Kei and iqsensato panel Proposal for a wto agreement on the Supply of Knowledge as a Public Good

• KEI and IQsensato panel
• Proposal for a WTO Agreement on the Supply of Knowledge as a Public Good
• Presentation by
• Shandana Gulzar Khan
• Legal Affairs Officer
• Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the WTO

OBJECTIVE:

• OBJECTIVE:
• To identify how the rules-based multilateral trading system should respond to the rapidly changing global environment and promote coherence at the international level to better address global trade challenges.

Undersupply of global public goods, including those involving knowledge goods

• Undersupply of global public goods, including those involving knowledge goods
•  
• Lack of capacity of current international trade architecture to address the problem
• The WTO is the appropriate institution to host an international instrument to address the chronic undersupply of global public goods (?)
• Proposals involving government commitments to increase the supply of global public goods in specific areas are important, but are not a sufficient response to the problem identified …

In context

• In context
• Who is the demandeur?
• Why the WTO?
• When is it the right time ?
• How can it be done?

A large number of Governments, academics, organisations, both national and international

• A large number of Governments, academics, organisations, both national and international
• Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, the following excerpt from the DG’s introduction to he 2011 public forum (on the WTO website) says it all:
• “The political, economic, and social aspects of the world we live in today are very different to those that existed a decade ago.”

• “The world has changed. The political, economic, and social contours of the world we live in today are very different to those that existed a decade ago. As a result there is a widening gap between existing trade rules and the new realities.” (excerpt from WTO website on the public forum)
• The real demandeur is the reality of today

• “Strong enforcement mechanisms” i.e. the dispute settlement mechanism
• “A (diverse) portfolio of agreements and/or negotiations”
• “Linkage(s) in the negotiations…to outcomes”
• (According to KEI/IQSensato)