The health care for elderly population remains an important concern in the two populated economies of India and China. This paper provides an attempt to determine the extent of population aging in India and China and subsequently determine the ageing impacts on the aggregate as well as health care expenditures in these two countries, separately for the rural and urban areas. The respective state level (provincial) data from the most recent census information reveal wide regional differences in the levels of population aging in both India and China. The results of our cross-sectional regressions indicate statistically significant and positive impact of population ageing on the total as well as medical expenditures in both the rural and urban regions of India. In the case of China, the impact of old-age population turned out to be insignificant (statistically) on the total consumption expenditures for both the rural and urban areas. As concerns the impacts of ageing on the proportion of health care expenditure, only rural China reveals statistically significant and positive coefficients.

The book Trans-Pacific Partnership: An Assessment, edited by Cimon-Isaacs and Jeffrey J. Schott, explains TPP rules and assesses their effects on member countries. According to them, TPP not only significantly reduces tariffs and non-tariff barriers, but also comprehensively covers other issues such as environment and labour treatment. It also breaks new grounds in regulations of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and e-commerce.

The 20 chapters discuss the 20 different aspects of the TPP. In this review, they are classified into three main sections: economic estimation, standards and competition issues, and legal enforceability.

The book was reviewed by Qiaohui Lin, Duke University (a candidate for the MA degree in Economics).

WTO and the ARTNeT Secretariat will jointly organize a capacity building workshop on 'Trade Policy Analysis: Focus on Non-tariff Measures' from 12 to 16 December 2016 at UNCC, Bangkok, Thailand. Starting with qualitative research methods on NTMs, this workshop will mainly focus on the use of applied empirical methods in analyzing impact of NTMs at macro (trade flows) and micro (firms and household) levels. This hands-on workshop will also provide a  review of how applied econometrics, gravity models, and existing databases such as ESCAP-World Bank Trade costs, Transparency in Trade (TNT) initiative dataset on NTMs and World Bank Enterprise surveys databases can be used in policy relevant research. Participants in this hands-on training will learn how to apply empirical tools to answer policy questions, especially related to impact of NTMs, and design applied research in this area through practical exercises as well as presentations of their research proposals. Resource persons are expected from ESCAP, WTO, UNCTAD and ARTNeT associated institutions and partners. The detailed call for application along with information on application procedure will be made available on the ARTNeT website shortly.

The ESCAP in collaboration with ARTNeT has released an online course focusing on Trade and SDGs. The access to the course is free to the public and the content is chosen to provide an accessible learning on the transition from ‪MDGs‬ to SDGs, type process and rationale behind opting for a universal goal, and introduces the main linkages between trade and the SDGs. The three modules now form a basic level course and will be followed by more advanced and tailored courses to respond to capacity building needs in this substantive area.

These three modules can be accessed from:

Module 1 / Module 2 / Module 3

You have to register online and then you are ready to go. This will enable you to receive a certificate after finishing each module.

Labeled as a basket case by Henry Kissinger, Bangladesh is now the world’s second largest apparel exporter.  Yet, this success has not been duplicated on a large scale in other labor-intensive sectors.  At the request of the Government of Bangladesh, the World Bank undertook an ambitious Diagnostic Trade Integration Study to analyze how Bangladesh could leverage regional and international markets and technology to employ the 2.1 million new entrants to the labor force each year.

Based on analytical and industry-specific research, the study proposes a four-pillar strategy that could provide more and better jobs, in order to help Bangladesh achieve its goal of becoming a middle-income country by 2021:

1. Breaking into new markets through trade facilitation and deepening linkages with fast-growing regional markets
2. Breaking into new products through more neutral trade policies and a business environment that attracts high quality foreign investment
3. Improving worker and consumer welfare by investing in workforce education and security
4. Supporting the broader trade environment by strengthening government institutions and sustaining macroeconomic fundamentals.

This three volume study provides valuable lessons for scaling up manufacturing export growth in other developing countries, including innovative solutions in providing trade finance and duty-free inputs for exports.

ARTNeT member, Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), Sri Lanka and ESCAP jointly organized a national workshop on 'Capacity Building on Trade Policy Analysis' in Colombo on 24-25 October, 2016. The main purpose of this workshop was to enhance the capacity of policy makers, private sector, researchers and journalists on evaluating the trade policy which is evidence based and how to carry out impact assessment of trade agreements. The workshop concluded with a panel discussion involving representatives of the government as well as the private sector regarding emerging themes related to Sri Lanka's trade policies, especially on trade agreements.

The presentations from the workshop can be accessed here.

WTO and ESCAP, in collaboration with the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, Government of Sri Lanka organized a regional workshop on “Trade-Led Development in the Multilateral Trading System”, 26-28 October 2016, Colombo. The main purpose of the workshop was to enhance the capacity of government officials on understanding of the issues of the linkage between trade and development. The workshop focused on future development challenges for the Multilateral Trading System, including the role of trade in the Agenda 2030 for sustainable development, reducing trade costs to link into global and regional value chains and eCommerce.

The presentations from the workshop can be accessed here.

The conference, organised by our member, Centre of Global Environmental Policy (CGEP), Beijing Normal University and WWF​, aims to bring together speakers and participants from governments, the private sector, civil society, academia, etc., and will feature active dialogues among participates to address various issues of promoting Green Trade in Asia and globally. The key topics are:

1) Potential environmental impacts of the growth of international trade
2) National policies to address green trade
3) International regulations and rules of green trade
4) International/regional sustainable standards for greener trade
5) Corporate responsibility to promote green trade
6) NGOs for equitable and gender-inclusive green trade development
7) One Belt and One Road: opportunity and challenges
8) Greening agro-commodity supply chains
9) Building a Green Free Trade Zone

If you wish to attend the conference (at your own cost), send your details to artnetontrade@un.org by 15 November, 2016. 

ESCAP is organizing a workshop focusing on using technology in support of trade for micro, small and medium sized enterprises. Through this workshop we hope to pioneer a new way of bringing together government and the private sector to develop an actionable, high-impact capacity building program to enable regional governments to use the technology revolution to unlock regional MSMEs’ potential for inclusive trade, economic growth, and job-creation.

The meeting will (1) conceptualize and develop – in conjunction with private sector partners, trade and development experts, impact funds, and governments officials - concrete and specific development solutions that will help Asia-Pacific’s MSMEs adopt and use B2B and B2C ecommerce and online payment systems–to grow their sales in international markets, tap into global supply chains, and fuel their overall growth and competitiveness; (2) help Asia-Pacific governments understand what policy environment is necessary to allow MSMEs to meaningfully engage in online commerce, and adopt and use technologies conducive to trade; and (3) identify and start driving concrete initiatives and public-private partnerships in such areas as ecommerce logistics and trade facilitation, and online payments, for MSME capacity-building.

For the workshop programme please visit here.

Academics, policymakers and representatives of civil society in developing countries and countries with transition economies involved in research, teaching, policy formulation and implementation, or field work in the area of trade and gender, are invited to apply for participation in the third edition of the Vi online course on trade and gender.

Funded by the Government of Finland, the course is based on Volume 1 of the Vi teaching material on trade and gender. The seven-week course, scheduled January 9 to February 26, 2017, particularly encourages applications from qualified women.

Candidates must hold a Master's degree in Economics, Law, Political Science or related area, and have excellent knowledge of English.

Top course graduates will become part of the UNCTAD trade and gender consultancy roster, and may be considered for future assignments in this area and/or participation in intergovernmental meetings on trade and gender organized by UNCTAD.

Candidates must complete the online application process, as well as submit a current CV and nomination letter from their institution by November 20. For the registration detail please visit here.

The objective of the case story exercise is to learn more about impacts of initiatives aimed at "Promoting Connectivity". Case stories are invited that showcase programmes and projects promoting connectivity and which address, inter alia, one or more of the following subjects:

- Trade Facilitation Agreement implementation and/or trade facilitation measures more generally (e.g. trade and transport facilitation);
- E-commerce development and efforts to bridge the "digital divide"; and
- Infrastructure upgrading and the development of related services markets, including through support for investment climate reforms.

Case stories may be submitted in text or video format.

Case stories will be published on the Aid4Trade website and will be analysed in the next edition of the joint OECD-WTO Aid for Trade at a Glance publication. This publication will be discussed at the 6th Global Review of Aid for Trade to be held in 2017. Some case stories and video case stories may also be featured at the Review meeting – and their authors invited to present them.

Please submit case stories before the deadline of 30 November 2016. For submission details please visit here. 

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Social enterprises (SEs) in Pakistan have evolved out of societal imperatives, based on the unmet demands of the local communities. The country’s SE ecosystem is in its nascent stages but with rapid expansion and growth in recent years. This sector, among other roles, offers the potential to fill the gap between public services which do not currently reach the entire population and services provided by the private sector which are often unaffordable for vulnerable and marginalised communities. SEs can offer viable models of service delivery, with the potential to assist Pakistan towards the achievement of the sustainable development goals (SDGs). SEs can also offer economic empowerment, innovation and access to new markets at the bottom of the pyramid.

This study attempts to provide a broad understanding of the emerging SE sector in Pakistan, alongside the policy and regulatory environment. It has been informed by interviews, focus group discussions and an extensive literature review of international and national research studies. It reviews the context in which SEs have evolved in Pakistan, their ways of addressing different economic, social and environmental needs, the key barriers and enablers to SE development, and explores opportunities on how various stakeholders might effectively engage and develop the regulatory
and policy framework for SEs in Pakistan.

Sri Lanka: State of the Economy 2016 report focuses on the many interrelated problems constraining investment and productivity across the Sri Lankan economy owing to weak public finance management. Under the overall theme of “Fiscal Policy for Growth: Sustainable Financing for Development“, the report calls for fiscal consolidation efforts aimed at broadening Sri Lanka’s tax base and minimizing distortions, with expenditure measures aimed at rationalizing spending and improving efficiency. The report argues for sound fiscal policy setting as a priority for macroeconomic stability, a fundamental prerequisite for sustained growth.

The report argues that the effectiveness of fiscal consolidation efforts is likely to be enhanced when reforms reinforce each other through a careful calibration of taxes and expenditures to harness growth and improve economic outcomes across key policy areas.

The report discusses and recommends improvements in public finance management in detailed chapters related to; promoting exports and FDI under financing constraints, labour market reforms under tight fiscal conditions, advancing Sri Lanka’s education system through innovative funding, health care financing, improving efficiency and mobilizing resources for poverty reduction initiatives, financing urbanization, sustainable development under economic constraints: MBIs and environmental fiscal reforms and role of economic incentives in financing agricultural investments.

Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD)

Coherence and Synergies between the IPoA and the 2030 Agenda

Regional Integration in South Asia: Essays in Honour of Dr. M. Rahmatullah

ISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute (ISEAS)

What Thailand Needs to Do to Become a High-Income Country

ASEANFocus

Reassessing Malaysia’s Export Opportunities in the TPP

The Impact of Local Content Requirements on the Indonesian Manufacturing Industry

Korea Institute for Internaional Economic Policy (KIEP)

Korea's Readiness for the ASEAN Economic Community

Productivity and Exports in Korea: Comparisons with China and Japan

Structural Changes in China's Import Market for Domestic Demand and Implications

The Effect of Exchange Rate Volatility on Productivity of Korean Manufacturing Plants: Market Average Rate Regime vs Free Floating

Comparative Advantage of Value Added in Exports: The Role of Offshoring and Transaction Costs

The Role of M&A Fund Development in Reforming Chinese State-Owned Enterprises

Time to Concentrate Efforts on Effective FTA Utilization

The Achievements and Tasks of the Eastern Economic Forum and Korea-Russia Summit

Policy Research Institute (PRI)

The state of trade liberalisation in Bangladesh

Investment facilitation in Bangladesh, and globally!

Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS)

India and Sustainable Development Goals: The Way Forward

The BRICS Initiatives Towards a New Financial Architecture: An Assessment with Some Proposals

The Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore (ISAS-NUS)

Why The Long-Term Case For India’s Economic Acceleration Is Better Than Many Think

China-India Talks: Some Signals To Pakistan

Pierre Sauvé and Martin Roy, Director of Program Development and Faculty Member, World Trade Institute, University of Bern, Switzerland and Counsellor, Trade in Services and Investment Division, World Trade Organization, Switzerland respectively, co-edited Research Handbook on Trade in Services, one of the Research Handbooks on the WTO series.

This Research Handbook explores the latest frontiers in services trade by drawing on insights from empirical economics, law and global political economy. The world’s foremost experts take stock of the learning done to date in services trade, explore policy questions bedevilling analysts and direct attention to a host of issues, old and new, confronting those interested in the service economy and its rising salience in cross-border exchange. The Handbook’s 22 chapters shed informed analytical light on a subject matter whose substantive remit continues to be shaped by rapid evolutions in technology, data gathering, market structures, consumer preferences, approaches to regulation and by ongoing shifts in the frontier between the market and the state.

The ARTNeT Secretariat welcomes submissions of policy briefs, working papers, book reports, research reports, and book reviews by ARTNeT members, partners and collaborators. For any submission to be considered, the editorial 'Guidelines for Submissions to the ARTNeT Working Papers Series' must be adhered to.

If you are an ARTNeT member, partner or collaborator and would like to publicise your publications, research or events in the next newsletter, please e-mail us at artnetontrade@un.org.