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Trade Facilitation Agreement
India is headed for tough negotiations on at the WTO on the issue of trade facilitation pact on services, according to Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
India is headed for tough negotiations on at the WTO on the issue of trade facilitation pact on services, according to Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. India is cut up that the nations playing key role in services segment globally are not keen to support trade facilitation agreement (TFA) in the services segment, as in the goods segment.
In May 2016, the government said it ratified the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) of the WTO and the pact aims to expedite the movement, release and clearance of goods, including goods in transit. India was the 76th WTO member to accept the TFA. Decisions in the WTO are mostly taken by consensus and India joined the consensus in agreeing to the outcomes of Nairobi Ministerial Conference, after ensuring that its interests were protected.
TFA is largely seen as an effort by developed countries to access vast markets of new growing economy of the developing country. TFA is a trade protocol aiming to give a spur and do away with the stumbling blocks in doing international trade between various countries.
For the purpose, India has tabled the Concept Note for an initiative on TFA in Services at the WTO. India’s proposal on Trade Facilitation in Services and the US visa fee hike for H-1B and L-1 categories are different issues and are being taken up separately at the appropriate level. The Government of India has been consistently taking up the issue of tightening norms for skilled foreign workers with the Government of UK at the highest levels. The UK Government has been urged to not accept the recommendations of the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) in the interest of the bilateral trade in services between India and the UK.
Consequent upon the ratification of the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) of World Trade Organization (WTO) by India in April, 2016, a National Committee on Trade Facilitation (NCTF) under the Chairmanship of Cabinet Secretary has been constituted. The TFA would necessitate simplification of border management procedures and adoption of new transparency measures, all of which are expected to reduce the transaction cost of imports and exports and facilitate smooth movement of goods across borders. As of now 112 members have ratified TFA, including India.
