In a severe indictment of India’s stand at World Trade Organization [WTO], the Economic Survey [2015-16] presented to parliament in February, 2016 unequivocally questioned India’s long-time stance of insisting on special safeguards mechanism [SSM] and permanent solution to its public stock holding issue. Dr Arvind Subramanian, author of the Survey and chief economic advisor [CEA] argued that the country’s strategy should instead evolve around the need to shift away from tariff armours for producers to domestic support, and that too at an appropriate level and form. He pointed out that the policies being defended are those that “India intends to move out of in any case” due to well documented impacts, including a decline in water tables and over-use of...
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Category: Agreement on Agriculture (AoA)
Doha agenda cast aside
WTO Nairobi Ministerial : The US has been asking India to supply all sorts of data which tantamount to virtual surveillance on our food security system In a brazen display of ‘might is right’ in the just concluded World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) 10th ministerial meeting at Nairobi, Kenya between December 15-19, the developed countries led by the US and the EU literally junked the Doha Development Agenda (DDA). On the two issues of critical importance to developing countries viz., (i) public stock holding for food security and (ii) special safeguards mechanism (SSM) in agriculture, they were merely handed out hollow assurances. At the 9th ministerial in Bali (December, 2013), developed countries had agreed to a ‘peace clause’ under which, if...
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Doha Development Agenda jinxed
In a brazen display of ‘might is right’ in the just concluded World Trade Organization’s [WTO’s] 10th ministerial meeting at Nairobi [Kenya] on December 15-19, 2015, the developed countries led by US & EU literally junked the Doha Development Agenda [DDA]. On the two issues of critical importance to developing countries viz., (i) public stock holding for food security and (ii) special safeguards mechanism [SSM] in agriculture, they were merely handed out hollow assurances. At the 9th ministerial in Bali [December, 2013], developed countries had agreed to a ‘peace clause’ under which, if a developing country gives agricultural subsidies in excess of 10% of its agricultural GDP, no member will challenge this until 2017 when WTO would look for a...
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India must protect its agricultural support
It needs to get ERPs updated and purchases from poor farmers excluded from product-specific subsidy maths. The World Trade Organization’s (WTO) draft declaration for the ongoing ministerial meeting at Nairobi, Kenya, on December 15-18, 2015, promises to “address all aspects of agriculture reform as a matter of priority”, but does not mention anything about finding a ‘permanent solution’ to India’s concerns on food security. While declaration is just cleverly-worded rhetoric, the fact that India’s concerns remain unresolved is a setback. But, for any one tracking the events since the 9th ministerial meeting, at Bali in December, 2013, this should not come as surprise. It is abundantly clear that, from day-1, developed countries were never serious about finding a permanent solution....
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WTO (Nairobi) ministerial – target fault lines in AoA
The World Trade Organization’s [WTO’s] draft declaration for the ensuing 10th ministerial meeting at Nairobi [Kenya] on December 15-18, 2015, promises to “address all aspects of agriculture reform as a matter of priority” but does not mention about finding a ‘permanent solution’ to India’s concerns on food security. While, the former is a cleverly worded statement [more of a rhetoric] offering nothing concrete, the latter is definitely a setback. But, for any one tracking the chronology of events since the 9th Ministerial meeting at Bali [Indonesia] in December, 2013, this should not come as surprise. It is abundantly clear that from the day one, developed countries were never serious about finding a permanent solution. Nor, developing countries including India pressed...
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Food subsidies still ‘haunt’ India at WTO
Even as the WTO [World Trade Organization] members are currently engaged in thrashing out a work program for the 10th Ministerial at Nairobi [Kenya] in December, 2015, India is concerned over the delay in reaching a ‘permanent solution’ to the problem of dealing with food procurement subsidies. Its worry stems from the fact that the developed countries [primarily USA and EU] could use it as a bargaining chip for extracting concessions in other areas such as industrial goods and services. What are food procurement subsidies? What is the genesis of problem associated with these subsidies? What permanent solution India [and other developing countries] have been looking for? What consequences will follow if the solution is delayed? What should be the...
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WTO GAME IS NOT OVER YET
By getting the US to extend the peace clause, India has scored a win on the farm subsidy issue. But to secure interests in the long term, it must insist that the minimum support price it offers to farmers be excluded from subsidy calculations India had faced all-round flak for its stance at the World Trade Organisation’s General Council meeting, in Geneva on July 31, that linked approval of the Trade Facilitation Agreement with time-bound actions to address the concerns of developing countries with regards to food grain stockpiling. In December 2013, India was accused of going back on the Bali ministerial declaration and creating obstacles in the progress of the Doha round talks. Some developed countries were even willing...
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Indo-US accord on food security – where is ‘permanent’ solution?
India had faced all round flak for its stance in meeting of WTO General Council, Geneva (July 31, 2014) that linked approval of Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) with time bound actions to address concerns of developing countries in regard to support to resource poor farmers for food security. It was accused of allegedly going back on declaration at Bali ministerial in December, 2013 and stampeding progress of work under the Doha Round. Some developed countries were even willing to move forward – without India – to seal the deal on TFA leaving food security issue in the lurch. Now, USA not only appears to have made a climb down, but also applauded constructive role played by our leadership in ending...
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Modi fixing the WTO (Bali) ministerial goof-up
India is facing all round flak for its decision to oppose approval of Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) in meeting of WTO General Council (July 24/25, 2014) unless firm and time bound actions are taken to address concerns of developing countries in regard to support to resource poor farmers for food security. A pure technical view of the decisions taken at the 9th WTO ministerial held in Bali (December, 2013) would prima facie seem to suggest that India is at fault. In that meeting, group of developing countries or G-33 had agreed to the so called ‘Peace clause’ [a euphemism for not taking any penal action for violating commitments under Agreement on Agriculture (AoA) )] but with the caveat that this...
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