ODI On... World Trade Organization (WTO) Meeting 2005

13 - 18 December 2005

6th WTO ministerial in Hong Kong will be held from 13 to 18 December 2005. An ambitious Doha Round is in the interest of most developing countries. There is however a risk that the Hong Kong ministerial will end in either acrimony, much as the Cancún ministerial did in 2003, or stalemate, given the apparent lack of consensus on issues considered to be critical.

Outputs

Overview

Outputs

Foreign direct investment, services trade negotiations and development: The case of tourism in the Caribbean

Publication - Journal articles or issues - 30 June 2006

Development Policy Review vol. 24, iss. 4

Dirk Willem te Velde and Swapna Nair

This article examines whether and how developing countries can use services trade negotiations to increase the amount of inward FDI conducive to development.

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Food Aid and the Doha Development Round: Building on the Positive

Publication - Discussion papers - 1 February 2006

Edward Clay

This Background Paper attempts to re-assess the options under discussion at Doha, looking for an outcome that would provide the basis for subsequent constructive negotiations outside the WTO.

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Regional integration and poverty

Publication - Books or book chapters - 1 January 2006

Edited by Dirk Willem te Velde

This book examines the channels through which regional integration affects poverty and analyses empirically the effects on foreign direct investment.

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Water and GATS: Lots of smoke but where exactly is the fire?

Opinion - Articles and blogs - 2 December 2005

'The prospect of developing countries making commitments on trade in water services under the General Agreement of Trade in Services has given rise to considerable controversy. Subsequent debates have revealed a great deal of confusion and have tended to produce a lot of misleading 'smoke' which makes it very difficult to see where the real 'fire' might be.'

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The WTO: Towards Hong Kong - What type of effects can developing countries expect from the Doha Round?

Event - Public event - 2 November - 5 December 2005

successful outcome to the WTO ministerial in Hong Kong is far from certain as there are some difficult issues to overcome. This series of meetings looks into key unresolved issues at the WTO.

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Can tourism accelerate pro-poor growth in Africa?

Opinion - Articles and blogs - 2 November 2005

'Tourism accounts for more than twice as much cash moving from rich to poor countries than governments give in aid. To make African tourism more pro-poor, corporate and government practice must change.'

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Foreign Direct Investment, Services Trade Negotiations and Development: The case of Tourism in the Caribbean

Publication - Research reports and studies - 1 November 2005

Dirk Willem te Velde and Swapna Nair

This paper examines whether and how developing countries can use services trade negotiations to increase the amount of inward FDI conducive to development, with a focus on the tourism sector in the Caribbean.

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The EU 28th October trade offer: one step forward, one step back, and one promising step slightly forward

Opinion - Articles and blogs - 31 October 2005

An ambitious WTO trade round will benefit most developing countries, but they need to have the tools and time to benefit from further liberalisation. The Zurich proposals, and most recently a revised offer by the EU on 28th October, have given new impetus to the Doha Round. What is in it for developing countries?

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Globalisation and Education

Publication - Briefing papers - 30 September 2005

ODI Briefings

Dirk Willem te Velde and Simon McGrath

This paper examines the links between globalisation and education and discusses appropriate roles for government in reconciling the processes of globalisation with education and training systems.

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It's a long bumpy road to Hong Kong – and there's still no real route map

Opinion - Articles and blogs - 3 September 2005

'The Sixth WTO Ministerial Conference due to be held in Hong Kong from 13 to 18 December, 2005 will shape the future of the Doha Round of global trade talks and the multilateral trading system.'

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Forthcoming Changes in the EU Banana/Sugar Markets: A Menu of Options for an Effective EU Transitional Package

Publication - Research reports and studies - 30 May 2005

Ian Gillson, Adrian Hewitt & Sheila Page

This report discusses the impact of reforms to the EU's Sugar and Banana Protocols and their impact many ACP countries, those who benefited before reforms and those who stand to benefit.

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Forthcoming Changes in the EU Banana and Sugar Markets: A Menu of Options for an Effective EU Transitional Package

Publication - Briefing papers - 30 April 2005

Ian Gillson, Adrian Hewitt and Sheila Page

This study identifies a number of options for an effective EU transitional assistance package to support sugar- and banana- dependent ACP countries.

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Regional Integration and Poverty

Publication - Briefing papers - 1 March 2005

ODI Briefings

Dirk Willem te Velde

This briefing paper looks at the worth of regional integration in reducing poverty, suggesting we should be cautious in our expectations of poverty reduction in the poorest of countries.

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Special and Differential Treatment of Developing Countries in the World Trade Organization

Publication - Research reports and studies - 1 February 2005

Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs Global Development Studies 2

Sheila Page and Peter Kleen

This paper looks at the issue of “special and differential treatment” (SDT) in the World Trade Organisation.

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Offshoring: opportunities and threats as services go global

Opinion - Articles and blogs - 6 July 2004

'The offshoring of services from the richer industrial countries – by which services are relocated to other countries – can offer important opportunities to developing countries. But in order to realise these, they need to fight for export opportunities and counteract theprotectionist feelings towards offshoring of those living in advanced economies.'

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Developed Country Cotton Subsidies and Developing Countries: Unravelling the Impacts on Africa

Publication - Briefing papers - 30 June 2004

ODI Briefings

Ian Gillson

This study suggests that under certain assumptions subsidies by smaller subsidisers (such as the EU) may be disproportionately harmful to some suppliers, notably to West and Central African countries.

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Special and Differential Treatment in post-Cotonou Services Negotiations

Publication - Research reports and studies - 23 February 2004

Dirk Willem te Velde, Ian Gillson and Sheila Page

The principle objective of the study is to assess the costs and benefits of SDT options in possible EPA negotiations on services in the CARIFORUM-EC context. The study will focus predominantly on key sectors in representative Caribbean countries.

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Developing Countries: Victims or Participants Their Changing Role in International Negotiations

Publication - Books or book chapters - 1 January 2003

Sheila Page

This paper questions how effective developing countries can be in multilateral negotiations.

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Overview

The 6th WTO ministerial in Hong Kong will be held from 13 to 18 December 2005. An ambitious Doha Round is in the interest of most developing countries. There is however a risk that the Hong Kong ministerial will end in either acrimony, much as the Cancún ministerial did in 2003, or stalemate, given the apparent lack of consensus on issues considered to be critical. These include:

How can the WTO incorporate SDT for developing countries in a rule-based system designed to be non-discriminatory?
Will the round address the mandate to make SDT more precise, effective and operational, despite problems in finding consensus on the 88 proposals made?
How can the issue of SDT be linked to technical assistance, support for reducing supply-side constraints and preference erosion (Aid for Trade)?
What types of gains can developing countries expect from the three pillars of agricultural trade liberalisation, including reductions in tariffs, domestic support and export subsidies?
Will the deadlock between the negotiating positions of the EU, US, G20 and other groups be resolved prior to the ministerial?
There are now around 60 countries with GATS offers, but very few African countries have fully engaged in these negotiations. What benefits can GATS bring to developing countries? And how can they best achieve this?
What progress can be made on issues such as Mode 4 (temporary movement service providers) during Hong Kong?
What type of effects do we expect from both EPAs between the EU and ACP regions and WTO liberalisation on developing countries?
How does the expansion of regional and bilateral trade agreements affect the developing countries ability to engage in multilateral agreements?