IDEALS

CARACAS, (Aug. 12, 2009) IPS/GIN – New trade agreements worth 1.1
billion dollars have been signed by Argentina and Venezuela, which
has decided to stop importing goods from Colombia and get its
supplies from other sources.

Trade between Argentina and Venezuela amounted to 1.4 billion
dollars in 2008, compared to 7.3 billion dollars in trade between
Venezuela and Colombia, with a balance of six to one in favour of
Bogot .

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WINDHOEK, (Aug. 20, 2009) IPS/GIN – Access to the European markets
is not a goal Namibia wants to accomplish at all costs. Neither is
the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) holy. What counts in the
country’s realpolitik approach is a close relationship with its
neighbors, especially regional economic powerhouse South Africa but
also oil-rich Angola.

This position was voiced by Calle Schlettwein, permanent secretary
in the Ministry of Finance at an Aug. 17 talk on the economic
partnership agreements (EPAs) in Windhoek, hosted by the Friedrich
Ebert Foundation and the Agricultural Trade Forum. Read the rest of this entry →

Tensions between the European
Union and Africa have once again erupted, with Namibia accusing the
Brussels elite of resorting to bullying tactics in trade
negotiations.

In official statements, the European Commission — the EU’s
executive — has consistently argued that the Economic Partnership
Agreements (EPAs) it has been hoping to conclude with 47 African
countries will bring tangible benefits to the continent. African
governments have proven far less enthusiastic about these trade
liberalization accords, with some arguing that they are fomenting
divisions among neighbors.

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Zimbabwe is facing suspension
from the global diamond trade for its failure to end human rights
violations at the Chiadzwa diamond fields.

A new review under the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme
(KPCS) found the country guilty of “serious non-compliance” with
the scheme’s minimum criteria on conflict diamonds. Specifically,
the militarization of the southern African country’s diamond mining
operations has not been curbed.

The KPCS is a global initiative of governments, civil society and
industry aimed at stemming the trade in blood or conflict diamonds
- stones sold by forces to finance wars and civil conflict.

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The Peruvian government refuses to change the contract it signed with Consorcio Camisea to export
natural gas to Mexico, as demanded by the governors of the southern
provinces of Arequipa, Cuzco, Moquegua, Puno and Tacna, who are
worried about shortages of local supplies.

The governors want Peruvian President Alan Garc°a to modify the
contract signed in 2006 during the administration of former
president Alejandro Toledo (2001-2006) to export four trillion
cubic feet of gas. Read the rest of this entry →

The European Union Danube Strategy
(DS), unfolding this year, is proving to be a litmus test for the
viability of the concept of ‘green growth’ in Eastern Europe.

Hosting a conference on the Strategy, Bulgarian Prime Minister
Boyko Borisov made it clear he understands the DS to mean road
building. Read the rest of this entry →

GENEVA, (May 13, 2009) IPS/GIN – The new U.S. administration’s
first appearance on the WTO scene demonstrated “a willingness to
engage in dialogue, and greater openness,” but in substance “it did
not show major differences with the past,” said one negotiator,
commenting on U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk’s visit to this
Swiss city.

Kirk, who was appointed in March by President Barack Obama, was
circumspect during his three days of meetings with colleagues from
some of the 153 WTO (World Trade Organisation) member states, which
ended Wednesday. Read the rest of this entry →

BRUSSELS, (May 7, 2009) IPS/GIN – The exposure of the European
Commission’s (EC) manufacturing of African business support for the
contentious economic partnership agreements (EPAs) has so far
elicited little action by members of the European Parliament.

This is despite these revelations being acknowledged as
‘’scandalous”.

On March 23 the Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO) revealed that
it was the EC that in fact orchestrated what was officially called
”African business-driven support” for the EPAs. The CEO is an
independent watchdog group working to expose the influence enjoyed
by corporations in European Union (EU) policy making. Read the rest of this entry →

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, (Apr. 8, 2010) IPS/GIN – When Caribbean
leaders sit across the table from their European counterparts at
a May summit in Spain, high on their agenda will be eliminating the
problems experienced by banana and sugar producers in gaining
access to the European market.

Following a meeting in Dominica on Mar. 12, Caribbean leaders noted
that the market access concessions on bananas and rum, granted by
Europe in pending free trade agreements with Colombia and Peru,
will pose serious challenges for Caribbean countries.

However, former University of the West Indies professor Vaughan
Lewis, who chaired a working group on the Governance of the
15-member Caribbean Community (Caricom), told IPS that, “We were
put on warning that the access for these commodities would change.” Read the rest of this entry →

UNITED NATIONS, (May 19, 2009) IPS/GIN – The 130-member Group of
77 (G77), the largest single coalition of developing countries, is
heading for a political confrontation with Secretary-General Ban
Ki-moon over the re-appointment of the head of the U.N. Conference
on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva.

Ban has indicated to the G77 his “intention” to renew the term of
office of the existing head, Supachai Panitchpakdi of Thailand,
who completes a four-year stint as UNCTAD secretary-general, Aug.
31. Read the rest of this entry →