WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION (Syllabus: GS Paper 3 – Economy)

Context: Recently, the European Union expressed its willingness to negotiate on global trade norms related to food security, aligning with India's longstanding concerns at the World Trade Organisation, which had been deadlocked for a decade.

World Trade Organization (WTO)

• Background: The WTO is the successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which was created in 1947.

oIt officially commenced operations on 1 January 1995, pursuant to the 1994 Marrakesh Agreement.

• Created by: Uruguay Round negotiations (1986-94).
• Work: It is the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations.
• Headquarter: Geneva, Switzerland.
• Membership: Total 164 countries. China becomes its member only in 2001.
• Decision Making:

o Ministerial Conference: Top decision-making body which must meet at least every two years. All decisions are taken by consensus.

oGeneral council: It is the top day-to-day decision-making body. It meets a number of times a year in Geneva.