World Trade Organization (WTO)
Current WTO Negotiations
A new round of trade negotiations was launched in November 2001,
during the WTO's 4th Ministerial Conference in Doha,
Qatar. The broad range of issues under negotiation are referred
to as the "Doha Development Agenda" because of the strong
emphasis on development that was incorporated into decisions made
in Doha. The 5th WTO Ministerial Conference was held
in September, 2003 in Cancún, Mexico, but negotiations suffered
a setback in Cancún when Ministers could not agree on the
way forward.
The Sixth WTO Ministerial Conference
was held in Hong Kong, China, from December 13 to 18, 2005, following
a phase of intense engagement in 2005 that included a series of
informal meetings of Ministers.
Although not as ambitious or comprehensive as Canada would have
liked, the Hong
Kong Ministerial Declaration provides the basis for Canada and
other WTO members to continue to pursue their objectives in the
negotiations. Canada is seeking an ambitious outcome to the Doha
Development Agenda by the end of 2006.
Status of Negotiations
-
WTO Doha Development
Agenda Negotiations Suspended - July 24, 2006
On July 24, 2006, WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy suspended
the WTO Doha Development Agenda negotiations until further notice,
with no indication of a new timeframe to resume the talks. The
next steps in the negotiations are not clear at this point.
Negotiating Areas and Work
Programs
Trade
& Development
Includes information on Special and Differential Treatment, Implementation,
Trade-related Technical Assistance and Capacity Building, Small
Economies and Least-Developed Countries (LDCs).
Environmental
Assessment of WTO Negotiations
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