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up to E-NewsWDM verdict on G8 action on trade justice, debt cancellation, more and better aid
The Make Poverty History Campaign set a range of challenges to the G8 on aid, debt and trade. What follows is an analysis of G8 commitments on all of these demands.
Trade
Make Poverty History demand: No longer demand trade reforms as a condition of aid or debt relief and use their controlling stake in the World Bank and IMF to ensure that these institutions do likewise.
Outcome of G8 2005: The G8 state that, "It is up to developing countries themselves and their governments to take the lead on development. They need to decide, plan and sequence their economic policies to fit with their own development strategies, for which they should be accountable to all their people." If the G8 countries really mean what they say, they will abolish all economic policy conditions attached to their own bilateral aid programmes and vote for abolishing all economic policy conditions attached to World Bank and IMF loans, grants and debt relief.
WDM remains to be convinced given that the G8 countries will do so. At his joint press conference with Tony Blair in June, George Bush said, "We're really not interested in supporting a government that doesn't have open economies and open markets. We expect there to be, you know, reciprocation."[5]
Make Poverty History demand: Work with other WTO members to support binding Special and Differential Treatment for all developing countries in the WTO to ensure that they are not forced to implement agreements that are against their own development interests.
Outcome of G8 2005: The now well-worn rhetoric on the ‘Doha Development Agenda’ was trotted out with no meaningful commitments made on Special and Differential Treatment for developing countries in the WTO.
Make Poverty History demand: Commit to keeping water supply out of the General Agreement on Trade in Services and to withdrawing all requests that other WTO members make legally binding liberalisation commitments in the water supply sector.
Outcome of G8 2005: There was no mention of GATS and water in the communiqué.
Make Poverty History demand: Work within the WTO to ensure that developing countries can reduce their tariffs by a smaller amount than developed countries, and protect some key development products from any reduction at all, in all sectors under negotiation in the WTO.
Outcome of G8 2005: The now well-worn rhetoric on the ‘Doha Development Agenda’ was trotted out with no meaningful commitments made on Special and Differential Treatment for developing countries in the WTO.
Make Poverty History demand: Follow through the mandate established at the World Summit on Sustainable Development to "Actively promote corporate responsibility and accountability, based on Rio Principles, including through the full development and effective implementation of intergovernmental agreements…", by committing to work with other UN members to establish binding internationally agreed rules for corporate accountability.
Outcome of G8 2005: The communiqué only made reference to voluntary schemes such as the UN Global Compact and no commitment was made on binding regulations for multinationals.
Make Poverty History demand: Commit to unilaterally eliminating all agricultural export subsidies by 2010 and ensuring that no agricultural exports are dumped on the markets of developing countries.
Outcome of G8 2005: The G8 refused to unilaterally agree to eliminate export subsidies. Instead the G8 agreed to work in the WTO to set a ‘credible end date’ for export subsidies. This is no more than they have already committed to achieving in the WTO.
Make Poverty History demand: Work to ensure that global trade policies and practices do not undercut internationally agreed social and environmental standards, in particular core labour standards, and as a first step work with other WTO members to support granting the ILO full observer status at the WTO.
Outcome of G8 2005: There was no mention of the ILO in reference to trade in the communiqué.
Make Poverty History demand: Commit to not creating bilateral and regional trade agreements that require developing countries to go beyond commitments made in the WTO.
Outcome of G8 2005:There was no mention in the communiqué of bilateral/regional deals that go beyond WTO rules.
Notes:
[5] Transcript: Joint Press Conference with President Bush and Prime Minister Blair, Tuesday, June 7, 2005; 4:20 PM. Washington Post.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/07/
AR2005060701118.html
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