Special and Differential Treatment
All previous trade agreements, including the Uruguay Round concluded in 1994, recognize in theory that developing countries have disadvantages that may warrant “special and differential treatment.” In other words, these countries may and should be granted better market access, be allowed greater flexibility in implementing trade rules, and be allowed to sign agreements with developed countries that do not require full “reciprocity.”
The Uruguay Round assumed that such treatment would be temporary, and that developing countries could quickly adopt the general standards after brief transition periods with the aid of technical assistance from rich countries. The catch was and is that almost all the “special and differential treatment” provisions were not mandatory but instead dependent on the political will of the rich countries to implement them. As a result they have rarely been implemented. Developing countries have demanded that the non-application of special and differential treatment provisions be reviewed, and that they should be mandatory and binding on developed countries.