Bali's magical touch to breathe life into WTO

NUSA DUA. Trade Minister Gita Wirjawan voiced optimism on Monday that the World Trade Organization's (WTO) ninth ministerial meeting in Bali would not end in vain, amid worries of a possible deadlock over multilateral trade policies.

Gita said that if the group could just agree on 10 percent of the Doha Round goals it would be a breakthrough.

"The magical touch of Bali will breathe fresh air into the WTO’s progress. It will not be impossible to seal a tangible outcome over the next few days," he said.

Although the conference will not start until tomorrow, several members are already engaged in stiff lobbying.

Aside from issues revolving around agricultural subsidies, member countries are also vying to agree on packages for the least developed countries (LDCs) and for the streamlining of the flow of goods through trade facilitation.

While the LDC package is generally considered "low hanging fruit", it is unlikely that all members will walk out of the Bali talks on common terms.

"There are those who want the Bali talks to just agree on the LDC package, But there are others demanding a bundled deal [that comprises LDCs, agriculture subsidies and trade facilitation]," said Gita. (Rendi A. Witular/The Jakarta Post)