Trade and Global Governance

Rich-country governments have long promoted trade rules that favor multinational agricultural export firms, from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) to the World Trade Organization. Such policies have resulted in the widespread “dumping” of below-cost agricultural exports on developing countries, undermining local farmers with unfair competition. While the U.S. government subsidizes its own farmers, it has accused the Indian government of violating WTO rules by subsidizing their farmers as part of the country’s National Food Security Program, the most ambitious anti-hunger program in the world. A revised NAFTA threatens to undermine the Mexican government’s promising efforts to promote food self-sufficiency by continuing to allow dumped U.S. crop exports. Trade can promote global food security and support agricultural development among small-scale farmers, but only with rules that recognize the right to food.

Mexico under NAFTA

U.S. Misuses Trade Agreements to Undermine Food Sovereignty, IPS News, Dec. 11, 2023. (A version appears in Spanish on Contralinea, “EU, con transgénicos y dumping agrícola, va por la soberanía alimentaria de México.”)
Mexico’s quest for food sovereignty: An interview with Undersecretary of Agriculture Victor Suárez, IATP Blog, Sept. 28, 2023. (Interview available in English and Spanish.)
Can the United States Dictate the Mexican Diet? Interview, Mexico Solidarity Project, June 28, 2023.
Worlds Collide on Science of Public Health, IATP, June 20, 2023.
The U.S. Assault on Mexico’s Food Sovereignty, IPS News, June 6, 2023. (Also available in Spanish.)
Swimming Against the Tide: Mexico’s quest for food sovereignty in the face of U.S. agricultural dumping, IATP Policy Report, May 15, 2023. (Also available in Spanish.)
- US Agricultural Dumping: A Primer From: Swimming Against the Tide: Mexico’s quest for food sovereignty in the face of U.S. agricultural dumping, Appendix 2, IATP Policy Report, May 2023.
Mexico Calls U.S. Bluff on Science of GMO Corn Restrictions, Food Tank, March 30, 2023.
“Science, Precaution, and Mexico’s GMO Corn Restrictions,” Food Tank, February 15, 2023.
“No Reason for Alarm over Mexico’s GM-Corn Ban,” Food Tank, January 3, 2023. (A version of this article appears in Spanish in La Jornada del Campo.)
“Distorting Markets in the Name of Free Trade: Overestimating the costs of Mexico’s proposed phaseout of GM corn imports,” IATP Policy Brief, December 20, 2022.
“Monsanto challenges Mexico glyphosate ban: IATP defends Mexico's right to regulate in the public interest,” IATP Blog, May 3, 2021.
“Stopping the Race to the Bottom in Trade Policy,” by Karen Hansen-Kuhn and Timothy A. Wise, American Prospect, March 15, 2021.
'This Is Life or Death for Us': Mexico's Farm Movement Rejects New NAFTA Agreement, Timothy A. Wise, Common Dreams, September 13, 2018. Also available in Spanish

Why Mexican Farmers Are Hopeful About López Obrador's Win, Timothy A. Wise, Food Tank, July 9, 2018
A Progressive Agenda for Renegotiating NAFTA, Timothy A. Wise, BillMoyers.com, November 22, 2016
Commentary on 'Farming for a Small Planet: Agroecology Now', Timothy A. Wise, Great Transition Initiative, April 2016
How beer explains 20 years of NAFTA’s devastating effects on Mexico, Timothy A. Wise, Global Post, January 2, 2014
El TLCAN: El arte de entregar los valores, Timothy A. Wise La Jornada del Campo, November 16, 2013
Going Beyond Immigration Policy, by Timothy A. Wise, Foreign Policy in Focus, May 5, 2010
“Rethinking Trade Policy for Development: Lessons from Mexico Under NAFTA,” by Eduardo Zepeda, Timothy A. Wise, and Kevin P. Gallagher, Policy Outlook, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, December 2009
Mexico: The Cost of U.S. Dumping, by Timothy A. Wise, NACLA Report on the Americas, January/February, 2011
"Agricultural Dumping Under NAFTA: Estimating the Costs of U.S. Agricultural Policies to Mexican Producers," by Timothy A. Wise, Mexican Rural Development Research Report No. 7, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, 2010. (An earlier version appeared as GDAE Working Paper No. 09-08, December 2009)
- Policy brief (also available in Spanish)
“Reforming North American Trade Policy: Lessons from NAFTA,” by Kevin P. Gallagher and Timothy A. Wise, Americas Program Policy Brief, Center for International Policy, December 2009. (Also published in Spanish.)
“The Future of North American Trade Policy: Lessons from NAFTA,” Kevin P. Gallagher, Enrique Dussel Peters, and Timothy A. Wise (eds.), Pardee Center Task Force Report, Boston University Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future, November 2009. (Also published in Spanish.)
- Executive Summary
“Nafta's unhappy anniversary,” Kevin Gallagher and Timothy A. Wise, The Guardian, January 1, 2009. (Also published in Spanish.)
“The Environmental Costs of Agricultural Trade Liberalization: Mexico-U.S. Maize Trade Under NAFTA,” Alejandro Nadal and Timothy A. Wise, Working Group Discussion Paper DP-04, June 2004
“Free Trade, Corn, and the Environment: Environmental Impacts of US-Mexico Corn Trade Under NAFTA,” Frank Ackerman, Timothy A. Wise, Kevin P. Gallagher, Luke Ney, and Regina Flores, in Trade and Environment in North America: Key Findings for Agriculture and Energy (Montreal: North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation, 2003), and published with permission as GDAE Working Paper No. 03-06, June 2003
“NAFTA's Untold Stories: Mexico’s Grassroots Responses to North American Integration,” Timothy A. Wise, Americas Program Policy Report (Silver City, NM: Interhemispheric Resource Center, June 10, 2003)
“NAFTA: A Cautionary Tale,” by Timothy A. Wise and Kevin P. Gallagher, published by Foreign Policy in Focus and the Americas Program of the Interhemispheric Resource Center, October 24, 2002
“Community Control in a Global Economy: Lessons from Mexico's Economic Integration Process,” by Timothy A. Wise and Eliza Waters, GDAE Working Paper 01-03, February 2001

WTO and Global Trade Governance

Defending the Right to Food at the World Trade Organization, Biraj Patnaik and Timothy A. Wise, Food Tank, December 18, 2015

Trading Away Land Rights, Rachel Thrasher and Timothy A. Wise, Triple Crisis Blog, October 14, 2015
US opposition to ambitious Indian program a 'direct attack on the right to food, Timothy A. Wise, Global Post, December 3, 2013
Will the WTO fast-track trade at the expense of food security?, Timothy A. Wise and Jeronim Capaldo, Al Jazeera, July 24, 2014
Keep Your Eyes on the Price: WTO Remains Blind to Agricultural Dumping, Timothy A. Wise and Sophia Murphy, Food Tank, December 15, 2017
WTO Summit to Ignore Price Crisis, Agricultural Dumping, Timothy A. Wise, Common Dreams, December 10, 2017
India’s Public Stockholding: “Much more than a welfare program”, Timothy A. Wise, Food Tank, December 2017
WTO and Food Security: Biting the Hand that Feeds the Poor, Timothy A. Wise, Food Tank, December 2017
WTO takes a wrong turn for development, Timothy A. Wise and Biraj Patnaik, Down To Earth, February 23, 2016
Don't buy the spin: The WTO talks in Nairobi ended badly and India will pay a price, Biraj Patnaik and Timothy A Wise, Scroll.in, December 24, 2015
‘Outstanding Doha issues’ are still a priority, Timothy A. Wise, Letter to Financial Times, December 22, 2015
US cynical positions designed to create deadlock, Timothy A. Wise, The Standard, December 18, 2015
Defending the Right to Food at the World Trade Organization, Biraj Patnaik and Timothy A. Wise, Food Tank, December 18, 2015
Africa and the WTO - the Perils of Weakening the Development Agenda, Biraj Patnaik and Timothy A. Wise, AllAfrica, October 9, 2015 (Also available in French)
Destruction of US credibility at WTO, Timothy A. Wise and Biraj Patnaik, Live Mint, September 8, 2015
Will the WTO fast-track trade at the expense of food security?, Timothy A. Wise and Jeronim Capaldo, Al Jazeera, July 24, 2014
Battle Won, The War Goes On, Timothy A. Wise, BW | Business World, January 7, 2014
Right to food wins 'defensive battle' in World Trade Organization deal, Timothy A. Wise, Global Post, December 8, 2013
10 signs of US hypocrisy on India's food security programme, Timothy A. Wise, Firstpost, December 6, 2013
Doha Goes on Life Support, by Timothy Wise, GDAE Globalization Commentary, from Triple Crisis Blog, May 16, 2011. Also available in Spanish
"The Hypocrisy Clause," by Timothy A. Wise, Policy Innovations, Carnegie Council, June 18, 2010
"Are There Large New Gains from Trade?" by Kevin P. Gallagher and Timothy A. Wise, Bridges Trade Monthly, February 2010 (also published in Spanish "¿Existen nuevas ganancias de la Ronda Doha?" by Puentes Bimestral, Vol. 10, No. 6, December 2009)
“Cleaning House at the WTO,” by Kevin P. Gallagher and Timothy A. Wise, The Guardian, December 1, 2009
“Is Development Back in the Doha Round?” by Kevin P. Gallagher and Timothy A. Wise, South Centre Policy Brief #18, November 2009
"Trading our Way Out of the Financial Crisis: The Need for WTO Reform," by Kevin P. Gallagher and Timothy A. Wise, Americas Program Policy Brief, Center for International Policy, March 4, 2009. (A version of this article is also available in Spanish). (This article also appeared in Rebuilding Global Trade: Toward a Fairer, More Sustainable Future)
“Putting Development Back in the WTO,” by Timothy A. Wise and Kevin P. Gallagher, in Looking beyond Doha? New thinking on trade policy and development PSE, December 2008
“Putting Doha on life support,” Kevin Gallagher and Timothy A. Wise, The Guardian, September 22, 2008 (Also published in Spanish.)
“A bad deal all round,” Timothy A. Wise and Kevin Gallagher, The Guardian, July 30, 2008
“The WTO wants to talk - but who's listening?” Kevin Gallagher and Timothy A. Wise, The Guardian, June 27, 2008
“Back to the Drawing Board: No Basis for Concluding the Doha Round of Negotiations” by Kevin P. Gallagher and Timothy A. Wise, RIS Policy Brief #36, April 2008
"Doha Round and Developing Countries: Will the Doha deal do more harm than good?" by Timothy A. Wise and Kevin P. Gallagher, RIS Policy Brief #22, April 2006
"The WTO's Development Crumbs," By Timothy A. Wise, Foreign Policy in Focus, January 23, 2006
"The Hong Kong Ministerial: What’s at Stake for the Poor?" By Timothy A. Wise and Kevin P. Gallagher, Bridges Trade Monthly, December 2005. (Also available in Spanish.)
"The Doha Round's Development Impacts: Shrinking Gains and Real Costs," RIS Policy Brief #19, by Timothy A. Wise and Kevin P. Gallagher, November 2005

Other Trade Agreements

Assuming Away Unemployment and Trade Deficits from the TPP, Timothy A. Wise and Jomo Kwame Sundaram, Triple Crisis Blog, March 20, 2016

U.S. Trade Policy: Moving Backwards in the 21st Century, by Timothy A. Wise, GDAE Globalization Commentary, from Triple Crisis Blog, September 15, 2011
U.S. Trade Policy: Still Waiting for a "21st Century Trade Agreement," by Timothy A. Wise and Kevin P. Gallagher, LATN Brief, August, 2011
“Promise or Pitfall? The Limited Gains from Agricultural Trade Liberalisation for Developing Countries,” by Timothy A Wise, Journal of Peasant Studies, vol. 36, no. 4, 2009
"No Fast Track to Global Poverty Reduction," by Timothy A. Wise and Kevin P. Gallagher, GDAE Policy Brief 07-02, April 2007

Trade and Global Governance

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