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This book explores the opportunities and risks of the liberalization of trade in services in South Asia. It offers an overview of the entire region on market access and regulatory issues as defined by the GATS framework of the WTO and exposes areas for regional and bilateral liberalization. It provides policymakers and other stakeholders in the region with better comprehension of the problems pertaining to these, and consequently, shows them a clearer vision of how to overcome them.
Reviews and Highlights in the Media
Trade Insight Vol. 5, No.1, 2009
Beyond goods liberalization
“In South Asia, where services have overtaken agriculture and industry as the top contributor to gross domestic product (GDP) in most countries and foreign trade in services is growing rapidly, services liberalization is a burning issue. Besides the fact that almost all South Asian countries, by virtue of being World Trade Organizations (WTO) members, have to implement the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), the perception that regional trade in services has more complementarities than regional trade in goods is driving efforts to include services in bilateral preferential trading arrangements as well as in the Agreement on South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA).
Saman Kelegama, of the Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka (IPS), has a knack for coming up with timely publications on topical trade issues in South Asia…”
 Review (PDF Format 335KB)
VOL.XLIV NO. 1
APRIL-JUNE 2009
Foreign Trade Review
Quarterly Journal of Indian Institute of Foreign Trade
“This book is a collection of essays which throws adequate analysis on the specific Sector of the region. It details the importance of services sector in world economy and focuses on the opportunities and risk that are associated with the sector. It provides set of policies and strategies for various stakeholders to strike at opportunities and guard themselves with a sense of caution wherever it is necessary.
The author further has touched upon a point which needs systematic efforts to be made by SAARC countries. As most South Asian countries are strong in this sector, SAFTA is a viable forum to expand its scope…” Review (PDF Format 124KB)
The Hindu, 23 June, 2009 (Raghu Dayal)
Services Trade in South Asia
“The least integrated region in the world, both in goods as well as in the services trade, South Asia bristles with barriers to intra-regional trade, in services more than in goods. The book covers trade in services in the seven South Asian countries (excluding Afghanistan) and provides an overview of the entire region on market access issues and regulatory constraints. An anthology of essays from experts, in addition to the introductory observations by Kelegama and two more on generic subjects, could as well have better synthesized the disparate contributions….” Review (PDF Format 340KB)
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