JEDDAH, 21 December 2005 — Saudi Arabia’s accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) would help open new markets for Saudi products and services, Commerce and Industry Minister Hashem Yamani said yesterday.
“The Kingdom has fulfilled and will continue to fulfill all of its commitments related to the WTO agreement,” the Saudi Press Agency quoted the minister as saying.
Yamani, who led the negotiating team to win WTO accession, said Saudi Arabia had adopted 42 new regulations and measures as part of its efforts to join the international trade body.
“Of these 42 regulations 19 were related to the main WTO agreements,” he pointed out.
Saudi Arabia formally became the WTO’s 149th member on Dec. 11 and a Saudi delegation led by Yamani attended the organization’s Hong Kong conference.
Saudi Arabia has been negotiating its membership since July 1993. As a result of the negotiations, the Kingdom has agreed to undertake a series of important commitments to further liberalize its trade regime and accelerate its integration in the world economy.
The Kingdom will eliminate any non-tariff measures that cannot be justified under WTO rules while maintaining the right to restrict the import and export of a certain number of goods and services for reasons that include protecting public morals, the life and health of the population and national security interests.
“The Kingdom will not allow import of 83 prohibited goods including pork and its byproducts and liquors,” Yamani said.
He said there are certain sectors — such as Haj and Umrah and land transport — that would not be open to foreign investors. The Kingdom allows the import of 7,177 products.
Yamani said the Kingdom would reduce agricultural subsidies by 13.3 percent next year. “We’ll also reduce customs tariff on certain goods as per the agreement,” he added. The Saudi minister described the Hong Kong ministerial conference as a success. “It was aimed at preparing a roadmap for completing negotiations on outstanding issues,” he pointed out.
He said that the representatives of developed countries agreed to end agricultural export subsidies by 2013. “They also decided to exempt exports form underdeveloped countries from customs tariffs,” he added.
Yamani said the Kingdom was optimistic about making more gains through its WTO accession, adding that it would attend the next meeting in Geneva and other WTO forums in order to protect its interests.
“Our participation in the coming negotiations would be significant in order to affirm our stand and defend our interests,” he said.
