Indeed, this is a critical moment for the world economy and the (trade negotiations processes that are shaping it. Two weeks from today, Ministers of the World Trade Organization (WTO) will meet in Cancun, Mexico in a decisive meeting for the future of the negotiations under the Doha round and for discussions on subjects of particular interest for developing countries such as agriculture, services, subsidies and special and differential treatment. Three months later the Ministers of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) will have their gathering in Miami, USA to set up the basis for the last 12-month sprint, which should conclude with the establishment of the FTAA at the end of 2004.

The meeting in Mexico happens at a time in which developing countries find themselves disenchanted with the liberalisation process and the non-materialisation of the promised benefits.

Today it is evident that, despite the recognition made at Doha, and reflected in the work programme set there, of the need to include the concerns of developing countries, the lack of progress so far achieved in key issues, such as agriculture and special and differential treatment highlights the difficulties of the ministers in obtaining significant agreements in their meeting in Mexico, and certainly compromises the outcome of the negotiations and the future of the round itself.

Efforts outside of the WTO’s official channels have been ineffective. A meeting of Ministers from 25 countries held in Montreal, Canada, last June and the recent joint declaration issued by the United States and the European Union on the reduction of subsidies on agriculture have been unable to bridge the differences of positions between the developed and developing countries.

The new mood is that future negotiations will be meaningful for developing countries only if the trade scheme to be implemented is designed with the explicit objective of obtaining the kind of economic growth that leads to the enrichment of our populations in all dimensions. The need to introduce the human dimension into the trade equation has become clear.

In order to achieve this objective, the trade scheme must respond to the developmental needs of the countries, enabling them not only to compete effectively, but also to make full use of these benefits to foster their development as a society. To this end, the trade scheme must make way for the development of policies that would deepen the links between trade and social and economic progress. The new trade rules should give our countries the flexibility to pursue their developmental objectives.

Moreover, mechanisms aimed at facilitating the transition process, including the acquisition of technology, should be provided. Mechanisms should also be established to take into account the vulnerabilities and characteristics of developing countries, in particular the smallest among them. The new trade rules should take into account the specific needs of our countries, both transitory and permanent.

The long-term viability of the present trade schemes relies heavily on the inclusion of the concerns of developing countries. Only this will lend credibility to the multilateral commercial systems and those underway at regional level.

The sustainability of trade schemes also depends on closing the gaps in income and development among developed and developing countries – this must be another explicit objective of the trade schemes.

These ideas are part of a new vision of the role of trade. In this new vision, long-term human development lies at the centre and is the raison d’être of the trade schemes. It also requires an element that has thus far been absent from trade relations between the developed and developing world – solidarity.

Reaping the benefits of the liberalisation process would require the negotiating skills of governments and the economic ingenuity of the business sector and the active participation of the civil society at large. It is the success with which we respond to this challenge that will determine whether the new trade realities improve the welfare of our people.

The shared concerns and interests of the countries of the Greater Caribbean provide ample spaces for cooperation, complementarity and for building consensus. The ACS is playing an increasing role as facilitator of cooperation and dialogue in the Greater Caribbean, a role that complements the efforts of our countries to integrate effectively into the international economy and to improve the well being of our people.

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