Download or read book WTO Accession for Countries in Transition written by Constantine Michalopoulos and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 1998 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: June 1998 Accession to the World Trade Organization should be expedited, and the processing time for applications reduced to no more than two years. This would enable the WTO to achieve universal membership in the next five years, a worthwhile objective for the international community. Countries in transition have considered membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO) an important step toward integration in the international economic system. After several years of negotiations, five members of the former Soviet Union (FSU)-Armenia, the three Baltic countries, and the Kyrgyz Republic-may become members in 1998. It will probably take longer for Russia, Ukraine, and some others. It takes four to five years to process applications for FSU countries-which is close to average for recent applicants. The five countries expected to accede to the WTO this year are among the more liberal members of the FSU. With those five processed, there will be a backlog of another 26 applications, most them countries in transition, including China and Russia. At the current rate of processing, it will take five to six years to process them-and a decade or more for the 25 or so developing and transition economies that have yet to apply. Processing is time-consuming because: * Legislative requirements needed for accession are time-consuming. * Candidate countries are weak institutionally and unfamiliar with the economic and legal issues to be addressed. * The fact finding process is unneccessarily cumbersome and time-consuming. * Technical assistance to applicants in meeting the requirements for WTO accession is not effectively coordinated. * Addressing the commercial interests of all members requires protracted negotiations. Governments seeking accession must coordinate the legislative and regulatory changes needed in their foreign trade regimes, adopt liberal trade policies, and identify areas of institutional weakness that require delays in implementation of WTO provisions and seek agreement on such delays. WTO members, for their part, should expedite the process, as universal membership is in everyone's best interest. They should: * Agree to suitable, time-bound extensions to allow acceding governments to address institutional weaknesses. * Provide coordinated assistance to acceding countries to strengthen their institutional capacity. * Streamline the fact finding aspects of the accession process and give the WTO secretariat the budgetary resources it needs to work with applicant governments for this purpose. This paper is part of a larger effort of the World Bank to collaborate with the World Trade Organization in developing approaches for the more effective integration of the developing countries and transition economies in the international trading system. The author may be contacted at [email protected].

Download or read book WTO Accession for Countries in Transition written by Constantine Michalopoulos and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 25 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Accession to the World Tr ...

Download or read book WTO Accessions and Development Policies written by Conferencia de las Naciones Unidas sobre Comercio y Desarrollo and published by United Nations Publications. This book was released on 2001 with total page 383 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This publication considers the key issues involved in World Trade Organization (WTO) accession, based upon the experience of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in assisting developing countries and countries in transition in the accession process. It examines the difficulties faced by acceding countries, particularly least developed countries (LDCs), and aims to promote the strengthening of support for their integration into the international trading system on balanced terms consistent with their development needs.

Download or read book Services Policies in Transition Economies written by Felix Eschenbach and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2006 with total page 26 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The authors analyze the extent to which the EU-15 and 16 transition economies used the WTO General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) to commit to service sector policy reforms. They compare GATS commitments with the evolution of actual policy stances over time. While there is substantial variance across transition economies on both actual policies and GATS commitments, the authors find an inverse relationship between the depth of GATS commitments and the "quality" of actual services policies as assessed by the private sector. In part this can be explained by the fact that the prospect of EU accession makes GATS less relevant as a commitment device for a subset of transition economies. But for many of the non-EU accession candidates, the WTO seems to be a weak commitment device. One explanation is that the small size of the markets concerned generates weak external enforcement incentives. The authors' findings suggest greater collective investment by WTO members in monitoring and the need for transparency to increase the benefits of WTO membership to small countries. "--World Bank web site.

Download or read book Ukraine s WTO Accession written by Ihor Burakovsky and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Lars Handrich German Advisory Group on Economic Reforms with the Ukrainian Government 1 Ukraine on the way to WTO membership The first announcements by Ukraine to join the World Trade Organisation (WTO) were made in 1993. In the following year the Working group on Ukraine's accession was established. But successive Ukrainian governments had to sideline the issue of WTO accession, as the country went through a decade of unprecedented and severe economic decline. Only in the year 2000 the Ukrainian economy started to achieve positive real economic growth. Since then Ukraine embarked on a stable path of economic growth and continues to grow even under conditions ofa sluggish world economy and protectionist reflexes in some ofUkraine's export markets. According to the macroeconomic forecast of the Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting Ukrainian GDP will grow by 5,4% in 2003 in real terms and by 5,I% 1 in 2004. For Ukraine WTO accession is of special importance. Ukraine records an extremely high exports-to-GDP ratio of over 60% - almost twice the ratio for Germany.' The large ratio and the little diversified structure ofUkraine's imports and exports make Ukraine seriously vulnerable to external shocks resulting from changes in trade regimes. Joining the WTO, trade among WTO members amounting to more then 90% of world trade, could reduce the risks related to external trade and Ukraine could derive substantial economic and hence welfare benefits from the membership in WTO.

Download or read book Introduction and Summary to the Handbook of Trade Policy and WTO Accession for Development in Russia and the CIS written by David Tarr and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2005 with total page 29 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This paper is the introduction and summary chapter of the 43 chapter volume entitled Handbook of Trade Policy and WTO Accession for Development in Russia and the CIS. The key policy conclusions of each of the chapters are highlighted in this paper. The Handbook will be published only in Russian in 2005, but an English language version of the majority of the papers described here is available on the website www.worldbank.org/trade/russia-wto. This paper first explains the potential importance of World Trade Organization (WTO) accession as a development tool, and discusses the recent successful development models and the role of trade policy in their development. The paper then summarizes the three parts of the Handbook. The first part treats trade policy (with applications to Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States [CIS]). The second part treats World Trade Organization institutions and disciplines, again with Russia and CIS applications. And the third part focuses on various aspects of the impact of WTO accession on Russia. The numerous papers that relate trade policy and WTO accession to experience in Russia and the CIS are likely to be of special interest to native English speakers, since these papers are new to the literature. The papers in the Handbook are intended to be non-technical materials accessible to a wide policy audience. The Handbook forms the basis of a World Bank Institute course on trade policy and WTO accession, which has been delivered and will be delivered again on multiple occasions. "--World Bank web site.

Download or read book Accession to the WTO for developing countries Strategies for gaining maximum benefits written by Tewachew Alem and published by GRIN Verlag. This book was released on 2019-12-12 with total page 43 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Seminar paper from the year 2019 in the subject Business economics - Trade and Distribution, grade: A, Bahria University (School of Law), language: English, abstract: The objective of this paper is to present a survey of trade issues in WTO membership from the perspective of developing countries putting Ethiopia in focus. Developing countries are a large percentage of the World Trade Organization (WTO) membership, in which Ethiopia is on process of acquiring membership. Trade liberalization may be unilateral, bilateral, sub-regional or multilateral. The end of the cold war has witnessed an increasingly growing wave of unilateral trade liberalization accompanied by a regulatory framework that facilitates and enhances the momentum. Although the impact of unilateral trade liberalization undertaken in many countries including Ethiopia deserves discussion, the theme of this article has necessitated focus on multilateral trade liberalization under the WTO system. As LDC, Ethiopia is likely to be given some flexibility in assuming liberalization commitments. However, it will be asked to agree to some threshold of liberalization, and it is important for Ethiopia to be prepared to undertake commitments and develop a negotiation strategy that protects its interests. In addition, to respond effectively to the requests of WTO members, it is indispensable for the government of Ethiopia to have thorough information and analyze the potential consequences of liberalization. This term paper has three main parts in which the first part will discuss about trade liberalization with its justification and protectionism and its effects on economic development. The second part of the paper will focus on the opportunities and challenges of WTO membership to developing countries. In this part the consequences of the WTO membership of the developing countries will be analyzed in terms of its benefits and harms. The third part of the paper deals with the necessary precautions the developing countries are required to take before joining the WTO. In this part, the role of the WTO in helping the developing countries not to be affected negatively by becoming a member; necessary development level countries are required to attain before joining the WTO; and necessary measures to be undertaken during negotiation process not to take a commitment which will be against the national interest of the country. The fourth part deals on the Ethiopia WTO accession and assess the experience of WTO accessed least developing countries. Finally, the conclusion and recommendation with lessen to Ethiopia addressed.

Download or read book Most favoured nation Treatment written by United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 164 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The publication contains an explanation of Most Favored Nation (MFN) treatment and some of the key issues that arise in its negotiation, particularly the scope and application of MFN treatment to the liberalization and protection of foreign investors in recent treaty practice. The paper provides policy options as regards the traditional application of MFN treatment and identifies reactions by States to the unexpected broad use of MFN treatment, and provides several drafting options, such as specifying or narrowing down the scope of application of MFN treatment to certain types of activities, clarifying the nature of "treatment" under the IIA, clarifying the comparison that an arbitral tribunal needs to undertake as well as a qualification of the comparison "in like circumstances" or excluding its use in investor-State cases.

Download or read book Services Policies in Transition Economies written by Felix Eschenbach and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The authors analyze the extent to which the EU-15 and 16 transition economies used the WTO General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) to commit to service sector policy reforms. They compare GATS commitments with the evolution of actual policy stances over time. While there is substantial variance across transition economies on both actual policies and GATS commitments, the authors find an inverse relationship between the depth of GATS commitments and the "quality" of actual services policies as assessed by the private sector. In part this can be explained by the fact that the prospect of EU accession makes GATS less relevant as a commitment device for a subset of transition economies. But for many of the non-EU accession candidates, the WTO seems to be a weak commitment device. One explanation is that the small size of the markets concerned generates weak external enforcement incentives. The authors' findings suggest greater collective investment by WTO members in monitoring and the need for transparency to increase the benefits of WTO membership to small countries.

Download or read book WTO Accessions and Trade Multilateralism written by Uri Dadush and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2015-09-10 with total page 1015 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What have WTO accessions contributed to the rules-based multilateral trading system? What demands have been made by original WTO members on acceding governments? How have the acceding governments fared? This volume of essays offers critical readings on how WTO accession negotiations have expanded the reach of the multilateral trading system not only geographically but also conceptually, clarifying disciplines and pointing the way to their further strengthening in future negotiations. Members who have acceded since the WTO was established now account for twenty per cent of total WTO membership. In the age of globalization there is an increased need for a universal system of trade rules. Accession negotiations have been used by governments as an instrument for domestic reforms, and one lesson from the accession process is that there are contexts which lead multilateral trade negotiations to successful outcomes even in the complex and multi-polar twenty-first century economic environment.

Download or read book Accession to the WTO Part I written by and published by Bookboon. This book was released on with total page 103 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Developing Countries in the WTO written by C. Michalopoulos and published by Palgrave Macmillan. This book was released on 2001-01-01 with total page 278 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Globalization means that today, more than ever before, growth in developing countries and the reduction of poverty depend on world trade and a well functioning trading system. This volume reviews developing countries trade policies and institutions, and the challenges they face in the World Trade Organization - where the rules that govern the international trading system are set.

Download or read book A Handbook on the WTO Dispute Settlement System written by World Trade Organization and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2017-09-14 with total page 417 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The WTO dispute settlement system has become one of the most dynamic, effective and successful international dispute settlement systems in the world over the past twenty years. This second edition of A Handbook on the WTO Dispute Settlement System has been compiled by the dispute settlement lawyers of the WTO Secretariat with a view to providing a practice-oriented account of the system. In addition to describing the existing rules and procedures, this accessibly written handbook explains how those rules and procedures have been interpreted by dispute settlement panels and the Appellate Body, and how they have evolved over time. The handbook provides practical information to help various audiences understand the day-to-day operation of the WTO dispute settlement system.

Download or read book Trade Policy Review El Salvador written by World Trade Organization and published by Bernan Press. This book was released on 2010-10 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Trade Policy Review Mechanism, a permanent feature of the World Trade Organization (WTO), is designed to contribute to improving adherence by all WTO members to rules, disciplines, and commitments made under the Multilateral Trade Agreement. This volume in the series provides information on the trade policies, practices, and macroeconomic situations of El Salvador. Each Trade Policy Review is expertly prepared after in-depth analysis of an individual nation by the WTO s Trade Policy Review Board."

Download or read book A Handbook on the WTO TRIPS Agreement written by Antony Taubman and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2012-04-26 with total page 411 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This handbook provides a comprehensive and non-technical explanation of the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), later legal instruments, current policy issues and the relationship between TRIPS and public health. It is aimed at an audience including government officials and policy-makers, non-governmental organizations, academics and students.

Download or read book The History and Future of the World Trade Organization written by Craig VanGrasstek and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 704 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This comprehensive account of the establishment of the WTO focuses on those who shaped its creation as well as those who have influenced its evolution. It also examines trade negotiations, the WTO's dispute settlement role, the process of joining, and what lies ahead for the organization.

Download or read book The Politics of China s Accession to the World Trade Organization written by Hui Feng and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2006 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Grounded on a series of first-hand interviews with Chinese government officials, this book examines China's accession to the World Trade Organization, providing an 'inside' look at Chinese WTO accession negotiations. Presenting a systematic political economy model in analyzing Beijing's decision-making mechanisms, the book argues that China's WTO policy making is a state-led, leadership driven, and top-down process. Feng explores how China's determined political elite partly bypassed and partly restructured a largely reluctant and resistant bureaucracy, under constant pressure from an increasingly globalized international system. By addressing China's accession to the WTO from a political analysis perspective, the book provides a theoretically informed and intriguing examination of China's foreign economic policy making regime. The book highlights contemporary debates relating to state and institutionalist theory and provides new and useful insights into a significant development of this century.