Protection and enforcement of international intellectual property rights is not a new topic. In 1986, the World Trade Organization introduced a set of rules known as the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, or TRIPS for short. This agreement was the first agreement to dive into the multilateral dimension of the trading world, attempting to narrow differences across countries and synthesize everything under a set of governing international rules. While good and services are a main portion of trade across countries, ideas and knowledge are increasingly becoming a part of trade as well. For creators, the most important assets they have are their ideas and designs. In order for them protect those ideas; they are given the right to prevent others from using their ideas as well as to use the right to negotiate payment if others do plan on using them. Intellectual property rights can take many forms: copyright, author’s rights, trademark, related rights, patent, etc. Most of the inherit value that comes in ideas, especially in new medicines and other high-technology products, lies in their design, concept, invention, and research. Because these values are not tangible, it is hard to keep track of their movement across borders and countries.

Thus, the point of tension comes in. Governments and nations hope to foster an environment in which creators will produce ideas that can benefit all of society. However, different countries have their own respective extent of rules in regards to intellectual property rights. Having intellectual property rights benefits society as it encourages creation, so it is important that the World Trade Organization intervenes in order to fully develop a set of governing rules. Some of the issues that need to be considered include: What is the appropriate length of time in which governments are allowed to reduce a period of protection in order to tackle a health epidemic? How will developing and developed countries be affected by the agreement? How should countries enforce the agreements in their own respective territories? Questions and disagreements will naturally arise as a result of disputes over intellectual rights. Therefore, it is up to the Word Trade Organization to intervene and set up rules, standards, and procedures that will fairly govern all countries.

In 1998, agricultural trade accounted for 10.5 percent of total merchandise trade. With trade in services taken into account, agriculture’s percentage drops down to only 8.5 percent. Even though agriculture is in the forefront ahead of other sectors such as mining, automotive, textiles, etc., the rate of grown in world agricultural exports is still behind manufactures.  Within agricultural goods, about 80 percent of the total consists of food products. In countries such as America, agricultural trade plays an important role in maintaining overall economic activity involving domestic production and employment. The agricultural trading system also plays a large role in ensuring global food security. For example, if adverse climatic conditions or other crises were to strike a country, then it is important to know that the world markets can meet temporary food deficits.

Previous implementations that tried to combat many of the problems that have come about as a result of agricultural trade include the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, or GATT for short. While it did apply to aspects of agricultural trade, it contained many loopholes. Because of the shortcomings, the World Trade Organization later replaced it. The World Trade Organization’s objective will be to reform the trade sector and make policies more market-oriented. This way, both importing and exporting countries will benefit from improved security. Three main points that need to be considered are: market access (different countries’ trade restrictions), domestic support (subsidies, farmer’s incomes), and export subsidies (create competition in the market). Overall, implemented policies will need to cause the least amount of distortion in trade as possible and the interests of countries that reply of imports for food supplies, the countries that reply on exports as a source of income, and the concerns of less developed economies should all be considered. The resulting question that this committee should hope to resolve is: What is needed to create the fairest market for farmers and the agricultural trade industry?