Ethiopia excludes eritrea exports of goods and services as percentage of gdp is 8. Ethiopia participated in the third meeting of its working party on wto accession in march 2012 and submitted its goods market offer to members in february 2012. Ethiopia s interest to be part of the world trade organizationis almost as old as the wto itself. Ethiopia national quality infrastructure development in ethiopia concept note application for implementation funding competitiveness policy evaluation lab compel abstract 200 words low product quality or inability to credibly signal high quality may be a hindrance to firm performance and exporting in developing countries. It was in 1997 that we applied for an observer status and declared our intention to apply for accession to the wto agreements in the near future.
Ethiopia national quality infrastructure development in. The study team was led by sarath rajapatirana consultant american enterprise institute. During her tenure at the wto, she played an active role in launching the wto s aid for trade initiative and served as lamys representative at the g20. The general objectives of attracting foreign capital investment also need to be frankly. Diagnostic trade and integration study is the product of joint work undertaken by an international and ethiopian team of trade and sector specialists. Wto, which gives different options and privileges than regional integra. December 2014 1 berihu asefa, ethiopian development research institute, berihu. The world trade organization came into being in 1995. While ethiopia has recorded significant achievements in gdp growth, it faces predictable armour of trials rife in poor nations with too few mechanism and wherewithal, while also wrestling with the perennial problem of sequencing policy reforms, all.
Ethiopia is considering application to the world trade organization wto, and it is already a member of the common market for eastern and southern africa comesa. Section vi discusses the key challenges and prospects of the wto accession with respect to ethiopia in particular and developing countries in general. To this end, the preamble to the agreement establishing the wto. Ethiopia s working party was established on 10 february 2003. Wto, agriculture, and developing countries the case of ethiopia michiel keyzer max merbis geert overbosch food and agriculture organization of the united nations fao, rome centre for world food studies sowvu, amsterdam. Wto, agriculture, and developing countries the case of ethiopia. The wto cannot comment on the process in each country, and it cannot speculate on the result of a vote in different circumstances. Jul 20, 2015 world trade organization wto was established with the main objective of liberalizing multilateral trade, based on the belief that the liberalization of trade brings multiple of benefits to the world population.
Accession to the wto signals the countrys readiness to ensure that its domestic rules, regulations and administrative procedures particularly those pertaining to trade conform to wto. Before joining the itc, gonzalez served as the chief of staff to the former director general of the wto, pascal lamy, from 2005 to 20. Negotiations take place both at the multilateral level ethiopia s accession to the world trade organisation, wto and interregionally economic partnership agreement, epa, with the european union. As a country dealing with a pending wto accession procedures, ethiopia is required expected to go through different legal reforms in order to have wto compliant domestic laws. The document is reproduced in the form and language in which it has been. Schott the agreement establishing the world trade organization wto entered into force on 1 january 1995. I was a junior member of the ethiopian delegation 12 years ago when, on 16 may 2008, we. The organization officially commenced on january 1, 1995 under the marrakech agreement, replacing the general agreement on tariffs and trade gatt, which commenced in 1948. In ethiopia there is a general lack of knowledge about the nuts and bolts of wto membership among business owners and politicians alike. The memorandum of the foreign trade regime mftr was prepared and submitted to the wto secretariat in december 2006. Ethiopia has held three working party meetings with the wto secretariat, submitted its goods offer in early 2012 and is still working on its services offer. For more information on the current status of this accession, please click here. Introduction1 the world trade organisation wto is the international forum for establishing and policing the rules for international trade.
Ethiopias wto accession at the crossroads springerlink. Ethiopia excludes eritrea services export is 4,919,331,156. Does basic contract law contain any provision directly bearing on public sector procurement. She thanks chad bown, craig furfine, and mike kouparitsas for detailed comments.
Trade policy in ethiopia, 19912016 oxford handbooks. Apr 22, 20 those who support ethiopias membership to the wto argue that liberalization of the trade regime, laws and procedures in ethiopia will result in increased access to foreign markets and on the back of this increased foreign and domestic investment. Ethiopia as an african country is getting these privileges without joining the world trade organization. Januaryfebruary 2019 accession of ethiopia world trade. Since accession to the wto is not an end in itself, ethiopia should carefully and. Ethiopia has made progress in drafting new legislation and implementing capacity building measures relevant to wto accession. Ethiopia is one of the countries with excessive challenges in cross border trade. Since 1997 it has been granted observer status in wto. In spring 1999, the centre was requested by fao to undertake a. Ethiopia has accepted to liberalize its economy in. The ministry of trade and industry of ethiopia said during the first five months of the budget year started july 8, 2019, the country has. Advantages and disadvantages of world trade organization. Ethiopia held a second working party meeting in may 2011 and submitted its goods offer in early 2012. The derestriction of documents is a key component of the transparency.
Pdf ethiopia is one of the eight least developed countries ldcs that are currently in the process of accession to the wto. It is in this part that the relevant wto legal instruments and some case laws on standard will be assessed. About two thirds of the wto s around 150 members are developing countries. Itc is pursuing its role in facilitating ethiopias accession to the wto and assisting the ethiopian chamber of commerce and sectoral associations to mobilise resources for capacity. The role of wto accession in domestic reform 149 sector reform and in particular maritime transport sector liberalization and its role for trade facilitation. The need to reform ethiopian patent law to facilitate access to medicine abstract as a country dealing with a pending wto accession procedures, ethiopia is required expected. Productive capacity and economic growth in ethiopia. Ethiopia to reinstate wto negotiations ethiopian, chamber. Sanitary and phytosanitary sps capacity building needs. In this context, this paper provides a thorough analy sis of key trade facilitation issues from an african perspective, highlighting what is at stake for the. Ethiopia s accession to world trade organization wto. Case study on ethiopia prepared by teigist lemma addis.
Ethiopia is not a member of the world trade organization wto, but is actively involved in a wto accession process. Broad policy discretion over tariffs and other trade measures are in the hands of ethiopia s policy makers. The working party is chaired by ambassador morten jespersen denmark. The objective of this paper is to analyze ethiopias wto accession. Pdf ethiopia strategic trajectories for wto accession. August 31, 2017 ethiopia is scheduled to join the world trade organization wto in november next year after ethiopia agreed to open up its economy. To this end, the preamble to the agreement establishing the wto marrakesh agreement. Ethiopia to reinstate wto negotiations the process of joining wto was halted for the past six years.
The database contains over 140,000 documents in the three official languages from 1995 onwards and is updated daily. Implications for the agricultural sector is my own work, that it has not been submitted before for any degree or examination in any other university, and that all the sources i have used or quoted have been indicated and. There was a lot of democratic public debate around the world during the almost seven years 198694 of the negotiations, including in the united states. Accession to the wto signals ethiopias willingness to ensure that its domestic. One of the youngest of the international organizations, the wto is the successor to the general agreement on tariffs and trade gatt established in the wake of the second world war. Aug 31, 2017 august 31, 2017 ethiopia is scheduled to join the world trade organization wto in november next year after ethiopia agreed to open up its economy. Accession of ethiopia wto dg azevedo met with pm ahmed and visited addis ababa. So while the wto is still young, the multilateral trading system that was originally set up. This was in large part contributed by tough discussions ethiopia had with the organization regarding opening up the service sectors such as finance and. In many respects, the new trading institution is very much like the old general agreement on tariffs and trade. The government of ethiopia said it has reactivated world trade organization wto accession negotiations, which was stuck for several years. The case of ethiopia s accession to the wto berihu assefa1 and andualem telaye2 this version. Crowley meredith crowley is an economist at the federal reserve bank of chicago. Ethiopias accession to world trade organization wto has a number of implications to existing economic and financial sector polices of the country.
Sections iv and v highlight ethiopias wto accession processes, negotiation strategies and accession time lines. Ethiopias accession to world trade organization wto. Ethiopia is not a signatory to the world trade organization agreement. Assessing major areas of possible policy amendments and reversals is critically important in the financial sector for the accession process as well as its aftermath. This paper attempted to deal with this issue based on qualitative policy analysis. Selecting the all parts all formats option will allow you to download the pdf as well as associated excel and access files. The accession process aims to ensure that an acceding governments legislation and practices will be compliant with wto rules and that it becomes a full and effective playerfrom its firstday of membership. Working party on the accession of ethiopia 4th meeting. Prime minister abiy ahmed phd has formed a 10member national committee to resume the process of world trade organization wto accession, which was paused for the past six years. The federal democratic republic of ethiopia and the imf.
Ethiopia is the most populous leastdeveloped country ldc outside of the world trade organization wto. Ethiopia has accepted to liberalize its economy in phases according to the agreement. All wto documents are posted in pdf and word format. Ethiopia is not a member of the world trade organization wto, but is pursuing accession. Case study on ethiopia prepared by teigist lemma addis abada, ethiopia may 2006 the opinions expressed in this report are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of unctad or of the organizations and institutions with which the author may be connected. Challenges facing the world trade organization jeffrey j. They play an increasingly important and active role in the wto because of their numbers, because they are becoming more important in the global economy, and. Ethiopia 2is one of the 23 countries, seven of them are least developed, with observer status. Since its inception in 1995, the world trade organization wto has regularly been. Sanitary and phytosanitary sps capacity building needs assessment.
Productive capacity and economic growth in ethiopia 1 introduction ethiopia is one of the largest least developed countries ldcs. It excludes word files and all notification attachments. The impact of ethiopian accession to the wto on its financial. Negotiations take place both at the multilateral level ethiopias accession to the world trade organisation, wto and interregionally economic partnership agreement, epa, with the european union. Posted on january 29, 2020 january 29, 2020 author newbusinessethiopianews comments off on ethiopia reactivates wto accession negotiations. Those who support ethiopia s membership to the wto argue that liberalization of the trade regime, laws and procedures in ethiopia will result in increased access to foreign markets and on the back of this increased foreign and domestic investment. Ethiopia has been in the process of accession to the wto since 2003. Focusing on the trade flows of six commodities that are of special relevance to ethiopia, the study assessed the consequences of the wto rules. Wto documents online documents online provides access to the official documentation of the world trade organization. As part of achieving membership in the wto, ethiopia will be required to make.
The role of multilateral and regional economic agreements. The working party met for the third time in march 2012. The case of ethiopias accession to the wto munich personal. The world trade organization wto is an organization that intends to supervise and liberalize international trade. Ethiopia is currently involved in a number of international trade negotiations which will have a farreaching impact on the ethiopian economy. Table of contents ethiopian chamber of commerce and sectorial. The wto is most famous for its organizational goal to facilitate international trade by reducing barriers to trade. Regional trading arrangements such as the latter may offer member countries the opportunity to profit from increased trade while competing from a more level playing field. Imf office in the federal democratic republic of ethiopia office information. Declaration i declare that, ethiopia s accession to the wto. Ethiopia is not a wto member as yet, but the analyses reported in the paper remain valid if ethiopia were a wto member. In addition, certain principles apply to all countries.
Trade policy reform measures included import liberalization through rationalization of the tariff structure and reduction of quantitative restrictions, simplified licensing procedures, the introduction of marketoriented and more transparent allocation of foreign. Ethiopia applied to join the world trade organization wto in 2003. Ethiopia applied for wto membership in 2003 and the ongoing negotiation on wto accession is largely indicative of the countrys goal of opening up its economy. The high cost of doing business across borders in ethiopia has become a major constraint. However, reformative policies aimed at ensuring rapid integration into the multilateral trading system are not yet fully in place or implemented to complete wto accession. Ethiopia set to join the world trade organization wto by 2014.
The government of ethiopia started the process of accession to the world trade organisation wto in 2003. The impact of ethiopian accession to the wto on its. During her tenure at the wto, she played an active role in launching the wtos aid for trade initiative and served as lamys representative at the g20. Advantages and disadvantages of being a member of wto for. It was reiterated that wto membership was not an end in itself, but an important tool in achieving. Ethiopias first bid to join the wto, where it has an observatory position since the organizations founding in 1995, was made nearly a decade ago, but the process remained extremely slow. Wto world trade organization wwf world wide fund for nature. Ethiopia s accession to the world trade organization wto has been underway since 2003. Wto and its members to finalize the negotiation for accession. The case of ethiopia 2 introduction to the wto is made followed by general remarks on standards in relation to trade. While the new government has put a rewnewed emphasis on wto accession, the timeline for completing. Ethiopia s accession to world trade organization wto has a number of implications to existing economic and financial sector polices of the country.
The accession of ethiopia to the wto in the context of its policy on developmental state by ermias abebe addis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of masters of law with specialisation in international economic law at the university of south africa supervisor. It is on the process of accession since 2003 and is expected to complete it by 2015. Is the country a signatory to the world trade organization wto agreement on government procurement. Pdf it has been almost two decades since ethiopia commenced the cumbersome procedure of accession to the wto in 2003.
455 199 107 1467 714 707 991 653 814 299 560 613 1229 907 1098 1444 438 235 1326 589 1323 1411 790 306 668 416 293 1434 1372 130 1148 529 949 587