Turning Hills into Mountains? Current Commitments under the GATS and Prospects for Change

Abstract

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The determinants of trade agreements in services vs. goods

“…In general, not all sectors are covered in each country and the covered sectors are not identical across countries. For example, in 2005, developed countries had an average of 106 sub-sectors committed, while developing countries had an average of 42 out of 160 possible sub-sectors (see Adlung and Roy, 2005). In fact, even within country groups, the average number of sub-sectors committed varies signi…cantly; from 87 to 117 for developed countries and from 1 to 123 for developing economies.…”

Intertwined

“…Nonetheless, it is useful to gain some sense of the current level of services liberalisation. The following analysis draws upon Adlung and Roy (2005), who assess the degree of GATS liberalisation for all WTO Member countries as of March 2005. Source: Adlung and Roy, 2005. 16.…”

“…The following analysis draws upon Adlung and Roy (2005), who assess the degree of GATS liberalisation for all WTO Member countries as of March 2005. Source: Adlung and Roy, 2005. 16. While assessing the number of WTO Members that have made at least one commitment in a services sector provides some sense of GATS commitments to date, it does not paint the entire picture.…”

“…It is also important to factor in the number of exceptions countries have scheduled in relation to those commitments. Adlung and Roy (2005) calculate the ratio of WTO Member limitations on market access and national treatment to scheduled commitments for Mode 3 2 . These data are presented in Figure 2 below.…”

Trade in Healthcare and Health Insurance Services: The GATS as a Supporting Actor (?)

“…25 In other cases, governments may have hesitated to commit on the treatment of services that are produced in another jurisdiction, i.e., beyond national regulatory control, in order then to be send cross-border. Such 23 For a more detailed overview of patterns of commitments, see Adlung and Roy (2005). 24 See, however, above n 5.…”