The paper reviews the provisions within the WTO multilateral trade regime which impact on the policy space for LDCs which are interested in pursuing industrial policies as latecomers. It finds that LDCs are more constrained by lack of capacity rather than by WTO provisions, in contrast to more advanced developing countries.
The paper first provides a brief overview of the LDCs economies and export structures. Then it explores the debates and perspectives on industrial policy taking into account the requirements of multilateral trade policy. The next section looks specifically at the provisions within the WTO regime and assesses the scope for policy space for industrial policies by LDCs…
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The paper investigates the effectiveness of trade preferences for LDCs. It confirms that overall trade preferences for LDCs increase LDC exports. However, it also finds that effectiveness differs across the nine providers included in the study (EU, US, Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, the Russian Federation and Turkey) and that only a subset of LDCs is able to benefit from trade preferences.
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The paper overviews the evidence of good governance institutional reform agenda on the development outcomes of LDCs. For building development governance capacity in LDC for achieving sustainable development goals, successful examples suggest a few key common features: (1) existence of government/political leadership; (2) organizational set up for achieving national development goals; (3) structural transformation from poor human capital base and low quality of the bureaucracies. The lessons learned from these examples cannot simply be transmitted to other LDCs, but should be seen as practical policy lessons.
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The paper discusses two ways of building productive capacity in LDCs: the manufacture of products to foreign buyers? specifications, and the integration of resource-based sectors into global value chains using backward and forward linkages. Using country examples the paper then shows how government and the international community can support the growth of productive capacity in various ways including research institutes and public research organisations. The paper argues that some LDCs should try to leapfrog into newly emerging sectors such as renewable energy.
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The paper looks into the origins of Aid for Trade (AfT) and its objective of assisting developing countries to increase exports of goods and services and integrate into the multilateral trading system. Pointing out that AfT is not a new development fund nor a new aid category, the paper looks into the flows and impact of ODA resources allocated to AfT while focusing on LDCs as well as the effectiveness of AfT. Among the recommendations, the paper argues that most Aid for Trade is allocated to middle income countries and that a shift in this allocation pattern is needed to give more attention to LDCs, particular those that are not well integrated into the global market.
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