Eliminating Trade Barriers Through Preferential Trade Agreements : Perspectives from South Asia

Since time immemorial, trade has substantially influenced human life. Trade enthused intercontinental movements of the Asiatic people, Phoenicians, Egyptians, and other ancient societies. From the ancient “Silk Route” to today's electronic “Silk Road,” rise in intercontinental trade has coincided with the increase in globalization's pace.3 Scholars mark the evolution of the modern trade regime primarily by three eras: first, the introduction of mutually binding tariff reductions; second, the institutionalization of international trade; and third, the expansion of traditional trade obligations to include various new requirements, including a more indirect relationship to trade, and streamlined and effective dispute resolution. Several important elements, such as non-discrimination and multilateralism, characterize global trade governance. Yet it is not a static phenomenon and is certainly not limited to the principles of Most-Favored Nation and National Treatment, or reducing tariff barriers. Multilateralism remains an important stimulant in addressing contemporary challenges, such as reducing trade barriers as a means to stem mercantilist tendencies and further global trade governance. Preferential trade agreements have added a desirable wing to competitive trade liberalization through which more than 50% of today's international trade transpires. Notably, the multilevel global trade governance under the auspices of WTO experienced a gradual increase in its complexity as it evolved. In contrast, deeper and easier integration has been witnessed at regional levels. For example, South Asian countries experimented with the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to create regional ripples that parallel bilateral and multilateral currents in an effort to further harness the fruits of participatory governance and trade liberalization. South Asia houses a population of roughly 1.67 billion people, including 40% of the world's poor. Yet, it remains one of the least integrated regions. The conundrums of trade barriers have become vital in global trade governance. The study of eliminating trade barriers in a South Asian milieu illustrates the shortcomings as well as lessons to learn and amend