Goals

Overall Goals

Overall Goals

The overall goal of BATModel is to improve existing trade modelling tools and approaches, equipped for the analysis of 21st century trade issues with a focus on agriculture and food to support policy analysis. The current needs of the users are to better account for previously neglected or insufficiently covered issues such as NTMs, GIs, zero trade flows and quality differentiation (as explicitly mentioned in the text of the call), as well as GVCs and distributional and sustainability impacts of trade liberalisation and trade policy. BATModel will address these shortcomings by building upon advances in international trade theory and global value chain frameworks. As a major contribution, BATModel will bridge the gap between the
established simulation models, based on the aggregate agent paradigm, and the micro evidence revealed by models that account for heterogeneity in firms, territories, producers and consumers. The enhancements enabled by BATModel will be operationally implemented through interchangeable and well-documented open-source modules. A test case of an existing free trade agreement and different case studies will be performed to assess the capability of the new modules to improve model-based assessment of agri-food trade. Ultimately, this will provide a new generation of modular trade modelling tools to support the European Commission (EC) in designing and assessing trade-related policies and international agreements.

Know the objectives

Know the objectives

Scientific Objectives

1.

To extend and improve existing simulation models for the analysis of agri-food trade policies by building upon and progressing beyond the state-of-the-art using theory and echometric based evidence.

2.

To improve the representation of important agri-food trade features such as emerging trade flows, quality differentiation and global value chain issues in trade simulation models.

3.

To design and provide a new toolbox of modules to analyse trade policy measures such as NTMs and GIs consistently, reflecting their growing importance in international trade negotiations.

4.

To ensure that the model improvements achieved in BATModel can be used in a modular way in multiple well established trade models by creating the BATModel Modular Platform for Agri-food TradeModelling to support policy-makers and other stakeholders in international trade negotiations, especially in the context of “new generation” trade agreements during and after the project’s lifetime.

5.

To thoroughly test the improved and extended models in policy-relevant applications to deliver operational modular modelling tools to scholars and practitioners for quantitative policy analyses.

Economic Objectives

6.

To better address societal concerns with regard to employment, working conditions, health and income distribution as well as preferences through new and improved economic modelling approaches that ensure the provision of relevant, i.e., salient, understandable, measurable and reliable results for all stakeholders (the private sector, NGOs and the general public).

7.

To develop methodologies and related indicators to assess the (positive and negative) impacts ofinternational agri-food trade policies on societal challenges including income inequality, labour displacement, nutritional and environmental impacts across regional scales along with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

8.

To share and discuss the approaches and findings of the project with research communities to involve policy-makers, the private sector, NGOs and the general public in a process of co-design of case studies and share results in a easily usable manner with via the BATmodel Dissemination and Stakeholder Platform. It will be open to other platforms and policy-makers and will provide learning materials. Three science-policy workshops will discuss and identify policy priorities, suggest case studies and test the BATModel toolbox.