Archive - Feb 2006

An agreement was reached among a number of countries to pursue common objectives in improving access to selected telecommunications markets around the globe. The markets selected reflect the interest of many countries to develop a modern telecommunications sector. There is a broad recognition that the opening up of telecommunications markets will bring significant benefits to customers. Foreign operators will bring with them - especially to developing countries - valuable technological knowledge acquired through their operations in their home markets. Enhanced competition brings down the overall cost of services and consumers enjoy higher quality, advanced services at affordable prices. The development of telecommunications markets promotes the performance of enterprises of all economic sectors as the cost of their operations will be reduced while speed in conducting business will be improved.

The United States today launched a new effort to jump start the WTO Services negotiations. Joining with like-minded developed and developing countries, the U.S. will push for a common set of liberalization objectives in services sectors key to global growth and development. Services are a significant and growing part of the U.S. economy as evidenced by the $56 billion surplus in services trade in 2005. Further, 8 of 10 U.S. jobs are in the services sector.

Today, the EU and other developed and developing country WTO partners have submitted new market access requests in several services sectors as part of the DDA negotiations in services. These joint requests mark the beginning of the 'plurilateral' negotiations in services as agreed by WTO members at last December

While biotech crops fail farmers, and destroy biodiversity the 'global' studies of biotech lobbyists continue to cook up benefits to farmers and the environment. A recent example of such pseudo-science is a report by Graham Brookes and Peter Barfoot of PG Economies Limited, U.K entitled.

I. WHAT IS LEFT TO DECIDE?; II. THE PROCESS: modalities, schedules and timelines; III. AGRICULTURE AND NAMA: pushing for convergence; IV. SERVICES: preparing for the onslaught; V. IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER; VI. DOCUMENTS

A new proposal was tabled last week on an accelerated programme for reducing domestic support for cotton by the four West African countries that are co-sponsors of the sectoral initiative in favour of cotton.

Brazil is more than willing to come forward with an improved offer on reducing tariffs for industrials beyond its 54 percent cut already announced if the European Union improves its stance on agricultural market access and the United States further reduces its own domestic farm supports, said Brasilia's chief trade negotiator in Geneva yesterday.

A week-long series of meetings on agriculture on 13-17 February at the WTO did not result in more convergence on the issues covered, although positions of various countries or groupings were further clarified.

The third day of the meeting of the WIPO's Provisional Committee on Proposals Related to a Development Agenda (PCDA) discussed proposals of the Africa Group and Colombia.

A link to a technical paper produced by the U.S. and New Zealand on an approach to sensitive agriculture products in the WTO agriculture negotiations.