WTO Meeting in Hong Kong: What’s in it for Women?

Women’s Edge Coalition 1825 Connecticut Avenue NW Suite 800 Washington, D.C. 20009 USA Phone: (202) 884-8396 email: edge@womensedge.org

WTO Meeting in Hong Kong: What’s in it for Women?

Last month, the countries of the World Trade Organization (WTO) met in
Hong Kong from December 13-18 2005 to revitalize and push forward the
‘Doha round’ of trade talks.  Their challenge was to ensure that the
needs of developing countries were kept at the core of the negotiating
agenda, as was promised at the beginning of the round in 2001.  After
Hong Kong, most issues remain unresolved, and negotiations will continue
through 2006. 

WTO member countries however did come to agreement on certain issues
that will have implications for poor women around the world.  For
example, developed country governments agreed to eliminate farm export
subsidies by 2013 and cotton export subsidies by the end of 2006. Export
subsidies are specifically designed to encourage the export of certain
goods.  Many governments, however, also subsidize farmers directly in
the form of payments, and the reduction of these direct payments has not
yet been addressed by WTO members. Agricultural subsidies have been widely
criticized internationally because they artificially lower the prices of
farm exports from rich nations, making it difficult for farmers from
developing nations to compete.  Ending subsidies could affect women’s
lives both as producers and as consumers of food.  Women, in fact,
produce 60 to 80 percent of the food grown in poor nations, but tend to be
small or subsistence farmers who usually do not export their goods.

The United States and other developed country governments also agreed
to improve duty- and quota-free access for exports from least developed
countries (LDCs).  By 2008, they will grant such access for 97
percent of products, or tariff lines.  As a result, women exporters
in LDCs will be better able to compete in the U.S. market, because the
majority of their goods will not face the discrimination of tariffs or
quota limitations.  Many LDCs already have duty-free access to the
U.S. market under other programs, and while the new proposal will increase
market access opportunities for LDCs, certain products, such as textiles
and apparel, will likely remain subject to customs duties.

Developed countries also committed to higher amounts of ‘aid for trade’
in Hong Kong, with the United States committing to increase its annual
trade capacity building assistance (TCBA) from $1.3 billion in 2005 to
$2.7 billion by 2010. TCBA is international assistance given to poor or
transitional countries to help them participate in global trade and can
include the training of trade negotiators and help to small businesses on
how to export their goods.  The international community has come to
realize that without such assistance, trade liberalization alone will not
necessarily bring about economic development. In the future, more of this
assistance could go directly to helping poor women in developing countries
take advantage of the opportunities that trade has to offer.

Looking ahead, the current Doha round is expected to conclude at the
end of the year. Yet there is much more to be done in order to make this
round a true ‘development round,’ as it was initially billed. WTO member
countries could go much further this year in creating real economic
opportunities for women, who are the majority of the world’s poor. For
example, greater reform of international agricultural markets and
increased market access for textiles and apparel could improve women’s
livelihoods. Apart from being the majority of the world’s agricultural
labor force, women account for the majority of textile and apparel workers
in many developing countries.  The latter is especially true in Asia,
where, according to the International Labor Organization, women account
for 89 percent of the textile and apparel sector in Cambodia, 80 percent
in Bangladesh, and 82 percent in Sri Lanka.  If the promise of the
Doha round is to be fulfilled, it is important that women like them see
more of the benefits of trade.     

Published January 10,
2006