Revised WTO text for farm negotiations likely to be delayed

ASHOK B SHARMA
Posted: Monday, May 05, 2008 at 2249 hrs IST
Updated: Monday, May 05, 2008 at 2249 hrs IST

Font Size

Feedback

Discuss

WTO negotiators’ meet in Geneva on Sep 14 EU seeks to settle trade row with India amicably WTO DDG tight-lipped on bio-fuel, rising prices

New Delhi, May 4: The revised WTO draft for negotiations in farm trade may not see the light of the day before May 12, even as the director-general, Pascal Lamy has proposed a mini-ministerial meeting on May 19.

According to sources in Geneva many developing countries have suggested to the chairperson of the WTO negotiating committee on agriculture, Crawford Falconer for more time for discussions on contentious issue before a revised draft is prepared. Accordingly, Falconer has scheduled meetings on May 8 and 9 to discuss the latest proposal on sensitive products, market access for tropical and preference products and other issues. He also had convened an informal meeting of the full membership of the agriculture committee on April 30, this year.

The 12th session of UNCTAD which concluded in Accra in Ghana in April 25, 2008 expressing concerns over the rising global food prices has called for extending the benefits of Doha Round of negotiations. Some developing countries have already suggested that in the midst of the new emerging situation of skyrocketing global prices, the proposed “horizontal process” of discussion by few trade negotiators would not lead to a desirable outcome. The situation may force the developing countries to commit deep cuts in industrial goods tariff (about 60% to 70% in many cases) and in agricultural goods tariff (about 36% on an average).

The situation of global food rise have been primarily caused by the developed world, particularly in Europe and North America, where food crops are being used for producing bio-fuel and where bio-fuel crops have displaced food crops out of cultivation. This has caused a phenomenal rise in food prices and linked it to the volatile prices of fossil fuel. Apart from this the subprime crisis and meltdown in the global equity market have caused commodity prices to soar up.

India has, however, committed that there would be no change in its negotiating position for demanding phasing out of farm subsidies and tariffs in the developed world, even though it has reduced its applied tariff (for the time being) on many agriculture products to combat rising prices.

Post Comments

Comments: (Limit 3,000 characters)

Name		Message
Email ID
Subject

TERMS OF USE:
The views, opinions and comments posted are your, and are not endorsed by this website. You shall be solely responsible for the comment posted here. The website reserves the right to delete, reject, or otherwise remove any views, opinions and comments posted or part thereof. You shall ensure that the comment is not inflammatory, abusive, derogatory, defamatory &/or obscene, or contain pornographic matter and/or does not constitute hate mail, or violate privacy of any person (s) or breach confidentiality or otherwise is illegal, immoral or contrary to public policy. Nor should it contain anything infringing copyright &/or intellectual property rights of any person(s).

I agree to the terms of use.