Doha talks critically important for developing countries: UN

GENEVA: Underling the "critical importance" of the successful completion of the Doha Round of talks, the UN today said "multilateral solution" to outstanding issues at the WTO remain extremely important for agriculture dependent countries like India.

Speaking at the sixth Global Commodities Forum here, the Secretary General of UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Mukhisa Kituyi said, "For commodity-dependent countries, particularly agricultural commodities, a successful completion of the agriculture agenda of the Doha Round is critically important."

"Yet as we all know the dynamics of multilateral trade rules making has slowed down and that slowness has been reinforced by the growing popularity of pluritaleral negotiations whether Trans Atlantic or Trans Pacific," he said.

"While not taking away anything from the mega plurilaterals, I think for commodity dependent developing countries, multilateral solution to outstanding questions of agricultural negotiations remains extremely important," he added.

The WTO's Doha Development Agenda (DDA), which includes agriculture and 19 other areas of trade, has to thrash out a working program for a final agreement in the tenth ministerial conference to be held in Nairobi at the end of the year. Its aim is to lower trade barriers around the world, and thus facilitate increased global trade.

Agricultural subsidies is one of main contentions between developing countries led by India and Brazil and the developed countries including the EU and the US.

The stalled talks received a major boost late last year following a landmark agreement on food subsidies between India and the US, after India had blocked the trade facilitation agreement (TFA) at the WTO in July.

"One of the lessons brought forward from Bali [2013], I think, was that one single undertaking has not worked. Partial solutions to the Doha Round can incrementally contribute to the road towards completing the [Doha] round," said Kituyi.

The two day global commodities forum in Geneva will reflect on shift seen in commodity markets, particularly from the dramatic fall in oil prices and also implications for resource-rich developing countries as well other stakeholders in the commodities value chain.

"While trade is an important ingredient to economic growth, I think, it is also essential to acknowledge that the relationship between trade and development is not only complex but also evolving," said WTO Deputy Director-General, Yi Xiaozhun.

"WTO rules need updating and strengthening. And the multilateral trading system should be protected against any resurgence of protectionism.

"At the same time, WTO must, as a matter of priority help developing countries to fully benefit from the multilateral trading system," he added.