From Africa Recovery, Vol.12#1 (August 1998), Briefs page

Africa hits global trade 'inequities'

Many of the special measures designed to help African and other poor countries join and benefit from the liberalized international market have not yet been implemented, African trade ministers declared at the 18-20 May meetings of the World Trade Organization (WTO), held in Geneva. On behalf of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and African Economic Community (AEC), they expressed concern over ongoing "inequities" in the multilateral trading system, noting that Africa in particular "continues to be bypassed" by the benefits of growth and global integration.

Many African countries have experienced difficulties in adjusting their economies to an increasingly competitive world market and in implementing policies required by the WTO, the ministers said. As South African President Nelson Mandela said during his address to the session marking the 50th anniversary of the General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs (GATT), the WTO's predecessor: "Rules must be applied without fear or favour, but if they contain prescriptions that cannot be complied with by all, or the results benefit too few, then injustice will emerge."

The world's 48 least-developed countries (LDCs), of which 33 are in Africa, account for just 0.04 per cent of world exports, said LDC ministers. Zimbabwean Industry and Commerce Minister Nathan Shamuyarira called for "special measures to deal with their difficult situation." African ministers declared that WTO Director-General Renato Ruggiero's proposal for duty-free treatment of products originating from LDCs has been "all but forgotten."

Noting that WTO negotiations recently have broadened to encompass new areas, such as basic telecommunications and financial services, the African ministers urged that new issues not be taken up until the Uruguay Round agreements favouring the poorest countries actually are implemented. Among other points, they appealed for increased market access for African exports, compensatory aid to food-importing countries, technical assistance to help African governments implement their obligations and exercise their rights under the WTO agreement, and the granting of observer status to the OAU/AEC in WTO bodies.

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