World Bank discovers the agriculture problem. . .
Welcome aboard . . .
For the first time in 25 years, the World Bank’s annual report on development puts agriculture and the productivity of small farmers at the heart of a global agenda to reduce poverty, according to a report in the New York Times. Three-quarters of the world’s poor still live in the countryside.
The report found, the NYT adds, that "if European countries, the United States and other wealthy nations removed all tariffs and subsidies for cotton, soybeans and other oilseeds — practices that reduce the world price of those commodities and make it harder for unsubsidized farmers in poor countries to compete — developing countries’ share of world trade in cotton and oilseeds would be more than 80 percent in 2015 instead of only about half".
Meanwhile, the international round of trade talks to tackle this problem have all but ground to a halt because politicians are too scared to stand up the powerful lobbies that want to hang on to these subsidies. Could someone please post a copy of the World Bank's report to the key negotiators . . .
