WTO Reform: Structuring a Positive Agenda for Developing Countries
A Working Document on Structuring Reform Around Legal Principles and Development Priorities, 15 July 2025
By Vahini Naidu, Trade for Development Programme, South Centre
This Working Document outlines a structured contribution to the WTO reform process from a legal and developmental perspective. It organises the wide range of reform issues into seven categories, based on their legal character, institutional handling, and the procedural steps required for meaningful resolution. The aim is to support a more coherent and inclusive reform process by offering a logical framework grounded in the Marrakesh Agreement and reflective of the WTO’s foundational principles. It is intended to assist Members in navigating reform discussions in a manner that is principled, transparent, and responsive to the priorities of developing countries.
WTO Reform: Framing Challenges in the Facilitator-led Process and Strategic Considerations for Developing Countries
By Vahini Naidu, Trade for Development Programme, South Centre
This Informal Note was prepared to inform developing country participation in the next round of Facilitator-led consultations on WTO reform. It provides a critical reflection on the three-track framework proposed by the Facilitator, namely Governance, Fairness and Future, and raises concerns about the framing, legal coherence, and process legitimacy of the emerging reform agenda. The note highlights the risks of implicitly reshaping negotiating priorities through informal structuring, particularly in ways that may disadvantage developing countries or dilute existing legal mandates. It offers strategic considerations and suggested responses to the three guiding questions posed by the Facilitator, underscoring the need to reaffirm treaty-embedded rights such as Special and Differential Treatment, preserve institutional integrity, and ensure that any reform remains firmly anchored in multilateral principles, Member-driven processes, and the development dimension. A separate working document proposing a structured positive agenda for developing countries will follow to complement this analysis.
WTO Reform: Facilitator’s Report on Initial Consultations (JOB/GC/445)
Commentary, 9 July 2025
By Vahini Naidu, Trade for Development Programme, South Centre
This commentary provides a critical analysis of the Facilitator’s Report on Initial Consultations on WTO Reform, highlighting the absence of a shared reform objective, the fragmentation of issues, and the risks posed to developing country priorities, particularly with respect to the Special and Differential Treatment and self-designation, and the consensus-based decision-making. It examines the legal and institutional implications of current reform narratives and cautions against proposals that may entrench rather than correct systemic imbalances.
As the World Trade Organization (WTO) marks its 30th anniversary, Director-General (DG) Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has called for a reflection process to assess the organisation’s achievements and chart its future. For developing countries, this reflection presents a significant opportunity. A well-managed process could begin to address the structural imbalances embedded in WTO rules that constrain policy space, limit technology access, and restrict development pathways. Conversely, a poorly handled approach risks reducing it to a narrow review that fails to account for the broader economic realities shaping trade and the persistent development needs of the Global South. This paper argues that the DG’s reflection process must be firmly member-driven, with clear governance principles, and rooted in a comprehensive development audit to assess how WTO rules have impacted developing countries over the past three decades. The paper contends that a meaningful reflection requires more than procedural introspection; it requires a serious conversation about the future of global trade governance and its relevance to development, ensuring that the WTO’s evolution genuinely responds to the priorities of its majority membership.
The South Centre carries out multiple activities to support developing countries with policy-oriented research, inputs and advice for negotiations and capacity building. The Report summarizes the South Centre’s activities in 2024 and highlights the contexts in which they were conducted as well as the objectives that were pursued with their implementation.
America First, Trade Last: The Rise of Weaponised Tariffs
By Vahini Naidu
Donald Trump’s return to the White House has reignited economic nationalism, transforming tariffs into instruments of political and economic coercion. His administration’s four-phase strategy—setting policy objectives, conducting strategic reviews, imposing preemptive tariffs, and unpredictable brinkmanship—signals a shift towards unilateralism that bypasses traditional legal frameworks and undermines multilateral trade governance. The recent tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China, imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) on security grounds, represent an unprecedented expansion of executive power in trade policy. As the U.S. weakens the WTO and prioritises economic nationalism, the Global South faces a decisive moment. The increasing use of trade measures for geopolitical leverage threatens to further marginalise developing countries. In response, the Global South must take a proactive role in shaping the global trade landscape—deepening South-South cooperation, enhancing regional trade frameworks, and advancing structural reforms to promote resilience and economic sovereignty in an era of growing trade uncertainty. This piece argues that Trump’s trade strategy marks a broader shift towards a power-driven trade order, where economic dominance supersedes rules-based governance, and that the Global South must act decisively to prevent a future where trade is dictated by the strongest rather than negotiated through fairness and equity.
International Regulation of Industrial Designs: The TRIPS Agreement in the Light of European Union Law
By Adèle Sicot
This paper analyzes the provisions of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement) on industrial designs, and the manner in which the narrow aspects dealt with by the Agreement have been addressed by European Union (EU) legislation. The paper highlights the absence of a definition of protectable subject matter, and the considerable flexibility left to the member countries of the World Trade Organization to determine the framework of protection, notably on the basis of copyright. The paper also notes certain areas in which European legislation is more elaborate, and others which could be considered incompatible with the TRIPS Agreement.
Navigating the WTO’s Working Group on Trade and Transfer of Technology: A Critical Analysis from the Perspective of Developing Countries
By Nirmalya Syam
This paper critically analyzes the operations and effectiveness of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Working Group on Trade and Transfer of Technology (WGTTT). Despite the establishment of the WGTTT in 2001 with a mandate to enhance technology flows to developing countries, the Group has struggled to produce meaningful outcomes due to divergent priorities between developed and developing countries. This paper finds that the WGTTT remains an exploratory discussion forum rather than a negotiation platform with the capacity to generate new initiatives that address the technology transfer needs of developing countries. Key reforms are proposed, including transitioning to a negotiation-oriented approach, improving the balance of member priorities, and focusing on actionable themes to enhance the WGTTT effectiveness in fostering technology transfer to developing countries.
Health, Intellectual Property and Biodiversity Programme, November 2024
The following matrix provides a factual overview and analysis of the standing and non-standing agenda items of the regular session of the WTO TRIPS Council of 6-7 November. The matrix also discusses the TRIPS Implementation issues as part of the WTO Doha Development Round of negotiations.
Régulation internationale des dessins et modèles industriels : l’Accord sur les ADPIC à l’aune du droit de l’Union européenne
Par Adèle Sicot
Ce document analyse les dispositions de l’Accord sur les aspects des droits de propriété intellectuelle qui touchent au commerce (l’Accord sur les ADPIC) sur les dessins et modèles et la manière dont les aspects limités traités par l’Accord ont été abordés par la législation de l’Union Européenne (l’UE). Il note l’absence d’une définition de la matière susceptible de protection et une considérable flexibilité laissée aux pays membres de l’Organisation Mondiale du Commerce pour déterminer le cadre de protection, notamment sur la base du droit d’auteur. Le document note aussi certains aspects dans lesquels la législation européenne est plus élaborée et d’autres dans lesquels on pourrait observer une incompatibilité avec l’Accord sur les ADPIC.
The complex web of challenges confronting humanity – climate change, pandemics, economic inequality, and violent conflict – demands a robust global governance system. However, the current architecture, centred on the United Nations, is widely considered inadequate. This document delves into this debate, analysing proposed reforms for the UN system in the Summit of the Future context. At the centre of the discussion is the need for an update to the UN System, particularly strengthening its effectiveness, efficiency, and democratic representation. The document recognises the need for prioritisation, focusing on reforms that tackle the “triple crisis” – climate change, inequality, and conflict – while remaining politically achievable. The document also highlights the disconnect between economic and political institutions, arguing for a more unified approach. Reform proposals encompass a wide spectrum, including institutional changes, consultative practices, decision-making rules and financing. The reforms proposed aim to empower the UN to take decisive action on pressing global issues, looking at past reform efforts, assessing the feasibility of current proposals, and prioritising those most likely to yield tangible results. This publication aims to serve as a roadmap for navigating the complexities of UN reform and providing a comprehensive overview of proposed changes towards shaping a more effective and democratic global governance system for the future.
