Skip to main content

Table of Contents

  1. Topic pack - Development economics - introduction
  2. 4.1 Economic development (notes)
  3. 4.1 Economic development (questions)
  4. 4.2 Measuring Economic Development (notes)
  5. 4.2 Measuring development (questions)
  6. 4.3 The role of domestic factors in economic development (notes)
  7. 4.3 The role of domestic factors in economic development (questions)
  8. 4.4 The role of international trade (notes)
    1. Role of international trade - introduction
    2. Trade problems (LDCs)
    3. Problems - over-dependence on primary products
    4. Price volatility of primary products
    5. Consequences of price volatility
    6. Price increases can also be problematic!
    7. Price volatility case study - tomatoes
    8. Price volatility case study - copper
    9. Trade strategies for growth and development
    10. Import substitution
    11. Import substitution case study - sorghum
    12. Export promotion
    13. Export promotion case study - Thai toy industry
    14. Trade liberalization
    15. The role of the World Trade Organization
    16. Background information
    17. The Doha round
    18. Case study - trade sanctions
    19. Bilateral and regional preferential trade agreements
    20. Case study of a bilateral preferential trade agreement
    21. Case study of a multilateral preferential trade agreement
    22. Some background reading
    23. Diversification
    24. Case study - diversification
    25. Diversification in Malawi - video
    26. Some background reading
  9. 4.4 The role of international trade (questions)
  10. 4.5 The role of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) (notes)
  11. 4.5 The role of foreign direct investment (questions)
  12. 4.6 The role of foreign aid and multilaterial development assistance (notes)
  13. 4.6 The role of foreign aid and multilateral development assistance (questions)
  14. 4.7 The role of international debt (notes)
  15. 4.7 The role of international debt (questions)
  16. 4.8 The balance between markets and intervention (notes)
  17. 4.8 The balance between markets and intervention (questions)
  18. Print View

The Doha round

Site of WTO Ministerial Conference of 2005 (Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre)

The WTO trade negotiations are organized in a series of Rounds. These rounds of negotiations were started under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and have continued since the establishment of the WTO. The most recent round of negotiation, started in 2001, is called the Doha Development Agenda (or Doha Round) and aims to improve the participation of the lowest income countries in world trade by reducing global trade barriers.

The Doha round has now been going for over 10 years and been be characterized by on-going disagreements between the developed world, particularly USA, European Union and Japan, and the developing countries, represented by Brazil, China, India, South Korea, and South Africa. Most of the disagreements have centred on the reduction of tariff and non-tariff barriers in the agricultural sector. All parties desire improved access into the markets of each other, but also wish to ensure their domestic producers are not harmed by an inflow of cheap imports. Additionally, the negotiations have been around the licensing of medical products, the provision of preferential treatment of developing countries and the problems that LDCs are having dealing with negative trade conditions.

The future of the Doha Round is uncertain, with many global leaders expressing frustration at the time taken to conclude the negotiation and reach agreement.