RESTORING MULTILATERAL TRADE CO–OPERATION

The report diagnoses the stalemate of the WTO's Doha Round, attributing it to a leadership vacuum, fundamental disagreements on agriculture and development, and the 'straightjacket' of the single undertaking. It examines the shift toward a 'new architecture' of trade, specifically mega-regional preferential trade agreements (MPTAs) like the TPP and TTIP, and plurilaterals like TISA, which focus on 'behind the border' rules relevant to global value chains (GVCs). The authors argue that while MPTAs risk balkanising trade and diverting investment from non-members, the WTO could regain relevance by adopting plurilateral 'critical mass' approaches for agriculture and GVC-related policies, while strengthening special and differential treatment (S&DT) for least developed countries.

• The Doha Round is stalled due to a combination of shifting political economy, a leadership vacuum among both developed and developing nations, and the 'single undertaking' mechanism, which prevents piecemeal progress by requiring all issues to be agreed upon simultaneously.
• Global value chains (GVCs) have shifted the focus of trade to 'behind the border' rules—such as investment, IPR, and state-owned enterprises—which are largely neglected in the Doha Round but central to mega-regional agreements.
• Mega-regional preferential trade agreements (MPTAs), specifically the TPP and TTIP, risk creating a system where rules are set by a few developed nations, potentially diverting trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) away from non-participating developing countries.
• The Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), part of the 2013 Bali package, serves as a successful template for a new approach to special and differential treatment (S&DT), linking implementation to a country's self-defined capacity and providing voluntary funding from high-income countries.
• To resolve the agricultural stalemate, the report suggests a plurilateral 'critical mass' approach involving approximately 38 nations, which would allow agreements on specific issues like market access and export subsidies without requiring full WTO consensus.
• The Trade in Services Agreement (TISA) is viewed as a significant plurilateral effort covering about 70% of world trade in services, though its effectiveness depends on achieving critical mass, which requires the inclusion of China.
• Least developed countries (LDCs) face significant barriers to GVC integration, including poor connectivity, cumbersome business processes, and a lack of structural conditions (legal and regulatory) that make MPTA members more attractive for FDI.

APA

DRAPER, P., DUBE, M., CUNNINGHAM, D., & HOEKMAN, B. (n.d.). RESTORING MULTILATERAL TRADE CO–OPERATION. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/2015-12-09-Restoring-Multilat-Trade-Cooperation-Diagnostic-report.pdf

Chicago

DRAPER, PETER, MEMORY DUBE, DICK CUNNINGHAM, and BERNARD HOEKMAN. RESTORING MULTILATERAL TRADE CO–OPERATION. South African Institute of International Affairs, n.d. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/2015-12-09-Restoring-Multilat-Trade-Cooperation-Diagnostic-report.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=DRAPER |first1=PETER |last2=DUBE |first2=MEMORY |last3=CUNNINGHAM |first3=DICK |last4=HOEKMAN |first4=BERNARD |title=RESTORING MULTILATERAL TRADE CO–OPERATION |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/2015-12-09-Restoring-Multilat-Trade-Cooperation-Diagnostic-report.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{draperndrestoring, author = {DRAPER, PETER and DUBE, MEMORY and CUNNINGHAM, DICK and HOEKMAN, BERNARD}, title = {{RESTORING MULTILATERAL TRADE CO–OPERATION}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/2015-12-09-Restoring-Multilat-Trade-Cooperation-Diagnostic-report.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }