Key Procedural Papers and Secretariat Notes.
WTO General Agreement on Trade in Services.
Modalities for the Treatment of Autonomous Liberalization (Revision), Note by the Chairman, Council for Trade in Services, Special Session, JOB(02)/35/Rev.3, 25 February 2003.
Modalities for the Special Treatment for Least-Developed Country Members in the Negotiations on Trade in Services (Draft), 3 September 2003.

Negotiations on Subsidies, Report by the Chairperson of the Working Party on GATS Rules, S/WPGR/10, 30 June 2003.
Negotiations on Government Procurement, Report by the Chairperson of the Working Party on GATS Rules, S/WPGR/11, 30 June 2003.
Negotiations on Emergency Safeguard Measures, Report by the Chairperson of the Working Party on GATS Rules, S/WPGR/9, 14 March 2003.
Preparations for the Fifth Session of the Ministerial Conference, Draft Cancún Ministerial Text, Revision, JOB(03)/150/Rev.1, 24 August 2003.
Special Session of the Council for Trade in Services, Report by the Chairman to the Trade Negotiations Committee, TN/S/10, 11 July 2003.
Manual on Statistics of Interational Trade in Services, UN, EC, IMF, OECD, UNCTAD, WTO, Department of Economic and Social Affairs Statistics Division, Statistical Papers Series M N° 86, 2002. GATS - Fact and Fiction, World Trade Organization (WTO), 2001.
Guidelines and Procedures for the Negotiations on Trade in Services, Adopted by the Special Session of the Council for Trade in Services, S/L/93, 28 March 2001.
Economic Effects of Services Liberalization: Overview of Empirical Studies, WTO, 1998.
Services Sectoral Classification List, Note by the Secretariat, MTN/GNS/W/120, 10 July 1991.
Background Notes by the WTO on Sectors in the GATS

Accountancy Services - S/C/W/73, 4 December 1998.
Advertising Services - S/C/W/47, 9 July 1998.
Air Transport Services - S/C/W/59, 5 November 1998.
Architectural and Engineering Services - S/C/W/44, 1 July 1998.
Audiovisual Services - S/C/W/40, 15 June 1998.
Computer and Related Services - S/C/W/45, 14 July 1998.
Construction and Related Engineering Services - S/C/W/38, 8 June 1998.
Distribution Services - S/C/W/37, 10 June 1998.
Education Services - S/C/W/49, 23 September 1998.
Energy Services - S/C/W/52, 9 September 1998.
Environmental Services - S/C/W/46, 6 July 1998.
Financial Services - S/C/W/72, 2 December 1998.
Health and Social Services - S/C/W/50, 18 September 1998.
Land Transport Services Part I - Generalities and Road Transport - S/C/W/60, 28 October 1998.
Land Transport Services Part II - Rail Transport Services - S/C/W/61, 28 October 1998.
Legal Services - S/C/W/43, 6 July 1998.
Maritime Transport Services - S/C/W/62, 16 November 1998.
Postal and Courier Services - S/C/W/39, 12 June 1998.
Presence of Natural Persons (mode 4) - S/C/W/75, 8 December 1998.
Telecommunications - S/C/W/74, 8 December 1998.
Tourism Services - S/C/W/51, 23 September 1998.

Analysis of Ways to Enhance the Contribution of Specific Services Sectors to the Development Perspectives of Developing Countries. Energy Services in International Trade: Development Implications, Note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Trade in Goods and Services, and Commodities, Geneva, 4-8 February 2002.

Trade in Services and Development Implications, Note by the UNCTAD secretariat, 2002.

Trade in Services - Market Access Opportunities and the Benefits of Liberalization for Developing Economies, Greg McGuire, UNCTAD, Policy Issues in International Trade and Commodities Study Series N°19, 2002.

Energy Services in International Trade: Development Implications, Note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Trade in Goods and Services, and Commodities, Expert Meeting on Energy Services in International Trade: Development Implications, Geneva, 23-25 July 2001.

Services Sector Reform and Development Strategies: Issues and Research Priorities, Christopher Findlay, UNCTAD, Policy Issues in International Trade and Commodities Study Series N° 8, 2001.

Developing Countries in the New Round of GATS Negotiations: Towards a Pro-Active Role, Aaditya Mattoo, in: World Economy 23, S. 471-489, 2000.

GATS and Developing Countries: A Case Study of India, Rajesh Chadha, National Council of Applied Economic Research, Paper commissioned by the World Bank, Washington, DC., 2000.

GATS 2000 Negotiations: Options for Developing Countries, Mina Mashayekhi, South Centre, Trade-Related Agenda, Development and Equity (T.R.A.D.E.), Working Papers, N°9, December 2000.

Services, Economic Development, and the Next Round of Negotiations on Services, Bernard Hoekman, Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank, 1999.

Scope for Expanding Exports of Developing Countries in Specific Services Sectors through all GATS Modes of Supply, Taking into Account their Interrelationship, the Role of Information Technology and of New Business Practices”, Note by the UNCTAD secretariat, 1998.

Market access and progressive liberalization

Advanced Training Tools for Negotiations on Trade in Services, UNCTAD, Commercial Diplomacy Programme, 2002.

GATS: The Case for Open Services Markets, OECD, 2002.

Trade in Services - Market Access Opportunities and the Benefits of Liberalization for Developing Economies, Greg McGuire, UNCTAD, Policy Issues in International Trade and Commodities Study Series N°19, 2002.

Measuring Services Trade Liberalization and its Impact on Trade Growth: An Illustration, Arvind Subramanian, Randeep Rathindran, and Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank, Research Working Paper N°2655, 2001.

Open Services Markets Matter, Pierre Sauvé, 2001.

Financial Services and the WTO: Liberalization Commitments of the Developing and Transition Economies, World Economy, vol. 23, no. 3, 351-86, 2000.

GATS 2000 - New Directions in Services Trade Liberalization, Pierre Sauvé, Robert M. Stern, eds., Brookings Institution Press, 2000.

International Provision of Trade Services, Trade and Fragmentation, Alan V. Deardorff, Paper prepared for a World Bank Project, WTO 2000.

Is there a Better Way? Alternative Approaches to Liberalization Under the GATS, Patrick Low and Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank, 2000.

Market Structure, Trade Liberalization and the GATS, Joseph Francois, Ian Wooton, Tinbergen Institute Discussion Paper, June 2000.

Measuring the Cost of Barriers to Trade in Services, Philippa Dee, Kevin Hanslow and Tien Phamduc, Productivity Commission, Australia, 2000.

Multilateral Liberalisation of Services Trade, Philippa Dee, Kevin Hanslow, Multilateral Liberalisation of Services Trade, Productivity Commission Staff Research Paper, Ausinfo, Canberra, 2000.

Regulatory Barriers and the Principle of Non-Discrimination in World Trade Law: Past, Present, and Future, Thomas Cottier and Petros C. Mavroidis, Editors, The University of Michigan Press, 2000.

Should Credit be given for Autonomous Liberalization in Multilateral Trade Negotiations?, Aaditya Mattoo, and Marcelo Olarreaga, World Bank, Research Working Paper N° 2374, 2000.

Approaches to Liberalizing Services, Sherry M. Stephenson, World Bank, Trade, Development Research Group, 1999.

Liberalizing Trade in Services: Reciprocal Negotiations and Regulatory Reform, Bernard Hoekman, Patrick A. Messerlin, World Bank, 1999.

Manual on Statistics of International Trade in Services, Sherry M. Stephenson, World Bank, Trade, Development Research Group, May 1999.

Protection and Trade in Services, Bernard Hoekman, Carlos A. Primo Braga, World Bank, Policy Research Working Paper N°1747, 1997.

Competitiveness

Strategies to Enhance Global Competitiveness in Emerging WTO Regime (the Multilateral Trading System), Jacqueline Mneney Maleko, Ministry of Industry and Trade, Tanzania, 2003.

Session 2: Globalization and WTO: ICT, Trade and Competitiveness (Draft), Susanne Teltscher, Asia-Pacific Development Information Programme, United Nations Development Programme, Asia Forum on ICT Policies and e-Strategies, October 2003.

Finance and E-Finance for SMEs as a Means to enhance their Operations and Competitiveness, Issues paper by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Entreprises, Business, Facilitation and Development, 2001.

Subsidies, Market Closure, Cross-Border Investment, and Effects on Competition: The Case of FDI in the Telecommunications Sector, Edward M. Graham, Institute for International Economics, 2001.

Inter-industry Linkages of Services in the Bangladesh Economy (with a Case Study of the Ready-made Garments Industry) and Potential Service Trade, Dr. A. K. Azad, Paper prepared for presentation at WTO2000 South Asia Workshop, organized by the NCAER and the World Bank, held in New Delhi, India, 20-21 December 1999.
GATS Consultation Kit, International Trade Centre, UNCTAD/WTO.

Domestic regulation

Extending the Disciplines on Domestic Regulation in Accounting to other Professional Services, Patricio Contreras, Pacific Economic Cooperation Council, 15th PECC General Meeting, Brunei Darussalam, Focus Workshop on Trade, 2003.

Regulation Impact Statement for a Mutual Recognition Agreement on Conformity Assessment between Australia and Singapore, Technical and Regulatory Barriers to Trade Section, Business Environment Branch, Department of Industry, Science and Resources, Australia, 2001.

Negotiations in Agriculture and Services in the WTO: Suggestions for Modalities/Guidelines, Bhagirath Lal Das, Third World Network, 2000.

Reciprocity Across Modes of Supply in the World Trade Organization: A Negotiating Formula, Aaditya Mattoo, Marcelo Olarreaga, World Bank, 2000.

Liberalizing Trade in Services: Reciprocal Negotiations and Regulatory Reform, Bernard Hoekman, Patrick A. Messerlin, World Bank, 1999.

GATS and Domestic Regulation, Clare Joy, GATSwatch, Corporate Europe Observatory and Transnational Institute.

Mutual recognition agreements

Service Providers on the Move: Mutual Recognition Agreements, Julia Nielson, OECD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, 2003.

Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications, Stig Enemark, FIG Task Force on Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications, 2002.

GATS 2000 and Professional Services, Professional & Managerial Staff, 2001.

Regulation Impact Statement for a Mutual Recognition Agreement on Conformity Assessment between Australia and Singapore, Department of Industry, Science and Resources, 2001.

Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications in Surveying Professions, Stig Enemark and Frances Plimmere, FIG Task Force on Mutual Recognition, 2000.

International Engineering Mobility Agreements Lifting the Barriers to Cross-Border Movement, PEGG, 1999.

Mutual Recognition of Regulatory Regimes: Some Lessons and Prospects, Kalypso Nicolaïdis, NYU School of Law, Jean Monnet Center, 1996.

Managed Mutual Recognition: The New Approach to the Liberalization of Professional Services, Kalypso Nicolaïdis, 1996.
Professional Services: Mutural Recognition Agreements (MRAs), United States Trade Representative (USTR).

Classification issues

Measurement, Classification, and Reporting of Services Activities: An International Perspective, Obie G. Whichard, World Bank, November 1999.

GATS Rules

International Trade in Services Rules: The New Threat to Public and Private Services and Local Control, Citizens Trade Campaign, 2003.

Shaping Future GATS Rules for Trade in Services, Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank, 2000.

Shaping Future Rules for Trade in Services: Lessons from the GATS, Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank, 2000.

GATS Rules - Not!, Arena, New Zealand

Assessment of trade in services

Assessment of Trade in Services in the Context of the GATS 2000 Negotiations, Mina Mashayekhi, Martine Julsaint, South Centre, Trade-Related Agenda, Development and Equity (T.R.A.D.E.), Working Paper N°13, 2002.

Assessment of Trade in Services in the Context of the Current GATS Negotiations in the WTO, Elisabeth Tuerk and Marukus Krajewski, The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), 2001.

Pakistan and the GATS: An Assessment of Policies and Future Prospects, Dr. Mushtaq Ahmad, World Bank, 2000.
Capacity Building and Technical Assistance in the Services Area

The WTO Services Negotiations: Some Strategic Considerations, Mina Mashayekhi and Elisabeth Tuerk, South Centre, Trade-Related Agenda, Development and Equity (T.R.A.D.E.), Working Papers N°14, 2003.

Finance and E-Finance for SMEs as a Means to enhance their Operations and Competitiveness, Issues paper by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Entreprises, Business, Facilitation and Development, 2001.

Technical Assistance Services in Trade-Policy: A Contrribution to the Discussion on Capacity-Building in the WTO, Michel Kostecki, ICTSD Series: Sustainable Development and Trade Issues, ICTSD Resource Paper N°2, 2001.

GATS Consultation Kit, International Trade Centre, UNCTAD/WTO.

WTO dispute settlement and the GATS

Dispute Settlement: World Trade Organization, 3.13 GATS, UNCTAD, 2003.

Other systemic issues

China’s Accession to the WTO: The Services Dimension, Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank, Research Working Paper N°2932, 2002.

Transnational Corporations, UNCTAD, Volume 11, N°3, December 2002.

Services in the International Economy, Robert M. Stern, Editor, The University of Michigan Press, 2001.

Reciprocity Across Modes of Supply in the World Trade Organization: A Negotiating Formula, Aaditya Mattoo, Marcelo Olarreaga, World Bank, 2000.

The Trade Policy Implications of the New Economy, Pierre Sauvé, OECD, 2000.

Legal Services and GATS: Norms as Barriers to Trade, Paul D. Paton, New England School of Law, New England Journal of International and Comparative Law, Volume 9, No. 2, 2003.

Changing Dynamics of Global Computer Software and Services Industry: Implications for Developing Countries, UNCTAD, Technology for Development Series, 2002.

The Tradability of Consulting Services and its Implications for Developing Countries, UNCTAD, 2002.

Assessing Barriers to Trade in Services: Financial Information and Advisory Services, OECD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, February 2001.

Trade in Construction and Consultancy Services: India and the GATS, Arpita Mukherjeeicrier, Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations, November 2001.

Competition in Professional Services, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs, Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 2000.

Reducing the Barriers to International Trade in Accounting Services: Why it Matters, and the Road Ahead, Lawrence J. White, Stern School of Business, New York University, May 2000.

Restrictions on Trade in Professional Services, Duc Nguyen-Hong, Productivity Commission, Staff Research Paper, 2000.

Communication

An Assessment of Telecommunications Reforms in Developing Countries, Randeep Rathindran, Carsten Fink, and Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank, Working Paper N°2909, 2002.

Assessing the Impact of Communications Costs in International Trade, Carsten Fink, Aaditya Mattoo, and Ileana Cristina Neagu, World Bank, Working Paper N°2929 , 2002.

Electronic Commerce and International Transport Services: Best Practices for Enhancing the Competitiveness of Developing Counries, note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Enterprise, Business, Facilitation and Development, Sixth session, Geneva, 18-22 February 2002.

Regulation of Service Traded Electronically, Olivier Cattaneo and Julia Nielson, OECD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, 2002.

Electronic Commerce: A Cluster Approach to the Negotiations of Input Services, OECD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, 2001.

Liberalizing Basic Telecommunications: The Asian Experience, Randeep Rathindran, Carsten Fink, and Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank, Working Paper 2718, 2001.

E-Commerce, WTO and Developing Countries, Arvind Panagariya, UNCTAD, Policy Issues in International Trade and Commodities Study Series N°2, 2000.

Electronic Commerce — Existing GATS Commitments for Online Supply of Services, Working Party of the Trade Committee, OECD, 2000.

Telecom Policy Reform in India, Harsha Vardhana Singh, Anita Soni, and Rajat Kathuria, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, 2000.

Liberalising Communication Services in South Africa, James Hodge, Trade and Industrial Policy Secretariat (TIPS), 1999.

Towards the Millennium Round: East Asia and International Trade in Telecom Services, Ma. Joy V. Abrenica and Tony Warren, 1999.

Electronic Commerce and the Role of the WTO, Marc Bacchetta, Patrick Low, Aaditya Mattoo, Ludger Schuknecht, Hannu Wagerand, Madelon Wehrens, Special Study N°2, WTO, 1998.

Telecommunications Reform: How to Succeed, Björn Wellenius, World Bank, Finance, Private Sector, and Infrastructure Network, Public Policy for the Private Sector, Note N°130, October 1997.

Construction

Construction and Related Services in Botswana, Gape Kaboyakgosi, Margeret Sengwaketse, Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS), 2003.

The Economic Regulation of Transport Infrastructure Facilities and Services — Principles and Issues, Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), 2001.

Trade in Construction and Consultancy Services: India and the GATS, Arpita Mujherjee, Working Paper, N°75, Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations, 2001.

Distribution

Restrictions on Trade in Distribution Services, Kaleeswaran Kalirajan, Productivity Commission, Staff Research Paper, 2000.

Education

GATS and Higher Education in Latin America: Some Ideas to Contribute to the Discussion, Carmen García-Guadilla, Paper prepared for the Convention of Universities Members of Columbus, Paris, July 2002.

GATS to Impact on Public Education, Sally Edsall, New South Wales Teachers Federation, Australia, 2000.

The WTO and the GATS : Why Teachers should be Concerned, Harvey Weiner, Canadian Teachers’ Federation, 2000.

Background Paper on the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and Post-Secondary Education in Canada, Robert Clift, Confederation of University Faculty Associations of British Columbia (CUFA/BC), 1999.

Collection of Papers presented at a conference organised by the Hemispheric Initiatives for Democratic Education in the Americas (IDEA) in Quito, Ecuador, 1999.

The Future of Education under the WTO, Peter Frase and Brendan O’Sullivan, The Movement for Democracy and Education, 1999.

The WTO and the Millennium Round : What is at stake for Public Education? Common Concerns for Workers in Education and the Public Sector, Joint publication, Education International and Public Services International, October 1999.

Energy

Energy and Environmental Services: Negotiating Objectives and Development Priorities, UNCTAD, 2003.

Managing Request-Offer Negotiations under the GATS: The Case of Energy Services, UNCTAD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, 2003.

Analysis of Ways to Enhance the Contribution of Specific Services Sectors to the Development Perspectives of Developing Countries. Energy Services in International Trade: Development Implications, Note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Trade in Goods and Services, and Commodities, Geneva, 4-8 February 2002.

Energy Services, WTO GATS Negotiations and Energy Market Regulation and Liberalisation in South Africa, Anton Eberhard, Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS), TIPS Annual Forum Paper, TIPS Working Paper, 2002.

The Impact of Electricity Trade on the Environment in South Africa, O.A. Akinboade, E.W. Niedermeier, F. Sibanda, Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS), TIPS Annual Forum Paper, 2002.

Energy Services in International Trade: Development Implications, Note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Trade in Goods and Services, and Commodities, Expert Meeting on Energy Services in International Trade: Development Implications, Geneva, 23-25 July 2001.

Issues and Options for Restructuring the ESI, David M Newbery, Department of Applied Economics, Cambridge, UK, 2001.

Sustainability of the Electricity Sectors Reforms in Latin America, Jaime Millan, Eduardo Lora and Alejandro Micco, Inter-American Development Bank, Prepared for the Seminar “Towards Competitiveness: The Institutional Path”, Annual Meetings of the Board of Governors, Inter-American Development Bank and Inter-American Investment Corporation, Santiago, Chile, 16 March 2001.

Environment

Energy and Environmental Services: Negotiating Objectives and Development Priorities, UNCTAD, 2003.

GATS, Water and the Environment: Implications of the General Agreement on Trade in Services for Water Resources, Aaron Ostrovksy, Robert Speed and Elisabeth Tuerk, CIEL and WWF International Discussion Paper, October 2003.

The Right to Water and Trade in Services: Assesing the Impact of GATS Negotiations on Water Regulation (Draft), Elisabeth Türk and Markus Krajewski, Paper presented at the CAT+E Conference “Moving forward from Cancún”, Berlin , 30-31 October 2003.

Frontiers in Trade: The Clean Development Mechanism and the General Agreement on Trade in Services, Glenn M. Wiser, CIEL, 2002.

Preliminary Assessment of the Environmental and Social Effects of Trade in Tourism, Natacha Juda and Sarah Richardson, under the supervision of Mireille Perrin, WWF International Discussion Paper, May 2001.

Stealing our Water. Implications of GATS for Global Water Resources, Tim Concannon, Hannah Griffiths, Friends of the Earth, Briefing, 2001.

Environmental Goods and Services: An Assessment of the Environmental Economic and Development Benefits of Further Global Trade Liberalisation, OECD, Joint Working Party on Trade and Environment, October 2000.

Environmental Services: The “Win-Win” Role of Trade Liberalisation in Promoting Environmental Protection and Economic Development, OECD, Joint Working Party on Trade and Environment, September 2000.

Environmental Impacts of Trade Liberalization and Policies for the Sustainable Management of Natural Resources: A Case Study on Romania’s Water Sector, UNEP, National Institution leading the Study: Center for Environmentally Sustainable Economic Policy, Bucharest, Romania, 1999.

Strengthening Capacities in Developing Countries to Develop their Environmental Services Sector, Background note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Commission on Trade in Goods and Services, and Commodities, Geneva, 20-22 July 1998.

Finance

Managing Request-Offer Negotiations under the GATS: The Case of Energy Services, UNCTAD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, 2003.

Explaining Liberalization Commitments in Financial Services Trade Vol. 1, Philipp Harms, Aaditya Mattoo, Ludger Schuknecht, The World Bank Development Research Group Trade, Policy Research Working Paper N°2999, March 2003.

Report of the Expert Meeting on Improving the Competitiveness of SMEs in Developing Countries: The Role of Finance, Including E-Finance to Enhance Enterprise Development, UNCTAD, 22-24 October 2001.

Recasting the International Financial Agenda, José Antonio Ocampo, UNCTAD, G-24 Discussion Paper Series, No. 13, July 2001.

Financial Services and the World Trade Organization: Liberalization Commitments of the Developing and Transition Economies, Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank Group, 1999.

Report of the Expert Meeting on Sustainable Financial and Non-Financial Services for SME Development, UNCTAD, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Enterprise, Business, Facilitation and Development, 2-4 June 1999.

Providing Sustainable Financial and Non-Financial Services for SME Development, Issues paper by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Expert Meeting on Sustainable Financial and Non-Financial Services for SME Development, Commission on Enterprise, Business, Facilitation and Development, Geneva, 2-4 June 1999.

Whether and When to Liberalize Capital Account and Financial Services, John Williamson, Zdenek Drabek, World Trade Organization, Economic Research and Analysis Division, Staff Working Paper ERAD-99-03, 1999.

Financial Services and the World Trade Organization - Liberalization Commitments of the Developing and Transition Economies, Aaditya Mattoo, The World Bank, Trade, Development Research Group, 1999.

The Internationalization of Financial Services in Asia, Stijn Claessens, Tom Glaessner, World Bank, Policy Research Working Paper, N°1911, 1998.

Opening Markets in Financial Services and the Role of the GATS, Masamichi Kono, Patrick Low, Mukela Luanga, Aaditya Mattoo, Maika Oshikawa, and Ludger Schuknecht, World Trade Organization, Special Study N°1, 1997.

Trade, Finance and Financial Crises, K.Michael Fingerand, Ludger Schuknecht, World Trade Organization, Special Study, N°3, 1999.

Health and social

Private Participation in Health Services, Edited by Alexander S. Preker , April L. Harding, World Bank, 2002.

WTO Agreements and Public Health: A Joint Study by the WHO and the WTO Secretariat, World Health Organization and World Trade Organization, 2002.

Trade in Health Services: Global, Regional and Country Perspectives, Pan American Health Organization, Program on Public Policy and Health, Division of Health and Human Development, 2002.

Private Participation in Health Services, Edited by Alexander S. Preker , April L. Harding, World Bank, 2002.

Moving from Residential Institutions to Community-Based Social Services in Central and Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union, Davi Tobis, World Bank, 2000.

Globalisation and Liberalisation of Healthcare Services: WTO and the General Agreement on Trade in Services, K. Balasubramaniam, Issue Paper, People’s Health Assembly, 2000.

Health Expenditures, Services, and Outcomes in Africa: Basic Data and Cross-National Comparisons, 1990-1996, Gnanaraj Chellaraj, David H. Peters, Kami Kandola, A. Edward Elmendorf, World Bank, 1999.

Improving Women’s Health Services in the Russian Federation: Results of a Pilot Project, Patricia Stephenson, France Donnay, Chantal Worzala, Olga Frolova, Tatian Melnik, World Bank, 1998.

Trends in Health Status, Services and Finance: The Transition in Central and Eastern Europe, Gnanaraj Chellaraj, Ellen Goldstein, Alexander S. Preker, Olusoji Adeyi, World Bank, Vol II, Statistical Annex, 1997.

Poverty, Social Services, and Safety Nets in Vietnam, World Bank, World Bank Discussion Paper N°376, 1997.

Financing Health Services through User Fees and Insurance: Case Studies from Sub-Saharan Africa, Edited by Martha Ainsworth , Paul Shaw, World Bank, World Bank Discussion Paper N°294, 1996.

Trends in Health Status, Services and Finance, Volume I: The Transition in Central and Eastern Europe, Gnanaraj Chellaraj, Ellen Goldstein, Alexander S. Preker, Olusoji Adeyi, World Bank, World Bank Technical Paper N°341, 1996.

The Quality and Availability of Family Planning Services and Contraceptive Use in Tanzania, Kathleen Beegle, World Bank, Living Standards Measurement Study N°114, 1995.

Cost Recovery in Public Health Services in Sub-Saharan Africa, Brian Nolan, Vincent Turbat, World Bank, 1995.

Financing Health Services In Developing Countries: An Agenda for Reform, World Bank, 1987.

Tourism

Tourism Trade Liberalization - Issues & Goals, World Tourism Organization, White Paper, July 2002.

The Viability and Sustainability of International Tourism in Developing Countries, David Diaz, Symposium on Tourism Services, 22-23 February 2001, World Trade Organization, Geneva.

Preliminary Assessment of the Environmental and Social Effects of Trade in Tourism, Natacha Juda and Sarah Richardson, under the supervision of Mireille Perrin, WWF International Discussion Paper, 2001.

GATS and Responsible Tourism, WWF, Policy Statement, September 2001.

Assessing Barriers to Trade in Services: Tourism Services, OECD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, 2000.

Recent Developments in Trade and Competition Issues in the Services Sector: A Review of Practices in Travel and Tourism, Phillip Evans, UNCTAD, UNCTAD Series on Issues in Competition Law and Policy, 1999.

International Trade in Tourism-Related Services: Issues and Options for Developing Countries, Background note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Trade in Goods and Services, and Commodities, Expert Meeting on Strengthening the Capacity for Expanding the Tourism Sector in Developing Countries, with Particular Focus on Tour Operators, Travel Agencies and Other Suppliers, Geneva, 8-10 June 1998.

Transport

Electronic Commerce and International Transport Services: Best Practices for Enhancing the Compete

itiveness of Developing Counries, note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Enterprise, Business, Facilitation and Development, Sixth session, Geneva, 18-22 February 2002.

Trade in International Maritime Services: How much does Policy Matter?, Carsten Fink, Aaditya Mattoo, and Ileana Cristina Neagu, World Bank, Research Working Paper, N°2522, January 2001.

Report of the Expert Meeting on Electronic Commerce and International Transport Services: Best Practices for Enhancing the Competitiveness of Developing Countries, UNCTAD, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Enterprise, Business, Facilitation and Development, 26-28 September 2001.

Assessing Barriers to Trade in Services: Air Cargo Services, OECD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, 2000.

Contraintes et Oppprtunités pour le Développement des Services de Transport Routier au Burkina Faso, S.Soulama, Joachim D.Méda, ETUDES CAPAS, Séminaire Régional, 2000.

Air Transport, Christopher Findlay, Paper prepared for East Asia Conference on Options for the WTO 2000 Negotiations, PECC/TPF and World Bank, Manila, July 19-20, 1999.

A Situation Analysis of the Air Transport Sector of Uganda, Samuel K. Kayabwe, Makerere University, A sectoral paper prepared for sub-regional African seminars on trade in services, 1999.

Les Services de Transport Maritime dans le Contexte de L’Accord Général sur le Commerce des Services (AGCS / GATS): Le Cas Particulier de la Côte d’Ivoire et des Etats de l’Afrique de l’Ouest en Général, Augustin Karanga, Réseau Capas, Document préparatoire au prochain cycle des négociations de l’an 2000, 1999.

Liberalization of Maritime Transport Services: Directions and Options for Asia, CHIA Lin Sien, Lloyd C. Onyirimba and George S. Akpan, National University of Singapore, 1999.

Maritime and Air Transport: the Potential Gains from Liberalization, Riad al Khouri, Working Paper 2012, Economic Research Forum for the Arab Countries, Iran and Turkey (ERF), 1999.

Trade in Transport Services: South Africa and the GATS (Draft Report), Willem Naudé, Submitted to the Trade and Industrial Policy Secretariat (TIPS), 1999.

Competition Policy and International Airport Services, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 1998.

Railways: Structure, Regulation and Competition Policy, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 1998.

Competition Policy and International Transport in Air Transport and Telecom Services, Tony Warren and Christopher Findlay, Australian National University and University of Adelaide, prepared for the PECC Conference on Trade and Competition Policy, Chateau Champlain Marriott, Montreal, Canada, 13 May 1997.

Completing the GATS Framework: Addressing Uruguay Round Leftovers, Pierre Sauvé, in: The Swiss Review of International Economic Relations (Aussenwirtschaft), Vol. 57, No III, Zurich: Ruegger, 2002, pp. 301-341.

Facing the Facts: a Guide to the GATS debate, Scott Sinclair and Jim Grieshaber-Otto, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, 2002.

GATS: The Case for Open Services Markets, OECD, 2002.

Primer on the General Agreement on Trade in Services, Friends of the Earth International, 31 July 2002.

Shaping Future Rules for Trade in Services: Lessons from the GATS, Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank, prepared for an NBER Conference on Trade in Services, Seoul June 2000.

Globalization of Services: What has Happened? What are the Implications?, Gary Hufbauer, Tony Warren, Institute for International Economics, 1999.

 
GATS and investment

Liberalisation and Foreign Direct Investment in Asian Transport Systems: the Case of Aviation, Andrea Goldstein, Christopher Findlay, Experts’ Meeting on Foreign Direct Investment in Developing Asia, Asian Development Bank & OECD Development Centre, Paris - Wednesday 26 & Thursday 27 November 2003.

Trade Rules Behind Borders - Essays on Services, Investment and the New Trade Agenda, Pierre Sauvé, Cameron May Ltd., International Law Publishers, 2003.

International Investment Rules: Is the GATS Campaign Becoming a Red Herring?, Luke Eric Peterson, ICTSD, BRIDGES, Year 6, N°3, March/April 2002.

OECD Legal Instruments on International Investment and Trade in Services, OECD, 2002.

Mode of Foreign Entry, Technology Transfer, and Foreign Direct Investment Policy, Kamal Saggi, Aaditya Mattoo, and Marcelo Olarreaga, World Bank, Research Working Paper, N° 2737, 2001.

Foreign Direct Investment in Services and the Domestic Market for Expertise, David Tarr, James Markusen, and Thomas F. Rutherford, World Bank, Policy Research Working Paper, N°2413, 2000.

Measurement and Modeling of the Economic Effects of Trade and Investment Barriers in Services, Drusilla K. Brown, Robert M. Stern, Working Paper, Discussion Paper 2000-01, Department of Economics, Tufts University, 1999.

Multilateral Disciplines for Investment-Related Policies, Bernard Hoekman, Kamal Saggi, The World Bank, Development Research Group, Trade, Policy Research Working Paper, N°2138, June 1999.

Service Trade and Foreign Direct Investment, Alexis Hardin and Leanne Holmes, Industry Commission Staff Research Paper, Productivity Commission, Australia, 1997.

GATS and privatisation

Assessing the Risks in the Private Provision of Essential Services, Tim Kessler, Nancy Alexander, Citizens’ Network on Essential Services (CNES), Policy Analysis & Research, Discussion Paper for G-24 Technical Group, Geneva, Switzerland, September 15-16, 2003.

Globalisation, Privatisation and Healthcare - A Preliminary Report, David Hall, Public Services International Research Unit (PSIRU), School of Computing and Mathematical Sciences, University of Greenwich, 2001.

Trading Health Care Away: GATS, Public Health and Privatisation, The Corner House, Briefing 23: Trade and Health Care, July 2001.

Trade Agenda Propels Privatization, Chapter from the Canadian Union of Public Employees’ Annual Report On Privatization, 2000.

GATS and the right to regulate

The General Agreement on Trade in Services and an Australia-US Free Trade Agreement, Chapter Five: GATS: Implications and Impacts, Parliament of Australia, Senate, Commonwealth of Australia, 2003.

GATS and the Right to Regulate, Jessica Woodroffe, World Development Movement, July 2001.

Regulation in Services: OECD Patterns and Economic Implications, Giuseppe Nicoletti, OECD, Economics Department Working Papers, N°287, 2001.

Liberalizing Trade in Services: Reciprocal Negotiations and Regulatory Reform, Pierre Sauvé and Robert M. Stern (eds.), in : GATS 2000 - New Directions in Services Trade Liberalization, Brookings Institution, 2000.

Regulating Services Trade: Matching Policies to Objectives, Richard Snape, Productivity Commission, presented to the Eleventh Annual NBER East Asian Seminar held in Seoul, 22-24 June, 2000.

How the World Trade Organization’s new “Services” Negotiations threaten Democracy, Scott Sinclair, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Sequel to Seattle: GATS, September 2000

GATS and the essential public services

GATS: Public Services under Pressure to Liberalize. The GATS-Negotiations in the WTO - A Challenge for International Civil SocietyThomas Fritz and Peter Fuchs, Heinrich Boll Foundation, Published on occasion of the WTO-Conference in Cancún 2003, Global Issue - Paper 1, 2003.

GATS, Water and the Environment: Implications of the General Agreement on Trade in Services for Water Resources, Aaron Ostrovksy, Robert Speed and Elisabeth Tuerk, CIEL and WWF International Discussion Paper, October 2003.

GATS: Democracy, Public Services & Government Regulation, Jean Lambert Mep, the Greens/European Free Alliance in the European Parliament, 2002.

Competition Policy in Infrastructure Services: Second Generation Issues in the Reform of Public Services. Merger Control in Infrastructure Industries, Paulo Correa, Infrastructure and Financial Marktes Division and the Multilateral Investment Fund, Inter- American Development Bank, Washington, DC., April 23-24, 2001.

GATS and Public Service Systems: the GATS ‘governmental authority’ exclusion, International Branch, Ministry of Employment and Investment, Government of British Columbia, Discussion Paper, 02 April 2001.

Public Services and the Scope of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), Markus Krajewski, the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), A Research Paper, 2001.

The GATS Debate: Public Services & Privatisation, Markus Krajewski, Research Paper, Written for Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), May 2001.

Trading Health Care Away: GATS, Public Health and Privatisation, The Corner House, Briefing 23: Trade and Health Care, July 2001.

GATS and regionalism

GATS Negotiations must Focus on Services Liberalization: The Case of SADC, Kennedy K. Mbekeani, the World Bank Group, 2003.

Regional Agreements and Trade in Services, Carsten Fink and Aaditya Mattoo, the World Bank Group, Working Paper N° 2852, 2002.

 
Regionalism, Multilateralism, and Economic Integration the Recent Experience, Edited by Gary P. Sampson and Stephen Woolcock, United Nations University Press, 2001.


GATS and competition policy

Liberalisation and Competition in the Service Sector: Experiences from Europe and Asia, Part I, Overview, Joint Analytical Report, Eighth International Forum on Asian Perspectives organised jointly by the Asian Development Bank and the OECD Development Centre, Paris, 25 June 2002.h

Restructuring Public Utilities for Competition, OECD, Policy Brief, February 2002.

Competition Policy Considerations in the GATS Negotiations, Competition Bureau, Government of Canada, 2001.

Competition Issues in Road Transport, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs, Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 22 May 2001.

Infrastructure Facilities and Services: Economic Reform, Competition Policy and Regulation, Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, in: The Economic Regulation of Transport Infrastructure Facilities and Services — Principles and Issues, United Nations, 2001.

Competition in Professional Services, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs, Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 22 February 2000.

Promoting Competition in Postal Services, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs, Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 30 September 1999.

Competition Policy and International Airport Services, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs, Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 7 May 1998.

Railways: Structure, Regulation and Competition Policy, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs, Committee on Competition Law and Policy, Competition Policy Roundtables, No. 15, 1998.

Local Telecommunication Competition: Developments and Policy Issues, OECD, 1996.

GATS and human rights

GATS and Healthcare - Why do Women Care?, Alexandra Spieldoch, International Gender and Trade Network - Secretariat, October 2001.Gender Issues in International Trade, Marina Fe B. Durano, Center of Concern, 1998.

Cross-Border Trade in 2000 and Sales Through Affiliates in 1999, Michael A. Mann, Maria Borga, OECD, 2001

National Accounts - International Trade Statistics: Cross-border Electronic Commerce and International Trade Statistics, David Ruffles, OECD, STD/NA/ITS(2001)1, 24 October 2001

Cross-Border Trade in Financial Services: Economics and Regulation, Steering Group under- the Committee on Financial Markets, OECD, Financial Market Trends, No. 75, March 2000

International Provision of Trade Services, Trade and Fragmentation, Alan V. Deardorff, World Bank Project, 2000

Unrecorded Cross-Border Trade Between Kenya and Uganda, Chris Ackello-Ogutu, Protase Echessah, SD Publication Series, Office of Sustainable Development, Bureau for Africa, AFR/SD and REDSO/ESA, Technical Paper, No. 58, July 1997
Mode 3

Trade Rules Behind Borders - Essays on Services, Investment and the New Trade Agenda, Pierre Sauvé, Cameron May Ltd., International Law Publishers, 2003

Foreign Bank Entry: Experience, Implications for Developing Countries, and Agenda for Further Research, George Clarke, Robert Cull, Maria Soledad Martinez Peria, and Susana M. Sánchez, World Bank, Prepared as a background paper for the World Development Report 2002: Institutions for Markets, October 2001

Mode of Foreign Entry, Technology Transfer, and Foreign Direct Investment Policy, Kamal Saggi, Aaditya Mattoo, Marcelo Olarreaga, World Bank, Research Working Paper N° 2737, 2001

Scaling Back Ambitions on Investment Rule-Making at the WTO, Pierre Sauvé, Journal of World Investment, Vol. 2, No. 3, September 2001, pp. 529-536

Foreign Direct Investment in Services and the Domestic Market for Expertise, James Markusen, Thomas F. Rutherford, David Tarr, World Bank, 2000
Mode 4

Liberalizing Labor Mobility Under the GATS, Alan Winters, Terrie Walmsley, Zhen Kun Wang, Roman Grynberg, Commonwealth Secretariat, Economic Paper, N°53, 2003
Moving People to Deliver Services: Labor Mobility and the WTO, Aaditya Mattoo (Editor) and Antonia Carzaniga (Editor), World Bank Publications, June 2003
Movement of Natural Persons (Mode 4) Under GATS: An Assessment of the Current Negotiations, Werner Raza, Austrian Federal Chamber of Labour, BAK Position Paper, June 2003

Andean Community
The Andean countries, knowing that it is essential to gradually and progressively eliminate measures that restrict trade in services in the subregion, in order to create the Common Market by 2005, are currently working to do so. In order to boost this process, the Commission on October 31 approved Decision 510 “Adoption of the Inventory of Measures Restricting the Trade in Services.” This Decision allows the citizens of an Andean country to provide in any of the four other subregional members any service, except for those listed in the Inventory, which will be progressively phased out by the year 2005. A general framework of principles and provisions (Decision 439) guides this entire process.

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
APEC is the premier forum for facilitating economic growth, cooperation, trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific region. APEC has a membership of 21 economic jurisdictions, a population of over 2.5 billion and a combined GDP of 19 trillion US dollars accounting for 47 percent of world trade. As the primary regional vehicle for promoting trade and investment and practical economic cooperation, the end result of APEC’s activities includes increased employment opportunities and community development. APEC is working to achieve what are referred to as the ‘Bogor Goals’ of free and open trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific by 2010 for developed economies and 2020 for developing economies. APEC has identified three specific areas that are crucial to achieving the Bogor Goals. These three pillars are: Trade and Investment Liberalisaton; Business Facilitation; and Economic and Technical Cooperation.

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
ASEAN has concluded its negotiations on the third package of commitments for the liberalisation of services. The package includes commitments in air transport, business services, construction, financial services, maritime transport, telecommunications, and tourism. Under business services, several commitments have been made on ICT-related services with the view to facilitating the realization of the e-ASEAN initiative.The ASEAN Economic Ministers adopted the Protocol to Implement the Third Package of Commitments under the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services on 31 December 2001. The ASEAN Economic Ministers also launched the third round of negotiations beginning on 1 January 2002 and ending on 31 December 2004. The third round is meant to go beyond the commitments made in the first two rounds, by covering all services sectors and all modes of supply.

International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
The International Telecommunication Union is unique among international organisations in that it was founded on the principle of cooperation between governments and the private sector. With a membership encompassing telecommunication policy-makers and regulators, network operators, equipment manufacturers, hardware and software developers, regional standards-making organizations and financing institutions, ITU’s activities, policies and strategic direction are determined and shaped by the industry it serves.

Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD)
The OECD groups 30 member countries sharing a commitment to democratic government and the market economy. With active relationships with some 70 other countries, NGOs and civil society, it has a global reach. Best known for its publications and its statistics, its work covers economic and social issues from macroeconomics, to trade, education, development and science and innovation. The OECD plays a prominent role in fostering good governance in the public service and in corporate activity. It helps governments to ensure the responsiveness of key economic areas with sectoral monitoring. By deciphering emerging issues and identifying policies that work, it helps policy-makers adopt strategic orientations. It is well known for its individual country surveys and reviews.

South Centre
The South Centre came formally into being as an intergovernmental body of developing countries on 31 July 1995, when the Intergovernmental Agreement to establish the Centre came into force. Currently, 46 countries are members of the South Centre. The Centre, however, works for the benefit of the South as a whole, making efforts to ensure that all developing countries and interested groups and persons have access to its publications and the results of its work, irrespective of membership.

UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
Established in 1964, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) aims at the development-friendly integration of developing countries into the world economy. UNCTAD is the focal point within the United Nations for the integrated treatment of trade and development and the interrelated issues in the areas of finance, technology, investment and sustainable development.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR)
As the international community strives to maximise the benefits of globalisation while minimising its negative impact, human rights forums are increasingly paying attention to the effects of trade liberalisation on the enjoyment of human rights. The UNHCHR Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights have taken the lead in this area. In August 2001 the Sub-Commission adopted a resolution concerning “Liberalisation of trade in services and human rights”. The High Commissioner has submitted a report on the human rights impacts of the liberalisation of trade in services, particularly in light of the WTO’s General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). The report focuses on the effects of liberalisation of services trade on the right to health, the right to education and the right to development.

Universal Postal Union (UPU)
Established in 1874, the Universal Postal Union (UPU) with its Headquarters in the Swiss capital Bern, is the second oldest international organisation after the International Telecommunications Union. With 189 member countries, the UPU is the primary forum for cooperation between postal services and helps to ensure a truly universal network of up- to-date products and services. In this way, the organisation fulfils an advisory, mediating and liaison role, and renders technical assistance where needed. The UPU Council of Administration Project Team on Relations with the WTO monitors developments on trade in services and keeps Members informed on trade developments. The Project Team promotes awareness of WTO issues of interest to UPU Members and is responsible for establishing formal relations with the WTO, notably through a Memorandum of Understanding. The Project Team also advises and supports other UPU bodies on WTO issues.

World Bank
Trade is an integral part of the Bank’s work on development and poverty reduction. The World Bank assists developing countries to formulate liberal trade policies expressly in their process of development and poverty reduction and provides technical assistance or policy advice to the governments towards an open trade regime. The Bank undertakes research to better understand the role of international trade in development and poverty reduction. The Bank has also contributed significantly to the development of techniques and policy tools for analyzing the impact of trade policy reforms e.g. import restrictions, effective protection, domestic resource cost, etc.

World Health Organisation (WHO)
The World Health Organisation, the United Nations specialised agency for health, was established on 7 April 1948. WHO’s objective, as set out in its Constitution, is the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health. Health is defined in WHO’s Constitution as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. WHO is governed by 192 Member States through the World Health Assembly.

World Tourism Organisation (WTO/OMT)
Its membership includes 139 countries, seven territories and some 350 Affiliate Members representing regional and local promotion boards, tourism trade associations, educational institutions and private sector companies, including airlines, hotel groups and tour operators. The WTO/OMT is an intergovernmental organisation vested by the UN with a central and decisive role in promoting the development of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.Through tourism, WTO/OMT aims to stimulate economic growth and job creation, provide incentives for protecting the environment and cultural heritage, and promote peace, prosperity and respect for human rights.

World Trade Organisation WTO
The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations. At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated and signed by the bulk of the world’s trading nations and ratified in their parliaments. The goal is to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business.

Civil Society Institutions, NGOs, Think Tanks

African Economic Research Consortium (AERC)
The African Economic Research Consortium (AERC), established in 1988, is a public not-for-profit organization devoted to advanced policy research and training. The principal objective is to strengthen local capacity for conducting independent, rigorous inquiry into problems pertinent to the management of economies in sub-Saharan Africa. In response to special needs of the region, the AERC Research Programme has adopted a flexible approach to improve the technical skills of local researchers, allow for regional determination of research priorities, strengthen national institutions concerned with economic policy research, and facilitate closer ties between researchers and policy makers.

Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA)
The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) offers an alternative to the message that we have no choice about the policies that affect our lives. It undertakes and promotes research on issues of social and economic justice. It produces research reports, books, opinion pieces, fact sheets and other publications, including The Monitor, a monthly digest of progressive research and opinion. People need to know that there are workable alternatives. It works hard to make sure progressive ideas and research make it into the hands of citizens, activists, and the media.

Centre for International and Environmental Law (CIEL)
CIEL is a public interest, not-for-profit environmental law firm founded in 1989 to strengthen international and comparative environmental law and policy around the world. CIEL provides a full range of environmental legal services in both international and comparative national law, including: policy research and publication, advice and advocacy, education and training, and institution building.

Consumer Unity and Trust Society (CUTS)
Found in 1983, CUTS today operates out of four centres in India and one in Africa. Its work focusses on four operational areas: consumer protection, which includes accountability, regulatory reforms etc; trade and development, which include investment and competition policies; sustainable production and consumption, including consumer protection; and rural consumers and women empowerment.

Focus on the Global South
Focus aims to consciously and consistently articulate, link and develop greater coherence between local community-based and national, regional and global paradigms of change. Focus on the Global South strives to create a distinct and cogent link between development at the grassroots and the “macro” levels.

Friends of the Earth Europe (FoEE)
FoEE is the largest environmental network in Europe working at grassroots level, consisting of 31 independent national groups in 30 countries with more than 3000 local chapters. As the European branch of Friends of the International (FoEI), FoEE shares the aims, philosophy and democratic structure of FoEI. FoEE is heavily involved in the sustainable development debate and recognises the need to change lifestyle and consumption patterns. With the project “Sustainable Europe”, FoEE has defined concrete targets, timetables, and political steps to reach a sustainable society. FoEE member groups are united by a common conviction that reaching this goal requires both strong grassroots activism and effective national and European campaigning and coordination.

Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES)
The Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) was founded in 1925 as a non-profit institution committed to the principles of social democracy and with offices, programmes, and partners in more than 100 countries. The Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung coordinates the Dialogue on Globalisation, which aims at promoting peace, democracy, and social justice. The Dialogue on Globalisation, inter alia, provides a platform for a broad-based policy dialogue on the work of the WTO. Discussions on services trade liberalisation is one of the key focus of the platform.

GATSWatch
GATSwatch is a joint project of Corporate Europe Observatory and Transnational Institute. One of the main objectives of the GATSwatch project is research and analysis of the role and agenda of corporate lobbies with regards to the WTO GATS 2000 negotiations. Results will be presented in a series of briefing papers and fact sheets. GATSwatch supports global networking against GATS through the GATSwatch web site as well as through the GATSwatch mailing list. Outreach is also achieved through workshops and by active participation in strategy meetings.

International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU)
ICFTU was set up in 1949 and has 231 affiliated organisations in 150 countries and territories on all five continents, with a membership of 158 million. The ICFTU cooperates closely with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and maintains contacts with the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the WTO.

Public Service International (PSI)
PSI is an international trade union federation for public sector unions. PSI is an officially recognised non-government organisation (NGO) for the public sector within the International Labour Organisation (ILO).More than 600 public service trade unions in more than 140 countries make up PSI. Together these unions represent more than 20 million public sector workers.

Save the Children
Save the Children is the leading UK charity working to create a better world for children. We work in 70 countries helping children in the world’s most impoverished communities. We are part of the International Save the Children Alliance, which aims to be a truly international movement for children.

Third World Network (TWN)
The Third World Network is an independent non- profit international network of organizations and individuals involved in issues relating to development, the Third World and North- South issues. Its objectives are to conduct research on economic, social and environmental issues pertaining to the South; to publish books and magazines; to organize and participate in seminars; and to provide a platform representing broadly Southern interests and perspectives at international fora such as the UN conferences and processes.

World Economy, Ecology and Development (WEED)
WEED was founded in 1990 to boost the advocacy in Germany of alleviating global poverty and resolving international environmental problems. WEED campaigns for a course correction in international economic and development policies that would put more emphasis on social justice and economic sustainability. Its aim is to create more awareness in this respect and develop and implement concrete political alternatives.

WWF
Since its inception in 1961, WWF has worked to conserve nature and ecological processes. It has done this through a combination of action on the ground, national and international advocacy work to establish appropriate policies, and international campaigns to highlight and demonstrate solutions to crucial environmental problems. Over the long course of its 41-year history, WWF has contributed significantly to the development and impact of the world conservation movement and to sustainable development in a period of great pressure on the world’s natural resources.

World Development Movement (WDM)
Founded in 1970, WDM is a democratic movement of individual supporters, campaigners and local groups. Much of its work is in partnership with other organisations in the UK and around the world. The World Development Movement tackles the underlying causes of poverty. It lobbies decision makers to change the policies that keep people poor. WDM researches and promotes positive alternatives.

Other Institutions

EU Directorate-General Trade, Services

US Trade Representative (USTR), Services

Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Services

Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry

International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)
ICC activities cover a broad spectrum, from arbitration and dispute resolution to making the case for open trade and the market economy system, busi-ness self-regulation, fighting corruption or combating commercial crime. ICC has direct access to national governments all over the world through its national committees. The organization’s Paris-based international secre-tariat feeds business views into intergovernmental organizations on issues that directly affect business operations. ICC membership groups thousands of companies of every size in over 130 countries worldwide. They represent a broad cross-section of business activity including manufacturing, trade, services and the professions. Through membership of ICC, companies shape rules and policies that stimulate international trade and investment.

International Air Transport Association (IATA)
Originally founded in 1919, IATA brings together approximately 280 airlines, including the world’s largest. Flights by these airlines comprise more than 95 percent of all international scheduled air traffic.Since these airlines face a rapidly changing world, they must cooperate in order to offer a seamless service of the highest possible standard to passengers and cargo shippers. Much of that cooperation is expressed through IATA, whose mission is to “represent and serve the airline industry”.

International Financial Services, London (IFSL)
IFSL (International Financial Services, London) is a private sector organisation, predominantly funded by membership subscriptions, with 30 years experience of successfully promoting the UK- based financial services industry throughout the world. IFSL works for the removal of barriers to trade in the global market for financial services. Through its Liberalisation Of Trade In Services (LOTIS) Committee and its wider trade policy work, IFSL is engaged in major initiatives to help ease regulatory and other constraints, providing the link between the technical expertise of the private sector and the UK government political negotiators. IFSL played an important role in the negotiations which led up to the 1997 Agreement on Financial Services under the auspices of the World Trade Organisation. IFSL also works with governments and other organisations bilaterally on barriers in individual countries.

This high-level conference will bring together various stakeholders active in trade and development, including personalities from governments, international organizations, civil society, academia and the private sector from some 45 developing countries, key OECD members and emerging economies. Together, these participants will interact freely, exchange their experiences and debate concrete and innovative solutions to address specific challenges and opportunities developing countries face in the process of integrating into the world economy.

The Forum is expected to deliver country-specific action plans (AP)/ recommendations, policy principles on trade governance, new ideas and approaches to promote trade as a development tool, a follow-up mechanism, and guidelines for further cooperation among participants. A selected group of key stakeholders will form a constituency for change and together they will work with the results of the conference to advance the Forum’s agenda.

To register, click here for the 1st Conference of the Geneva Trade & Development Forum at the Regent Conference Center in Crans-Montana from 17-20 September 2008. It is encouraged that interested parties register before 15 August.

The Forum is supported by Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland.

GSP wrongly in the shade of EPAs?

In recent months public discussion has focused on negotiation of Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) between African, Caribbean and Pacific countries (ACP) and the EU, leaving other preferential trade options as notes in the margin. This is somewhat surprising, given that since the summer of 2007 it appeared obvious that the conclusion of these full agreements with all ACP regions was very unlikely to happen by the end of that year. Yet EPAs were deemed necessary after the specific preferential treatment to ACP countries provided under the Cotonou Agreement had been ruled as non WTO-compliant. But article 37 of the Cotonou Agreement, explicitly stipulates that the EU will examine all alternative possibilities in order to provide non-least developed countries (LDCs), that are not in the position to enter into EPAs, with a new framework for trade that is equivalent to their existing situation and conforms to
WTO rules.

One could presume that the European Commission, the single negotiator on behalf of EU member states, actually did not want to consider alternatives. Europe already has instruments that can provide a basis for such options: more than 35 years ago the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) for developing countries was implemented and has regularly been advanced and adjusted since. Today, the EU’s non-reciprocal preferential access scheme is the most used of all such developed country systems and grants a number of products imported from beneficiary countries either duty-free access or tariff reductions, depending on which of the GSP arrangements a country enjoys.2 

For 2006-2008, there are three types of general preferential trade regimes in force:

a) The standard preferential regime (GSP) benefits all recipient countries and grants duty-free market access (for non-sensitive products) or tariff reductions on the most favoured nation rate (for sensitive products).

b) The special incentive arrangement for sustainable development and good governance (GSP+) provides additional benefits for countries implementing certain international standards in human and labour rights, environmental protection, the fight against drugs and good governance.3 It also allows duty-free market access for products classified as ‘sensitive’ imported into the EU.

c) The special arrangement for the countries included in the United Nation’s list of least developed countries, which is known as the ‘Everything but Arms’ initiative (EBA), provides the most favourable treatment of all. It grants LDCs duty-free and quota-free access to the EU markets 
for products excluding arms and ammunition with transition periods until 2008 and 2009 for rice and sugar.

Mini-reform of GSP

It is expected that the new European Commission regulation for GSP envisaged for the period 2009-2011 will maintain this structure. The revision proposed by the Commission includes: removal of certain products for specific countries based on the value of the imports from these countries; a three-month postponement of the tariff reduction scheme for sugar under EBA; required completion of the ratification and implementation of international conventions before the application for GSP+ (the 2005 regulation included a three year transitional period); and prolongation of the time that the Council will have - from one month to two - for the assessment of a preference withdrawal proposal by the Commission.

While the Commission saw the revision as a basic technical adjustment, the European Parliament added some substance that it had already proposed for the GSP guidelines for 2006-2015 that was not taken into consideration by the Council at the time. These proposals aimed at incorporating greater transparency, clarity and legal certainty.

Above all, the Parliament stressed that the GSP scheme is designed with the aim of supporting the Millennium Development Goals and particularly the reduction of poverty in developing countries. It therefore needs comprehensive impact analysis that includes opinions from civil society; broader distribution of information to the public; the prevention of preference erosion by transferring products currently classified as sensitive to the non-sensitive category; and a possibility for countries to apply for GSP+ on a yearly basis (instead of only every three years). The latter might be a compromise solution since, as of 2008, there is no longer any transition period that allows a country that has almost, but not fully, completed implementation of all 27 international conventions mentioned in the annex of the specific incentive arrangement to be included into the GSP+ system.  

One of the Parliament’s most pressing requests was the reform of overly complex rules of origin which were hampering the uptake and use of preferential trade schemes such as GSP. Some argue that rules of origin should take into account inter-regional and global ‘cumulation’  when calculating the possibility of a country benefiting from preferential treatment. Such an approach would facilitate regional integration, especially among small countries that have fewer real opportunities to diversify their export economies.

A low level of diversification of exports to the EU is itself an eligibility criterion for the GSP+ scheme. Currently, the threshold is that the share of the five top GSP imports into the EU by one country must be below 75% of all the EU’s GSP imports from that country. This criterion is used to indicate the ‘vulnerability’ of a country’s economy. Yet, while the diversification of exports might be an indicator for the industrial development level, there are certainly other criteria, such as gross domestic product (GDP) at purchasing power parity (PPP) per capita or the human development index (HDI), that would display a broader idea of the level of development of an economy.

GSP a possible alternative to EPAs?

It is sometimes argued that the GSP system, especially GSP+, could be developed as an alternative to the proposed Economic Partnership Agreements. As the few points highlighted here already suggest, a careful reform would first be necessary. And since there is little in-depth quantitative and qualitative information on the functioning of the GSP it is rather difficult to give detailed proposals.   Still, there is reason not to dismiss such an option.

On the one hand, GSP is generally accepted as being compliant with WTO rules that explicitly allow for derogations from Most Favoured Nation (non-discriminatory) treatment for developing countries. On the other hand, the fundamental difference in comparison to the EPAs is that it follows a
non-reciprocal approach instead of facilitating mutual market opening.

As previously stated, least developed countries would enjoy almost unlimited market access under the EBA initiative even without a new trade agreement. But an ACP country not listed as an LDC would most certainly lose a good part of its preferential access to EU markets, although to different degrees. In this case, only something like GSP+ would be an option. The Commission itself has prepared an overview of which eligibility criteria the 37 countries concerned currently fulfil: none would reach more than 0.3% of GSP imports into the EU, and 24 do not reach more than 0.1% (the maximum threshold being 1%). The Dominican Republic with ‘only’ 81.87% share of its five top GSP exports holds the highest level of diversification and only two more countries  (Antigua and Barbuda and the Bahamas) reach less than 90% (threshold is 75%). Only Antigua and Barbuda and the Bahamas are considered high income countries.

Looking at the implementation of the relevant international conventions, the situation becomes more complicated: not one of the 37 non-LDC countries have ratified all conventions. Therefore, after the expiry of the transition period in 2008, they do not fulfil the criterion that is actually at the heart of GSP+. Still, 12 have ratified at least 24 conventions so theoretically there would be the possibility of granting them preferential treatment under GSP+ if another transition period was accepted for new applicant countries. In the case of Africa, the relevant countries are Seychelles, Mauritius, Kenya, Namibia, Ghana, Cameroon and Nigeria.

While this looks encouraging for at least some countries, the serious questions highlighted above remain. For example, the coverage of products by GSP in general, especially products listed as sensitive, as well as the rules of origin.

Another argument that has been used against GSP+ as an alternative to the EPAs is that ACP countries would face direct and equal competition with those countries that already or will soon benefit from it (see endnote 2).

The European Parliament has been eager to be involved in the reform of the GSP. But it must be noted that under the current European Commission treaty, the Council is not bound by the European Parliament’s recommendations to date, even if the so-called consultation procedure is used. This would change fundamentally if the new terms of decision-making as proposed in the [draft] Lisbon Treaty would enter into force. If this happens, the Parliament will have full co-decision power on internal legislation in the field of trade policy, including the GSP framework.

Overcome the errors in the system

GSP in its current state neither seems to be a perfect system for serving the needs of developing countries in general, nor is it appropriately designed for the specific situation of ACP countries. But in comparison to the European Commission’s attempts to promote reciprocal market access it is at least an alternative that should be used as a model. Reciprocity in trade agreements only makes sense among partners with at least similar economic power.

Moreover, the fact that EPAs - or the interim agreements that have been concluded so far - foresee transition periods is a false argument: who could claim that the countries concerned will be able to equal the EU’s economic capacity even in the next 50 years?

One could say that ‘the error is in the system’. Trade policy could be designed in a way that promotes fair trade relations and sustainable development, but so far the EU appears to be advancing a foreign trade support and market access programme for its own companies. It is understandable that more and more countries are not willing to accept such treatment and claim a right to self-determination as regards the pace and organisation of economic development. Indeed, it is no surprise that so far only one ACP region is ready to sign a comprehensive EPA and negotiations on other free trade agreements have halted, notwithstanding the years of stagnant WTO negotiations. If Europe wants to be recognised as a trustworthy partner in development, it would be well advised to reconsider its trade agenda.

1  Helmuth Markov is a German politician and member of the European Parliament with the Party of the Democratic Socialism, Treasurer of the European United Left - Nordic Green Left and sits on the European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade. 

2  There are 177 beneficiaries of the EU’s GSP. Other preference giving countries are Australia, Belarus, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, the Russian Federation, Switzerland, Turkey and the United States.

3  Current beneficiaries are Bolivia, Ecuador, Columbia, Peru and Venezuela (Andean),  Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama (Central America), Moldova, Georgia, Mongolia and Sri Lanka.

The signing of a full and final EPA assumes that the legitimate interests of both parties have been taken into account. However, political decision-makers in Central Africa have been pressured into signing this agreement before major differences have been resolved, namely over how the partnership will be financed, the rate and time-scale of trade liberalisation, the inclusion of the Most Favoured Nation clause and rules of origin in the text of
the Agreement.
 
The problem of financing the partnership, or the development dimension, is all the more crucial given that implementing the EPA will involve structural adjustments to the economies of the Central African States and consequent loss of tax and customs revenues.4 Logically, there is a need to reinforce basic infrastructures (to reduce the cost of production) and to improve the efficiency of internal tax collection instruments. Given these constraints, the Europeans argue that the costs of implementing the EPA should be met by the European Development Fund (EDF) through the National and Regional Indicative Programmes (NIPs and RIPs). Now, it is not difficult to see that the EDF is not the appropriate channel for financing the fallout from the EPA. The type of partnership being negotiated has the peculiar feature of granting reciprocal trade preferences which would entail major adjustment costs for Central Africa. Since these costs derive from the dismantling of trade barriers under the EPA, the modalities of financing such costs should be negotiated under the same heading as market access issues. Or, better still, once the amount of the RIP has been unilaterally fixed by the European Commission and has no link to the costs of implementing the EPA, some proportionality should be established between the losses incurred and the amount allocated by the EU.
 
Following this line of thought, it should be borne in mind that Central Africa’s dismantling of tariff barriers will make small and medium sized enterprises vulnerable, as they will face increased competition from products imported from Europe. The closing down of businesses and the knock-on social problems call for reinforcement of basic infrastructures and improvement in competitiveness. If indeed the EPA is a new partnership involving reciprocal opening-up and fair compensation for any ensuing losses, there is a need to make the reinforcement of basic infrastructure one of the priority areas for funding earmarked under the EPA Regional Fund and to ensure that the dismantling of tariff barriers will actually lead to lower market prices of goods for consumers.
 
We live in hope, as the saying goes, that the political representatives of Central Africa will remember that on July 16 2007 at Yaoundé, the Joint Central African Ministerial Committee and the European Commissioners for Trade and Development agreed, in relation to the sale of goods, that:
 
“Central Africa will provide an initial list in September of products to be removed from tariff protection covering 60% of imports originating in the European Community, as well as the list of remaining  products. In relation to this list of remaining products, and with a view to establishing the coverage ratios and the timescale for the dismantling of tariff barriers contained  in the Central African States’s final offer, the Ministerial Committee is agreed on developing a plan for tariff liberalisation which focuses on  development, and therefore sets out the following targets: (i) for extremely sensitive products on this list, and for any future sensitive products put forward as candidates for liberalisation over the next 25 years, the European Commission and Central Africa undertake to study each  tariff  line on this list; (ii) the exact percentage of tariff dismantling will be determined after an examination of each tariff  line, in a way which encourages development, improvements in competitiveness and diversification of  sectors of production, economic growth, the fight against poverty, food security, consumer wellbeing and employment in Central Africa.”
 
As examples of persisting differences, we may cite the interpretation of GATT article XXIV relating to ‘substantially all trade’,5 rate of liberalisation,6 transition periods,7  liberalisation of at least 50% of the service sector and rules of origin. Actual examples of the latter show the scale of the problems that may arise if the negotiators do not keep their eyes on the ball.
 

The setbacks
 
According to the Cotonou Agreement, fish was considered to be an originating product if caught by ships on which 50% of the crew came from EU member states or from ACP/Overseas countries and territories.8 This guaranteed employment opportunities for citizens of ACP countries particularly on European Union tuna fishing vessels which would unload their catch in ACP countries to be processed before export to European markets. If the European Union had its way, European boat owners would be able to take on board a crew not originating in Central Africa but still benefit from the rules of origin - as if milk from a French cow which was imported and raised in Central Africa, subsequently produced French milk! The European Union wants to go even further and force Central Africa to accept that the opportunity to rent or charter boats must be first refused by European fishing interests.9 
 
The EU’s unilateral demands also involve the textile sector. In a departure from the Cotonou Agreement, which stipulated that articles made from imported fabric could not be considered as having originating status, the EU now demands that in certain cases: 
* The kind of yarn to be used in manufacture should no longer be specified10  
* The reference to change in tariff heading should be removed and the 50% price ex-works should be the only condition set11 
* Knitted and crocheted articles of apparel and clothing accessories (chap. 61) should be made directly from fabric rather than yarn, and articles of apparel and clothing accessories, other than knitted or crocheted (with the exception of  handkerchiefs, pouches, shawls, scarves, mantillas, etc.) should have originating status if they are made from fabric.
 
We should therefore realise that, in concrete terms, the ACP countries will no longer form a single territory and hence a so-called ‘cumulation’ zone. In fact, regional agreements turn the countries within the regional bloc into a single territory. ‘Cumulation’ will no longer be possible unless the countries form part of the same  zone, that is, the same trading area, unless the partners have the same rules of origin and are part of a legal framework which allows ‘cumulation’ and administrative cooperation. From this point of view, Cameroon will not be able to ‘cumulate’ with products originating in Nigeria until Central Africa and West Africa have the same rules of origin and engage in cooperation at the level of customs administration.
 
In a word, if Central African political leaders sign up to the rules of origin that the EU wants to impose on Central Africa, the industrialisation that is said to be necessary for growth and the fight against poverty will remain a distant dream.  When we see the difficulties faced by Mauritius in using Kenyan inputs in its exports to Europe, we can imagine the blow our region would suffer when the EU, for its part, has already managed to create safeguard mechanisms.
 
In fact, it is unreasonable to force Central Africa to open markets completely to products where manufacturers close their own markets by recourse to a range of mechanisms and subterfuges. If globalisation is to become reality, it must take into account that in these circumstances the region is in a better position to know what is right for its own countries and hence for its sub-regions.
 
1  Jacob Kotcho is the Permanent Secretary of the Citizens’ Association for the Defence of Collective Interests (ACDIC) and Martin Abega is the Executive Secretary of the Cameroon Joint Employers’ Group (GICAM). See www.acdic.net and www.legicam.org
2  The four major agricultural exports from the Central African region only make up 7.6% of total exports to the EU estimated at a value of €6,676,659, while crude oil and minerals represent 57.6% (source: comtext 2007 EU declarations).
3  To read the full article see: “Opinion: Food insecurity”, Peter Mandelson, The International Herald Tribune, May 22 2008, www.iht.com
4  Studies are to be carried out on how to calculate the matrix for net fiscal impact on the basis of the general calculable equilibrium model (for the EU) and the partial equilibrium model (for Central Africa).
5  The basis for calculating the ‘substantially all trade’ to be liberalised is not consensual: Central Africa understands this trade to consist of both imports and exports, whereas other WTO members believe  that such trade concerns only imports.
6  70/30 for Central Africa and 80/20 for the European Union.
7  25 years for Central Africa and 17