Theodore H. Cohn

The 1978–9 Negotiations for an International Wheat Agreement: An Opportunity Lost?

In February 1978 a United Nations conference was convened with the purpose of negotiating a new agreement to replace the ineffective 1971 International Wheat Agreement (IWA). More than sixty countries were represented, and about forty of these were regular participants. The conference was suspended in February 1979 following three intensive but unsuccessful negotiating sessions. Differences among exporters, importers, and less-developed countries (LDCS) could not be resolved. Consequently, the 1971 IWA was extended for two years. This article will discuss the basic characteristics of the 1978-9 conference and some of the factors contributing to the breakdown of the negotiation. Strategies adopted by the major exporters, in particular domestic constraints on their behaviour in the negotiation, will also be examined.