Trade and health

Abstract

By providing its Member States a legal and institutional foundation, with regard to multilateral trading, the World Trade Organization (‎WTO)‎ has facilitated expansion of international trade in goods and services. Various health issues may arise from WTO agreements and also from regional and bilateral trade agreements. There is a need for a clear understanding of the relevant agreements and the way they may influence health and health policies. At the Inter-regional workshop on Trade and Health, organized by the WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia, in New Delhi on 12 and 13 October 2004, senior officials from the health and trade ministries from selected Member States in the Eastern Mediterranean, South-East Asia and Western Pacific regions exchanged views on trade and trade agreements and public health. They shared experiences on the Accession to WTO and on the WTO Agreements relating to Trade-related Intellectual Property Rights (‎TRIPS)‎, Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (‎SPS)‎, and the General Agreement on Trade in Services (‎GATS)‎. The present publication, with updated versions of various presentations made at the workshop, is aimed at disseminating the information to a wider audience and help in promoting greater awareness of trade and health policies among policy-makers and practitioners in the trade and health sectors.