Bali Package – Trade Multilateralism in the 21st Century

By Roberto Azevêdo Reprint | | Print |

In this column, Roberto Azevedo, director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), writes about the Bali Package of agreements reached in early December 2013.

GENEVA, Jan 20 2014 (IPS) - At the Ninth Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), held in Bali Dec. 3-7, a series of decisions was adopted aimed at streamlining trade, allowing developing countries more options for providing food security, boosting least developed countries’ trade, and bolstering development in general.

The first pillar of the “Bali Package” is agriculture. This is the cornerstone of the Doha Development Agenda, which the WTO has been working on since 2001. Agricultural issues are very dear to developing countries, and the Bali Package delivered some important outcomes.

For example, it sets us on track for a reform of export subsidies and measures of similar effect, and it makes practical progress towards better implementation of the tariff quota commitments assumed in the Uruguay Round (1986-1994).

There is also a reaffirmation and a deepening of the political commitments assumed in Hong Kong in 2005 on trade liberalisation and the reduction of distorting support to cotton – a very important issue for the African countries that grow that crop.

The Package also provides temporary protection for food security programmes in developing countries, which allow for the stockpiling of grain for subsequent distribution to the poor. As we know, some of those countries could be exposed to legal challenges in the WTO for exceeding the limits stipulated in the Agriculture Agreement for certain types of domestic support.

So, in addition to the temporary protection against legal challenges, the Bali Agreement states that a permanent solution will be negotiated and concluded before the 11th Ministerial Conference in four years’ time.

The second pillar of the package is development. Here, a monitoring mechanism will provide for the review and strengthening of special and differential treatment provisions for developing countries, which are contained in all WTO multilateral texts. This achievement is vital for the equilibrium and efficacy of the multilateral system.

There are also a number of specific measures to support the least developed countries (LDCs). They include reforms that would enable services providers in LDCs to enjoy new export opportunities in developed country markets.

They also include steps to simplify rules of origin, which again will open up new export opportunities for those countries specifically.

Under this pillar we will also see improvements in trade preference arrangements which extend exemption from tariffs and quotas to LDC exports.

The third and final pillar is trade facilitation, which sets out to simplify and modernise customs procedures, and make them more transparent, thereby reducing transaction costs.

The Agreement on Trade Facilitation will be able to provide a significant – and today much needed – boost to the global economy, delivering growth and jobs. This could be worth as much as one trillion dollars per year to the global economy, generating up to 21 million jobs.

Significantly the Agreement also ensures the provision of technical assistance to support developing and least developed economies to implement these modernising reforms, and therefore help them integrate better into global trade flows.

Clearly estimates can vary, but once the Agreement is implemented, there could be an expansion in developing country exports of up to 10 percent – compared to a 4.5 percent expansion in developed countries.

It is true that the deal represents only part of the Doha Development Agenda. But there can be no doubt that this is a significant package that will provide a considerable economic boost and improve the lives of millions of people around the world  – particularly among the poorest and in countries whose economies have stalled and are suffering high levels of unemployment.

In the specific case of the European Union and its member States, the conclusion of the Bali Package reflects that grouping’s chief negotiating objectives. With the Agreement on Trade Facilitation, opportunities for expanding trade will clearly increase.

The Agreement also offers potential to facilitate the internationalisation of small and medium sized enterprises, which are important drivers of job creation and income distribution in many European countries.

But of course these outcomes do not fully reflect achievement in Bali. There was a great deal more at stake. I said at the start of the Bali Conference that the very future of multilateral trading system hung in the balance.

In recent months there has been a lot of talk about regional and bilateral agreements. The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership between the United States and the European Union is one such potential agreement. My view of this is the same as of other potential agreements of this kind: it is a positive initiative to be welcomed – but it can only ever be one part of the wider picture.

Agreements such as this cannot be sufficient on their own to ensure globalisable gains. The proliferation of regulations and standards tends to multiply rather than reduce costs.

The multilateral trading system was never the only option for international trade negotiations. It has always coexisted with, and benefited from, other initiatives, whether regional or bilateral. They are therefore not mutually exclusive alternatives.

The WTO disciplines also need to evolve to reduce the gap that will exist between multilateral regulations and the new generation regulations negotiated outside Geneva.

The two processes, multilateral and bilateral, must move forward together to reduce costs effectively and to curb protectionism. Otherwise, we could see results that are exactly the opposite of what we are seeking.