Where Are We in the Doha Round?

This report, prepared for the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation by the International Institute for Sustainable Development, assesses the status of the Doha Round of multilateral trade negotiations as of August 2005. It highlights the central role of agricultural liberalization and the significant deadlock between the US, EU, and developing nations, arguing that the round has failed to live up to its designation as a 'Development Agenda'.

• The Doha Round is centered on agriculture, which is viewed as the 'last major frontier for trade liberalization'. Progress in other areas, such as industrial tariffs and services, is largely dependent on achieving real progress in agricultural negotiations.
• As of mid-2005, agricultural negotiations are stalled across three 'pillars'. While there is confidence that export subsidies will be phased out, domestic support remains unclear due to potential shifts of 'Amber Box' support to 'Blue Box' categories. Market access negotiations are described as being in the 'deepest rut', particularly for developing countries.
• Non-Agricultural Market Access (NAMA) and services negotiations are bogged down. The EU and Switzerland seek industrial and service concessions to justify agricultural concessions at home. In services, the 'request/offer' approach has been disappointing, partly because developing countries fear they cannot withdraw sectors once opened without penalty.
• The report concludes that the Doha Round is not functioning as a development round, characterizing the 'development-correctness' of the WTO as a 'public relations trick'. It suggests that the primary 'development deal' may eventually rely on 'aid for trade' rather than fundamental trade liberalization.
• The slow progress of the WTO is driving an increase in regional and bilateral trade agreements. This trend is viewed as detrimental to smaller and poorer developing countries that lack strong negotiating positions or are excluded from such deals.
• The report identifies significant political risks to the negotiations, including rising protectionist sentiment in the United States and a political crisis in the European Union. It notes the importance of the U.S. President's trade promotion authority, which was set to lapse in mid-2007.

APA

Halle, M. (2005). Where Are We in the Doha Round? International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/trade_doha_status.pdf

Chicago

Halle, Mark. Where Are We in the Doha Round? International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2005. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/trade_doha_status.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Halle |first1=Mark |title=Where Are We in the Doha Round? |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=August 2005 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/trade_doha_status.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{halle2005where, author = {Halle, Mark}, title = {{Where Are We in the Doha Round?}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2005}, month = aug, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/trade_doha_status.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }