NZ welcomes WTO Nairobi agreement

India faced a major setback due to a lack of consensus among WTO countries on reaffirming the Doha Development Agenda- which was its most important demand from this ministerial.

According to the declaration, developed nations will eliminate their scheduled farm export subsidies immediately, while developing countries will get rid of theirs from 2018.

He said developed countries should address the concerns of developing nations on issues of subsidies and access to markets for their products.

Ahead of the Nairobi meeting, Sitharaman told Bloomberg TV India that “public stockholding is a sovereign right for the government and that right can not be taken away by the WTO”.

They called for a binding LDC (least developed countries) package and that the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Ministerial Declaration affirms the development mandate.

Earlier during negotiations, India was at the receiving end of criticism regarding its attempts to “block” a global trade deal. “The WTO is clearly not fit for objective if the best that its members can do is agree to disagree”.

On his part, Ambassador Cabral said his country was fast-tracking plans to establish a trade office in Kenya to boost investments, noting the need for nations to strengthen diplomatic ties and ensure balance of trade. Developing countries will have more time.

The World Trade Organization has reached deals on agricultural export subsidies, food aid and other issues, capping a ministerial conference in the Kenyan capital. “We are very close but we are not there yet”, she said.

The final draft, however, still reflects the deep divisions amongst the WTO membership on the issue of the reaffirmation of the Doha Development Agenda.

Kenya’s head of Delegation and Principle Secretary for Foreign Affairs Dr. Karanja Kibicho says members of the agriculture group are still in discussions over timelines for elimination of subsidies.

WTO director general Roberto Azevedo hailed the agreement as the “most significant outcome on agriculture” in WTO history. Developing nations will have the flexibility to cover marketing and transport costs for farm exports until the end of 2023, and the poorest and food-importing countries would enjoy additional time frame to trim export subsidies.