International trade and policy framework
International trade and investment agreements can have positive outcomes, but also have negative consequences that affect global health and influence fundamental health determinants: poverty, inequality and the environment. International trade policy framework. The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates international trade. The WTO officially commenced on 1 January 1995 under the Marrakesh Agreement, signed by 124 nations on 15 April 1994, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which commenced in 1948. Taken together, these universal and multilaterally endorsed goals provide a critical framework for policy orientation for the next 15 years. In the absence of new international financial commitments, trade—and, more broadly, policies that affect trade flows—will have a significant role to play in the implementation process.