Effects of Multilateral and Preferential Trade Policy Reform in Africa: The Case of Uganda

This paper estimates the effects on production, trade and economic welfare of current trade policy regimes throughout the world on Uganda relative to other economies, as a benchmark against which to examine various multilateral and preferential trade policy scenarios that might emerge over the next decade as part of the WTOÂ’s Doha Round and from the expected move later this decade towards Economic Partnership Agreements with the European Union. The results suggest modest gains or worse for Uganda, in part because it already has low tariffs and ready preferential access to richcountry markets. Several important caveats to this type of analysis are stressed though, before drawing out some trade and policy implications for Uganda.Trade policy reform, multilateral negotiations, preferential trade, computable general equilibrium, developing countries

Childhood to teacher: Pre-service educators' formative musical experiences and their decision to become a classroom music teacher

This study explores the relationships between formative musical experiences, narrative constructions of music teacher identity and the influence of these identity constructions on the decision to become a classroom music teacher among a group of pre-service music educators. Case studies of 15 participants were conducted. Participants were from the Bachelor of Music (Music Education) degree program at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, The University of Sydney. Data were collected through individual semi-structured interviews with the participants. The study explored the musical, schooling and cultural backgrounds of these pre-service music educators. Data were analysed through open coding and narrative analysis. Narrative responses to questions about formative musical experiences, their relationship to music teacher identity construction and how these relate to the decision to become a classroom music teacher, encoded five key frames. These are: individual cultural background; memories of patterns of pedagogy; impressions of music teachers; the cultural and educational status of music; and music's importance within family and social life. The findings of this study contribute to the growing body of research and literature in this field and generate a number of avenues for future research

Childhood to teacher: Pre-service educators' formative musical experiences and their decision to become a classroom music teacher

This study explores the relationships between formative musical experiences, narrative constructions of music teacher identity and the influence of these identity constructions on the decision to become a classroom music teacher among a group of pre-service music educators. Case studies of 15 participants were conducted. Participants were from the Bachelor of Music (Music Education) degree program at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, The University of Sydney. Data were collected through individual semi-structured interviews with the participants. The study explored the musical, schooling and cultural backgrounds of these pre-service music educators. Data were analysed through open coding and narrative analysis. Narrative responses to questions about formative musical experiences, their relationship to music teacher identity construction and how these relate to the decision to become a classroom music teacher, encoded five key frames. These are: individual cultural background; memories of patterns of pedagogy; impressions of music teachers; the cultural and educational status of music; and music's importance within family and social life. The findings of this study contribute to the growing body of research and literature in this field and generate a number of avenues for future research

Distortions to world trade: impacts on agricultural markets and farm incomes

The authors provide estimates of the impact that removing all merchandise trade distortions (including agricultural subsidies) would have on food and agricultural production, trade, and incomes. Using the latest versions of the Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) database and the World Bank's LINKAGE model of the global economy (projected to 2015), their results suggest farm employment, the real value of agricultural output and exports, the real returns to farm land and unskilled labor, and real net farm incomes would all rise substantially in developing country regions with a move to free merchandise trade, thereby alleviating rural poverty-despite the decline in international terms of trade for developing countries that are net food importers or are enjoying preferential access to agricultural markets of high-income countries.

Welfare and Poverty Effects of Global Agricultural and Trade Policies Using the Linkage Model

This paper analyzes the economic effects of agricultural price and merchandise trade policies around the world as of 2004 on global markets, net farm incomes, and national and regional economic welfare and poverty, using the global economy wide Linkage Model, new estimates of agricultural price distortions for developing countries, and a poverty elasticities approach. It addresses two questions: To what extent are policies as of 2004 still reducing rewards from farming in developing countries and thereby adding to inequality across countries in farm household incomes? Are they depressing value added more in primary agriculture than in the rest of the economy of developing countries, and earnings of unskilled workers more than of owners of other factors of production, thereby potentially contributing to inequality and poverty within developing countries (given that farm incomes are well below non-farm incomes in most developing countries and that agriculture there is intensive in the use of unskilled labor)? Results are presented for the key countries and regions of the world and for the world as a whole. They reveal that, by moving to free markets, income inequality between countries would be reduced at least slightly, all but one-sixth of the gains to developing countries would come from agricultural policy reform, unskilled workers in developing countries – the majority of whom work on farms – would benefit most from reform, net farm incomes in developing countries would rise by 6 percent compared with 2 percent for non-agricultural value added, and the number of people surviving on less than US$1 a day would drop 3 percent globally.Distorted incentives, agricultural and trade policy reforms, national agricultural development, Agricultural and Food Policy, International Relations/Trade, F13, F14, Q17, Q18,

China, the WTO, and the Doha Agenda

The purpose of this paper is to attempt to better understand the reasons for the dramatic reduction in the estimated potential gains to China from participation in global trade reform, and to consider the implications and some trade-policy options for China in the post-accession situation. To do this, we first examine the reforms associated with ChinaÂ’s accession to the WTO. Then, we consider the implications for China of potential future trade reforms beginning from the situation where all of ChinaÂ’s WTO accession commitments have been phased in.

Estimating effects of price-distorting policies using alternative distortions databases

This paper addresses three questions relating to the very extensive use of the GTAP global trade protection database: Are there additional price-distorting policy instruments worthy of inclusion in the base year? What is the appropriate counterfactual set of price distortions in the year of concern (such as when a proposed reform is expected to be fully implemented, as distinct from the base year)? And how are the price distortions (e.g. tariff rates) on individual products aggregated to the GTAP product groups? We show the estimated welfare effects of policies can change substantially when more-appropriate measures of distortions are used

Global impacts of Doha trade reform scenarios on poverty

The authors illustrate some of the potential consequences of the World Trade Organization's Doha Round of multilateral trade negotiations on incomes and poverty globally. Using the global LINKAGE model to generate changes in domestic and international prices that have a direct impact on factor incomes and consumer prices, they estimate the change in real income at the poverty line that would accompany various reform scenarios. When accompanied by additional information about the elasticity of poverty with respect to income, this provides an estimate of the change in poverty by country. Under most liberalization scenarios considered, unskilled wages rise more than average incomes, but the estimated impact on global poverty is modest, especially if developing countries are unwilling to undertake much reform.

Doha merchandise trade reform : what's at stake for developing countries ?

This paper provides new estimates of the global gains from multilateral trade reform and their distribution among developing countries in the presence of trade preferences. Particular attention is given to agriculture, as farmers constitute the poorest households in developing countries but are the most assisted in rich countries. The latest GTAP database (Version 6.05) and the LINKAGE model of the global economy are used to examine the impact first of current merchandise trade barriers and agricultural subsidies, and then of possible reform outcomes from the WTO's Doha Development Agenda. The results suggest moving to free global merchandise trade would boost real incomes in Sub-Saharan Africa proportionately more than in other developing countries or high-income countries, despite a terms of trade loss in parts of that region. Net farm incomes would rise substantially in that and other developing country regions, thereby alleviating rural poverty. A Doha partial liberalization could move the world some way toward those desirable outcomes, but more so the more developing countries themselves cut applied tariffs, particularly on agricultural imports.Agribusiness,Free Trade,Economic Theory&Research,Country Strategy&Performance,Trade Policy

General equilibrium effects of price distortions on global markets, farm incomes and welfare

Distorted incentives, agricultural and trade policy reforms, national agricultural development, Agricultural and Food Policy, International Relations/Trade, F13, F14, Q17, Q18,