Non-tariff Barriers Restricting Arab Trade in Light of WTO and GAFTA Agreements

Abstract

Non-tariff measures (NTMs) could be defined as "Policy measures, other than ordinary customs tariffs, that can potentially have an economic effect on international trade in goods, changing quantities traded, and prices or both". According to the GATT agreement, states cannot impose any barriers to trade, but there are some other barriers states may impose in order to fulfill several objectives. They serve as a balance between what GATT imposes and the interests of the states, for example, the protection of national production and to protect the health and safety of the people. Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) refer to restrictions states imposed to serve several objectives aiming to make importation or exportation of products more difficult and/or costly. In this article we will analyze some examples of the NTBs that restrict the Arab Trade by identifying different forms of NTBs that restrict free trade under World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements. Some of these include TBT, dumping, safeguards and analyzing the agreement to facilitate and develop trade among the Arab States and how they handle these examples of NTBs, in order to evaluate the harmonization between WTO /TBT agreement and the agreement to facilitate and develop trade among the Arab States.