Professor Panagariya will give a two-part presentation. First, he will offer a case for trade openness for developing countries by demonstrating that there are virtually no examples of countries achieving sustained rapid economic growth without simultaneously experiencing sustained rapid trade growth. Such growth almost always takes place in the presence of low or declining barriers to trade. Professor Panagariya will also examine the claim that opening to trade leads to sustained income losses. A review of the experiences of the countries that have faced stagnation or declining per capita incomes on a long-term basis reveals no connection to a sustained surge in imports.

The second part of Professor Panagariya’s presentation will discuss how best to promote developing-country interests in the bilateral (free trade area) and multilateral (Doha) negotiations. He will argue that developing countries need to appreciate more fully the costs of many nontrade agendas forced by the developed countries in bilateral negotiations. He will also argue that there is a need to reevaluate allegations of hypocrisy against the rich countries in the multilateral negotiations. While rich countries must free the global trading system from distortions by ending subsidies and protectionism in agriculture, the poorest countries actually stand to lose from this change in course. This recognition is essential to building support for compensation and adjustment assistance.

Arvind Panagariya is the Jagdish Bhagwati Professor of Indian Political Economy & Professor of Economics at Columbia University. Previously, he was a Professor of Economics and Co-director, Center for International Economics, University of Maryland at College Park, and the Chief Economist of the Asian Development Bank. He has also advised the World Bank, IMF, WTO, and UNCTAD in various capacities. He holds a Ph.D. in economics from Princeton University.