Law Commons^™

Capturing The Benefits Of Trade? Local Content Requirements In Wto Law And The Human Rights-Based Approach To Development, Gillian Moon

Gillian F Moon Ms

Governments have often taken steps to require businesses to source some or all of their inputs locally – that is, have imposed ‘local content requirements’ - in order to encourage regional development and the growth of local manufacturing industry. This paper looks at the ways in which WTO law on trade in goods now constrains the ability of developing countries to implement local content requirements and considers two issues arising. First, WTO constraints on the use of local content requirements raise general concerns about a narrowing of the range of development strategy options open to developing countries. Secondly, the constraints …