38 - The reform of South Africa's anti-dumping regime

Summary

This case study examines the development and reform of South Africa's anti-dumping regime as an example of a country's participation in the WTO. The long history of the use of trade remedies by South Africa illustrates the fact that developing countries can successfully participate in the global trading system. By using the WTO's Anti-dumping Agreement (ADA) as a model for its own anti-dumping system, South Africa also serves as an example of how a country can make use of WTO instruments to ensure that its domestic legislation is complying with its international obligations.

The first section takes a brief look at the history of the use of trade remedies in South Africa, international developments on anti-dumping rules and the various legislative changes South Africa has undertaken in the past century that have helped shape its current anti-dumping system. It examines the factors that necessitated the reform of the South African anti-dumping regime, and briefly discusses the impact of the change in regional dynamics on the anti-dumping process in South Africa.

Section 2 gives an overview of the government, business and civil society players involved in the process of reforming the South African antidumping system. It also briefly touches on the roles of the various parties responsible for the administration of the system in the pre-apartheid and post-apartheid periods.

Section 3 identifies the challenges faced by these different players in the process of reforming the existing anti-dumping regime. Special attention is given to the impact of regional developments on the progress of South Africa's reform.