Research Reports
Domestic Responses to the WTO/DDA Negotiations in 2013
-
AuthorMoon, Hanpil
-
Publication Date2014.04.30
-
Original
In Bali, Indonesia, on 7 December 2013, the DDA small package was adopted, which signaled the change of a multilateral trading system that was at a standstill for a long time. At the Ninth WTO Ministerial Conference, held for 5 days from 3 to 7 December, ministers adopted the “Bali Package,” which consisted of 10 issues including agriculture, trade facilitation, and development. The agricultural issue included 1) improvement in TRQ administration, 2) a peace clause on developing countries’ public stockholding for food security purposes, 3) a demand for keeping promises of export competition, and 4) expansion of general services.
According to the improvement in TRQ administration, a country with its TRQ fill rate below a certain standard shall change TRQ administration methods to a first-come, first-served basis; or an unconditional license. However, developing countries can have flexibility, so Korea will not be affected much.
Permission for public stockholding for food security purposes is a proposal that in public stockholding for food security, developing countries do not have to include the difference between the administered price and the external reference price in AMS. Nevertheless, Korea already abolished the rice purchase system, and changed it to the market price purchase method. Therefore, Korea will not use the permission.
On the export competition issue, ministers presented a political declaration with no legal binding force, reaffirming that abolishing export subsidies that was promised in the 2005 Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration is needed. Also, the “Bali Package” included the Ministerial Decision that added “green box” items of Annex 2 of the WTO Agreement on Agriculture. The decision clearly classified flood control, drought management, soil conservation, and related items that were unclear in previous general services items as “green box” items.
An Agreement on Trade Facilitation, adopted by the WTO Ministerial Decision, includes clarifying GATT articles regarding the customs process, strengthening customs cooperation that includes information exchange among customs, and supporting the implementation of developing countries’ trade facilitation measures. In the Agreement, the parts explicitly related to agriculture are rules for importing countries’ enhanced controls or inspections of Article 5 (Other Measures to Enhance Impartiality, Non-discrimination and Transparency), and facilitation of perishable goods’ clearance processes of Article 7 (Release and Clearance of Goods).
In Korean agriculture, market opening is rapidly proceeding due to simultaneous FTAs. However, if the WTO trade facilitation measure that was agreed in Bali is implemented, market opening can proceed faster. The result of agrifood export expansion the government is actively promoting depends on the level of trade facilitation of countries that import Korean agrifood.
The “Bali Package” addresses a small area with few issues in the whole frame of DDA negotiations. Nonetheless, the Package is positively evaluated in that it can develop DDA negotiations that were at a standstill, and reaffirmed member nations’ support for and trust in the WTO’s multilateral trading system that was considered unstable.
However, DDA negotiations depend on how differences can be reduced between developed and developing countries’ opinions on preferential treatment to developing countries in every element of negotiations. In DDA agricultural negotiations that largely increased special treatment and exceptional measures to developing countries, the status of a developing or developed country can affect Korean agriculture much more than in the UR Agreement. Therefore, our biggest goal in negotiations is securing the status of a developing country. Realistically, we should consider participating in the developed country’s duties voluntarily to the extent that their damage to Korean agriculture is small, or reducing the developing country’s rights, rather than fully enjoying the status of a developing country.
Researcher: Moon Hanpil
Research period: 2013. 10. 28 - 2014. 1. 31.
E-mail address: hanpil@krei.re.kr
- Next
- A Study on Ways to Develop the Production and Distribution System for Landscaping Trees
- Prev
- Japan and China's Tea Industry Trends and Implications