South Centre’s Papers on the WTO for the Seventh

26 November, 2009

South Centre’s Papers on the WTO for the Seventh WTO Ministerial Conference

Draft Paper by Martin Khor, Executive Director of the South Centre

‘Analysis of the Doha Negotiations and the Functioning of the WTO’

This paper provides an overview of the Doha negotiations to date – in agriculture, non-agriculture market access and services. It also provides a detailed analysis and critique of the functioning of the WTO, particularly the decision-making processes, and suggests ways that the multilateral trading system can be much improved.

Policy Brief:

Is Development Back in the Doha Round?

This policy brief is to look behind the recent press releases claiming that an ambitious Doha deal could deliver $300- $700 billion in global welfare gains. As before, the claims that developing countries will be the big winners from Doha rest on shaky assumptions, controversial economic modeling, misleading representations of the benefits, and disregard for the high costs of Doha-style liberalization for many developing countries.
Draft Policy Brief:

The Proposed Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM) in the WTO: Is it still ‘Special’?

This policy brief summarises the research the South Centre has conducted on the Special Safeguard Mechanism, and particularly the conditionalities suggested in the current draft agriculture texts that limit the usage of the instrument.
Policy Brief:

State of Play of the GATS Negotiations: Are Developing Countries Benefiting?

This paper provides an overview of the state of play in the GATS negotiations, both covering the market access negotiations, as well as the rules negotiations.
Analytical Note:

The Extent of Agriculture Import Surges in Developing Countries: What are the Trends?
The paper gives an overview of the trends in agricultural import surges for the different groupings of developing countries..

Analytical Note:

The Volume-based Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM): Analysis of the Conditionalities in the December 2008 WTO Agriculture Chair’s Texts

This paper provides a critical examination of the conditionalities in the volume-based SSM and their implications for the effectiveness of the volume-based SSM in the December 2008 Agriculture Chair’s Modalities.
Analytical Note:

The Price-based Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM): Trends in Agriculture Price Declines and Analysis of the Conditionalities in the December 2008 WTO Agriculture Chair’s Text

This paper provides an analysis of the conditionalities of the price-based SSM in the WTO Agriculture Chair’s December 2008 text and their implications for the effectiveness of the instrument.

Analytical Note:

Comparing the Special Safeguard Provision (SSG) and the Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM): Special and Differential Treatment for Whom?

<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--> <!--[endif]-->The Special Safeguard Provision (SSG) in the WTO’s Agreement on Agriculture is an instrument that is regularly used by a number of developed countries to protect their agricultural sector. The Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM) has been proposed by a large number of developing countries in the Doha Round. This paper provides a detailed comparison between the two instruments.

You can find all the papers at this web page: 

http://www.southcentre.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1117&Itemid=67 
 
Or go to the South Centre homepage:   www.southcentre.org