Signed and Sealed? Time to Raise the Debate on International Trade Talks

Designed for journalists, this media toolkit presents information about international trade agreements, and particularly the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) Doha trade talks. It was developed to help journalists report on trade issues, encourage public interest, and raise debate on whether trade deals will benefit or damage people’s lives. The brief is the second in a series of documents for journalists on poverty reduction strategies. The brief explains key negotiation issues such as liberalising trade in agriculture, industrial goods and services, and how they are vital not just for economic development in developing countries but also poverty reduction.

The brief provides background information about the WTO and Doha trade talks, as well as related debates and controversies and potential reforms. Each section also provides journalists with issues to consider and questions to ask.

• Section 1 - Agriculture: Feeding Tension - outlines the issues and debates around the possible reforms to the Agreement on Agriculture (AoA) regarding domestic support, export competition, and market access.
• Section 2 - NAMA: Industrial Goods and Bads - explains that the WTO’s Non-Agricultural Market Access (NAMA) negotiations are about reducing or eliminating tariff and non-tariff barriers to industrial goods and natural resources such as fisheries and minerals. Their outcome will have a bearing on industrialisation, economic growth and jobs in the developing countries.
• Section 3 - GATS - services for all? - The WTO’s General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) is a trade and investment agreement promoting the liberalisation of services. GATS supporters say liberalisation could improve the range and quality of services in developing countries and that they would benefit from the investment; others claim that rich country negotiators are keener on winning favourable conditions for their companies than ensuring services help reduce poverty.
• Section 4 - Aiding trade and development? - explores who can benefit from trade facilitation.
• Section 5 - TRIPS: private rights, public gains? - discusses the Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement that obliges countries to adopt minimum standards to protect intellectual property, including new laws to protect patents.
• Section 6 - Deals outside the WTO: beyond the rules? - discusses trade negotiations outside the WTO: Are they a building block or a stumbling block for fairer trade?
• Section 7 - Politics of WTO decision making - discusses the various actors involved in trade policy.

The brief also provides a who's who, glossary of terms and suggested websites for additional information.