The project aims to establish linkages between civil society organizations (CSOs) and research institutions to conduct advocacy with governments. The project is implemented in five South Asian countries, viz., India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The project focuses on five key elements of the July Framework Agreement of the WTO: agriculture, non-agricultural market access, development dimensions, services and trade facilitation. The negotiating positions of the South Asian countries are to be analysed in each of these issues. The analysis will be complemented by stakeholder (including business organization, trade unions, women’s groups, etc.) interviews to take into account their particular concerns. Initially, each of the five areas is covered by a research partner in participating countries. The Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) of Sri Lanka has overall responsibility for preparing the background paper on the area of trade facilitation.
