The meaning of ‘developing country’ under WTO Law

Abstract

From the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1947 to its successor the World Trade Organization the principle of self-selection has been the method of determining development status. This has led to a proliferation of developing countries within the WTO, thus creating an imbalance of rights and obligations between Members. This current situation threatens the very existence of the WTO; hence this research paper proposes a legal definition of the term ‘developing country’ based on the interpretation of WTO law. Most literature available focuses on the lack of a definition of the term developing country and what this means for the WTO. However, it appears that finding a meaning of the term is an exercise yet to be undertaken by most scholars of international law and international economic law alike. Thus, by considering factors used by other intergovernmental organizations to classify countries and analysing the provisions of Art XVIII (1) of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 this research paper shows that a developing country is a country with insufficient resources and one that is near the beginning of its economic growth.