Trade and development in view of eradication of poverty and food safety

The European Parliament adopted its own-initiative report drafted by Nirj DEVA (EPP-ED, UK) on poverty and trade. (Please refer to the document dated 11/06/02.) The report contains detailed views about the WTO Ministerial Round at Doha. Members stated that, if the problems in the areas of social injustice, development and the environment caused by the untrammelled liberalisation of trade and deregulation are to be resolved, a serious assessment of the Uruguay Round Agreements must be drawn up. Community policies, particularly in the areas of trade liberalisation, agriculture, fisheries, the environment and public health must be revised in order to take greater account of their impact on poverty, food security, sustainable development and the links between these phenomena. On the TRIPS Agreement, Parliament pointed out that the issue of developing countries that do not produce generic medicinal products was not dealt with by the Doha Ministerial Declaration. There must be a reassessment of the link between the TRIPs Agreement and global agreements on the protection of biodiversity, recognising that sustainable development and consumers rights come before those of business in the field of access to medicines, patenting life forms, biotechnology and biodiversity. The rights of farmers in the developing world must be protected. The EU must support amendments to Article 27.3(b) of the TRIPs Agreement. The latter must support the view that living organisms and their parts cannot be patented. The right of traditional farmers to save, exchange and use seeds must be protected, as must local farming community innovations.�