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CUTS International to Host WTO Public Forum 2026 Working Session on Inclusive Services Trade
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CUTS International will organise a working session at the WTO Public Forum 2026 titled “Shaping Inclusive Futures Through Services Trade” On 17 September 2026. The session will examine how emerging WTO initiatives on Services Domestic Regulation (SDR) and E-commerce are reshaping global services trade and what these changes mean for developing economies.
Services are now the largest contributor to global output and employment, spanning traditional sectors such as finance, tourism, and telecommunications, as well as rapidly growing digital industries.
As trade becomes increasingly services-driven and digitally enabled, WTO members are negotiating new disciplines to improve regulatory transparency, reduce procedural barriers, and facilitate cross-border service delivery. These initiatives have the potential to lower trade costs and expand market access.
However, they also raise important questions about digital divides, regulatory autonomy, and equitable participation.
Discussions will focus on whether current WTO frameworks are making services trade more accessible and development-oriented, exploring safeguards to ensure that digital trade rules support the policy priorities of developing economies. It will also discuss how countries can balance regulatory flexibility with deeper integration into the global digital economy, bringing together diverse stakeholders to advance dialogue on a more inclusive and future-ready multilateral trading system.
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 A high-level event on “WTO MC14 Outcomes and the Future of the Multilateral Trading System”, jointly organised by CUTS International and the Chintan Research Foundation, brought together leading trade experts and policymakers to discuss the future of the WTO in New Delhi, India.
Pascal Lamy, former Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), argued that the biggest challenge facing the trading system today is the rise of "precautionism" rather than traditional protectionism. He stressed that WTO reform must address both its rules and governance to remain effective in a changing global economy.
Dr. Shashi Tharoor, MP, India and Chair of the TRaNJA Steering Committee, stressed that “the WTO may be imperfect, but it remains indispensable.”
Pradeep S. Mehta, Secretary General, CUTS International, said plurilateral agreements can keep negotiations moving when consensus is difficult, but they need safeguards to avoid fragmenting the multilateral system.
A key highlight was the launch of the Friends of TRaNJA (Trade, Not Just Aid) campaign, a CUTS-led global initiative to build public support for the WTO through research-based advocacy and by demonstrating the value of a rules-based multilateral trading system. |
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Understanding the WTO: Trade, Reform and India's Role - Lecture by Pradeep S. Mehta at JECRC University on Public Policy Practice
May 04, 2026
 International Trade and the WTO was the theme of a lecture delivered by Pradeep S. Mehta, Secretary General, CUTS International, as part of the Public Policy Practice programme at JECRC University under the TRaNJA campaign.
He traced the evolution of the global trading system from the Bretton Woods Conference and GATT to the establishment of the WTO in 1995. He explained how trade liberalisation, guided by principles such as Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) and Special and Differential Treatment (S&DT), has expanded global trade and helped lift over 250 million people out of poverty.
Turning to current challenges, Mehta argued that the WTO is at a critical juncture. He highlighted the paralysis of the Appellate Body, stalled negotiations, and growing divisions over consensus-based decision-making. Despite these challenges, he stressed that the WTO remains indispensable for developing countries as it provides a predictable, rules-based trading system.
On India's role, Mehta called for greater flexibility towards plurilateral negotiations. He cited the Investment Facilitation for Development (IFD) Agreement as an ease-of-doing-business initiative that India should engage with pragmatically. He concluded that meaningful WTO reform requires restoring dispute settlement, reviving negotiations, and updating trade rules while preserving the multilateral system. |
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TRaNJA Featured at Norwegian Conference on Development Cooperation Policy Reform in Oslo
May 05, 2026
 The Trade, Not Just Aid (TRaNJA) Initiative was a focused topic at a conference of Norwegian experts and political heavyweights on International Development Cooperation in Oslo on 5th May, 2026.
The conference was held to generate professional contributions to the Government’s forthcoming comprehensive reform of the country’s aid policy. Norway is currently the only OECD/DAC member state with Official Development Assistance (ODA) at 1% of GNI.
Thoralf Stenvold, member of the TRaNJA Steering Committee, was the keynote speaker on trade and development. His focus was on TRaNJA, while suggesting that international trade policy deserves a place in Norway’s annual ODA of about 50 billion NOK ($5 billion). His key message was to adjust Norway’s aid policy to create better synergies with trade policy, i.e., to make funds available for developing countries’ adjustment needs to meet their commitments and upgrade to the standards required for the Future of Trade. He strongly recommended that Norway should support TRaNJA, both politically and financially.
In his intervention, Mr. Stenvold emphasized the role of the private sector as the real engine of any economy, and underscored the importance of WTO reform to facilitate sustainable development based on rules and thus predictable conditions for trade and investment. |
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