At WTO, India seeks permanent solution for public stockholding
India is trying to restart work at the WTO on the long-pending permanent solution for public stockholding subsidies, for smooth running of programmes such as the MSP, after the recent Ministerial Conference in Abu Dhabi failed to deliver results, but some countries, including Brazil and the U.S., are trying to defer the matter, sources said.
In a Committee on Agriculture (CoA) meeting on Tuesday at the WTO headquarters in Geneva, New Delhi insisted that members should revisit the joint proposal made by G33African Group-ACP Group on public stockholding, which elaborates on what an acceptable permanent solution could be, and said that negotiations on the matter should conclude rst without it being linked to negotiations on domestic support, a Genevabased ocial said.
“India said it was deeply disappointed by the fact that a permanent solution on public stockholding could not be agreed to at MC13 and said members should urgently honour the mandate on the matter pending since the 2013 Bali Ministerial Decision,” the ocial said.
The Bali interim solution on public stockholding oers India and other developing nations a peace clause which allows them to breach the WTO prescribed agriculture subsidy limit (10 per cent of value of production) without the risk of legal action from other members.
Last month, India invoked the peace clause for the fth time for breaching the subsidy limit on rice in 2022-23. India and several other developing countries are still insisting on a permanent solution as the peace clause is ridden with dicult conditions and onerous notication requirements, leaving them open to questions and even disputes.
(The writer is with The Hindu businessline)
‘The peace clause is ridden with dicult conditions and onerous noti cation requirements’