1. What is the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas (FTAA)?

   The Free Trade Agreement of the Americas is an initiative to unite 34 countries of the Western Hemisphere into a single free trade agreement, in which barriers to trade and investment will be progressively eliminated. The Heads of State and Government of all 34 member countries agreed to construct the FTAA in 1994, and also agreed to complete negotiations by 2005.

2. What countries integrate FTAA?
   
   FTAA has 34 members: Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, United States, Uruguay and Venezuela.

3. What is the situation of current negotiations of FTAA?
   
   Negotiations started in 1998 and up to date a considerable number of meetings have taken place:
   
   • More that 250 meetings of the 9 negotiations groups
   • 12 meetings at a Vice-Ministerial level
   • 3 Ministerial meetings

4. What is Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum?
   
   APEC was established in 1989 as an informal dialogue group to promote regional economic cooperation. Its initial years were focused largely on exchanges of views and project-based initiatives.

   When APEC Economic Leaders met for the first time in Seattle in November 1993, they envisaged a community of Asia-Pacific economies working together in a spirit of partnership and cooperation to meet the challenge of sustaining regional growth and prosperity. In subsequent annual meetings, APEC Ministers and Leaders further refined this vision and launched mechanisms to translate the vision into action.

   In 1994 in Bogor, Indonesia, APEC members committed themselves to achieving free and open trade and investment in the Asia Pacific by 2010 for developed member economies and 2020 for developing ones. In Osaka the following year, Leaders adopted the Osaka Action Agenda, which firmly established the three pillars of APEC activities:
   

   • Trade and investment liberalization
   • Business facilitation
   • Economic and technical cooperation.

5. What countries integrate APEC?
   
   APEC has 21 members: Australia; Brunei Darussalam; Canada; Chile; China; Hong Kong, China; Indonesia, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea; Peru, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, United States and Viet Nam.
   

6. When did Mexico join APEC?

   Mexico joined APEC in 1993.

7. What is the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)?

   The OECD groups 30 member countries sharing a commitment to democratic government and the market economy. The OECD plays a leading role in fostering good governance, both in the public service and in corporate activities. The Organization also assists governments to guarantee the awareness of key economic areas with sectoral monitoring.

   Best known for its publications and its statistics, its work covers economic and social macroeconomics issues such as trade, development, education, science and innovation.

   The OECD produces internationally agreed instruments, decisions and recommendations to promote rules in areas where multilateral agreement is necessary for individual countries to make progress in a globalized economy.
   

8. What countries integrate OECD?

   OECD has 30 members: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakian Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom and United States.
9. When did Mexico join OECD?

Mexico joined OECD in 1994.

10. What is the World Trade Organization (WTO)?
    
    The WTO is the institutional framework of the multilateral trading system. The Marrakech Agreement, establishing the WTO, is included in the Final Act embodying the results of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations, concluded 15 December 1993 and signed at the Marrakech Ministerial Meeting, on 15 April 1994. It constitutes the principal result of the Uruguay Round and incorporates, in its Annexes, the multilateral agreements on trade in goods, including:
    
    • The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)
    • The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS)
    • The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs)
    • The Trade Policy Review Mechanism

11. What countries integrate WTO?

    As of July 2003, the WTO has 146 member and 30 observer governments:

Members: Albania; Angola; Antigua and Barbuda; Argentina; Armenia; Australia; Austria; Bahrain; Bangladesh; Barbados; Belgium; Belize; Benin; Bolivia; Botswana; Brazil; Brunei Darussalam; Bulgaria; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cameroon; Canada; Central African Republic; Chad; Chile; China; Colombia; Congo; Costa Rica; Cote d’Ivoire; Croatia; Cuba; Cyprus; Czech Republic; Democratic Republic of the Congo; Denmark; Djibouti; Dominica; Dominican Republic; Ecuador; Egypt; El Salvador; Estonia; Fiji; Finland; Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia; France; Gabon; Gambia; Georgia; Germany; Ghana; Greece; Grenada; Guatemala; Guinea; Guinea Bissau; Guyana; Haiti; Honduras; Hong Kong, China; Hungary; Iceland; Israel; Italy; Jamaica; Japan; Jordan; Kenya; Korea; Kuwait; Kyrgyz Republic; Latvia; Lesotho; Liechtenstein; Luxembourg; Macao, China; Madagascar; Malawi; Malaysia; Maldives; Mali; Malta; Mauritania; Mauritius; Mexico; Moldova; Mongolia; Morocco; Mozambique; Myanmar; Namibia; Netherlands; New Zealand; Nicaragua; Niger; Nigeria; Norway; Oman; Pakistan; Panama; Papua New Guinea; Paraguay; Peru; Philippines; Poland; Portugal; Qatar; Romania; Rwanda; St. Kitts and Nevis; St. Lucia; St. Vincent and the Grenadines; Senegal ; Sierra Leone; Singapore; Slovak Republic; Slovenia; Solomon Islands; South Africa; Spain; Sri Lanka; Suriname; Swaziland; Sweden; Switzerland; Chinese Taipei; Tanzania; Thailand; Togo; Trinidad and Tobago; Tunisia; Turkey; Uganda; United Arab Emirates; United Kingdom; United States; Uruguay; Venezuela; Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Observer Governments: Algeria; Andorra; Azerbaijan; Bahamas; Belarus; Bhutan; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Cambodia; Cape Verde; Equatorial Guinea; Ethiopia; Holly See (Vatican); Kazakhstan; Lao People’s Democratic Republic; Lebanese Republic; Nepal; Russia; Samoa; Sao Tome and Principe; Saudi Arabia; Serbia and Montenegro; Seychelles; Sudan; Tajikistan; Tonga; Ukraine; Uzbekistan; Vanuatu; Viet Nam and Yemen.

12. When did Mexico join the WTO?

    Mexico joined first the General Agreement of Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1986 and in 1995 the WTO substituted the GATT.

    During the 4th Ministerial Conference, held in Doha, Qatar in November 2001, Mexico reaffirmed its commitment with the multilateral trading system and supported the launching of the new round of multilateral negotiations. Consistent with this commitment, Mexico will host the Fifth Ministerial Conference of WTO in 2003.
    

13. What is the Doha Development Agenda (DDA)?

    The future of the WTO depends on the incorporation of developing countries into the multilateral trading system. That is why the DDA is so important. Development issues are at the core of the DDA.

    The DDA is sufficiently balanced and broad-based to include the interests of all WTO members, particularly of developing countries. The DDA promotes greater market access and the strengthening of trade rules with particular emphasis to the needs of developing countries.

    The Declaration on Implementation Issues of the Fourth Ministerial Conference was a key instrument to reach an agreement on the DDA. WTO fora presented reports and recommendations for decision to the Trade Negotiations Committee by the end of 2002.

    The DDA establishes a mandate to initiate or continue negotiations in the following areas: agriculture; services; market access for non-agricultural goods; system for registration and notification of geographical indications; rules on subregional arrangements, antidumping and subsidies; and the relationship between WTO and multilateral environmental agreements.

    The DDA also contains a mandate to negotiate on the basis of a decision to be made by explicit consensus at the Fifth Ministerial Conference, on the so called Singapore Issues (investment, competition, transparency in government procurement, and trade facilitation).

    Last but not least, the DDA contains work programs in the following areas, among others: technical cooperation and capacity building; LDCs; special and differential treatment; small economies; trade, debt and finance; and trade and technology transfer.
    

14. What is the Latin American Association of Integration (ALADI for its initials in Spanish)?

    ALADI is a governmental organization that continues the work started by the Latin American Association of Free Trade (ALALC for its initials in Spanish) in the 1960s. It fosters the expansion of integration in the Latin American region with the objective to ensure its economic and social development, considering the final goal of a common market.
    

15. What countries integrate ALADI?

    ALADI has 12 members: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil; Chile; Colombia; Cuba; Ecuador; Mexico; Paraguay; Peru; Uruguay and Venezuela.

16. When did Mexico join ALADI?