Description
As
WTO Members engage in defining the contours of the Special Product (SP)
flexibilities-both in terms of designation and treatment of such products-the
main challenge for members lies in genuinely building on the concepts
of food security, livelihood security and rural development. These three
criteria were recognised by the July framework as the basis for operationalising
special and differential treatment (SDT) provisions.
In
this context and following requests for countries to come up with an
"indicative" list of indicators, ICTSD organised an event
to share a list of indicators that it has produced with G-33 Members
and select experts. These indicators were based on a number of country
case studies and a widely accepted methodology to select and designate
SPs.
The ICTSD event sought to inform negotiations by bringing to the attention
of delegates and experts, the existing studies and analysis of indicators
as they relate to food security (i.e. contribution from each product
to calories, protein and fat in the diet), livelihood security (i.e.
farm income and farm employment) and rural development (i.e. contribution
of crops/products to the Gross Domestic Product and backward economic
linkages).
