WITS - Trade Policy Tools - April 21 - 22, 2008

Day 1 - Data Retrieval and Analysis

Summary: The first day of this 2-day course will train participants on how to

1. retrieve trade and tariffs data, and non tariff barriers information from four databases
2. perform tariff cut simulations, and
3. analyze the data.

World Integrated Trade Solution (WITS) is free software developed by the World Bank and United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) for analyzing international trade flows and national trade policies. It provides access to the most important sources of trade and protection data through a single, easy-to use interface.

Presenters: Azita Amjadi, Information Officer, DECRG
                  Philip Schuler, Senior Economist, PRMTR

• Presentation (pdf - 7mb)
  

Day 2 - Simulation of Trade Policy Reforms

Summary: On Day 2, this course continues from the Introductory Course and focuses on WITS simulation tools with the objective to equip participants with various tools and knowledge to conduct simple simulations to study the economic impact of various trade-policy scenarios. The course presents theoretical background on partial equilibrium modeling and Armington assumption, Doha negotiation framework, tariff base and tariff change definitions. These concepts are applied using WITS simulation tools. Through hands-on exercises, participants learn how to define step-by-step a simulation in WITS and to read results. At the end of the course, participants will be able to quantify the potential effects of user-defined tariff change scenarios on trade flows, tariff revenue and welfare.

Presenters: Soamiely Andriamananjara, Senior Economist, WBIPR

• Presentation (pdf - 900k)
• Exercises and Answers (pdf - 1.2mb)

Target audience: Country teams working on trade policy

 Last updated on Aug 28, 2008