Type Trade agreements | ||
Context Doha Development Round of the World Trade Organization Signed 7 December 2013 (2013-12-07) Location Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia | ||
The Bali Package is a trade agreement resulting from the Ninth Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization in Bali, Indonesia on 3–7 December 2013. It is aimed at lowering global trade barriers and is the first agreement reached through the WTO that is approved by all its members. The package forms part of the Doha Development Round, which started in 2001.
Contents
Provisions
The accord includes provisions for lowering import tariffs and agricultural subsidies, with the intention of making it easier for developing countries to trade with the developed world in global markets. Developed countries would abolish hard import quotas on agricultural products from the developing world and instead would only be allowed to charge tariffs on amounts of agricultural imports exceeding specific limits. Another important target is reforming customs bureaucracies and formalities to facilitate trade.
The Bali Package consists of ten separate decisions by the Ministerial Conference, covering four areas as follow.
Trade facilitation
The Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) entered into force on 22 February 2017 when Rwanda, Oman, Chad and Jordan submitted their instruments of acceptance, achieving the requirement that two-thirds of the 164 WTO members formally accept the Agreement.
The agreement reaffirms that the non-discrimination principle of Article V of GATT 1994 remains valid. The TFA will reduce red-tape and streamline customs. It will be legally binding, require some expense and a certain level of technology. LDCs will be supported in building capacities to implement the changes using funding from the Trade Facilitation Agreement Facility (TFAF), which was established on 22 July 2014 under the terms of an amendment to the TFA. However, some critics worry that governments may have to prioritize funds for trade facilitation over other important areas, such as public health or education.
The following WTO members have formally accepted the TFA: Hong Kong China, Singapore, the United States, Mauritius, Malaysia, Japan, Australia, Botswana, Trinidad and Tobago, the Republic of Korea, Nicaragua, Niger, Belize, Switzerland, Chinese Taipei, China, Liechtenstein, Lao PDR, New Zealand, Togo, Thailand, the European Union (on behalf of its 28 member states), the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Pakistan, Panama, Guyana, Côte d’Ivoire, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Kenya, Myanmar, Norway, Viet Nam, Brunei Darussalam, Ukraine, Zambia, Lesotho, Georgia, Seychelles, Jamaica, Mali, Cambodia, Paraguay, Turkey, Brazil, Macao China, the United Arab Emirates, Samoa, India, the Russian Federation, Montenegro, Albania, Kazakhstan, Sri Lanka, St. Kitts and Nevis, Madagascar, the Republic of Moldova, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Peru, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Senegal, Uruguay, Bahrain, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Iceland, Chile, Swaziland, Dominica, Mongolia, Gabon, the Kyrgyz Republic, Canada, Ghana, Mozambique, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Nigeria, Nepal, Rwanda, Oman, Chad and Jordan.
Agriculture
Covers food security in developing countries.
Cotton
Development and LDC issues
Covers measures for Least developed countries (LDCs) and developing countries, including preferential treatment and market access.
Negotiations
Before the agreement, the negotiations repeatedly came close to collapsing. India's demand that it should be allowed to extend its domestic agricultural subsidies indefinitely was met by opposition from the U.S., while Cuba, Bolivia, Nicaragua, and Venezuela objected to the removal of a text relating to the U.S. embargo against Cuba. Eventually, India and the U.S. reached a compromise where a permanent solution to the Indian subsidies will be decided in separate future negotiations within four years, while Cuba reached a compromise that saw it refrain from vetoing the agreement. The U.S. and India came to a permanent agreement regarding India's food subsidies in November 2014.
The negotiations were originally scheduled for 3–6 December 2013. However, they had to extend until 7 December for an agreement to be reached.
This was the first global agreement by the WTO. Director-General Roberto Azevêdo said: "For the first time in our history, the WTO has truly delivered. We're back in business … Bali is just the beginning." He also expressed fears of bilateral agreements if the WTO talks failed. The Trade Minister of the host country, Indonesia, Gita Wirjawan, said the agreement was "historic". The United States Chamber of Commerce issued a statement that read: "With this landmark accord on trade facilitation and other issues, the WTO has re-established its credibility as an indispensable forum for trade negotiations."
Financial estimates
The Peterson Institute for International Economics estimate that if the customs measures of the agreement are properly implemented, they could create US$1 trillion worth of global economic activity, add 21 million new jobs and lower the cost of doing international trade by 10–15 percent.