Category: International Trade Sub-category: International Trade Organisation
Document type: article
The WTO works with a number of other international governmental organizations under the banner of “coherence”, a term originating in the “Decision on achieving greater coherence in global economic policy-making”, which ministers agreed in Marrakesh, April 1994. But coherence in global economic policy-making goes much beyond the WTO's formal and specific cooperation arrangements with the IMF and the World Bank. Indeed, it is now recognized that the WTO system is only one part of a much broader set of international rights and obligations that bind WTO Members. The WTO maintains extensive institutional relations with several other international organizations; there are some 140 international organizations that have observer status in WTO bodies. The WTO also participates as observer in the work of several international organizations. In all, the WTO Secretariat maintains working relations with almost 200 international organizations in activities ranging from statistics, research, standard-setting, and technical assistance and training. Although the extent of such cooperation varies, coordination and coherence between the work of the WTO and that of other international organizations continues to evolve so as to assist Members in the operation of their economic policies.
Cooperation between these organizations and the WTO is specifically mandated in WTO agreements, ministerial declarations or decisions, or General Council decisions.
Some of the international organisation are -
- Codex Alimentarius (joint FAO/WHO)
- Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
- International Labour Organization (ILO)
- International Monetary Fund (IMF)
- International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC)
- International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
- International Trade Centre (ITC)
- Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
- United Nations (UN)
- United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
- United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
- World Bank (WB)
- Word Customs Organization (WCO)
- World Health Organization (WHO)
- World Organization for Animal Health (OIE)
- World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)