WTO official lauds China's impressive development record

A World Trade Organization (WTO) official on Tuesday lauded China's rapid development record, saying the country's success story is unprecedented.

The Director of Information and External Relations Division at the global trade organization Keith Rockwell said in Nairobi that even though Beijing is classified as a developing country, its success story in terms of progress is incredible.

Rockwell said China's acceptance of a lower threshold of 8.5 percent subsidy of the value of its agricultural produce criteria set by the WTO, which is less than the 10 percent limit set for developing countries, was a great compromise from the 5 percent limit that applies to developed countries that the United States and other member counties had sought for Beijing.

Rockwell is in Kenya to sensitize the media on the activities of the WTO ahead of the organization's 10th Ministerial Conference scheduled for between December 15-18.

The Ministerial Conference is the highest authority of the organization, which meets at least once every two years, to take decisions on all matters under any of the multilateral trade agreements.

He said during the Nairobi meeting that seven members, namely, the European Union, China, Japan, Australia, India, Brazil and the United States, will be under discussion to unravel the real issues they have with other member countries. Endit