International trade
Unleashing African Growth
IPN Opinion article
Despite the collapse of the Doha trade talks, some countries are making unilateral reforms to speed up trade: a World Bank report and recent reforms in Africa show there are huge benefits available without any international negotiation or agreeement. Compare this progress with the damage done by aid, perpetuating poverty, corruption and protectionism.
Weep not for Doha
IPN Opinion article
The Doha Round has staggered to a slow death, with dire predictions of what will befall us, but this research shows the cheerful news that trade is expanding massively without the WTO and that unilateral bureaucratic reforms can be even more valuable to trade than tariff reductions.
Rising food prices, protectionism and the poor
IPN Opinion article
Food prices have drastically risen over the past year, causing street protests from Mexico to India to Senegal; it is the poorest countries that will benefit most from dropping their own tariffs in response to this.
Protectionism harms consumers and the environment
IPN Opinion article
Proposals to restrict imports from countries which do not reduce greenhouse gas emissions are simply protectionism. They would decrease world trade, disproportionately harming poorer countries, and favour the status quo by rewarding inefficient producers and thus delaying the adoption of cleaner, resource-saving technologies.
The Role of Trade for Development
As the future of the Doha Round becomes ever more uncertain, protectionist sentiment is building up in the USA, Europe and developing countries. Fredrik Erikson (ECIPE) will discuss how trade can help economic development, and prospects for the future of the multilateral trading regime.
World Trade Begins at Home
IPN Opinion article
The rhetoric about who is to blame for failing to conclude trade agreements between Europe and Africa obscures a far more important point: Africa is never going to get rich while its governments restrict trade between its own countries, EU deals or not.
