The Nairobi declaration at the end of the WTO meeting Saturday was really a complete washout for developing nations led by India and G-33 countries, with developed nations like the United States, Britain and others in the EU getting away with their stand that all countries reduce export subsidies given to farmers. They will start cutting subsidies immediately, while developing nations like India, which may be hit harder, will start only by 2018. Minister of state for commerce Nirmala Sitharaman put it succinctly: “Absolutely disappointed that the ministerial declaration does not mention Doha Round. Doha has been very dear to us.” While the declaration condescendingly states that the WTO recognises the special safeguard measures (that permit developing nations to raise tariffs against surging imports, which result in falling prices), it’s sheer hypocrisy as everyone knows it will never be implemented. WTO mandates unanimous agreements, and rich countries will never accept this.
Ms Sitharaman fought like a tigress on behalf of the developing world to get SSM, that wasn’t even on the Nairobi agenda, included. What is curious is that the least developed countries (LDCs) and the African bloc benefited as the declaration on cotton states developed members will grant duty-free and quota-free market access to cotton produced and exported by LDCs from January 1, 2016. India and South Africa are mischievously excluded in order to divide the grouping. On public stockholding, it says negotiations will continue in the committee on agriculture at the special session, as distinct from the ongoing agriculture negotiations.
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