The Role And Relevance Of World Trade Organization Essay

The Role And Relevance Of World Trade Organization - Essay Example The first round of talk was held in Geneva in 1947 and helped to establish the working framework of GATT. The second round was held in 1949 in Annecy, France, and concentrated in tariff reduction among member countries. The third and fourth rounds of trade negotiations were held Torquay, England, and in Geneva in 1951 and 1956 respectively. Both negotiations focused on tariff reduction and accession. The fifth commonly referred as the Dillon round was held in Geneva in 1960-62, and was instrumental in revising the GATT treaty. Both the Kennedy round and the Tokyo round of trade negotiations were held in Geneva in 1964-67 and 1973-79 respectively. The eighth round, known as the Uruguay round was finalized in Geneva in 1986-93 (Sampson 2001). The Doha round of multilateral trade negotiations, which is currently underway, was launched in the Qatari capital in 2001. The current round of talks is mandated to liberalize the global trade and also to bolster development. Though the talks had been scheduled to end by December 2004, it has not been concluded to date due to profound discrepancies that exist between different member nations’ aspirations and interests. During the Uruguay round of talks, member countries saw the need to establish an umbrella body charged with the responsibility of overseeing the rules of trade between member countries (WTO 2008). This marked the birth of World Trade Organization (WTO). The World Trade Organization, located in Geneva, Switzerland, was established in January 1995 as a result of the Uruguay round of negotiations.