This 2005 compilation of 45 case studies documents disparate experiences among economies in addressing the challenges of participating in the WTO. It demonstrates that success or failure is strongly influenced by how governments and private sector stakeholders organise themselves at home. The contributors, mainly from developing countries, give examples of participation with lessons for others. They show that when the system is accessed and employed effectively, it can serve the interests of poor and rich countries alike. However, a failure to communicate among interested parties at home often contributes to negative outcomes on the international front. Above all, these case studies demonstrate that the WTO creates a framework within which sovereign decision-making can unleash important opportunities or undermine the potential benefits flowing from a rules-based international environment that promotes open trade.

Table of Contents:
Figures; Tables; Acknowledgements; Introduction; 1. Dispute settlement between developing countries: Argentina and Chilean price bands; 2. Argentina and GATS: a study on the domestic determinants of GATS commitments; 3. Rock'n'roll in Bangladesh: protecting intellectual property rights in music; 4. Barbados: telecommunications liberalisation; 5. Services commitments: case studies from Belize and Costa Rica; 6. Inter-agency policy coordination in Botswana; 7. Brazil and the G-20 group of developing countries; 8. Cambodia's accession to WTO: 'fast tracked' accession by a least developed economy; 9. Canada and the WTO: multilevel governance, public policy-making and the WTO auto pact case; 10. SPS and crisis management: the Chile-EU avian influenza experience; 11. Shanghai's World Trade Organization (WTO) Affairs Consultation Center: working together to take advantage of WTO membership; 12. Costa Rica's challenge to US restrictions on the import of underwear; 13. Fiji: preparing for the end of preferences?; 14. The road to Cancún: the French decision-making process on WTO negotiations; 15. Decision-making processes in India: the case of the agriculture negotiations; 16. Protecting the geographical indication for Darjeeling tea; 17. The Indian shrimp industry organizes to fight the threat of anti-dumping action; 18. Indonesia's shrimp exports: meeting the challenge of quality standards; 19. Patents, parallel importation and compulsory licensing of HIV/AIDS drugs: experience from Kenya; 20. Kenya's participation in the WTO: lessons learned; 21. Learning by doing: the impact of a trade remedy case in Korea; 22. Laos: the textile and garment industry in the post-ATC era; 23. Malawi in the multilateral trading system; 24. Malaysia: labelling regulations on natural rubber condoms and the WTO TBT agreement; 25. Malaysia: strategies for the liberalisation of the services sector; 26. Mauritius: cooperation in an economy evolving for the future; 27. How regional economic communities can facilitate participation in the WTO: the experience of Mauritius and Zambia; 28. Mexico's agricultural trade policies: international commitments and domestic pressure; 29. Mongolia's WTO accession: expectations and realities of WTO membership; 30. Nepal: the role of an NGO in support of accession; 31. Nepal: exports of ayurvedic herbal remedies and SPS issues; 32. Import prohibition as a trade policy instrument: the Nigerian experience; 33. The Pacific Island nations: towards shared representation; 34. Victory in principle: Pakistan's dispute settlement case on combed cotton yarn exports to the United States; 35. Pakistan: the consequences of a change in the EC rice regime; 36. Philippines: stakeholder participation in agricultural policy formation; 37. Philippines: adopting the transaction basis for customs valuation; 38. The reform of South Africa's anti-dumping regime; 39. What impact did the GATS have on telecoms competition in Sri Lanka?; 40. Thailand: conciliating a dispute on tuna exports to the EC; 41. Uganda's participation in the WTO negotiations: institutional challenges; 42. Uruguay in the services negotiations: strategy and challenges; 43. Vanuatu's suspended accession bid: second thoughts?; 44. Public and private participation in agricultural negotiations: the experience of Venezuela; 45. Vietnam's preparation for WTO accession in the banking sector.