World Trade Organization officials participated in an online seminar to mark the 75th anniversary of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, which emerged from the ashes of World War II.
Precisely, the 30th October 1947, 23 countries signed the Final Act of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)Conceived as a temporary agreement that would boost international trade, the GATT undoubtedly opened a new era of international cooperation and regulated global trade for almost 50 years before being succeeded by the birth of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995. Today, the GATT still exists as the WTO's umbrella treaty for trade in goods.
On this agreement that progressively evolved to become an essential attribute of global citizenship, the Deputy Director General Gonzalez He said that the durability of the GATT was largely due to the fact that it was based on simple principles such as non-discrimination, gradual reform through successive rounds of negotiations, and flexibility in the form of exceptions that allow members room for internal policies. He stressed that the 75th anniversary should be a reminder that “the GATT It is a tool for international cooperation that is now more necessary in view of the multiple crises affecting the world.”
In that line, the WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala He acknowledged in his introductory remarks the indisputable role of world trade in driving prosperity around the world and lifting more than a billion people out of poverty since the establishment of the GATT.It's a gem worth polishing"He said, adding: "The success of the 12th Ministerial Conference was only the beginning of the reforms that need to be made."
Meanwhile, Douglas Irwin, Professor of Economics at Dartmouth College recalled the century-long efforts of nations to create a system of trade that would work well, beginning with the Cobden-Chevalier Treaty of 1860 between the United Kingdom and France. He thus explored the role of international organizations, such as the League of Nations, in fostering discussion of trade principles that would culminate in the adoption of the GATT in 1947.
He also outlined some of the differences between the multilateral trading system, safeguarded by the WTO, and the GATT, highlighting in particular the WTO's dispute settlement system.
Noting that countries can gain from freer trade, Professor Iwin concluded with three points: First, the world trading system is firmly rooted in the geopolitical order current; second, the road has been long and hard, but the benefits have been enormous; third, a return to nationalism economic and fragmentation is not only economically costly but dangerous.
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