16 December 1981

Multifibre Arrangement

The General Assembly,

Noting that the Arrangement regarding International Trade in Textiles, also known as the Multifibre Arrangement, adopted by the Contracting Parties to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade at Geneva on 20 December 1973 for a period of four years, was extended by the Protocol of 14 December 1977 and will expire on 31 December 1981,

Convinced that trade in textiles and clothing is a dynamic element in the development efforts of many developing countries,

Believing that the establishment of an orderly and equitable conduct of trade in textiles and clothing is in the interest of all countries,

Noting that negotiations are now in progress at Geneva on the revision or modification of the Multifibre Arrangement,

1. Appeals to all countries participating in the ongoing negotiations on the Multifibre Arrangement, in particular to developed countries, to show the necessary political will and spirit of mutual accommodation, inter alia, to achieve an expansion of trade in textiles and clothing, a reduction of the barriers to such trade and the progressive liberalization of world trade in textile products, while at the same time ensuring the orderly and equitable development of such trade and avoiding disruptive effects in individual markets and on individual lines of production in both importing and exporting countries;

2. Recalls that one of the principal aims of the Arrangement is to further the economic and social development of developing countries and to secure a substantial increase in their export earnings from textile trade;

3. Requests the Secretary-General to transmit the text of the present resolution to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade for the information of the Contracting Parties and other countries participating in the negotiations.