GTAP University (GTAP-U): GTAP Modeling Trade Policy Course
Objective
Trade policy is increasingly used as a strategic instrument to advance a wide range of national objectives, not only market access and competitiveness, but also supply security, resilience, strategic industries, and broader national interest goals. Governments face overlapping priorities such as managing trade imbalances, responding to shocks, and designing targeted tariff and non-tariff measures (NTMs) that align with domestic policy constraints and international commitments.
The GTAP Modeling Trade Policy (MTP) Course is designed to provide professionals and students with hands-on, applied training in the analysis of modern trade policy using the GTAP computable general equilibrium model (version 7). The course provides participants with an opportunity to develop practical skills in the design of policy experiments, the implementation of changes in tariff and non-tariff barriers, and the interpretation of model results for policy-relevant insights. The curriculum emphasizes an intuitive treatment of core economic theory, and provides structured, guided experience in running the standard GTAP Model within the RunGTAP software environment. Learning culminates in team-based research projects in which participants frame a real-world policy question, implement the relevant tariff and NTM scenarios, and communicate results in a way that supports decision-making. By the end of the course, participants will have strengthened their applied capacity to assess the economy-wide and sectoral implications of tariff and non-tariff policy options, including preferential trade agreement- style (PTA) liberalization scenarios or tariff hikes where relevant, within a broader trade policy context.
During the course, participants will:
- consider the potential impacts of trade policies, including on GDP, trade, factors of production and sectoral production – connecting applied model results to trade theories
- operationalize the modelling of different aspects of trade policies within the GTAP CGE model, including tariff and non-tariff barriers
- learn about different approaches to modelling non-tariff measures and their implications for importing and exporting countries
- learn how to interpret general equilibrium model results, including the impact of alternative closures
Past Courses
(In 2026, the GTAP Preferential Trade Agreements Course transitioned to the GTAP Modeling Trade Policy Course.)
Last Modified: Tuesday, April 14, 2026