Frequent concessions
In the world of international trade, there is something called national treatment. Ordinarily, the issue of national treatment would be of little concern since it has been a long accepted practice of global trade. It can be found in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. It became a part of the General Agreement on Trade in Services in 1995. It is also part of the Agreement on Trade in Intellectual Property Rights and the Agreement on Trade-related Investment Measures (TRIMS). The push towards the liberalization of trade in services has been prompted by, among other things, technical innovations which have enhanced the tradability of services. For Guyana, the issue of trade in services has begun to take on significance because of its relevance to the many infrastructural projects built with the use of foreign capital and labour. The interest in the matter stems from the frequent concessions that Guyana gives to certain countries to undertake projects locally.
National treatment
National treatment is about foreign goods and services gaining equal access to a domestic market. Under the WTO rules, the national treatment principle says that imports should be treated no differently from similar domestic goods. For example, beer that is imported into Guyana should be treated no differently from beer produced in Guyana. However, it should be kept in mind that goods which are close substitutes for the protected domestic item could also trigger a violation of the principle. In addition to trade in goods, the national treatment principle could be found in trade in services,
