South-South Cooperation Principles: An Essential Element in South-South Cooperation.
Developing countries today face the multiple interlinked financial, climate, and development crises. As the development gap between rich and poor countries grows and inequality deepens, never before has South-South cooperation at all levels been more essential at all levels and in all fields of international and domestic endeavour as developing countries seek, individually and (more…)
Options on Possible Forms of the Agreed Outcome of the Bali Action Plan Negotiations Under the UNFCCC
This document seeks to outline the positive and constraining aspects of various options relating to the possible forms that the agreed outcome of the AWG-LCA process could result in, consistent with its mandate under the Bali Action Plan to enhance the full, sustained and effective implementation of the UNFCCC “now, up to and beyond 2012”. (more…)
Comparing the Special Safeguard Provision (SSG) and the Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM): Special and Differential Treatment for Whom?.
The Special Safeguard Provision (SSG) in the WTO’s Agreement on Agriculture is an instrument that is regularly used by a number of developed countries to protect their agricultural sector. Most developing countries do not have access to the SSG. (more…)
State of Play of the GATS Negotiations: Are Developing Countries Benefiting?.
This paper provides an overview of the state of play in the GATS negotiations, both covering the market access negotiations, as well as the rules negotiations. (more…)
As trade ministers prepare to assemble November 30 in Geneva for further WTO talks, they are hearing another round of new and refurbished projections of how much wealthier the world might be after liberalizing trade. (more…)
The Gap between Commitments and Implementation: Assessing the Compliance by Annex I Parties with their Commitments under the UNFCCC and its Kyoto Protocol.
This research paper looks at the extent of compliance by developed countries listed in Annex I of the UNFCCC of their obligations under the UNFCCC to undertake mitigation and to provide financing, technology, and capacity building to developing countries. (more…)
Carbon-Based Competitiveness, Trade and Climate Change: Perspectives of Developing Countries.
This paper analyses a number of issues raised by the increasing links between the global trade and climate agendas such as tariff liberalisation on green technologies, the use of low carbon standards, intellectual property rights and border adjustment measures. The paper examines these issues from the perspectives of developing countries focusing on the political and economic considerations that underlie them. (more…)
The Draft GATS Domestic Regulation Disciplines – Potential Conflicts With Developing Country Regulations.
This Analytical Note updates a 2006 South Centre Analytical Note (SC/AN/TDP/SV/11) ‘The Development Dimension of the GATS Domestic Regulation Negotiations’, which discusses the implications of the GATS Article VI: 4 disciplines on domestic regulation for developing countries. (more…)
The gap between commitments and implementation: Assesing the compliance by Annex I parties with their commitments under the UNFCCC and its Kyoto Protocol.
This research paper looks at the extent of compliance by developed countries listed in Annex I of the UNFCCC of their obligations under the UNFCCC to undertake mitigation and to provide financing, technology, and capacity building to developing countries. (more…)
The Waxman – Markey bill recently passed by the U.S. House of Representatives envisages certain measures to restrict carbon dioxide emissions and requires the president to levy a charge on imports of carbon-intensive products from countries that do not adopt similar climate change measures. U.S. importers would have to buy carbon “allowances” for such products, purportedly for maintaining a level playing ground between domestic and overseas producers. (more…)
Accelerating climate-relevant technology innovation and transfer to developing countries: using TRIPs flexibilities under the UNFCCC.
This Analytical Note examines flexibilities in the Agreement on Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and possible technology transfer approaches under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) (more…)
The Role of the United Nations in Global Economic Governance
Global economic policy issues are often addressed by specialized multilateral agencies in a fragmented, incoherent and inconsistent manner and often with failures in relation to certain areas of global policy – particularly in trade and finance – that have broader implications for the multilateral system as a whole. (more…)
