SA IS leading discussions about the review of the rules of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) during the organisation's fourth ministerial conference, currently taking place in Doha, Qatar.

Trade and Industry minister Alec Erwin is spearheading SA efforts to ensure that nations at the conference participate fully and that issues are debated as widely as possible.

The WTO rules, which include issues related to antidumping, countervailing and subsidies, have been a bone of contention between the rich north and developing countries in the multilateral trading system.

Developed countries have been accused of steamrolling the process with little input from the poor south. The fiasco in Seattle in 1999 at the third WTO ministerial conference was largely blamed on the fact that rich countries reached consensus on a number of issues without consulting developing countries.

Tshediso Matona, the Trade and Industry chief director for trade talks, said yesterday it was an honour for SA, chosen out of 143 WTO member states, to lead the discussions about the review.

Matona said there was a need to clarify and improve WTO rules on fisheries subsidies, taking into account the importance of this sector to developing countries.

"There is no question over the legitimacy of these instruments, but the issue here is, in what ways can these rules be clarified to work to the benefit of all member states," he said.

Matona said countries such as the US, Japan, South Korea, Chile, Brazil and India wanted the rules negotiated.

He said SA had continually been victimised in relation to anti-dumping duties, citing as an example the high duties on SA steel exports to the US.

"The issues are complex and wide-ranging. These are negotiations, so there are no guarantees over the outcome of the conference," he said.

However, Matona said everyone recognised what was at stake and progress was being made. He said the positive outcome of the conference would be beneficial not only to SA, but to the entire world.

SA is one of six countries referred to as "The friends of the chair" delegated to deal with six subject matters on which there are currently consultations.

Meanwhile, the WTO has effectively reached agreement on pharmaceutical products and intellectual property issues. The move has pleased nongovernmental organisations pushing for greater access to medicines.

The agreement strengthens the hand of member countries which need to use compulsory licensing or other patent-breaking mechanisms to meet public health needs.

The agreement has reportedly made representatives of the pharmaceutical industry present at the talks in Doha unhappy.

Delegations will have been putting the final touches to the agreement overnight. According to Jamie Love of the Consumer Project on Technology, this is a "strong, largely political statement which creates no new rights but gives considerable power to governments".

Developing countries and NGOs in the field did not want new rights, but wanted instead to be able use to meet public health needs without wealthy countries and the pharmaceutical industry manipulating provisions and placing trade provisions before public health imperatives.

There will be a 10-year extension to poor countries, exempting them from the WTO's intellectual property rules.