AGREEMENT ON AGRICULTURE
Article 3
Incorporation of Concessions and
Commitments
1. The domestic support and export
subsidy commitments in Part IV of each Member's Schedule constitute
commitments limiting subsidization and are hereby made an integral part of GATT
1994.
Part III
Article 4
Market Access
1. Market
access concessions contained in Schedules relate to bindings and reductions of
tariffs, and to other market access commitments as specified therein.
2. Members
shall not maintain, resort to, or revert to any measures of the kind which have
been required to be converted into ordinary customs duties except as otherwise
provided for in Article 5 and Annex 5.
Article 5
Special Safeguard Provisions
1. Notwithstanding
the provisions of paragraph 1(b) of Article II of GATT 1994, any Member may
take recourse to the provisions of paragraphs 4 and 5 below in connection with
the importation of an agricultural product, in respect of which measures
referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 4 of this Agreement have been converted
into an ordinary customs duty and which is designated in its Schedule with the
symbol "SSG" as being the subject of a concession in respect of which
the provisions of this Article may be invoked, if:
(a) the volume of
imports of that product entering the customs territory of the Member granting the
concession during any year exceeds a trigger level which relates to the
existing market access opportunity as set out in paragraph 4; or, but not concurrently:
trigger price equal to the average 1986 to 1988 reference price[1]
for the product concerned.
2. Imports
under current and minimum access commitments established as part of a
concession referred to in paragraph 1 above shall be counted for the purpose of
determining the volume of imports required for invoking the provisions of
subparagraph 1(a) and paragraph 4, but imports under
Part IV
Article 6
Domestic Support Commitments
1. The
domestic support reduction commitments of each Member contained in Part IV of
its Schedule shall apply to all of its domestic support measures in favour of
agricultural producers with the exception of domestic measures which are not
subject to reduction in terms of the criteria set out in this Article and in
Annex 2 to this Agreement. The
commitments are expressed in terms of Total Aggregate Measurement of Support
and "Annual and Final Bound Commitment Levels".
Article 7
General Disciplines on Domestic Support
1. Each
Member shall ensure that any domestic support measures in favour of agricultural
producers which are not subject to reduction commitments because they qualify
under the criteria set out in Annex 2 to this Agreement are maintained in
conformity therewith.
2. (a) Any domestic support measure in favour
of agricultural producers, including any modification to such measure, and any
measure that is subsequently introduced that cannot be shown to satisfy the
criteria in Annex 2 to this Agreement or to be exempt from reduction by
reason of any other provision of this Agreement shall be included in the
Member's calculation of its Current Total AMS.
(b) Where no Total AMS
commitment exists in Part IV of a Member's Schedule, the Member shall not
provide support to agricultural producers in excess of the relevant de minimis level set out in paragraph 4
of Article 6.
Part V
Article 8
Export Competition Commitments
Each
Member undertakes not to provide export subsidies otherwise than in conformity
with this Agreement and with the commitments as specified in that Member's Schedule.
Article 9
Export Subsidy Commitments
1. The
following export subsidies are subject to reduction commitments under this
Agreement:
(a) the provision by
governments or their agencies of direct subsidies, including payments-in-kind,
to a firm, to an industry, to producers of an agricultural product, to a
cooperative or other association of such producers, or to a marketing board,
contingent on export performance;
Article 10
Prevention of Circumvention of Export Subsidy Commitments
1. Export
subsidies not listed in paragraph 1 of Article 9 shall not be applied
in a manner which results in, or which threatens to lead to, circumvention of
export subsidy commitments; nor shall
non-commercial transactions be used to
circumvent such commitments.
Part VI
Article 14
Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures
Members
agree to give effect to the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and
Phytosanitary Measures.
Part IX
Article 15
Special and Differential Treatment
1. In
keeping with the recognition that differential and more favourable treatment
for developing country Members is an integral part of the negotiation, special
and differential treatment in respect of commitments shall be provided as set
out in the relevant provisions of this Agreement and embodied in the Schedules
of concessions and commitments.
2. Developing
country Members shall have the flexibility to implement reduction commitments
over a period of up to 10 years.
Least-developed country Members shall not be required to undertake
reduction commitments.
Part X
Article 16
Least-Developed and Net Food-Importing
Developing Countries
1. Developed
country Members shall take such action as is provided for within the framework of
the Decision on Measures Concerning the Possible Negative Effects of the Reform
Programme on Least-Developed and Net Food-Importing Developing Countries.
2. The
Committee on Agriculture shall monitor, as appropriate, the follow-up to this
Decision.
[1] The reference price used to invoke the provisions of this
subparagraph shall, in general, be the average c.i.f. unit value of the product
concerned, or otherwise shall be an appropriate price in terms of the quality
of the product and its stage of processing.
It shall, following its initial use, be publicly specified and available
to the extent necessary to allow other Members to assess the additional duty
that may be levied.