The EU-India FTA and its possible Impact on Women in Agriculture, Service Sector and Women’s Health.

Since several years, India and the European Union are negotiating a free trade agreement (FTA). The proposed Indo-EU FTA will span a large number of sector, from agricultural and industrial production to services. The two government parties expect this agreement to be beneficial in expanding trade relations between India and Europe. However, there are many concerns about negative impacts of the agreement on specific sectors, and such fears are increased by the largely secret character of the negotiations.

India-EU trade relations are likely to undergo major changes under the proposed FTA. This process will go along with costs of adjustment that are likely to be borne disproportionately by vulnerable groups. Women, in general, are particularly vulnerable, as earlier history of developing country trade experiences have shown. The Indian experience has been no exception. In each sector/segment being negotiated, women’s equality, which is already severely compromised in the Indian socio-economic context, stands to be significantly affected. Even in case of additional employment and incomes, gender disparities in work conditions and wages have often been found to persist especially in trade linked sectors like textiles. Trade in general also has severe implications for womens’ health.

In a context where it has become increasingly clear that trade policy is not ‘gender-neutral’, the following 4 research papers take a detailed look at the nature and extent of the linkages. The ‘Trade and Gender’ series of publications analyzes and debates the possible gender impact of the currently negotiated EU-India Free Trade agreement on agriculture, services and health. 

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The Current Trade Paradigm and Women's Health Concerns in India: With Special Reference to the Proposed EU-India Free Trade Agreement.

- India is currently negotiating a Free Trade Agreement with the European Union, which includes not only liberalization of commodity trading, but also a wide range of chapters including deep services trade liberalization, full investment liberalization, and stricter IPR conditions than the TRIPS norms.

The EU India FTA in Agriculture and Likely Impact on Indian Women.

- India's trade policy has undergone a significant shift towards an increasing engagement with Free Trade Agreements as compared to unilateral trade liberalization or multilateral trade liberalization through the WTO. This shift in India's trade policy has had a significant impact on the agriculture sector which no longer enjoys the exclusive protection it has received so far.

The EU-India FTA in Services and Possible Gender Impact in India: Concern Areas

- This paper studies the impact of services trade liberalization under the currently negotiated EU-India FTA on women’s lives in India and tries to delineate the concern areas. Services sector liberalization can affect women in two major ways; by creating or destroying employment and incomes; and by, affecting the access to critical basic services like credit, health, education, water, energy.