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ARMENIA TO ACCEDE TO THE WTO GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT AGREEMENT
States News Service
December 7, 2010 Tuesday
GENEVA, Switzerland
The following information was released by the World Trade Organization:
Armenia's accession to the Agreement will take effect thirty days after
the deposit of its instrument of accession with the Director-General,
and following adoption of the draft law.
The decision today completes a process of negotiations that began
with Armenia's application for accession to the Agreement just over
a year ago, on 4 September 2009.
Director-General Pascal Lamy welcomed the decision as good for
Armenia, good for the Agreement on Government Procurement and good
for the WTO system. He said that Participation in the GPA brings real
benefits not only in terms of access to other Parties' markets for
procurement of goods, services and construction services, but also
in the form of enhanced competition and transparency in the Party's
internal markets. It embodies a political and legal commitment to good
governance principles that reflects very positively on the acceding
government and on its leaders. In applying for GPA accession and
then completing the related negotiations in a little over a year,
Armenia has effectively demonstrated to the world its commitment to
these principles Mr. Lamy said.
The Chairman of the Committee on Government Procurement, Mr. Nicholas
Niggli of Switzerland, congratulated Armenia and said that in applying
for GPA accession and in completing the process in such a timely
fashion, it had shown courage, fortitude and wisdom. You have made
a commitment to good governance that will be noted around the world,
and that has made you a leader in your region he added.
Government procurement accounts for in the range of 15-20 % of gross
domestic product (GDP), on average, in developed countries. Only
a part of this is currently covered by the Agreement on Government
Procurement.
The aim of the Agreement is to open up as much of government
procurement as possible to international competition. It is designed to
make laws, regulations, procedures and practices regarding government
procurement that is covered by the Agreement more transparent and to
ensure they do not discriminate against the products or suppliers of
other GPA Parties.
Currently, the Agreement covers forty-one WTO Members, namely: Canada;
the European Union, with its 27 member States; Hong Kong, China;
Iceland; Israel; Japan; Korea; Liechtenstein; the Kingdom of the
Netherlands with respect to Aruba; Norway; Singapore; Switzerland;
Chinese Taipei and the United States.
Other WTO Members that are in the process of negotiating their
accession to the Agreement on Government Procurement are Albania,
China, Georgia, Jordan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, Oman and Panama.
A further five WTO Members, namely Croatia, the Former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia, Mongolia, Saudi Arabia and the Ukraine, have
provisions regarding accession to the Agreement in their respective
Protocols of Accession to the WTO.
From: A. Papazian
States News Service
December 7, 2010 Tuesday
GENEVA, Switzerland
The following information was released by the World Trade Organization:
Armenia's accession to the Agreement will take effect thirty days after
the deposit of its instrument of accession with the Director-General,
and following adoption of the draft law.
The decision today completes a process of negotiations that began
with Armenia's application for accession to the Agreement just over
a year ago, on 4 September 2009.
Director-General Pascal Lamy welcomed the decision as good for
Armenia, good for the Agreement on Government Procurement and good
for the WTO system. He said that Participation in the GPA brings real
benefits not only in terms of access to other Parties' markets for
procurement of goods, services and construction services, but also
in the form of enhanced competition and transparency in the Party's
internal markets. It embodies a political and legal commitment to good
governance principles that reflects very positively on the acceding
government and on its leaders. In applying for GPA accession and
then completing the related negotiations in a little over a year,
Armenia has effectively demonstrated to the world its commitment to
these principles Mr. Lamy said.
The Chairman of the Committee on Government Procurement, Mr. Nicholas
Niggli of Switzerland, congratulated Armenia and said that in applying
for GPA accession and in completing the process in such a timely
fashion, it had shown courage, fortitude and wisdom. You have made
a commitment to good governance that will be noted around the world,
and that has made you a leader in your region he added.
Government procurement accounts for in the range of 15-20 % of gross
domestic product (GDP), on average, in developed countries. Only
a part of this is currently covered by the Agreement on Government
Procurement.
The aim of the Agreement is to open up as much of government
procurement as possible to international competition. It is designed to
make laws, regulations, procedures and practices regarding government
procurement that is covered by the Agreement more transparent and to
ensure they do not discriminate against the products or suppliers of
other GPA Parties.
Currently, the Agreement covers forty-one WTO Members, namely: Canada;
the European Union, with its 27 member States; Hong Kong, China;
Iceland; Israel; Japan; Korea; Liechtenstein; the Kingdom of the
Netherlands with respect to Aruba; Norway; Singapore; Switzerland;
Chinese Taipei and the United States.
Other WTO Members that are in the process of negotiating their
accession to the Agreement on Government Procurement are Albania,
China, Georgia, Jordan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, Oman and Panama.
A further five WTO Members, namely Croatia, the Former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia, Mongolia, Saudi Arabia and the Ukraine, have
provisions regarding accession to the Agreement in their respective
Protocols of Accession to the WTO.
From: A. Papazian