WTO Ended a 7-Year Negotiating Drought, Agrees on All Issues including Fisheries Subsidies

After more than five days of hard bargaining, members of the World Trade Organization approved a package of trade agreements that included pledges on health, reform, and food security. Representatives from 164 countries, including India, applauded after the package was approved before Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala addressed them early Friday.

"The agreement package you have reached will make a difference in the lives of people all over the world," she said. "The results show that the WTO is capable of responding to contemporary emergencies."

The proposed pact addressed overfishing, deep-sea fishing, and illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing for the first time. "Sovereign interests in EEZs (Exclusive Economic Zones) have been firmly established in India. It is a significant achievement. Key stakeholders who have benefited from these "historic decisions" "Fishermen, farmers, food security, multilateralism, and trade and business, particularly digital economy and MSMEs, are among the issues addressed by the WTO's 12th ministerial conference.”

It was also agreed that the next WTO ministerial conference, or no later than March 2024, would find a final solution to the issue of the continuation of the moratorium on imposing customs duties on electronic transmission of goods.

According to one source, this was the most successful conference in the history of the WTO because it revitalized the organization.

"It has brought back multilateralism. India assumed a significant leadership role and served as the voice of the developing world and LDCs (Least Developed Countries). During the various sessions and meetings, developing countries worked to reach consensus and provide solutions to break any deadlocks that arose" they also added.

A decision on all issues reflects the solidarity of developed and developing member countries.

"While agreeing on the issues, there was a great team effort. Concerns of the ACP (African, Caribbean, and Pacific) region regarding the fisheries decision were fully addressed "According to the sources. They also stated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi provided constant guidance and direction to the Indian delegation, which was led by Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal.

The Indian team's main goal was to protect the interests of fishermen and farmers. These decisions also send a strong signal that the world is capable of working together on critical issues such as food security and humanitarian crises such as the pandemic.