overview of the multilateral trading system and introduction to the basic principles of the wto...
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Overview of the Multilateral Trading System and Introduction
to the basic principles of the WTO
WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION-
Said El HachimiExternal Relations DivisionWTO
1. What is the WTO?2. WTO major contribution is
Dispute Settlement 3. Principles
4. WTO as a Forum for negotiations5. WTO Decision making
6. WTO and other Stakeholders:– Parliamentarians
– Non-Governmental Organizations.
500 pages of (Agreements) Rules/ 23,000 pages of Commitments
What is the WTO?
A set of International Trade Rules agreed by Members through Negotiations
Only Multilateral Set of Trade Rules
• General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994.
• General Agreement on Trade in Services.
• Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property.
• Dispute Settlement Understanding.• Trade Policy Review Mechanism.
• Plurilateral Agreements.
WTO major contribution is Dispute Settlement
WTO: Dispute Settlement
• Enforcement of trade rules.– Cases brought up by Members
– Basis of any case is violation of commitments by a Member vis a
vis other Member in the WTO
WTO: Dispute Settlement Clear rules and
timetables.• How long to settle a dispute?• 60 days Consultations, mediation, etc
45 days Panel set up and panellists appointed6 months Final panel report to parties
3 weeks Final panel report to WTO members60 days Dispute Settlement Body adopts
report (if no appeal)• Total = 1 year (without appeal)
• 60–90 days Appeals report30 days Dispute Settlement Body adopts
appeals report• Total = 1y 3m (with appeal)
WTO: Dispute Settlement
• Priority: Settle disputes through consultations.
• Dispute Settlement Body.• Panel process.
• Appellate Body. • Rulings are binding and
automatically adopted.
WTO: Principles
WTO: Principles
• Non-discrimination:– Members cannot discriminate between trade
partners.– Exceptions: Free trade agreements, tariff
preferences for developing-country products, GATT Article XX and trade remedies.
• National treatment:– Imported and domestic goods should be
treated equally.– Applies only when the product or service has
entered the market.
WTO: Principles
• Freer trade:– Through negotiations.
– Gradually lower trade barriers.– Progressive liberalization.
• Stability and Predictability:– Improves business and investment
environment.– Commitments at the WTO are binding.
• Transparency requirements.
WTO: Principles
• Promoting fair competition:– Rules on dumping and subsidies.• Encourage development and
reform:– Flexibilities for developing countries and economies in
transition.– Transition periods.
– Technical assistance.
WTO is above all a Forum for Negotiations
• Negotiations on Specific Subjects:– Agriculture
– Trade in Services– Intellectual Property
• Round of Negotiations:– Several issues negotiated
simultaneously.
• Everything is derived from the results of the negotiations.
Without the WTO
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December 1929
1930
1931
1932
1933
$3.0bn
$0.9bn
The effect of protectionism on world trade, 1929–33
Trade figures: per month
Preliminaries
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
1948 1957 1966 1975 1984 1993 2002
GATT ’48 WTO ’95
With the WTOValue of world trade 1948–2003
US$ trillion, current prices
1997
MORE trade? Of course, but …
… look at the STABILITY >
If 67% had been wiped out
Preliminaries
The first stepis to talk.
Somewhere to negotiate and apply the results
This is where governments go to try to sort out their trade problems.
WTO: not just for liberalizing trade. Sometimes the rules support trade barriers — e.g. to protect consumers or prevent the spread of disease.
What is the WTO?
Somewhere to talk
Skip >>>
Foremost: The WTO is a forum for negotiations
Current negotiations launched:4th WTO Ministerial Conference,
Doha, November 2001
Previous round: Uruguay Round1986–1994
Eighth ‘round’ under GATT, since 1948
Result: In 1995 ...• Rules expanded: goods (GATT) + services (GATS) +
intellectual property (TRIPS)
• WTO formed, replacing GATT
Somewhere to talk
Foremost: The WTO is a forum for negotiations
Doha Development Agenda:Launched at Doha Ministerial Conference
November 2001. Most to end 1 January 2005
• negotiations: ~ 20 subjects
• problems with ‘implementation’ of existing agreements
see ‘Understanding the WTO’ page 77
Current negotiations launched:4th WTO Ministerial Conference,
Doha, November 2001
Somewhere to talk
Agreement only by consensusEveryone has to be persuaded
No one forced by a majority
Everything else follows from negotiations ...
Somewhere to talk
Foremost: The WTO is a forum for negotiations
CURRENT NEGOTIATIONS
Why so difficult?
Better trade
ALTERNATIVE:Make use of the winners’ gains to
help the losers adjust
QUESTION:If there are losers,
does that mean ‘don’t do it’?
ANY DEALhas winners and losers
(and lobbies)
RESULT:Status quo. But is that OK?
CURRENT NEGOTIATIONS
Better trade
MOST DIFFICULT:to move forward …
What can others accept? … give as well as take
> CONSENSUS
MORE DIFFICULT:identify own interests …
‘we want/don’t want’
EASY OPTION: be defensive ...
‘no deal is better than a bad deal’
(status quo)
Seeking consensus
European Union
Small island developing states
Cairns Group Australia, NZ, S.Africa, Brazil, Argentina, Thailand, Philippines, etc
G20+/– India, Brazil, China, S.Africa, etc
G33 Indonesia, etc lobbying for ‘special products’
Africans, least-developed, ACP (together = ‘G90’, but with 64 WTO members)
‘Like minded’ India, Pakistan, Caribbean, etc
Just a sample of groupings …
‘RAMs’ new members (‘recently acceded’ members)
G10 Switzerland, Norway, Japan, S.Korea, Ch.Taipei, etc
US-EU (summer 2003)
COALITIONS AND MAJORS
CONSENSUS-BUILDERS
The Five Australia, Brazil, EU, India, US (summer 2004)
United States
Better trade
CURRENT NEGOTIATIONSCURRENT NEGOTIATIONS
Key players, agriculture
New group: ‘Small economies’
G20+/– India, Brazil, China, S.Africa, etc
G33 Indonesia, etc lobbying for ‘special products’
Africans, least-developed, ACP (together = ‘G90’, but with 64 WTO members)
Press conference in Hong Kong 16 December 2005
Better trade
CURRENT NEGOTIATIONSCURRENT NEGOTIATIONS
Key players, agriculture
Better trade
CURRENT NEGOTIATIONSCURRENT NEGOTIATIONS
Key players, agriculture
Or, another way of looking at groups …
Better trade
G-10
G-33
ACP
LDCs
Cairns Group
G-20
EU G-27
G–90
Recent new
African Group
ChadBurkina FasoBurundi Togo
Central African RepDjibouti DR Congo
Mali Gambia Guinea Guinea Bissau Lesotho
Malawi Mauritania NigerSierra Leone Rwanda
BeninMadagascar
SenegalUgandaZambiaTanzania
BelizeBarbadosAntigua/BarbudaDominican RepGrenada GuyanaSt Vincent/GrenadinesTrinidad/TobagoJamaica Suriname
St Kitts/Nevis St Lucia
GabonGhana
Namibia
Honduras MongoliaNicaragua
Panama Peru Sri Lanka Turkey
NigeriaZimbabwe
BotswanaCameroon
CongoCôte d’Ivoire
KenyaMozambique
EgyptTunisia Morocco
AngolaSwaziland
Mauritius
R Korea
Iceland Israel Japan Liechtenstein Norway
SwitzerlandCh Taipei
Bulgaria AustriaBelgium Cyprus
Czech R DenmarkEstonia Finland France
Germany Greece Hungary Ireland Italy LatviaLithuania LuxembourgMalta Netherlands Poland
Portugal SlovakiaSlovenia Spain
Sweden UK Romania
Mexico
IndiaChinaVenezuela
DominicaFiji
Papua New Guinea
IndonesiaPakistanPhilippines
Cuba
Haiti
ArmeniaFY Rep Macedonia
Australia Canada Colombia
Costa Rica Guatemala
Malaysia N Zealand
ChileBrazil
BoliviaUruguay
Thailand Paraguay
Argentina
BangladeshCambodia
Maldives MyanmarNepal
Hong Kong, ChSaudi Arabia
El SalvadorMacao, ChSingapore
Kyrgyz RQatar
UAEBruneiKuwait
BahrainEcuador
AlbaniaCroatiaGeorgiaJordan
MoldovaOman
USG–1
S Africa
Solomon Islands
WTO: Decision Making
WTO Decision Making, what about the institutionals?
• Member-driven and consensus-based.
• Ministerial Conference:– Topmost decision-making body.
– Meets at least once every two years.
• General Council:– On behalf of the Ministerial Conference.
– Meets in Geneva.
• Councils:– Trade in Goods.
– Trade in Services.– Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights.
• Various Committees.
WTO and other Stakeholders
WTO and other stakeholders:Parliamentarians
• Elected representatives of the people.
• Constitutional role on trade issues.• Crucial interface between people,
civil society and governments. • WTO outreach activities for
Parliamentarians.
WTO and other stakeholders: NGOs
• Strong interest in WTO issues.• NGO Attendance to Ministerial
Conferences.• Enhanced dialogue with civil society.
• Annual Symposium.• Briefings for NGOs during WTO
Meetings.• Circulation of NGO Position Papers to
WTO Members.
Registered NGOs in WTO Ministerial Conferences
Ministerial NGOs who attended
Number of Individuals
Singapore 1996
108 235
Geneva 1998 128 362
Seattle 1999 686 1500 Approx.
Doha 2001 370 370
Cancún 2003 795 1578
Hong Kong 812 1596
What about the WTO Secretariat?
Location: Geneva, SwitzerlandEstablished: 1 January 1995Created by: Uruguay Round negotiations (1986-94) Membership: 150 countriesBudget: 175m Swiss francs, 2006Secretariat staff: ~630Head: Pascal Lamy (director-general)
Functions:
• Administering WTO trade agreements• Forum for trade negotiations• Handling trade disputes• Monitoring national trade policies• Technical assistance and training for developing countries• Cooperation with other international organizations
FACT FILE
The World Trade Organization
The World Trade OrganizationCentre William Rappard
rue de Lausanne 154CH–1211 Geneva 21
Switzerland
Tel: +41 (0)22 739 51 11Fax: +41 (0)22 739 54 58
email: [email protected]: www.wto.org