the distribution, telecommunication, banking and insurance sectors.
Last month Yamani, who has led the Saudi negotiating team, called the decision to invite Saudi Arabia “a victory for the principles and objectives of the multilateral trading system.” The country had sought WTO membership, he said, because “We pride ourselves on having an open and liberal trade regime and believe in the market mechanism” as a means to growth and development. “Our road to accession has been long but finally rewarding,” Yamani said. Saudi Arabia had made “far-reaching, very substantial and commercially meaningful concessions and commitments on goods and services” that would benefit its trading partners.”
Commenting at the same time, WTO chief Pascal Lamy spoke of the decision to admit the Kingdom as “historic,” both for the WTO and for the multilateral trading system. “I know the negotiations have been difficult and long. But I also know that both Saudi Arabia and the members have gone the extra mile to ensure the success that we see today.”
The Council of Ministers last month authorized Yamani to sign WTO accession documents, which include 38 bilateral agreements with member states, an accession protocol and the final report of the working team.
Expectations are that WTO accession will boost foreign investment in the Kingdom, providing funds for diversification of the largely oil-based economy, and bring new export opportunities for Saudi firms, especially in the petrochemical industry.
Support for the Kingdom’s WTO membership has been whole-hearted from the country’s chambers of commerce according to Dr. Ghassan Al-Sulaiman, chairman of Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry. “We don’t want to be among the few countries excluded from the global alliance and its benefits,” he told Arab News.
