What is meant by special and differential treatment (S&DT) under WTO? What will happen to India’s trade regime if this provision is withdrawn ? (200 Words)
Refer - Business Standard
Enrich the answer from other sources, if the question demands.
IAS Parliament 5 years
KEY POINTS
· S&DT gives developing countries special rights and enables them to take commensurate trade commitments based on their economic capacity.
· S&DT was adopted by the WTO in recognition of the fact that developing countries don’t always have the required capacity or resources or indeed the level of market reforms for them to fully compete in all trade arenas.
· But a reversal of S&DT will not only stall the progress under the WTO but will also actively discourage the participation of developing countries in the multilateral trade framework.
Consequence of Withdrawal of S&DT
· Under the circumstances, India is likely to be hurt further if the S&DT aspect is withdrawn from the WTO.
· For instance, it is feared that in the absence of the S&DT provision, India will not be able to secure the livelihood concerns of its fishermen in the new trade rules for fisheries subsidies.
· India will also lose its 10 per cent farm subsidy elbow-room, which will be reduced to 5 per cent.
· With reference to the S&DT revocation, however, India has made a more forceful attempt to fight it by raising an alarm on how it can cause lasting damage to the multilateral trading system.
But Indian negotiators need to push harder, as the time is ticking fast for countries such as India to have a rule-based trading regime with S&DT built-in as an instrument of natural justice.
