Workers – Photo by Ivan Samkov on Pexels
(GENEVA) – Trade in services received a boost Tuesday with the entry into force of new World Trade Organization rules aimed at facilitating and simplifying global trade in services.
The new rules apply to a large and diverse group of WTO Members, including developed, developing and least developed countries – representing 92% of world trade in services.
The set of rules will streamline authorisation requirements and ease procedural hurdles faced by businesses around the globe, in particular micro, small and medium-sized enterprises. The agreement is expected to help reduce costs of global services trade by more than EUR 110 billion every year, by ensuring transparency, efficiency and predictability of authorisation and qualification requirements and procedures.
Services in the EU account for about of 75% of GDP and employment while trade in services accounts for 25% of EU’s GDP, supporting more than 20 million jobs. Global services exports were valued at more than 6 trillion, representing 23% of total world trade.
Clear rules on authorisation agreed as part of the Joint Initiative should facilitate trade in services significantly. Especially for MSMEs and women entrepreneurs who typically do not have the same resources to cope with complex requirements they need to comply with to operate in foreign markets.
The rules also help the digital agenda, since sectors such as telecommunications, computer services, engineering, and banking stand to benefit from it. It is also the first time a WTO text includes a binding provision on non-discrimination between men and women.
WTO factsheet on Services Domestic Regulation.
Further information on Joint Initiative on Services Domestic Regulation
