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In a conference room on the shores of Lake Geneva, trade negotiators are drawing up plans that could eventually have a devastating impact on the global environment

The WTO organised a public symposium on 20-22 April on The WTO After 10 Years: Global Problems and Multilateral Solutions. It was attended by more than a thousand people.

Although development is supposed to be at the centre of the Doha WorkProgramme, in reality the development dimension has not been adequately implemented, or may be absent altogether, in the current Doha negotiations, according to several panelists at a session on development during the WTO's public symposium held in Geneva on 20-22 April.

At the session, a broad range of NGOs and trade union representativescriticised the framework on NAMA (non agriculture market access) and the proposals tabled at the negotiations.(M.Khor)

You may find this speech of interest, especially the comments on NAMA.(M. Waghorne)

A deputy ministers meeting meant to restart talks on a free trade agreement between the U.S. and the Southern African Customs Union were cancelled this week and efforts to reschedule the meeting were unsuccessful.

ActionAid International and Greenpeace International warned that governments are rushing to complete a trade deal without considering the impacts on poor communities and the environment.

A new proposal by India, Brazil and Argentina on NAMA presented at the NAMA Negotiating Group meeting on 25 April at the WTO received varyingdegrees of support from several developing countries, while being strongly criticised by the United States for not delivering sufficient market access. (M.Khor)

Philippine negotiators agreed to increase the minimum access volume (MAV) of rice for the seven-year extension of the special treatment for rice.