In response to this need, ICTSD has engaged in a bottom-up assessment of the strategies that individual developing countries have developed to enhance their ability to make use of WTO dispute settlement and to coordinate such activities among public and private stakeholders on a national level. The outcome is the form of nine country studies is now presented in the book Dispute Settlement at the WTO – The Developing Country Experience. Countries covered in the analysis include Brazil, Argentina, China, India, Thailand, Bangladesh, Egypt, South Africa and Kenya. The publication concludes with a comprehensive list of recommendations. For further information kindly consult our webpage at: http://ictsd.org/i/dsu/98179/.

· Addressing important and persistent knowledge gaps relevant to domestic regulation and market access discussions within the GATS negotiations.
· Assessing the positive and negative impacts of developing potential WTO disciplines on domestic regulation particularly in environmental services.

As a contribution to addressing the implications for WTO Members that intend to make concrete commitments in GATS negotiations particularly in the area of environmental services, ICTSD will present the findings from a paper on the regulatory principles in environmental services prepared by Dr. Massimo Geloso Grosso. The paper seeks to contribute knowledge and stimulate further dialogue on the part of policymakers and trade negotiators by examining the principles of regulatory and institutional practice in the environmental services sector, both infrastructure and non-infrastructure categories, and the main issues relating to the regulation of these services within the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). The paper makes clear that GATS can affect governments’ regulatory behaviour, particularly when specific commitments are made. It also argues that given that the GATS allows WTO Members considerable flexibility to accommodate domestic policies, it is critical that negotiators and government officials carefully examine provisions of the GATS and to adjust specific commitments to fit domestic policy objectives. At the same time, specific commitments should only be made once appropriate regulatory systems have been implemented.

Participation is by invitation only. If you would like to receive an invitation please contact:

Mahesh Sugathan at: smahesh@ictsd.ch (Tel: 022-9178351)

Or

Sheila Sabune at: ssabune@ictsd.ch (Tel: 022-9178775)

Key Procedural Papers and Secretariat Notes.
WTO General Agreement on Trade in Services.
Modalities for the Treatment of Autonomous Liberalization (Revision), Note by the Chairman, Council for Trade in Services, Special Session, JOB(02)/35/Rev.3, 25 February 2003.
Modalities for the Special Treatment for Least-Developed Country Members in the Negotiations on Trade in Services (Draft), 3 September 2003.

Negotiations on Subsidies, Report by the Chairperson of the Working Party on GATS Rules, S/WPGR/10, 30 June 2003.
Negotiations on Government Procurement, Report by the Chairperson of the Working Party on GATS Rules, S/WPGR/11, 30 June 2003.
Negotiations on Emergency Safeguard Measures, Report by the Chairperson of the Working Party on GATS Rules, S/WPGR/9, 14 March 2003.
Preparations for the Fifth Session of the Ministerial Conference, Draft Cancún Ministerial Text, Revision, JOB(03)/150/Rev.1, 24 August 2003.
Special Session of the Council for Trade in Services, Report by the Chairman to the Trade Negotiations Committee, TN/S/10, 11 July 2003.
Manual on Statistics of Interational Trade in Services, UN, EC, IMF, OECD, UNCTAD, WTO, Department of Economic and Social Affairs Statistics Division, Statistical Papers Series M N° 86, 2002. GATS - Fact and Fiction, World Trade Organization (WTO), 2001.
Guidelines and Procedures for the Negotiations on Trade in Services, Adopted by the Special Session of the Council for Trade in Services, S/L/93, 28 March 2001.
Economic Effects of Services Liberalization: Overview of Empirical Studies, WTO, 1998.
Services Sectoral Classification List, Note by the Secretariat, MTN/GNS/W/120, 10 July 1991.
Background Notes by the WTO on Sectors in the GATS

Accountancy Services - S/C/W/73, 4 December 1998.
Advertising Services - S/C/W/47, 9 July 1998.
Air Transport Services - S/C/W/59, 5 November 1998.
Architectural and Engineering Services - S/C/W/44, 1 July 1998.
Audiovisual Services - S/C/W/40, 15 June 1998.
Computer and Related Services - S/C/W/45, 14 July 1998.
Construction and Related Engineering Services - S/C/W/38, 8 June 1998.
Distribution Services - S/C/W/37, 10 June 1998.
Education Services - S/C/W/49, 23 September 1998.
Energy Services - S/C/W/52, 9 September 1998.
Environmental Services - S/C/W/46, 6 July 1998.
Financial Services - S/C/W/72, 2 December 1998.
Health and Social Services - S/C/W/50, 18 September 1998.
Land Transport Services Part I - Generalities and Road Transport - S/C/W/60, 28 October 1998.
Land Transport Services Part II - Rail Transport Services - S/C/W/61, 28 October 1998.
Legal Services - S/C/W/43, 6 July 1998.
Maritime Transport Services - S/C/W/62, 16 November 1998.
Postal and Courier Services - S/C/W/39, 12 June 1998.
Presence of Natural Persons (mode 4) - S/C/W/75, 8 December 1998.
Telecommunications - S/C/W/74, 8 December 1998.
Tourism Services - S/C/W/51, 23 September 1998.

Legal Services and GATS: Norms as Barriers to Trade, Paul D. Paton, New England School of Law, New England Journal of International and Comparative Law, Volume 9, No. 2, 2003.

Changing Dynamics of Global Computer Software and Services Industry: Implications for Developing Countries, UNCTAD, Technology for Development Series, 2002.

The Tradability of Consulting Services and its Implications for Developing Countries, UNCTAD, 2002.

Assessing Barriers to Trade in Services: Financial Information and Advisory Services, OECD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, February 2001.

Trade in Construction and Consultancy Services: India and the GATS, Arpita Mukherjeeicrier, Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations, November 2001.

Competition in Professional Services, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs, Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 2000.

Reducing the Barriers to International Trade in Accounting Services: Why it Matters, and the Road Ahead, Lawrence J. White, Stern School of Business, New York University, May 2000.

Restrictions on Trade in Professional Services, Duc Nguyen-Hong, Productivity Commission, Staff Research Paper, 2000.

Communication

An Assessment of Telecommunications Reforms in Developing Countries, Randeep Rathindran, Carsten Fink, and Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank, Working Paper N°2909, 2002.

Assessing the Impact of Communications Costs in International Trade, Carsten Fink, Aaditya Mattoo, and Ileana Cristina Neagu, World Bank, Working Paper N°2929 , 2002.

Electronic Commerce and International Transport Services: Best Practices for Enhancing the Competitiveness of Developing Counries, note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Enterprise, Business, Facilitation and Development, Sixth session, Geneva, 18-22 February 2002.

Regulation of Service Traded Electronically, Olivier Cattaneo and Julia Nielson, OECD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, 2002.

Electronic Commerce: A Cluster Approach to the Negotiations of Input Services, OECD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, 2001.

Liberalizing Basic Telecommunications: The Asian Experience, Randeep Rathindran, Carsten Fink, and Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank, Working Paper 2718, 2001.

E-Commerce, WTO and Developing Countries, Arvind Panagariya, UNCTAD, Policy Issues in International Trade and Commodities Study Series N°2, 2000.

Electronic Commerce — Existing GATS Commitments for Online Supply of Services, Working Party of the Trade Committee, OECD, 2000.

Telecom Policy Reform in India, Harsha Vardhana Singh, Anita Soni, and Rajat Kathuria, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, 2000.

Liberalising Communication Services in South Africa, James Hodge, Trade and Industrial Policy Secretariat (TIPS), 1999.

Towards the Millennium Round: East Asia and International Trade in Telecom Services, Ma. Joy V. Abrenica and Tony Warren, 1999.

Electronic Commerce and the Role of the WTO, Marc Bacchetta, Patrick Low, Aaditya Mattoo, Ludger Schuknecht, Hannu Wagerand, Madelon Wehrens, Special Study N°2, WTO, 1998.

Telecommunications Reform: How to Succeed, Björn Wellenius, World Bank, Finance, Private Sector, and Infrastructure Network, Public Policy for the Private Sector, Note N°130, October 1997.

Construction

Construction and Related Services in Botswana, Gape Kaboyakgosi, Margeret Sengwaketse, Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS), 2003.

The Economic Regulation of Transport Infrastructure Facilities and Services — Principles and Issues, Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), 2001.

Trade in Construction and Consultancy Services: India and the GATS, Arpita Mujherjee, Working Paper, N°75, Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations, 2001.

Distribution

Restrictions on Trade in Distribution Services, Kaleeswaran Kalirajan, Productivity Commission, Staff Research Paper, 2000.

Education

GATS and Higher Education in Latin America: Some Ideas to Contribute to the Discussion, Carmen García-Guadilla, Paper prepared for the Convention of Universities Members of Columbus, Paris, July 2002.

GATS to Impact on Public Education, Sally Edsall, New South Wales Teachers Federation, Australia, 2000.

The WTO and the GATS : Why Teachers should be Concerned, Harvey Weiner, Canadian Teachers’ Federation, 2000.

Background Paper on the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and Post-Secondary Education in Canada, Robert Clift, Confederation of University Faculty Associations of British Columbia (CUFA/BC), 1999.

Collection of Papers presented at a conference organised by the Hemispheric Initiatives for Democratic Education in the Americas (IDEA) in Quito, Ecuador, 1999.

The Future of Education under the WTO, Peter Frase and Brendan O’Sullivan, The Movement for Democracy and Education, 1999.

The WTO and the Millennium Round : What is at stake for Public Education? Common Concerns for Workers in Education and the Public Sector, Joint publication, Education International and Public Services International, October 1999.

Energy

Energy and Environmental Services: Negotiating Objectives and Development Priorities, UNCTAD, 2003.

Managing Request-Offer Negotiations under the GATS: The Case of Energy Services, UNCTAD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, 2003.

Analysis of Ways to Enhance the Contribution of Specific Services Sectors to the Development Perspectives of Developing Countries. Energy Services in International Trade: Development Implications, Note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Trade in Goods and Services, and Commodities, Geneva, 4-8 February 2002.

Energy Services, WTO GATS Negotiations and Energy Market Regulation and Liberalisation in South Africa, Anton Eberhard, Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS), TIPS Annual Forum Paper, TIPS Working Paper, 2002.

The Impact of Electricity Trade on the Environment in South Africa, O.A. Akinboade, E.W. Niedermeier, F. Sibanda, Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS), TIPS Annual Forum Paper, 2002.

Energy Services in International Trade: Development Implications, Note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Trade in Goods and Services, and Commodities, Expert Meeting on Energy Services in International Trade: Development Implications, Geneva, 23-25 July 2001.

Issues and Options for Restructuring the ESI, David M Newbery, Department of Applied Economics, Cambridge, UK, 2001.

Sustainability of the Electricity Sectors Reforms in Latin America, Jaime Millan, Eduardo Lora and Alejandro Micco, Inter-American Development Bank, Prepared for the Seminar “Towards Competitiveness: The Institutional Path”, Annual Meetings of the Board of Governors, Inter-American Development Bank and Inter-American Investment Corporation, Santiago, Chile, 16 March 2001.

Environment

Energy and Environmental Services: Negotiating Objectives and Development Priorities, UNCTAD, 2003.

GATS, Water and the Environment: Implications of the General Agreement on Trade in Services for Water Resources, Aaron Ostrovksy, Robert Speed and Elisabeth Tuerk, CIEL and WWF International Discussion Paper, October 2003.

The Right to Water and Trade in Services: Assesing the Impact of GATS Negotiations on Water Regulation (Draft), Elisabeth Türk and Markus Krajewski, Paper presented at the CAT+E Conference “Moving forward from Cancún”, Berlin , 30-31 October 2003.

Frontiers in Trade: The Clean Development Mechanism and the General Agreement on Trade in Services, Glenn M. Wiser, CIEL, 2002.

Preliminary Assessment of the Environmental and Social Effects of Trade in Tourism, Natacha Juda and Sarah Richardson, under the supervision of Mireille Perrin, WWF International Discussion Paper, May 2001.

Stealing our Water. Implications of GATS for Global Water Resources, Tim Concannon, Hannah Griffiths, Friends of the Earth, Briefing, 2001.

Environmental Goods and Services: An Assessment of the Environmental Economic and Development Benefits of Further Global Trade Liberalisation, OECD, Joint Working Party on Trade and Environment, October 2000.

Environmental Services: The “Win-Win” Role of Trade Liberalisation in Promoting Environmental Protection and Economic Development, OECD, Joint Working Party on Trade and Environment, September 2000.

Environmental Impacts of Trade Liberalization and Policies for the Sustainable Management of Natural Resources: A Case Study on Romania’s Water Sector, UNEP, National Institution leading the Study: Center for Environmentally Sustainable Economic Policy, Bucharest, Romania, 1999.

Strengthening Capacities in Developing Countries to Develop their Environmental Services Sector, Background note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Commission on Trade in Goods and Services, and Commodities, Geneva, 20-22 July 1998.

Finance

Managing Request-Offer Negotiations under the GATS: The Case of Energy Services, UNCTAD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, 2003.

Explaining Liberalization Commitments in Financial Services Trade Vol. 1, Philipp Harms, Aaditya Mattoo, Ludger Schuknecht, The World Bank Development Research Group Trade, Policy Research Working Paper N°2999, March 2003.

Report of the Expert Meeting on Improving the Competitiveness of SMEs in Developing Countries: The Role of Finance, Including E-Finance to Enhance Enterprise Development, UNCTAD, 22-24 October 2001.

Recasting the International Financial Agenda, José Antonio Ocampo, UNCTAD, G-24 Discussion Paper Series, No. 13, July 2001.

Financial Services and the World Trade Organization: Liberalization Commitments of the Developing and Transition Economies, Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank Group, 1999.

Report of the Expert Meeting on Sustainable Financial and Non-Financial Services for SME Development, UNCTAD, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Enterprise, Business, Facilitation and Development, 2-4 June 1999.

Providing Sustainable Financial and Non-Financial Services for SME Development, Issues paper by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Expert Meeting on Sustainable Financial and Non-Financial Services for SME Development, Commission on Enterprise, Business, Facilitation and Development, Geneva, 2-4 June 1999.

Whether and When to Liberalize Capital Account and Financial Services, John Williamson, Zdenek Drabek, World Trade Organization, Economic Research and Analysis Division, Staff Working Paper ERAD-99-03, 1999.

Financial Services and the World Trade Organization - Liberalization Commitments of the Developing and Transition Economies, Aaditya Mattoo, The World Bank, Trade, Development Research Group, 1999.

The Internationalization of Financial Services in Asia, Stijn Claessens, Tom Glaessner, World Bank, Policy Research Working Paper, N°1911, 1998.

Opening Markets in Financial Services and the Role of the GATS, Masamichi Kono, Patrick Low, Mukela Luanga, Aaditya Mattoo, Maika Oshikawa, and Ludger Schuknecht, World Trade Organization, Special Study N°1, 1997.

Trade, Finance and Financial Crises, K.Michael Fingerand, Ludger Schuknecht, World Trade Organization, Special Study, N°3, 1999.

Health and social

Private Participation in Health Services, Edited by Alexander S. Preker , April L. Harding, World Bank, 2002.

WTO Agreements and Public Health: A Joint Study by the WHO and the WTO Secretariat, World Health Organization and World Trade Organization, 2002.

Trade in Health Services: Global, Regional and Country Perspectives, Pan American Health Organization, Program on Public Policy and Health, Division of Health and Human Development, 2002.

Private Participation in Health Services, Edited by Alexander S. Preker , April L. Harding, World Bank, 2002.

Moving from Residential Institutions to Community-Based Social Services in Central and Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union, Davi Tobis, World Bank, 2000.

Globalisation and Liberalisation of Healthcare Services: WTO and the General Agreement on Trade in Services, K. Balasubramaniam, Issue Paper, People’s Health Assembly, 2000.

Health Expenditures, Services, and Outcomes in Africa: Basic Data and Cross-National Comparisons, 1990-1996, Gnanaraj Chellaraj, David H. Peters, Kami Kandola, A. Edward Elmendorf, World Bank, 1999.

Improving Women’s Health Services in the Russian Federation: Results of a Pilot Project, Patricia Stephenson, France Donnay, Chantal Worzala, Olga Frolova, Tatian Melnik, World Bank, 1998.

Trends in Health Status, Services and Finance: The Transition in Central and Eastern Europe, Gnanaraj Chellaraj, Ellen Goldstein, Alexander S. Preker, Olusoji Adeyi, World Bank, Vol II, Statistical Annex, 1997.

Poverty, Social Services, and Safety Nets in Vietnam, World Bank, World Bank Discussion Paper N°376, 1997.

Financing Health Services through User Fees and Insurance: Case Studies from Sub-Saharan Africa, Edited by Martha Ainsworth , Paul Shaw, World Bank, World Bank Discussion Paper N°294, 1996.

Trends in Health Status, Services and Finance, Volume I: The Transition in Central and Eastern Europe, Gnanaraj Chellaraj, Ellen Goldstein, Alexander S. Preker, Olusoji Adeyi, World Bank, World Bank Technical Paper N°341, 1996.

The Quality and Availability of Family Planning Services and Contraceptive Use in Tanzania, Kathleen Beegle, World Bank, Living Standards Measurement Study N°114, 1995.

Cost Recovery in Public Health Services in Sub-Saharan Africa, Brian Nolan, Vincent Turbat, World Bank, 1995.

Financing Health Services In Developing Countries: An Agenda for Reform, World Bank, 1987.

Tourism

Tourism Trade Liberalization - Issues & Goals, World Tourism Organization, White Paper, July 2002.

The Viability and Sustainability of International Tourism in Developing Countries, David Diaz, Symposium on Tourism Services, 22-23 February 2001, World Trade Organization, Geneva.

Preliminary Assessment of the Environmental and Social Effects of Trade in Tourism, Natacha Juda and Sarah Richardson, under the supervision of Mireille Perrin, WWF International Discussion Paper, 2001.

GATS and Responsible Tourism, WWF, Policy Statement, September 2001.

Assessing Barriers to Trade in Services: Tourism Services, OECD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, 2000.

Recent Developments in Trade and Competition Issues in the Services Sector: A Review of Practices in Travel and Tourism, Phillip Evans, UNCTAD, UNCTAD Series on Issues in Competition Law and Policy, 1999.

International Trade in Tourism-Related Services: Issues and Options for Developing Countries, Background note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Trade in Goods and Services, and Commodities, Expert Meeting on Strengthening the Capacity for Expanding the Tourism Sector in Developing Countries, with Particular Focus on Tour Operators, Travel Agencies and Other Suppliers, Geneva, 8-10 June 1998.

Transport

Electronic Commerce and International Transport Services: Best Practices for Enhancing the Compete

itiveness of Developing Counries, note by the UNCTAD secretariat, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Enterprise, Business, Facilitation and Development, Sixth session, Geneva, 18-22 February 2002.

Trade in International Maritime Services: How much does Policy Matter?, Carsten Fink, Aaditya Mattoo, and Ileana Cristina Neagu, World Bank, Research Working Paper, N°2522, January 2001.

Report of the Expert Meeting on Electronic Commerce and International Transport Services: Best Practices for Enhancing the Competitiveness of Developing Countries, UNCTAD, Trade and Development Board, Commission on Enterprise, Business, Facilitation and Development, 26-28 September 2001.

Assessing Barriers to Trade in Services: Air Cargo Services, OECD, Working Party of the Trade Committee, 2000.

Contraintes et Oppprtunités pour le Développement des Services de Transport Routier au Burkina Faso, S.Soulama, Joachim D.Méda, ETUDES CAPAS, Séminaire Régional, 2000.

Air Transport, Christopher Findlay, Paper prepared for East Asia Conference on Options for the WTO 2000 Negotiations, PECC/TPF and World Bank, Manila, July 19-20, 1999.

A Situation Analysis of the Air Transport Sector of Uganda, Samuel K. Kayabwe, Makerere University, A sectoral paper prepared for sub-regional African seminars on trade in services, 1999.

Les Services de Transport Maritime dans le Contexte de L’Accord Général sur le Commerce des Services (AGCS / GATS): Le Cas Particulier de la Côte d’Ivoire et des Etats de l’Afrique de l’Ouest en Général, Augustin Karanga, Réseau Capas, Document préparatoire au prochain cycle des négociations de l’an 2000, 1999.

Liberalization of Maritime Transport Services: Directions and Options for Asia, CHIA Lin Sien, Lloyd C. Onyirimba and George S. Akpan, National University of Singapore, 1999.

Maritime and Air Transport: the Potential Gains from Liberalization, Riad al Khouri, Working Paper 2012, Economic Research Forum for the Arab Countries, Iran and Turkey (ERF), 1999.

Trade in Transport Services: South Africa and the GATS (Draft Report), Willem Naudé, Submitted to the Trade and Industrial Policy Secretariat (TIPS), 1999.

Competition Policy and International Airport Services, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 1998.

Railways: Structure, Regulation and Competition Policy, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 1998.

Competition Policy and International Transport in Air Transport and Telecom Services, Tony Warren and Christopher Findlay, Australian National University and University of Adelaide, prepared for the PECC Conference on Trade and Competition Policy, Chateau Champlain Marriott, Montreal, Canada, 13 May 1997.

Completing the GATS Framework: Addressing Uruguay Round Leftovers, Pierre Sauvé, in: The Swiss Review of International Economic Relations (Aussenwirtschaft), Vol. 57, No III, Zurich: Ruegger, 2002, pp. 301-341.

Facing the Facts: a Guide to the GATS debate, Scott Sinclair and Jim Grieshaber-Otto, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, 2002.

GATS: The Case for Open Services Markets, OECD, 2002.

Primer on the General Agreement on Trade in Services, Friends of the Earth International, 31 July 2002.

Shaping Future Rules for Trade in Services: Lessons from the GATS, Aaditya Mattoo, World Bank, prepared for an NBER Conference on Trade in Services, Seoul June 2000.

Globalization of Services: What has Happened? What are the Implications?, Gary Hufbauer, Tony Warren, Institute for International Economics, 1999.

 
GATS and investment

Liberalisation and Foreign Direct Investment in Asian Transport Systems: the Case of Aviation, Andrea Goldstein, Christopher Findlay, Experts’ Meeting on Foreign Direct Investment in Developing Asia, Asian Development Bank & OECD Development Centre, Paris - Wednesday 26 & Thursday 27 November 2003.

Trade Rules Behind Borders - Essays on Services, Investment and the New Trade Agenda, Pierre Sauvé, Cameron May Ltd., International Law Publishers, 2003.

International Investment Rules: Is the GATS Campaign Becoming a Red Herring?, Luke Eric Peterson, ICTSD, BRIDGES, Year 6, N°3, March/April 2002.

OECD Legal Instruments on International Investment and Trade in Services, OECD, 2002.

Mode of Foreign Entry, Technology Transfer, and Foreign Direct Investment Policy, Kamal Saggi, Aaditya Mattoo, and Marcelo Olarreaga, World Bank, Research Working Paper, N° 2737, 2001.

Foreign Direct Investment in Services and the Domestic Market for Expertise, David Tarr, James Markusen, and Thomas F. Rutherford, World Bank, Policy Research Working Paper, N°2413, 2000.

Measurement and Modeling of the Economic Effects of Trade and Investment Barriers in Services, Drusilla K. Brown, Robert M. Stern, Working Paper, Discussion Paper 2000-01, Department of Economics, Tufts University, 1999.

Multilateral Disciplines for Investment-Related Policies, Bernard Hoekman, Kamal Saggi, The World Bank, Development Research Group, Trade, Policy Research Working Paper, N°2138, June 1999.

Service Trade and Foreign Direct Investment, Alexis Hardin and Leanne Holmes, Industry Commission Staff Research Paper, Productivity Commission, Australia, 1997.

GATS and privatisation

Assessing the Risks in the Private Provision of Essential Services, Tim Kessler, Nancy Alexander, Citizens’ Network on Essential Services (CNES), Policy Analysis & Research, Discussion Paper for G-24 Technical Group, Geneva, Switzerland, September 15-16, 2003.

Globalisation, Privatisation and Healthcare - A Preliminary Report, David Hall, Public Services International Research Unit (PSIRU), School of Computing and Mathematical Sciences, University of Greenwich, 2001.

Trading Health Care Away: GATS, Public Health and Privatisation, The Corner House, Briefing 23: Trade and Health Care, July 2001.

Trade Agenda Propels Privatization, Chapter from the Canadian Union of Public Employees’ Annual Report On Privatization, 2000.

GATS and the right to regulate

The General Agreement on Trade in Services and an Australia-US Free Trade Agreement, Chapter Five: GATS: Implications and Impacts, Parliament of Australia, Senate, Commonwealth of Australia, 2003.

GATS and the Right to Regulate, Jessica Woodroffe, World Development Movement, July 2001.

Regulation in Services: OECD Patterns and Economic Implications, Giuseppe Nicoletti, OECD, Economics Department Working Papers, N°287, 2001.

Liberalizing Trade in Services: Reciprocal Negotiations and Regulatory Reform, Pierre Sauvé and Robert M. Stern (eds.), in : GATS 2000 - New Directions in Services Trade Liberalization, Brookings Institution, 2000.

Regulating Services Trade: Matching Policies to Objectives, Richard Snape, Productivity Commission, presented to the Eleventh Annual NBER East Asian Seminar held in Seoul, 22-24 June, 2000.

How the World Trade Organization’s new “Services” Negotiations threaten Democracy, Scott Sinclair, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Sequel to Seattle: GATS, September 2000

GATS and the essential public services

GATS: Public Services under Pressure to Liberalize. The GATS-Negotiations in the WTO - A Challenge for International Civil SocietyThomas Fritz and Peter Fuchs, Heinrich Boll Foundation, Published on occasion of the WTO-Conference in Cancún 2003, Global Issue - Paper 1, 2003.

GATS, Water and the Environment: Implications of the General Agreement on Trade in Services for Water Resources, Aaron Ostrovksy, Robert Speed and Elisabeth Tuerk, CIEL and WWF International Discussion Paper, October 2003.

GATS: Democracy, Public Services & Government Regulation, Jean Lambert Mep, the Greens/European Free Alliance in the European Parliament, 2002.

Competition Policy in Infrastructure Services: Second Generation Issues in the Reform of Public Services. Merger Control in Infrastructure Industries, Paulo Correa, Infrastructure and Financial Marktes Division and the Multilateral Investment Fund, Inter- American Development Bank, Washington, DC., April 23-24, 2001.

GATS and Public Service Systems: the GATS ‘governmental authority’ exclusion, International Branch, Ministry of Employment and Investment, Government of British Columbia, Discussion Paper, 02 April 2001.

Public Services and the Scope of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), Markus Krajewski, the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), A Research Paper, 2001.

The GATS Debate: Public Services & Privatisation, Markus Krajewski, Research Paper, Written for Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), May 2001.

Trading Health Care Away: GATS, Public Health and Privatisation, The Corner House, Briefing 23: Trade and Health Care, July 2001.

GATS and regionalism

GATS Negotiations must Focus on Services Liberalization: The Case of SADC, Kennedy K. Mbekeani, the World Bank Group, 2003.

Regional Agreements and Trade in Services, Carsten Fink and Aaditya Mattoo, the World Bank Group, Working Paper N° 2852, 2002.

 
Regionalism, Multilateralism, and Economic Integration the Recent Experience, Edited by Gary P. Sampson and Stephen Woolcock, United Nations University Press, 2001.


GATS and competition policy

Liberalisation and Competition in the Service Sector: Experiences from Europe and Asia, Part I, Overview, Joint Analytical Report, Eighth International Forum on Asian Perspectives organised jointly by the Asian Development Bank and the OECD Development Centre, Paris, 25 June 2002.h

Restructuring Public Utilities for Competition, OECD, Policy Brief, February 2002.

Competition Policy Considerations in the GATS Negotiations, Competition Bureau, Government of Canada, 2001.

Competition Issues in Road Transport, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs, Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 22 May 2001.

Infrastructure Facilities and Services: Economic Reform, Competition Policy and Regulation, Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, in: The Economic Regulation of Transport Infrastructure Facilities and Services — Principles and Issues, United Nations, 2001.

Competition in Professional Services, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs, Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 22 February 2000.

Promoting Competition in Postal Services, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs, Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 30 September 1999.

Competition Policy and International Airport Services, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs, Committee on Competition Law and Policy, 7 May 1998.

Railways: Structure, Regulation and Competition Policy, OECD, Directorate for Financial, Fiscal and Enterprise Affairs, Committee on Competition Law and Policy, Competition Policy Roundtables, No. 15, 1998.

Local Telecommunication Competition: Developments and Policy Issues, OECD, 1996.

GATS and human rights

GATS and Healthcare - Why do Women Care?, Alexandra Spieldoch, International Gender and Trade Network - Secretariat, October 2001.Gender Issues in International Trade, Marina Fe B. Durano, Center of Concern, 1998.

Andean Community
The Andean countries, knowing that it is essential to gradually and progressively eliminate measures that restrict trade in services in the subregion, in order to create the Common Market by 2005, are currently working to do so. In order to boost this process, the Commission on October 31 approved Decision 510 “Adoption of the Inventory of Measures Restricting the Trade in Services.” This Decision allows the citizens of an Andean country to provide in any of the four other subregional members any service, except for those listed in the Inventory, which will be progressively phased out by the year 2005. A general framework of principles and provisions (Decision 439) guides this entire process.

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
APEC is the premier forum for facilitating economic growth, cooperation, trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific region. APEC has a membership of 21 economic jurisdictions, a population of over 2.5 billion and a combined GDP of 19 trillion US dollars accounting for 47 percent of world trade. As the primary regional vehicle for promoting trade and investment and practical economic cooperation, the end result of APEC’s activities includes increased employment opportunities and community development. APEC is working to achieve what are referred to as the ‘Bogor Goals’ of free and open trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific by 2010 for developed economies and 2020 for developing economies. APEC has identified three specific areas that are crucial to achieving the Bogor Goals. These three pillars are: Trade and Investment Liberalisaton; Business Facilitation; and Economic and Technical Cooperation.

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
ASEAN has concluded its negotiations on the third package of commitments for the liberalisation of services. The package includes commitments in air transport, business services, construction, financial services, maritime transport, telecommunications, and tourism. Under business services, several commitments have been made on ICT-related services with the view to facilitating the realization of the e-ASEAN initiative.The ASEAN Economic Ministers adopted the Protocol to Implement the Third Package of Commitments under the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services on 31 December 2001. The ASEAN Economic Ministers also launched the third round of negotiations beginning on 1 January 2002 and ending on 31 December 2004. The third round is meant to go beyond the commitments made in the first two rounds, by covering all services sectors and all modes of supply.

International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
The International Telecommunication Union is unique among international organisations in that it was founded on the principle of cooperation between governments and the private sector. With a membership encompassing telecommunication policy-makers and regulators, network operators, equipment manufacturers, hardware and software developers, regional standards-making organizations and financing institutions, ITU’s activities, policies and strategic direction are determined and shaped by the industry it serves.

Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD)
The OECD groups 30 member countries sharing a commitment to democratic government and the market economy. With active relationships with some 70 other countries, NGOs and civil society, it has a global reach. Best known for its publications and its statistics, its work covers economic and social issues from macroeconomics, to trade, education, development and science and innovation. The OECD plays a prominent role in fostering good governance in the public service and in corporate activity. It helps governments to ensure the responsiveness of key economic areas with sectoral monitoring. By deciphering emerging issues and identifying policies that work, it helps policy-makers adopt strategic orientations. It is well known for its individual country surveys and reviews.

South Centre
The South Centre came formally into being as an intergovernmental body of developing countries on 31 July 1995, when the Intergovernmental Agreement to establish the Centre came into force. Currently, 46 countries are members of the South Centre. The Centre, however, works for the benefit of the South as a whole, making efforts to ensure that all developing countries and interested groups and persons have access to its publications and the results of its work, irrespective of membership.

UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
Established in 1964, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) aims at the development-friendly integration of developing countries into the world economy. UNCTAD is the focal point within the United Nations for the integrated treatment of trade and development and the interrelated issues in the areas of finance, technology, investment and sustainable development.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR)
As the international community strives to maximise the benefits of globalisation while minimising its negative impact, human rights forums are increasingly paying attention to the effects of trade liberalisation on the enjoyment of human rights. The UNHCHR Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights have taken the lead in this area. In August 2001 the Sub-Commission adopted a resolution concerning “Liberalisation of trade in services and human rights”. The High Commissioner has submitted a report on the human rights impacts of the liberalisation of trade in services, particularly in light of the WTO’s General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). The report focuses on the effects of liberalisation of services trade on the right to health, the right to education and the right to development.

Universal Postal Union (UPU)
Established in 1874, the Universal Postal Union (UPU) with its Headquarters in the Swiss capital Bern, is the second oldest international organisation after the International Telecommunications Union. With 189 member countries, the UPU is the primary forum for cooperation between postal services and helps to ensure a truly universal network of up- to-date products and services. In this way, the organisation fulfils an advisory, mediating and liaison role, and renders technical assistance where needed. The UPU Council of Administration Project Team on Relations with the WTO monitors developments on trade in services and keeps Members informed on trade developments. The Project Team promotes awareness of WTO issues of interest to UPU Members and is responsible for establishing formal relations with the WTO, notably through a Memorandum of Understanding. The Project Team also advises and supports other UPU bodies on WTO issues.

World Bank
Trade is an integral part of the Bank’s work on development and poverty reduction. The World Bank assists developing countries to formulate liberal trade policies expressly in their process of development and poverty reduction and provides technical assistance or policy advice to the governments towards an open trade regime. The Bank undertakes research to better understand the role of international trade in development and poverty reduction. The Bank has also contributed significantly to the development of techniques and policy tools for analyzing the impact of trade policy reforms e.g. import restrictions, effective protection, domestic resource cost, etc.

World Health Organisation (WHO)
The World Health Organisation, the United Nations specialised agency for health, was established on 7 April 1948. WHO’s objective, as set out in its Constitution, is the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health. Health is defined in WHO’s Constitution as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. WHO is governed by 192 Member States through the World Health Assembly.

World Tourism Organisation (WTO/OMT)
Its membership includes 139 countries, seven territories and some 350 Affiliate Members representing regional and local promotion boards, tourism trade associations, educational institutions and private sector companies, including airlines, hotel groups and tour operators. The WTO/OMT is an intergovernmental organisation vested by the UN with a central and decisive role in promoting the development of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.Through tourism, WTO/OMT aims to stimulate economic growth and job creation, provide incentives for protecting the environment and cultural heritage, and promote peace, prosperity and respect for human rights.

World Trade Organisation WTO
The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations. At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated and signed by the bulk of the world’s trading nations and ratified in their parliaments. The goal is to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business.

Civil Society Institutions, NGOs, Think Tanks

African Economic Research Consortium (AERC)
The African Economic Research Consortium (AERC), established in 1988, is a public not-for-profit organization devoted to advanced policy research and training. The principal objective is to strengthen local capacity for conducting independent, rigorous inquiry into problems pertinent to the management of economies in sub-Saharan Africa. In response to special needs of the region, the AERC Research Programme has adopted a flexible approach to improve the technical skills of local researchers, allow for regional determination of research priorities, strengthen national institutions concerned with economic policy research, and facilitate closer ties between researchers and policy makers.

Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA)
The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) offers an alternative to the message that we have no choice about the policies that affect our lives. It undertakes and promotes research on issues of social and economic justice. It produces research reports, books, opinion pieces, fact sheets and other publications, including The Monitor, a monthly digest of progressive research and opinion. People need to know that there are workable alternatives. It works hard to make sure progressive ideas and research make it into the hands of citizens, activists, and the media.

Centre for International and Environmental Law (CIEL)
CIEL is a public interest, not-for-profit environmental law firm founded in 1989 to strengthen international and comparative environmental law and policy around the world. CIEL provides a full range of environmental legal services in both international and comparative national law, including: policy research and publication, advice and advocacy, education and training, and institution building.

Consumer Unity and Trust Society (CUTS)
Found in 1983, CUTS today operates out of four centres in India and one in Africa. Its work focusses on four operational areas: consumer protection, which includes accountability, regulatory reforms etc; trade and development, which include investment and competition policies; sustainable production and consumption, including consumer protection; and rural consumers and women empowerment.

Focus on the Global South
Focus aims to consciously and consistently articulate, link and develop greater coherence between local community-based and national, regional and global paradigms of change. Focus on the Global South strives to create a distinct and cogent link between development at the grassroots and the “macro” levels.

Friends of the Earth Europe (FoEE)
FoEE is the largest environmental network in Europe working at grassroots level, consisting of 31 independent national groups in 30 countries with more than 3000 local chapters. As the European branch of Friends of the International (FoEI), FoEE shares the aims, philosophy and democratic structure of FoEI. FoEE is heavily involved in the sustainable development debate and recognises the need to change lifestyle and consumption patterns. With the project “Sustainable Europe”, FoEE has defined concrete targets, timetables, and political steps to reach a sustainable society. FoEE member groups are united by a common conviction that reaching this goal requires both strong grassroots activism and effective national and European campaigning and coordination.

Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES)
The Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) was founded in 1925 as a non-profit institution committed to the principles of social democracy and with offices, programmes, and partners in more than 100 countries. The Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung coordinates the Dialogue on Globalisation, which aims at promoting peace, democracy, and social justice. The Dialogue on Globalisation, inter alia, provides a platform for a broad-based policy dialogue on the work of the WTO. Discussions on services trade liberalisation is one of the key focus of the platform.

GATSWatch
GATSwatch is a joint project of Corporate Europe Observatory and Transnational Institute. One of the main objectives of the GATSwatch project is research and analysis of the role and agenda of corporate lobbies with regards to the WTO GATS 2000 negotiations. Results will be presented in a series of briefing papers and fact sheets. GATSwatch supports global networking against GATS through the GATSwatch web site as well as through the GATSwatch mailing list. Outreach is also achieved through workshops and by active participation in strategy meetings.

International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU)
ICFTU was set up in 1949 and has 231 affiliated organisations in 150 countries and territories on all five continents, with a membership of 158 million. The ICFTU cooperates closely with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and maintains contacts with the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the WTO.

Public Service International (PSI)
PSI is an international trade union federation for public sector unions. PSI is an officially recognised non-government organisation (NGO) for the public sector within the International Labour Organisation (ILO).More than 600 public service trade unions in more than 140 countries make up PSI. Together these unions represent more than 20 million public sector workers.

Save the Children
Save the Children is the leading UK charity working to create a better world for children. We work in 70 countries helping children in the world’s most impoverished communities. We are part of the International Save the Children Alliance, which aims to be a truly international movement for children.

Third World Network (TWN)
The Third World Network is an independent non- profit international network of organizations and individuals involved in issues relating to development, the Third World and North- South issues. Its objectives are to conduct research on economic, social and environmental issues pertaining to the South; to publish books and magazines; to organize and participate in seminars; and to provide a platform representing broadly Southern interests and perspectives at international fora such as the UN conferences and processes.

World Economy, Ecology and Development (WEED)
WEED was founded in 1990 to boost the advocacy in Germany of alleviating global poverty and resolving international environmental problems. WEED campaigns for a course correction in international economic and development policies that would put more emphasis on social justice and economic sustainability. Its aim is to create more awareness in this respect and develop and implement concrete political alternatives.

WWF
Since its inception in 1961, WWF has worked to conserve nature and ecological processes. It has done this through a combination of action on the ground, national and international advocacy work to establish appropriate policies, and international campaigns to highlight and demonstrate solutions to crucial environmental problems. Over the long course of its 41-year history, WWF has contributed significantly to the development and impact of the world conservation movement and to sustainable development in a period of great pressure on the world’s natural resources.

World Development Movement (WDM)
Founded in 1970, WDM is a democratic movement of individual supporters, campaigners and local groups. Much of its work is in partnership with other organisations in the UK and around the world. The World Development Movement tackles the underlying causes of poverty. It lobbies decision makers to change the policies that keep people poor. WDM researches and promotes positive alternatives.

Other Institutions

EU Directorate-General Trade, Services

US Trade Representative (USTR), Services

Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Services

Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry

International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)
ICC activities cover a broad spectrum, from arbitration and dispute resolution to making the case for open trade and the market economy system, busi-ness self-regulation, fighting corruption or combating commercial crime. ICC has direct access to national governments all over the world through its national committees. The organization’s Paris-based international secre-tariat feeds business views into intergovernmental organizations on issues that directly affect business operations. ICC membership groups thousands of companies of every size in over 130 countries worldwide. They represent a broad cross-section of business activity including manufacturing, trade, services and the professions. Through membership of ICC, companies shape rules and policies that stimulate international trade and investment.

International Air Transport Association (IATA)
Originally founded in 1919, IATA brings together approximately 280 airlines, including the world’s largest. Flights by these airlines comprise more than 95 percent of all international scheduled air traffic.Since these airlines face a rapidly changing world, they must cooperate in order to offer a seamless service of the highest possible standard to passengers and cargo shippers. Much of that cooperation is expressed through IATA, whose mission is to “represent and serve the airline industry”.

International Financial Services, London (IFSL)
IFSL (International Financial Services, London) is a private sector organisation, predominantly funded by membership subscriptions, with 30 years experience of successfully promoting the UK- based financial services industry throughout the world. IFSL works for the removal of barriers to trade in the global market for financial services. Through its Liberalisation Of Trade In Services (LOTIS) Committee and its wider trade policy work, IFSL is engaged in major initiatives to help ease regulatory and other constraints, providing the link between the technical expertise of the private sector and the UK government political negotiators. IFSL played an important role in the negotiations which led up to the 1997 Agreement on Financial Services under the auspices of the World Trade Organisation. IFSL also works with governments and other organisations bilaterally on barriers in individual countries.