International Organizations (Part – III)

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the main security guard of international trade. WTO is the largest intergovernmental economic organization in the world that is concerned with the regulation of international trade between nations. The WTO officially commenced on 1 January, 1995 under the Marrakesh Agreement (signed on 15 April 1994), replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the main security guard of international trade. WTO is the largest intergovernmental economic organization in the world that is concerned with the regulation of international trade between nations. The WTO officially commenced on 1 January, 1995 under the Marrakesh Agreement (signed on 15 April 1994), replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the main security guard of international trade. WTO is the largest intergovernmental economic organization in the world that is concerned with the regulation of international trade between nations. The WTO officially commenced on 1 January, 1995 under the Marrakesh Agreement (signed on 15 April 1994), replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the main security guard of international trade. WTO is the largest intergovernmental economic organization in the world that is concerned with the regulation of international trade between nations. The WTO officially commenced on 1 January, 1995 under the Marrakesh Agreement (signed on 15 April 1994), replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).

The 3rd Ministerial Conference of W.T.O was held in Seattle, Washington, USA from 30th November to 3rd December, 1999. Two of the main economic powers at the conference, the European Union (EU) and the USA, both put forward proposals for the future development of 'labour standards' and 'environment related issues'. Developing countries opposed the introduction of linkages to labour or environmental standards to the WTO system. Instead they wanted existing agreements and commitments to be implemented. On these issues and some other controversial areas such as agriculture, services, and intellectual property, delegates admitted failure to agree on the agenda and negotiations collapsed.

The first WTO Ministerial Conference was held in Singapore between 9 to 13 December, 1996. The conference was the first since WTO entered into force on 1 January, 1995. In this conference the member states signed an agreement on the expansion of world trade in information technology products. Besides this, the conference established four permanent working groups on:

1. Trade and investment

2. Trade and competition

3. Transparency in government procurement

4. Trade facilitation.

These groups collectively are called the Singapore issues.

The 4th Ministerial Conference of World Trade Organization was held at Doha, Qatar in November, 2001. At this conference, ministers from all WTO members launched the Doha Development Agenda. While 12th Ministerial Conference of World Trade Organization was originally scheduled to take place from 8-11 June 2020, in Nur Sultan, Kazakhstan, but it was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. It was then held on 12-17 June, 2022 in Geneva, Switzerland. The 13th WTO Ministerial Conference took place from 26 February to 2 March, 2024 in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

As regards the use of international food safety standards as reference point for the dispute settlement, the WTO collabo- rates with Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC). The CAC was created in 1963 by FAO and WHO to develop food stan- dards, guidelines and related texts such as codes of practice under the joint FAO/WHO Food Standard Programme. The main purposes of this programme are protecting health of the consumers and ensuring fair trade practices in the food trade and promoting coordination of all food standards work undertaken by international governmental and non-govern- mental organizations.

The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is the principal forum for setting the rules of international trade. It regulates and facilitates international trade between nations. It officially commenced operations on 1 January, 1995. The WTO facilitates trade in goods, services and intellectual property among participating countries by providing a framework for negotiating trade agreements, which usually aim to reduce or eliminate tariffs, quotas, and other restrictions. All of the given objectives were the aims behind setting up of the WTO.

The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is the principal forum for setting the rules of international trade. It regulates and facilitates international trade between nations. It officially commenced operations on 1 January, 1995. The WTO facilitates trade in goods, services and intellectual property among participating countries by providing a framework for negotiating trade agreements, which usually aim to reduce or eliminate tariffs, quotas, and other restrictions. All of the given objectives were the aims behind setting up of the WTO.