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26 – 30 April 2010
Bernard O'Connor, O'Connor & Company
Stefan Tangermann, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Christian Häberli, World Trade Institute
Lectures and studies on the WTO Agreement on Agriculture and its application and implementation since. The nature of agricultural policies in major countries and their impact on agricultural trade. Political economy aspects and the reasons for the difficulties to negotiate them in the WTO. An overview of the trade and income implications of liberalising agricultural trade in order to understand who might gain and who might lose from more open agricultural markets. A look at recent trends on global markets for agricultural products, including the 2008 'food crisis', as a factual background and to put the ongoing DDA negotiations on agriculture in perspective. The importance of agriculture to different developing countries and their attempts to achieve greater liberalisation in this sector. So-called ‘non-trade concerns’ as a case for protection. Other issues also affecting international agriculture policies such as sanitary and technical regulations and private standards, climate change, biofuels, water shortage, demography and the WTO impact on food security. Is agriculture really special?
Lecturers:
Bernard O'Connor is a practising lawyer and represents governments, traders, trade associations and companies. In full-time legal practice in Brussels since 1986, he has advised on, and litigated many aspects of EC law, and has worked with key institutions of the European Community. He established ‘O'Connor and Company’ in 1996, a firm which specialises in trade and competition law. He has advised on and litigated a number of WTO disputes and has extensive litigation experience before EC courts in Luxembourg. He represents the Community industry in trade defence cases with a particular emphasis on subsidies. Books published and edited include ‘The Law of Geographical Indications’ (2004) and ‘Agriculture in WTO Law’ (2005). He received his MA from Trinity College, Dublin, and his LLM from the European University Institute in Italy. He is a member of the Brussels’ Bar and the Law Society of Ireland.
Stefan Tangermann was until end-2008 Director for Trade and Agriculture at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Paris. Before joining the OECD in 2002, he was a professor of economics and agricultural economics at the universities of Frankfurt/Main and Göttingen. His academic work has concentrated, among other topics, on the need and options for reforming agricultural policies in OECD countries, and on strengthening the rules for agricultural trade, with a particular emphasis on the WTO. Mr Tangermann is a Member of the Academy of Science at Göttingen. He was awarded the Order of Merit, First Class, by the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, and is Fellow of the European Association of Agricultural Economists. He has advised several governments and international organisations.
Christian Häberli works as a Senior Research Fellow in WTI / NCCR / WP4 on trade, agriculture and development issues. In 1977 he graduated with a Ph.D. on African Investment Law. He also completed studies in development sciences in Geneva (1973-75) and in theology at Bern University (2007-09). His professional career started in 1978 at the International Labour Organisation (ILO), with 2 years each in Madagascar and Thailand, followed by 3 years with the Swiss Development Cooperation in Nepal. From 1986 to 2007 he worked at the Swiss Federal Department (Ministry) for Economic Affairs. In the WTO, he chaired the Committee on Agriculture (Regular Session) and served in four dispute settlement panels, namely in EC – Bananas, Japan – Apples, EC – Biotech/GMO and China – Trading Rights.
Cost: CHF 1’750.-
Registration date: 19 April 2010
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Master Programme (MILE) 
