The World Trade Organisation (WTO) biennial meeting took place in December, with reportedly zero progress on any of the issues that were on the table. Important questions remain about how to ensure progress on the outstanding issues that still matter for developing countries and Fairtrade producers.
The WTO has always been a difficult space and civil society organisations have long been critical of a forum that has pursued an unquestioning liberalising agenda, and where developing country voices have often been squeezed out. Sadly, the action taken by the Argentinian government this year, banning various NGOs from participating in the summit – including friends of Fairtrade like Global Justice Now and Friends of the Earth – only goes to reinforce the worst fears of civil society.
So what does this all mean for the UK, currently gearing up for the possibility of becoming an ‘independent trading nation’? At a very basic level, it shows that getting things done at the WTO over the coming years is going to be incredibly tough. The multilateral system is creaking and it’s not yet clear how the UK will align itself outside of the EU (if indeed that is the end result). Our friend on the other side of the pond has already shown its true colours through the recent Bombardier dispute, and through its objection to the UK and EU plan for dividing up Tariff Rate Quotas (TRQs) post-Brexit. To put it simply, the United States shows no signs of abandoning its ‘America First’ agenda and remains hostile to the multilateral system.
An alternative approach could be for the UK to proactively align itself with the trade for development agenda being articulated by developing countries themselves. Fundamentally, this means putting agriculture and food security front and centre. Many wealthy countries continue to subsidise their domestic industries, such as cotton, while poorer countries have no such support in place and can be prevented from stockholding for food security purposes on the basis that this is ‘trade-distorting’. The unfairness of this is plain for all to see and is currently playing out in a very tangible way in relation to sugar. With recent changes to the EU sugar regime now being implemented, Fairtrade exporters of cane sugar from Caribbean countries like Belize and Jamaica, reliant on refiners in the UK, must now compete harder with subsidised EU beet sugar.
The UK could be well placed to step into this distinctive global leadership role. The government has already announced its intention, following in the EU’s footsteps, to offer duty-free and quota-free access to the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) post-Brexit, and to roll over other preferences.
Sadly the WTO’s policy alignment with developing countries isn’t yet there but there is still time – the UK could still become a genuine champion of trade for development and stand alongside the LDCs and other developing countries in their demands of the WTO. Whether they will have the weight to make a difference outside of the EU bloc is another question.
No comments yet