Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday urged comprehensive and inclusive reforms of the World Trade Organization (WTO), emphasizing the need to prioritize development, equity and transparency in global trade governance.
He stressed that WTO reforms must remain “member-driven”, uphold core principles such as non-discrimination and consensus-based decision-making, and ensure special and differential treatment (S&DT) provisions are “precise, effective and operational”.
“A dysfunctional Dispute Settlement System has deprived members of effective redressal. We must restore the automatic and binding dispute settlement system,” Goyal said at the WTO’s 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14) in Yaoundé, Cameroon.
The Ministerial Conference is the highest decision-making body of the WTO and typically convenes every two years. It includes all WTO members, whether individual countries or customs unions and has the authority to make decisions on any issues covered by the multilateral trade agreements.
On trade
Goyal said past mandates should be prioritized. He cautioned that incorporating plurilateral agreements into the WTO framework must be done through consensus and should not impose additional obligations on non-participating members.
“Agriculture is critical to the livelihoods of millions. For the Global South, a permanent solution on public stockholding for food security purposes, special safeguard mechanism, and cotton are long-pending mandated issues; we must deliver on them on priority,” added Goyal.
He also reaffirmed India’s commitment to negotiating a balanced fisheries subsidies agreement that protects the livelihoods of small and poor fishers while addressing sustainability concerns, supported by appropriate S&DT provisions.
On digital trade
He noted the lack of consensus among members regarding the moratorium on customs duties on electronic transmissions, warning that its continued extension requires “careful reconsideration” due to potentially significant implications.
Referring to guidance from Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Global AI Impact Summit, Goyal said emerging technologies must promote “welfare for all and happiness of all”, adding that the multilateral trading system should ensure equitable distribution of innovation and opportunity.
“We will engage constructively to show that the WTO remains central to global trade and strive to reform it to remain responsive, perform in delivering on development, equity, and inclusiveness, and transform to better serve the interests of the poor, vulnerable, and marginalized people, anchored in consensus and multilateralism,” Goyal said.
The commerce minister’s opening statement shows New Delhi understands the stakes, said Ajay Srivastava, founder of Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), adding that India’s role at MC14 goes beyond securing its own interests—it must also protect the WTO’s core architecture.
“At MC14, the US and other advanced economies are pushing changes that could reshape the WTO’s core architecture—weakening consensus-based decision-making, limiting flexibilities for developing countries, and diluting the most-favoured-nation (MFN) principle. Together, these risk turning the WTO from a rules-based body into one driven by power and selective coalitions,” he said.
