Objectives and Importance of the WTO to Open and Develop New Commercial Markets

Résumé du document

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an international organization which governs the rules of international trade between countries. Today, new markets are appearing thanks to developing countries, who also want to take part in free trade. Therefore, it is important to know how the WTO will integrate these new markets. The already developed countries, the developing countries and the less-developed countries cannot be managed in the same way. WTO has to take into account these elements to try to find the best arrangements for each category of country. The World Trade Organization (WTO) was founded in 1995. The basis of this commercial system was established in 1947 with the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). GATT was formed after eight rounds of negotiations. The last round, known as the Uruguay Round, began in 1986 and finished in 1995, with the establishment of the WTO, signed in Marrakech. The aim of the WTO is to promote free trade and stimulate economic growth. Thus, the WTO sets the rules of the world trading system and tries to solve conflicts linked to commercial issues between its state members. The WTO agreements deal with agriculture, textile, banking, clothing, industrial standards, food sanitation regulations, etc. The agreements are set up according to some multilateral trading system principles. Treating people equally is the main idea of this principle (most-favored nation principle).

Extraits

[...] The organization tries to assist and helps those countries to set up rules, institutions, and strategies related to International Trade. But, the main existing problem remains that even if the WTO makes the effort to those countries to easily access the markets, some of those countries don't have political stability or can't adapt to the radical changes concerning the adoption of the new rules and agreements of WTO. Moreover, we have clearly stated that main problems remain within the organization. [...]

[...] Decisions on these issues should be taken under the Biosafety Protocol, as public health and the environment are not within the competence of the WTO, which would have too much power if it was authorized to take decisions in these areas. This complaint is a tactic of intimidation by the United States to "encourage" the South to open their markets to GMOs. Many countries now fear if they refuse GMOs, to suffer heavy trade sanctions authorized by the WTO, which could amount to hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars. Already the U.S. [...]

[...] Disputes are heard by a Dispute Settlement Panel, consisting of three trade officials. The panels gather in secret and are advised not to alert national governments that the laws of their countries have been abused by another country. Each side can contest a panel's ruling. Appeals should focus on law points such as legal interpretation. Each appeal is heard by three members out of the seven-member Appellate Body. The members of this structure should be individuals, not affiliated with any parliament. [...]

[...] WTO's documents are confidential and citizens do not have access to them. Even the settlement process is secret, often preventing non-governmental experts to provide useful information for decision making. In addition, most of the negotiating process taking place before the WTO Ministerial Conference is informal and secret. And as if this were not enough, some governments organize - during the Ministerial Conference - private negotiating sessions, accessible only by invitation. The most powerful countries use different means of pressure to achieve their goals. [...]

[...] The importance of the WTO to open and develop new commercial markets What are these new markets? The new markets are considered as being the markets, where, up until now, it was not usual to do trade. Consequently, we can define new markets as the ones we find in developing countries. With the creation of the Dispute Settlement Body, an international trade law emerged. Therefore, it is the first time an organization makes it possible for small countries to turn against the large ones. [...]