WTO matters: India’s position & opportunities

DUBAI: Twenty-three years after the start of the Doha Round of talks to relax trade regulations for agricultural and industrial goods and services, as well as address issues that have plagued the impoverished and developing countries since the multilateral organization’s establishment in 1995, ministers from 160 WTO member countries have gathered back in the Persian Gulf.

Trade negotiators have failed to advance the fundamental concerns, despite the fact that chips have surpassed oil as the most exported product worldwide and China has overtaken the US as the world’s top exporter in the previous 20 years.
Rather, the developed countries, whose proportion of global trade has decreased, are attempting to advance their agenda via a new range of initiatives, such as tying trade and the environment together and bringing up topics like investment, MSMEs, gender, and industrial policy. India is also eager for the program to address concerns related to remittances, telemedicine, and health workers.
The Doha Development Agenda, whose primary goal was to make the WTO more relevant for developing and least developed countries and tip the scales in their favor, is what worries India and a number of other countries about this approach. Instead, they would like to concentrate on its essential components.
The following is the agenda for this week’s ministerial discussions in Abu Dhabi, along with India’s expectations:
Agriculture: The US and the Cairns group, which includes countries like Brazil, Argentina, Australia, and Canada, are demanding reduced import levies and subsidies, but the EU is unlikely to comply.The goal for India and a number of other developing nations is to guarantee that the public stockholding problem is resolved so as to remove any obstacles from their ability to purchase grains. In addition, they want an updated reference price so that, rather than using prices from 1986, the computations are based on current market realities.
Anticipated result: Not likely to make any progress.
Fisheries: WTO countries declared a significant win in June 2022, claiming that members had only approved the second accord since the organization’s founding in 1995.India has maintained that rules only apply to illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and overfished stocks, meaning they have no effect on the country’s capacity to sustain its artisanal farmers. However, it opposes further restrictions and favors a liberal regime with a 25-year transition time for emerging nations since the existing system favors wealthy countries and countries like China.
Anticipated result: Difficult talks will be necessary for breakthrough.
Resolution of disputes:
The US has prevented nominations to the appellate panel, holding the whole system hostage. Because violations of international trade regulations do not result in penalties or remedies, this has rendered the dispute resolution mechanism obsolete.India is supporting a holistic reform rather than a fragmented strategy.
Anticipated result: The US is unlikely to change its position
Moratorium on e-commerce and work plan:
Developed nations favor maintaining the ban on charging customs fees for electronic transmission, which includes e-books and movies. They have contended that lifting the freeze would negatively impact emerging nations, as have think institutes like the OECD.India is among the nations requesting the lifting of the embargo since it is costing them an estimated $10 billion in customs duties. In order to address concerns about consumer protection, digital public infrastructure, and fostering competition, they want the work program to be expedited.
Anticipated result: The moratorium is expected to last for an additional two years.
Novel problems:
India and South Africa are attempting to obstruct the move, while China and 120 other countries are pressing for investment facilitation to be included in the WTO agenda.India opposes adding additional topics to the work program, such as women, MSMEs, sustainability, and the environment.
Anticipated result: Not likely to be included in the main agenda