Research and Negotiation in WTO's Arena: A View from the South: International Development Research Centre

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Research and Negotiation in WTO's Arena: A View from the South

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A LATN Panel Session at the WTO Public Forum 2008: Ways forward for the Multilateral Trading System (14:15 – 16:15, September 25, 2008, Geneva)

This panel session will explore the research and capacity needs of decision makers in different trade policy making situations. With the difficulty of conveying economic arguments in favour of free trade to the general public and the political process, a sound understanding of how research has had an impact on negotiations is paramount to moving trade negotiations forward. This panel session will analyze selected experiences of developing countries in building research capacity to participate in trade negotiations and advance knowledge-based policy discussions. It will contrast coalitions of developing countries (G-20 and G-33) with the specific case of how UNCTAD-India contributed to open up the domestic agenda in the case of trade facilitation. The panel session will consist of the following presentations:

1- Research uptake in an institutionalized setting: The case of trade facilitation in India and the role of UNCTAD

Presenter: Abhijit Das (UNCTAD-India)

Linkages between research, policy, and implementation are significantly structured in a democratic context such as India. The UNCTAD-India Programme has made its mark in terms of influencing both the substance and the process of trade policy. This presentation will analyze how formal linkages between policymakers, stakeholders and researchers worked out to facilitate the trade policy-making process. Continuous consultation, dissemination of updated information and feedback between negotiators and stakeholders created the basis for consensus to facilitate policy change.

2- The use of research for global coalition formation in trade negotiations at the WTO: The contrast between the G-33 and the G-20

Presenters:

Paul Mably: The Cases of the G33 and ICTSD

Diana Tussie (LATN): The Case of the G-20

These presentations will look at the influence of research and capacity-building in coalition politics. How do the G20 and the G33 use research to deal with both extra- and intra-coalition negotiations? How do coalitions make use of research to influence agenda-setting? How can research be used internally –explicitly or covertly– to facilitate consensus-building within a coalition?

3- Instrumental knowledge for trade policymaking

Presenter: Susan Joekes (IDRC)

Trade negotiations give rise to a particularly acute form of demand for substantial and timely research inputs. This presentation will look at the other side of the equation: how does policy making influence research?

The WTO Public Forum will be on the overarching theme of “Trading Into the Future” and will provide a platform for reflection on the multilateral trading system's six decades. For more information about this event, please visit the forum website.

2008-09

News 2 of 9