For Immediate Release:	September 15, 2003
For More Information:	Ana Rahona, Women's Edge Coalition, arahona@womensedge.org, 202.884.8399
Sponsor Organization:	Women's Edge Coalition
THE WOMEN'S EDGE COALITION URGES THE WTO AND U.S. TO CAREFULLY ANALYZE TRADE AGREEMENTS BEFORE TALKS BEGIN AGAIN
Cancun, Mexico, September 15, 2003 – The major fault lines between rich and poor countries finally cracked open on Sunday as WTO talks collapsed in Cancun. A newly formed group of developing countries, including China, India and Brazil, stuck together to resist new negotiations and trade rules they felt were stacked against the poor, including the slashing of farm subsidies. The Women’s Edge Coalition sees the collapse as a victory for the world’s poor, the majority of whom are women. Without careful consideration, trade agreements have unintended, negative consequences on the poor in developing countries. More comprehensive research on the true impact of trade is urgently needed to ensure that the poor benefit from trade in reality, not just rhetorically. Such research may be the only way out of the current deadlock between rich and poor nations in the WTO. The Women’s Edge Coalition developed a viable alternative to dealing with unintended consequences with its Trade Impact Review (TIR). The TIR is a tool that allows trade negotiators to forecast how trade agreements will affect, positively or negatively, poor women and men in developing countries before the agreements are locked in place. The organization urges the WTO and the U.S. to conduct a TIR on all trade agreements before moving forward. “Many developing countries and non-governmental organizations alike called for a slow down or halt to negotiations until the true impact and results of the global trading system can be well researched and understood,” said Elise Fiber Smith, co-founder and board president, Women’s Edge Coalition. “It is impossible to make good trade policy in the current environment in which the comprehensive positive and negative consequences of trade rules are virtually unknown.” “The most positive outcome of the WTO Ministerial is the very healthy trend of poor, developing countries in becoming more attuned to the status of the poor in their countries and forcing poverty issues onto the trade agenda,” said Ritu Sharma, co-founder and executive director, Women’s Edge Coalition. “It is a fundamental change in the rules of the trade negotiating game.” For more information on women and trade and the collapse of the WTO, contact Ana Rahona at the Women’s Edge Coalition, 202.884.8399, arahona@womensedge.org. About the Women’s Edge Coalition The Women’s Edge Coalition, created in 1998, advocates with the U.S. government for international economic and human right policies that support women worldwide in ending poverty in their lives, communities and nations. The organization pushes for pioneering development aid programs and offers positive alternatives to current trade policies that benefit and empower the poorest women. The Women’s Edge Coalition has researched and developed several initiatives including the GAINS for Womens and Girls Act and the Trade Impact Review. For more information visit http://www.womensedge.org.