The Doha round of WTO talks Waqas Latif BBA(Hons) Osama Qadri BBA(Hons) Mohammad Ali Jinnah University

Why it is called the Doha round? These trade negotiations got their name because they started in Doha, Qatar. They were meant to have begun at the World Trade Organization ministerial conference of 1999 in Seattle and would have been called the millennium round but some developing countries refused join.

A look at the ministerial meeting First ministerial level meeting at Doha in (2001) One took place in Cancún, Mexico (2003) Then in Hong Kong in (2005) and Paris, France (2005). Related negotiations took place in Geneva, Switzerland (2004,2006,2008). One also took place in Potsdam, Germany (2007).

Cont… The negotiations started in 2001 and have been crawling along ever since, with meetings around the world and deadlines constantly being missed. They have collapsed three times over the last seven years. The most recent round of negotiations, July , broke down after failing to reach a compromise on agricultural import rules.

What are the Objectives ? The Doha Development Round is the current trade-negotiation round of the World Trade Organization (WTO) which commenced in November Its objective is to lower trade barriers around the world, which allows countries to increase trade globally.

Cont… The Doha round is aimed at liberalizing global trade to make importing and exporting cheaper and easier. Special emphasis is on improving the economies of developing countries.

Cont… Negotiators hope to reach an agreement that will see many of the WTO 's 153 countries cut subsidies to their producers and stop protecting home markets by lowering tariffs to let goods in. A deal to increase trade with developing nations to help bridge the divide between rich and poor nations is also hoped to be reached.

What are the main issues? Domestic producers are very nervous about the impact of freeing up trade rules and reducing protection for their industries. They want extra export opportunities in compensation. Negotiators are having most difficulty reaching agreement on agricultural trade and manufactured goods.

An Example The agricultural side is stuck in a row over bananas, with Latin America calling for easier access to Europe but Africa. The Caribbean and Pacific producers resisting. Developing countries think they are being asked to allow too much access for manufactured goods to their markets.

What are the potential gains? The World Bank has estimated that a deal could generate £145bn extra trade by Helping to lift some developing countries out of poverty. Also end the food crisis gripping low-income countries because of soaring food prices.

A Study A study by the University of Michigan found that if all trade barriers in agriculture, services, and manufactures were reduced by 33% as a result of the Doha Development Agenda, there would be an increase in global welfare of $574.0 billion. Other studies present a more modest outcome predicting world net welfare gains ranging from $84 billion to $287 billion by the year 2015.