Govt okays more duty-free imports from poor nations.

​NEW DELHI: Ahead of next week's ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Bali, the government on Friday said it will allow duty-free and quota-free import of over 96% of the goods from least developed countries (LDCs), a move that is aimed at embarrassing the US that has for years resisted allowing greater access for foods from poor countries to protect its domestic industry.

The US, the world's largest trading nation, allows 78% of the goods to come duty-free and quota-free, compared to 85% of the goods covered by India. On Thursday, the Union cabinet that discussed India's strategy for Bali, also endorsed the move to increase the coverage, commerce & industry minister Anand Sharma told a news conference.

Although the decision comes days before the WTO meet, the proposal had been in the pipeline for several months. The move before the ministerial is seen as new-found aggression from India, aimed at cementing its ties with LDCs ahead of the ministerial meeting. Traditionally, the US and the European Union have offered sops before a WTO meet to wean away support from the poor countries, while developing countries such as India have merely offered support and technical assistance in training negotiators.

On Friday too, Sharma said that India endorsed the stance taken by the LDCs, for whom duty-free quota-free exports is a key demand as they seek to become more prominent players in the global trading arena, dominated by the developed countries and a handful of developing countries such as China.

In 2005, WTO members had agreed to make it mandatory for developed countries, and optional for developing countries, to give duty- and quota-free market access to all exports from LDCs. They insisted on being allowed to exclude up to 3% of tariff lines from this so-called 'Duty Free Quota Free Market Access' (DFQFMA) initiative, to protect sensitive sectors. Currently over two dozen countries use the duty-free and quota-free facility offered by India, which is available as long as they retain LDC status. The cabinet decision will be notified soon, Sharma said.

Inset: No compromise on food security: Sharma

New Delhi: In its first public statement on the WTO ministerial meeting, the government on Friday said it will not compromise its position on food security even if subsidy limits are breached.

"There are issues which are of paramount importance to India. India will secure and protect the right to food security of the poor people and India will defend its resource for poor and subsistence farmers. These are issues on which India shall never compromise," Sharma told a press conference, while promising to constructively engage at the negotiations.

The minister, who is leading the Indian delegation, said that India is going to insist on a "peace clause" till a permanent solution is found even as it wanted a change in the way subsidies are calculated. "In Bali, India expects all countries to commit to negotiating all issues for a permanent solution."

At the same time, he said there were 78 areas of differences in the proposed trade facilitation agreement, with at least three issues on which India had concerns.

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com