Looking beyond the Doha Round

The policy brief examines the systemic failures of the WTO's negotiating process, highlighting how the 'single-undertaking' principle and consensus-based decision-making have led to paralysis. It argues that the diverse interests of 153 members—ranging from developed nations seeking new regulatory areas to poor countries struggling with existing obligations—make universal consensus increasingly unworkable. The author suggests that 'critical mass' plurilateral agreements, as outlined in the Warwick Report, offer a viable middle ground to maintain the multilateral system while allowing flexible progress for subsets of members.

• The WTO's core mandate is under question following the failure of three ministerial conferences in Seattle (1999), Cancun (2003), and Geneva (2008), as well as the slow progress of the Doha Round.
• The 'single-undertaking' negotiating principle, where 'nothing is agreed until everything is agreed', is criticized for assuming all members have equal readiness to commit to areas like investment liberalisation and intellectual property rights.
• Consensus decision-making is viewed as inefficient and paralyzing because any single member can block an agreement, and developed countries avoid voting for fear of being outvoted by more numerous developing nations.
• Historically, developing countries were marginalized in the GATT through the 'principal supplier rule', which favored powerful economies because developing countries were rarely the primary suppliers of products.
• The rise of economic influence in countries such as China, India, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, South Africa, and Vietnam has shifted the geo-economic balance, meaning the US and EU can no longer unilaterally dictate trade rules.
• Plurilateral agreements are proposed as a solution to negotiation collapses, provided they follow 'critical mass' guidelines from the Warwick Report, such as ensuring benefits are extended to all members on a non-discriminatory basis.

APA

Khumalo, N. (2009). Looking beyond the Doha Round. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/Policy-Briefing-4.pdf

Chicago

Khumalo, Nkululeko. Looking beyond the Doha Round. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2009. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/Policy-Briefing-4.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Khumalo |first1=Nkululeko |title=Looking beyond the Doha Round |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=February 2009 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/Policy-Briefing-4.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{khumalo2009looking, author = {Khumalo, Nkululeko}, title = {{Looking beyond the Doha Round}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2009}, month = feb, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/Policy-Briefing-4.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }