Incorporation of special and differential treatment in international trade agreements and the implications for Caribbean economies

The provision for special and differential treatment favoring developing economies in multilateral trade agreements recognizes that countries compete on an unequal footing. Special and differential treatment can be traced to early development theories and to the reports of the preparatory committee for the formation of the International Trade Organization (ITO). The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT, 1947) addressed developing countries' needs for an asymmetrical treatment in international trade relations. Later on, the incorporation of Annex IV to the GATT (1964) provided for the first time a legal framework that could be used to address developing countries' concerns over trade liberalization and economic integration. The Tokyo Round (1973-1979) introduced, in its enabling clause, the specific term special and differential treatment." The following round of trade negotiations, the Uruguay Round, changed the conception of special and differential treatment by focusing the discussion on the "treatment" these countries should be granted in order to become part of the international order. The Marrakech Declaration (1994) which created the World Trade Organization (WTO) recognized that special and differential treatment is an integral part of the World Trade Organization. The modalities for special and differential treatment in the WTO agreement include: (i) provisions to increase trade opportunities through greater market access; (ii) provisions to safeguard the interests of developing economies; and (iii) provisions to increase the flexibility and the extension of developing economies to comply with trade commitments. More recently, the Doha Ministerial Declaration (9-14 November 2001), which opens the way for a new trade negotiations round, reaffirmed the need for special and differential treatment and stated that its provisions must be revised to make them more precise, effective and operational."