Cancun - African Media Review
The Africa Trade Network (ATN) is providing an overview of the Cancun Ministerial Conference from various news sources throughout the African Continent.

See the latest news stories and analysis from the African Media below

The Cancún talks from the inside
Rosalea Hamilton | 9/14/2003
FINALLY, after a plethora of meetings and discussions, missed deadlines and major differences between member states of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the Fifth Ministerial Conference is now a reality.

Trade Ministers Unfazed by Criticism as Meet Begins
Diego Cevallos, IPS | 9/10/2003
The maxim that trade foments development came under fire Wednesday at the inauguration of the World Trade Organisation's Fifth Ministerial Conference, with criticisms from the likes of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, and from activists who burst onto the scene shouting ”Shame!”

African Farmers Hope They Will be Taken Seriously This Time
Brahima Ouedraogo, IPS | 9/10/2003
Cotton farmers in Burkina Faso have sent a 100,000-signature petition, through their delegation, to the World Trade Organisation summit, which kicked off in Cancun, Mexico this week.

Trade: Stockholm syndrome very much alive at WTO
Chakravarthi Raghavan, Geneva | 9/3/2003
At a United Nations conference hall in Geneva on Wednesday, three African envoys and a former envoy from a Latin American Caribbean country, spoke about the pressures from the majors at the WTO and in the trade negotiations and the helplessness of their countries and themselves in having to yield or remain silent.

WTO-CANCUN: Liberalisation Hurts Nigeria's Textile Industry
Toye Olori, (IPS) Lagos | 9/4/2003
Cheap and sub-standard fabrics are flooding Nigeria, driving textile companies out of business, thanks to the WTO liberalisation policy.

Diplomat Nearly Axed Over Position On USA
John Kakande And Henry Mukasa, New Vision (Kampala | 8/27/2003
A Senior Ugandan diplomat in Geneva, ambassador Nathan Irumba, nearly lost his job at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) talks for taking a position inimical to the United States of America, Parliament learnt yesterday.

Matters Come to a Head On Agricultural Subsidies
Carli Lourens, Business Day (Johannesburg) | 9/2/2003


UN, Oxfam Back Poor On Subsidies Reduction
Mark Agutu, The Nation (Nairobi) | 9/4/2003
The most important factor in alleviating poverty will be the phasing out of agricultural subsidies in developed nations, a vital issue to be discussed at next week's WTO meeting, according to a UN representative.

World Trade Talks Set to Fail, Says Erwin
By John Fraser, Business Day (Johannesburg) | 8/20/2003
Minister dashes hopes of fairer trade deal for SA and other poorer nations

Trade Reform for Economic Growth, Poverty Reduction
By Ademola Oyejide, This Day (Lagos) | 8/13/2003
Widespread poverty is clearly the major challenge for low-income developing countries. It is characterised not only by insufficient incomes, but also by limited access to land and capital, poor health and education, and the scarcity of economic and social infrastructure.

Guess Who Comes Out On Top At Cancun? (and What to Do About It)
By Gichinga Ndirangu, The East African (Nairobi) | 8/19/2003
The World Trade Organisation meeting in Cancun, Mexico, this September will, in keeping with tradition, be a roll-call of the world's trade ministers.