MM Report
YAOUNDÉ, CAMEROON: A Pakistani delegation attended the 14th Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), a meeting set against what many experts describe as an “existential crisis” for the global trading system.
The delegation is led by Minister of State for Finance and Railways Bilal Azhar Kayani and includes Ambassador Ali Sarfraz, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the WTO, along with officials from the country’s WTO mission in Geneva.
The conference comes at a turbulent time for the WTO, which is grappling with rising unilateralism, the proliferation of tariff and non-tariff barriers, and a growing preference among member states for domestic priorities over multilateral rule-based trade governance. Observers say these trends have contributed to a stalled negotiation agenda, particularly in the area of agricultural trade.
During the conference, Kayani will serve as Minister-Facilitator for the WTO’s Committee on Agriculture – Special Session (CoA-SS). In this role, he is tasked with charting a path forward on long-standing agricultural trade negotiations, which have repeatedly faltered due to rigid national positions linked to farmers’ livelihoods, food security, and internal policy concerns.
Throughout the Ministerial Conference, Kayani is expected to meet with senior political and official representatives from key member states to seek consensus on the Chair’s text prepared by Ambassador Sarfraz. The document reflects the accumulated recommendations of WTO members and is aimed at establishing common ground on contentious agricultural trade issues.
Officials said Pakistan’s leadership at the conference underscores its commitment to strengthening the global trading system while promoting equitable solutions for developing countries that face ongoing pressures from both market forces and protectionist policies.
