Sixty-Six WTO Members Activate Digital Trade Agreement
Sixty-six WTO members agreed today to activate the first global digital trade rules. This interim deal aims to make trade faster and more secure for firms.
A group of World Trade Organization (WTO) members has agreed to sidestep adoption hurdles to introduce the world's first baseline digital trade rules, opting to bring the agreement into force among consenting participants. The decision, announced during the 14th WTO Ministerial Conference in Cameroon, comes after years of efforts to fold the E-Commerce Agreement into the official rulebook were blocked by dissenting members.
The push to accelerate the entry into force among members representing 70% of global trade stems from mounting frustration over these obstructions. Under standard WTO rules, plurilateral agreements among subsets of members require a full consensus for formal adoption. In response to the deadlock, 66 members settled on an interim arrangement to activate the deal within their own jurisdictions while continuing to pursue broader incorporation into the WTO framework.
