India’s focus in the Cameroon meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) will be on voicing the livelihood and economic interests of small farmers and fishermen. This meeting will be held in Yaoundé, Cameroon for four days from March 26. Freedom for developing countries to make policy in new areas like digital trade will be India’s main priority in this ministerial meeting.
Commerce ministers of 166 member countries will attend this meeting. Among these, India, China and America are prominent. Global trade issues related to agriculture, e-commerce and fisheries industry will be discussed in the meeting. India will be led by Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal. His team includes senior officials from the Department of Commerce and the Permanent Mission of India in Geneva. India’s main focus will be to ensure food security, protect employment of small farmers and fishermen while maintaining freedom for developing countries in digital trade and new technologies.
investment facility for development
India supports efforts that increase investment in developing countries. In the last meeting, India had opposed the China-led IDF proposal. This proposal will be binding on the member countries.
What will be the main proposals of the meeting?
The main proposals of the meeting will be agriculture, e-commerce, fisheries, investment, WTO reforms and digital trade. India will also raise other issues, including continuation of the 28-year moratorium on e-commerce transmission, fisheries subsidies and the proposal for an Investment Facilitation Agreement for Development.
WTO member countries can also discuss issues related to tariffs imposed by the Trump administration. India will support reforms that strengthen the multilateral trading system, but will keep the interests of developing countries at the center. The digital economy is changing rapidly, especially in the age of artificial intelligence and new technologies. India says countries need policy freedom to take advantage of new technologies.
India may demand ban on subsidy for 25 years
India will seek a permanent solution to public storage. 99.4 percent of the country’s farmers are low income and dependent on the minimum support price. The solution to this system is necessary for the life and food security of farmers. Apart from this, India also stressed the need to maintain dialogue and balance on fisheries industry subsidies. Under this, the countries leading in fish production have been asked to gradually reduce their fishing capacity. Also, there should be a ban on subsidies in this sector for at least 25 years.