New Comhlámh Report on Southern Alternatives on Trade and Development

Tired of being told there’s no other way? There ARE alternatives!

In spite of the global crises, the EU insists that free trade and deregulation is the only way for economies to develop, and is pushing this damaging economic approach on its poor trading partners. This is despite of the fact that free trade has weakened the economy of many developing countries, and led to job losses, food insecurity, reduction of local industry and environmental degradation.

The good news is that people, movements and governments across the Global South think and act differently. Our new policy report "Southern Alternatives to EU Trade Policy", published by Comhlámh, WEED, and AITEC, presents the views of 8 activists and thinkers from the Global South, from the Philippines to Colombia, Zimbabwe to India in a series of 8 individual papers. Each paper details a vision of an alternative European trade policy, based on principles of sustainability, democracy, flexibility, human rights, transparency and poverty eradication.

It’s time for the EU to STOP and LISTEN to alternative proposals from governments and civil society in the Global South and to re-think EU trade policy.

The Report

The report focuses on alternative proposals on natural resources in 5 areas among the 8 papers: regional integration, agriculture, land, water and raw materials. The regional integration section looks at regional integration in the Global South as a key alternative approach of developing countries to strengthen and sustain their economic development. To learn more read about the many flourishing alternative approaches to trade across Africa, Asia and Latin America and watch our video of Southern Activists outlining their visions of trade justice.

To read a 4 page Briefing Paper on the report click here

Introduction:

Sets out some of the key issues and criticisms of current EU and global trade policy, summarises the reports and identifies key common principles that should underpin trade policies.

Click here to download the Introduction

Regional Integration

Alternatives to the EU’s Economic Partnership Agreements in Southern Africa: Towards an Alternative Trade Mandate for EU policy

Timothy Kondo

Alternative trade policies from Latin America: A response to the EU’s  free trade agenda

Enrique Daza

Agriculture

Agriculture, trade, food-sovereignty and agroecology: Proposals on alternatives to current EU trade policies

Henry Saragih and Mary Lou Malig

Land

Land justice, land reform and access: Proposals for land justice for poor families with particular emphasis on Zambia

Joseph Mbinji

Raw Materials

Alternatives on Resource Trade and Access to Information in Africa

Dr Claude Kabemba

Mining, People and Environment: The implications of the EU-India Free Trade Agreement

Transitions towards post-extractive societies in Latin America

Carlos Aguilar

Water Justice

Water Justice and Democracy: Alternatives to Commercialisation and Privatisation of Water in Asia

Mary Ann Manahan, Buenaventura B. Dargantes, and Cheryl Batistel      

If you would like to download all the individual papers together please click here

To read a 4 page Briefing Paper on the report click here

Check out this short video on why we are campaigning for Alternatives to EU trade policy

What Can You Do? 

To find out more about EU trade policy and how it is restricting development in Africa you can read our previous policy report - The New Resource Grab - to find out how why we are campaiging for alternatives to current EU trade policy.

For more info and how to get involved in the campaign for trade justice please click here.