Pushing Doha through
Egypt and Australia should support their common trade interests, writes Australian Minister for Trade Mark Vaile
I am delighted to visit Egypt for important trade talks, particularly the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Informal Ministerial Meeting being hosted by my good friend the Egyptian Minister for Foreign Trade, Dr Youssef Boutros-Ghali, in Sharm El-Sheikh, 20-22 June.
As middle-sized powers, Egypt and Australia have a strategic and influential role to play in providing new momentum in the push to open world markets through the Doha Round of trade negotiations in the WTO.
The benefits of opening world markets are clear. Trade liberalisation increases exports, contributes to economic growth and helps alleviate poverty. Oxfam International estimates that a one per cent increase in world export share for each developing country region could reduce poverty by 12 per cent. That is 128 million people rising out of poverty worldwide.
Egypt and Australia are active trading nations who share a strong and mutually beneficial trading relationship across a range of products, particularly agricultural, primary products, machinery and services such as consultancy services.
We share strong common interests in the reduction of market access barriers and trade distorting support, particularly in agriculture.
The potential gains from agricultural liberalisation are impressive and especially relevant to Egypt and Australia who do not unfairly subsidise their farmers. Total support in rich countries, like the United States, European Union and Japan, was $318 billion last year -- more than six times the world's total aid spending and more than twice the total value of developing country agriculture exports. A 50 per cent reduction in agricultural support would result in $14 billion accruing to developing countries by 2010.
Egypt and Australia have been through tough economic reforms over the last 15 to 20 years. Ultimately, both our nations have benefited by unleashing the productivity of our economies, particularly in agriculture. It is now up to the rich developed countries to make the difficult decisions in the WTO and reform their agriculture sectors so all nations compete in world export markets on an equal footing.
Australia has been deeply impressed by the robust and constructive role Egypt is playing in the WTO agricultural negotiations. Egypt has a key leadership role among developing countries in both the African and Arab groups.
Similarly, Australia, as chair of the Cairns Group of agriculture exporting nations, plays an important role in efforts to build support for ambitious agriculture reform.
Egypt and Australia are strategically placed to bring these groups together to support WTO reforms that result in real agricultural market access improvements in developed country markets. Together, these groups would be a formidable force to counter the traditional protectionists.
Australia and Egypt are already using their influence by hosting informal meetings of trade ministers to boost negotiations. I hosted a mini- ministerial meeting in Sydney, Australia in November last year.
It's not surprising to see Dr Youssef Boutros- Ghali take a leadership role by hosting another informal meeting for trade ministers. With his negotiating skills and the respect he has among world trade ministers, the Sharm El-Sheikh meeting will have a good chance of moving the agenda forward.
The timing of this meeting is crucial. It provides an important opportunity to achieve progress in negotiations on industrials, services, special and differential treatment, access to medicines as well as agriculture, prior to the Fifth WTO Ministerial Conference in Cancun in September.
For the sake of the success of the Doha Round and our economic prospects, I hope our two nations will use our strategic positions to help broker a positive outcome in the WTO.
Al-Ahram Weekly Online : 19 - 25 June 2003 (Issue No. 643)
Located at: http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2003/643/ec2.htm