WTO Workshop on the Agreement on Agriculture

At the end of April 2025, the JVI co-hosted a two-and-half-day workshop on "the Agreement on Agriculture" in collaboration with the World Trade Organization (WTO). The participants represented a diverse group of Central and Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and Caucasus (CEECAC) countries, including initial Members of the WTO, Members having acceded after 1995 and Members currently in the accession process. The workshop aimed to enhance government officials' understanding of the implementation and negotiation of WTO multilateral rules applicable to international trade and concluded with the positive feedback from the participants.

The workshop effectively introduced the three pillars of the WTO Agreement on Agriculture (AoA)—Market Access, Domestic Support, and Export Competition—along with other topics such as export restrictions. Participants also engaged in discussions on crucial cross-cutting issues, particularly focusing on enhancing food security and promoting sustainable agriculture. The workshop offered participants valuable insights into the current WTO rules, equipping them with a solid foundation for addressing agricultural challenges and shaping effective policy consistent with the multilateral legal framework. 

One of the exercises involved classifying domestic support measures, aimed at strengthening Members' capacity to fulfil their notification obligations for improved transparency. A highlight of the workshop was the opportunity for participants to attend virtually an informal meeting of the agricultural negotiations body, providing them with a unique experience to observe WTO meetings in a real-world context. This exposure generated meaningful exchanges among participants regarding ongoing negotiations. The WTO also enriched the courses by providing the current dynamics and trending topics under the negotiation fora.

Additionally, various digital tools were introduced by the WTO during the workshop. The presentation of the Agricultural Information Management System (Ag-IMS) equipped participants with the skills necessary for data-fetching on the published notifications and enhancing their engagement in WTO meetings. The online platform for accession was also showcased in light of the number of participants representing governments having joined the WTO after 1995 or currently in the accession process.

The workshop concluded successfully with significant goals achieved: the participants were able to link their national policies with the AoA pillars and actively raised questions for extensive discussion. This result indicated that the participants had acquired a profound understanding of AoA and enhanced their skill set in harnessing online platforms to gather critical information. It is believed that, after the workshop, the participants will approach agricultural discussion with greater confidence from a multilateral trade perspective.

Cédric Pène and Jessica Wang, WTO