International trade is duly called as the “engine of growth”\ud
and is inextricably linked with economic development. Nevertheless,\ud
trade is also vulnerable to economic slowdown as in the current\ud
global environment. Many of the developing countries are getting\ud
exposed to declining demand for exports and increased\ud
protectionism. Even in times of strong economic growth, trade and\ud
its benefits had not been evenly distributed across the developing\ud
world and the growth had been asymmetric. The World Trade\ud
Organization (WTO) which officially commenced on January 1st,\ud
1995 under the Marrakesh Agreement, replacing the General\ud
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), intends to supervise and\ud
liberalize international trade through negotiations aiming at expansion of rules–based trade and\ud
thereby gearing trade policies to support development. When the developing countries were\ud
liberalizing their economies, they felt the need for better export opportunities. The\ud
establishment of WTO is an important landmark in the history of international trade as it\ud
provides opportunities for countries to grow and realize their export potentials, with\ud
appropriate domestic policies in place