Byline: kusumv03 With the Non-agricultural Market Access (NAMA) negotiations at the World Trade Organisation progressing further, India is preparing its response to the recommendations on the elimination of customs tariffs in the enhanced healthcare sector, in consultation with the stakeholders.
They examine such facets of the issue as quantifying the value of US tariff preferences for developing countries, Japan's generalized system of preferences, multilateral solutions to the erosion of non-reciprocal preferences in non-agricultural market access, the Doha development agenda and preference erosion, and trade preferences for apparel and the role of rules of origin as exemplified in Africa.
Industrial goods -- known as non-agricultural market access (NAMA) in WTO jargon -- is a key point of the Doha round for developed countries who are calling for much greater access to emerging markets.
To this end, our ministers will be working with renewed energy on the basis of the draft texts tabled by the chairs of the negotiating groups on agriculture and non-agricultural market access,'' it says.
Then again, the suspension of non-agricultural market access is a major loss to the country, as its textile exports are now subject to both tariff and non-tariff barriers.
The crux of the problem rests on the inability of member states to agree on the modalities for trade in agricultural goods and non-agricultural market access (NAMA) that would operate as the framework for determining such things as tariff and subsidy levels.
UNDP, 2005 Mini glossary What some of the baffling acronyms stand for: AoA Agreement on Agriculture GATS General Agreement on Trade in Services LDC Least Developed Country MEA Multilateral Environmental Agreement MFN Most Favoured Nation NAMA Non-Agricultural Market Access NTBs Non-Tariff Barriers SPS Sanitary and Phytosanitary (to protect health) Measures SDT Special and Differential Treatment TRIMS Trade Related Investment Measures TRIPS Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights TRQs Tariff Rate Quotas UNCTAD United Nations Conference on Trade and Development WTO World Trade Organization
