This study aimed at presenting options for achieving coherence between MEAs and the WTO, and was prepared with a view to influencing the 4th Ministerial Conference of the WTO, held in Doha in November 2002.
This study has been written to help policy-makers prepare for the WTO 4th Ministerial Conference in November 2002. The paper begins by identifying some of the key linkages between MEAs and the WTO in light of recent developments and offers practical suggestions for future work. Section II discusses the respective role of MEAs and the WTO, some of the unresolved MEA-WTO issues, and three recent proposals by WTO Members for reform. Section III notes the importance of a legal resolution to challenges at the MEA-WTO interface and examines a range of practical approaches for improving coherence between trade and environment policies, rules and institutions, by realising synergies and resolving tensions. Section IV concludes with some preliminary recommendations.
The paper can be downloaded from the CIEL Homepage.