The Role of Special Differential Treatment for Developing Countries in GATT and the World Trade Organization

[摘要] The author analyzes how changes inthinking about the role trade plays in economic developmenthave been reflected in provisions affecting developingcountries in the GATT and the WTO. He focuses on theprovisions calling for the special and differentialtreatment of developing countries. The WTO's special,and differential treatment has been extended to includemeasures of technical assistance, and extended transitionperiods to enable countries to meet their commitments in newareas agreed on in the Uruguay round of negotiations. At thesame time, many WTO provisions encourage industrialcountries to give developing countries preferentialtreatment, through a variety of measures, none of themlegally enforceable. The author concludes that weaknesses inthe institutional capacity of many developing countries,provide a conceptual basis for continuing special, anddifferential treatment in the WTO, but that the benefitsshould be targeted only to low-income developing countries,and those that need help becoming integrated with theinternational trading system. In addition, an effectivesystem of graduation, should be put in place forhigher-income developing countries. Developing countriesfind it politically easier to argue, that all should betreated the same, except for least developed countries,although their capacities, and need for assistance differvastly. Industrial countries are expected to providespecial, and differential treatment, but in practice, theircommitments on market access, preferential treatment, andtechnical assistance, are not enforceable. Leaving it up tothe industrial countries to decide which developingcountries get preferential treatment, invites extraneousconsiderations in determining who gets how much specialtreatment. Unless higher-income developing countries acceptsome type of graduated differentiation in their treatment(beyond that granted the least developed countries), thereis little prospect of implementing meaningful, legallyenforceable special, and differential treatment favoring alldeveloping countries under the WTO.

[发布机构] World Bank, Washington, DC

[学科分类] 社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

[关键词] AGRICULTURAL SECTOR;AGRICULTURE;AVERAGE TRADE;BALANCE OF PAYMENTS;BILATERAL TRADE