The credibility of the global trade trading system is at risk if countries cannot reach some compromise deals in Bali, Indonesia when they gather in December, says the WTO executive director.
New WTO director general Roberto Azevedo told a meeting of WTO ambassadors in Geneva Sept. 30 that he was sending a letter to trade ministers calling for more political engagement.
“I am also asking your ministers to consider the bigger picture, the fate of our negotiating arm and with it, the Doha Development Agenda,” he said. “But more importantly, as I have repeatedly stressed, at stake is the credibility of the multilateral trading system itself.”
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The World Trade Organization holds its next meeting of trade and agriculture ministers in early December at Bali with littler expectation of a major breakthrough.
However, there is a push to find agreement on a least a few items to give the process credibility.
In 2005 at Hong Kong, ministers agreed that governments should end food export subsidies.
While the general rule is that nothing is agreed until all is agreed, there is pressure to approve a limited package of deals that illustrate the ability of the WTO to be relevant.
The current Doha Round of negotiations, launched 12 years ago in the Qatari capital as a chance to address developing world issues, has been stalled since 2005.
The Canadian government has yet to decide what ministers will be sent to Bali to take part in the meeting.
Agriculture minister Gerry Ritz has said that the current Doha mandate is outdated, looking at 2001 world issues that no longer exist.
