§ 16. Mrs. Betty WilliamsTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what plans she has to promote fairer terms of trade for developing countries. [29139]
§ Clare ShortThe Government believe that trade has a vital role to play in helping developing countries to boost their economic growth and generate the resources necessary for reducing poverty. We have made important steps towards achieving these objectives, not least of which was the development agenda agreed at the Doha Ministerial Conference. This is, however, only the beginning of negotiations. To make it a real development round we will work to ensure that these commitments become a reality. We are therefore working with the Department for Trade and Industry, the European Union, the WTO and developing countries to assist them in forming clear and pro-development negotiating positions.
The UK Government are also at the forefront of efforts to enhance developing countries' capacity to trade. In the White Paper on Globalisation we undertook to double our commitment over the next three years. We have recently pledged a £20 million package of trade related capacity building which will take us towards this goal.