India’s trade policy must learn lessons from the past, not repeat it: Experts
trade policy, and show greater engagement and leadership in trade rule-shaping, keeping in mind the goal of becoming a developed country, Viksit Bharat, by 2047.
The world has transformed since the WTO came into being in 1995 and India can no longer afford to hold on to positions it took 30 years ago. As commented by many, this is India’s century.
This was the broad sense of a group of trade policy experts who gathered for a closed door Roundtable in New Delhi on India's trade policy, organised by global public policy body CUTS International.
The Roundtable was chaired by Montek Singh Ahluwalia, former Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission of India and moderated by Pradeep S Mehta, Secretary General, CUTS International.
It was discussed that leadership in international trade policy requires a delicate balancing act between advancing negotiating positions, building alliances and protecting our own interests.
For example, leadership at the WTO will require deftly navigating an institution whose foundations are themselves undergoing significant evolution.
Participants felt that India will have to work hard to dispel notions that it is locked in a developing country mindset on trade. A futuristic vision combined with ground level interventions are the need of the hour.
This will require rethinking trade policy in a dynamic way as well as addressing a range of flanking issues that make trade more burdensome. Parallel efforts are therefore needed in terms of evolving medium-to-long term trade strategies while at the
