The Doha Round is an international trade agreement that was initiated in 2001 with the intent to stimulate economic growth and create a more open and fair global trading environment Negotiations stalled in 2008 due to an impasse between the nations of the World Trade Organization (WTO). This round stands as a development round of negotiations meant to reduce tariffs, subsidies, and other restrictions on international trade. The Doha Round holds the potential to facilitate increased foreign direct investment and generate job growth.
Due to the wide scope of issues covered in the Doha Round, the negotiations involve issues related to agriculture, services, intellectual property, and non-tariff barriers. By tackling these multiple issues, the intention of the Doha Round is to create an agenda that can support economic development in developing countries and foster global economic growth.
The Five Best Examples in the Doha Round
1. The Agreement on Agriculture: This agreement was one of the major accomplishments of the Doha Round. It was established to protect the interests of agricultural exporters in developing countries, lower subsidies in industrial nations, reduce trade-distorting domestic support, and eliminate export subsidies.
2. Trade in Services: The trade in services agreement of the Doha Round seeks to open new markets for service providers throughout the world, create a system of transparency, and to eliminate barriers to entry.
3. Intellectual Property Rights: The Doha Round seeks to strengthen intellectual property rights by raising the standards of protection for intellectual property by enforcing higher penalties for the infringement of these rights.
4. Non-Tariff Barriers: The non-tariff barriers agreement of the Doha Round seeks to reduce trade barriers on a wide range of items, including sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade, and customs procedures that are often seen as unnecessarily burdensome or restrictive.
5. Dispute Settlement: The Doha Round seeks to strengthen the WTO dispute settlement mechanism, which is designed to help resolve international trade disputes. This agreement can help to prevent long-term disputes from getting out of hand, and ensure that nations adhere to the rules outlined in the agreement.