Agriculture in the WTO: Mechanisms of Regulation and Dispute Settlement

The Agreement on Agriculture (AoA) of the WTO marked a significant turning point in world trade in agriculture. The Agreement on Agriculture, which emerged from the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations (1986-1994), came into force from January 1, 1995. The Agreement sought to bring free and fair competition to this sector through a market oriented agricultural trading system. Since the root cause of distortion in international agricultural trade was found to be the large subsidies provided by developed countries to their agricultural sectors, the starting point for achieving a fair trade regime was thought to be reducing domestic production subsidies, lowering the volume of subsidised exports, and ensuring market access opportunities for agricultural producers worldwide. The Agreement is structured around three central pillars: market access, domestic support, and export competition, each designed to discipline trade-distorting policies and ensure transparency and fairness. Furthermore, the enforcement and interpretation of the AoA through the WTO’s dispute settlement mechanism have played a crucial role in shaping the operational dynamics of agricultural trade regulation. Despite its ambitious goals, the implementation of the Agreement on Agriculture (AoA) has sparked persistent debates, particularly concerning its impact on food security, rural livelihoods, and the policy space available to developing countries. This paper examines the regulatory mechanisms of the Agreement on Agriculture and analyses key dispute settlement cases.