GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – In an effort to address key issues affecting global rice trade, USA Rice international trade policy director, Karah Janevicius, and DTB AgriTrade consultant, Ben Conner, traveled here last week for meetings with World Trade Organization (WTO) delegations. These discussions focused on two main objectives: understanding positions of foreign delegations during the ongoing agricultural negotiations and fostering relationships with the delegates to build a coalition against India’s rice trade policies and practices.
The meetings come at a crucial time as WTO agricultural negotiations appear to be gridlocked. India remains deeply entrenched in its own priorities and therefore limits any real chance of achieving the required consensus needed to move the negotiations forward. Janevicius and Conner engaged with delegates seen as supportive and less so to ensure USA Rice and U.S. agriculture’s interests are understood and represented.
Most of the discussions were centered around India's rice-related policies and practices, including its domestic support and market price-support practices. These practices not only influence global rice prices, but have also created a major point of contention during WTO agricultural negotiations, including stalled negotiations during the 13th Ministerial Conference held earlier this year in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
Delegates told Janevicius and Conner a major challenge to the negotiations is that the ag issues have been elevated to WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who called for a facilitator-led approach, that will, by definition, slow the process. Delegates also shared a possible avenue for building momentum through collaborating on a new negotiation topic: sustainable agriculture.
“This trip was about gaining a better understanding of the political positions in the negotiations while also fostering cooperation on matters of mutual interest,” said Janevicius. “We met with delegations who support the United States’ efforts pushing back on India, as well as those who have historically supported India in the multilateral forum. It’s important for us to remain active in the conversation to highlight challenges and encourage solutions towards a leveled playing field.”