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Tanzania gears up to host key trade meet
2006-11-12 10:06:55
By Correspondent Michael Haonga
Preparations are underway for Tanzania to host a three- day annual workshop on ”The Relationship between the International Trade System (TPTCA), World Trade Organization (WTO), Least Developed Countries (LDC’s’) Current Situation; Challenges and Potential.
Arusha will be the venue for the workshop scheduled to stretch from November 29, to December 1 .
According to a statement issued by the Director of WTO, Pascal Lamy, the workshop would in particular focus on challenges associated with trade in agricultural goods and the main reasons behind temporary suspension of the Doha round.
It is noted that the workshop is in line with the Centre’s overall objective to create ”enhanced understanding of the trade policy issues in the LDCs which will support poverty reduction through better access to foreign markets and an increased integration into the world economy on more beneficial terms for low-income developing countries”.
He adds that it is not surprising that the Doha round of trade has been classified as the development round and is one of the intended contributors to the Millennium development Goals.
Other issues seen as being preliminary to be dealt with is the Aid For Trade that is intended to contribute to the development agenda in the WTO negotiations that includes the LDC’s access to the global markets for non-agricultural products which is an issue that is important in the international trade negotiations.
On TPTCA target and rationale, it is noted that the target market for TPTCA is the LDCs and low income sub-Saharan Africa countries.
The LDC is seen as a group of 50 countries, most of them in sub-Saharan Africa which are identified by the united nations as ”least developed” in terms of their low gross national income per capita, their weak human assets and their high degree of economic vulnerability, leaving it as the region with the largest proportion of people living below one US dollar a day.
It is noted that the consequences of the WTO differ for these countries, since in several agreements the LDCs are granted additional exception over and above the usual special treatment available to developing countries.
Further noted is that many developing countries have not been able to benefit from globalization and that this applies in particular to the LDCs and the low income sub Saharan African countires which have become increasingly marginalized in the world economy during the past decades .
It is noted that contrary to common belief, these countries are highly dependent on exports and imports of goods and services and the share of foreign trade of their GDP is higher than that of the OECD countries.Examples given include the fact that LDCs share of world population in 2000 was 11 per cent while their share of world GDP was 0.6 per cent,
The same figure is seen to be applicable for the LDCs’ share of world trade which was also 0.6 per cent and that the situation for sub-Saharan Africa countries is especially alarming - their share of world trade in merchandise products has decreased from 3.7 per cent in 1980 to 1.5 per cent in the year 2000.
It is contended that if this situation persists, it may be estimated that the number of people living in extreme poverty in the LDCs will increase from 334 million in 2000 to 471 million in 2015.
The three day session would assemble inputs of participants who are mainly senior officers in trade policy, trade negotiations, trade lobbyists in NGOs and private sector, trade lawyers and standard organizations.
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