Commentary: Why Yaounde WTO conference failed.

But at the close of the conference, several media organs and economic think tanks around the world termed it a "failure".

A report by Reuters: "It did not end with an overall ministerial declaration, not even a chair’s summary capturing a conference-wide consensus. It did not achieve any of its headline goals, including e-ecommerce—which expired on March 26, the first day of the conference. It also did not adopt the Investment Facilitation for Development Agreement, IFDA, which had been concluded in July 2023 and presented at MC13 in Abu Dhabi. Nor did it agree on a work program for WTO reform".

The Reuters report stated further that the Yaounde conference "exposed deep divisions over the future of the multilateral trading system and the growing difficulty of reaching consensus-based multilateral agreements".

The most significant setback was the failure to extend the WTO’s e-commerce and TRIPS-related moratoria, which therefore lapsed. The expiration of the e-commerce moratorium, in place since 1998, allows countries to impose customs duties on electronic transmissions (such as digital downloads and streaming), marking a significant shift for global digital markets.

The US and other developed economies pushed for a long-term or permanent extension to preserve a predictable, tariff-free digital economy, with US officials linking support for the moratorium to broader WTO reform.

By contrast, a group of developing countries opposed the extension to preserve their right to impose duties and protect their emerging digital sectors. Brazil eventually blocked a final agreement linking the issue to the stalled agricultural negotiations.

No agreement was reached on a WTO reform agenda, either. The EU and the US favour more flexible, multi-layered approaches, including plurilateral agreements, to advance negotiations and modernise rules.

Developing countries, led by India, insisted on preserving core principles such as non-discrimination and the consensus-based system, prioritising unresolved issues such as agricultural subsidies and public stockholding, and maintaining effective special and differential treatment for developing countries.

No progress was made on another divisive issue: integrating plurilateral initiatives into the WTO’s legal framework, which requires consensus.

India blocked the Investment Facilitation for Development Agreement, IFDA, which provides global benchmarks to support the efforts of WTO members who are parties to the Agreement to improve the investment and business climate and make it easier for investors in all sectors of the economy to invest, conduct their day-to-day business and expand their operations. 

It is backed by 129 members, including the EU. The opponents say such initiatives fall outside the WTO’s mandate and undermine its multilateral character by allowing subsets of members to set rules outside consensus.

The Yaounde conference was, however, said not to be the end of the debate. The issues on which the ministers meeting in Yaoundé failed to find common ground are to be addressed very soon back in Geneva.

It should not be surprising that 166 trade sovereigns could not find agreement readily at hand on issues where there are differences in interests among them. It is important, however, that they try again.

Reportedly, they came close to an agreement on several respects at the meeting. But that they failed should not obscure the progress that is being made incrementally. The WTO is a member-driven organisation, an overused expression in that the members are not always seen to be active.

Inclusiveness is required, but it is said to be slow and frustrating, especially in the absence of positive, strong leadership.

At present, the absence of greater cooperation reflects the current state of world political affairs more broadly, which although troubled, has occasional bright moments. One of them is the creation of the new widely supported Agreement on Electronic Commerce being created at the WTO.

Although there is consensus reporting that the Yaounde conference failed, a report   in European Policy Centre. noted that it offered "...a possible alternative: members of plurilateral initiatives may bypass consensus constraints through interim arrangements”. 

A group of 66 of the WTO’s 166 members, including the EU, agreed to provisionally apply a plurilateral agreement on E-Commerce, allowing progress on digital rules such as e-signatures, paperless trading and consumer protection.

It will function as a legally binding interim treaty among signatories, while still relying on selected WTO mechanisms, including dispute settlement.

The Yaoundé package could still be finalised and adopted at the next General Council meeting in Geneva. Its outcomes are crucial to prevent further fragmentation of the multilateral trade system and discourage a US withdrawal.

Given its active role, the EU can lead coalitions of like-minded countries to advance WTO reform, restore a binding dispute settlement system, and implement and expand plurilateral agreements, including e-commerce with a view to their eventual incorporation into the WTO framework.     

Simultaneously, the EU and members of the Comprehensive Progressive and Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership are likely to continue pursuing alternative pathways to advance trade rules beyond the traditional consensus-based system while the WTO makes reforms. 

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3754 of Wednesday April 08, 2026