31st December, 2012
India along with many developing countries has proposed amendment to the WTO’s Agriculture Rules on public stockholding for food security purposes and for domestic food aid.
As per the proposals, circulated in WTO last month, if a developing country government purchases food for its stocks or for its domestic aid, at administered prices in order to support low-income, resource-poor producers, they should not have to count the same towards the aggregate measure of support they provide, which is capped for each country under the WTO rules.
There is also a proposal that certain farm programs of developing countries should be exempt from the subsidies-ceiling. The proposals which were initially part of the Doha round of talks are being seen in some quarters as controversial in the absence of consensus on the definition of “low income, resource poor producers”.
India along with many developing countries has proposed amendment to the WTO’s Agriculture Rules on public stockholding for food security purposes and for domestic food aid.
As per the proposals, circulated in WTO last month, if a developing country government purchases food for its stocks or for its domestic aid, at administered prices in order to support low-income, resource-poor producers, they should not have to count the same towards the aggregate measure of support they provide, which is capped for each country under the WTO rules.
There is also a proposal that certain farm programs of developing countries should be exempt from the subsidies-ceiling. The proposals which were initially part of the Doha round of talks are being seen in some quarters as controversial in the absence of consensus on the definition of “low income, resource poor producers”.