August 28, 2007 | 1:30-5:00 pm
Partnership Center, 59 C. salvador St. Loyola Hts. QC, Philippines
Organized by: TAG, AsiaDHRRA, AFA with funding support from Agriterra and Oxfam

Rationale:
Since its inception 12 years ago, the World Trade Organization (WTO) (along with the current global trade system that it promotes) has miserably failed to deliver on its rosy predictions of economic growth and decreased poverty to the developing world. Loss of livelihoods, food insecurity, hunger and inequality between and within a specific country have worsened. These conditions are expected to worsen with the proliferation of WTO-type regional and bilateral free trade agreements. On the other hand, populist governments are winning national elections in Latin America and Europe, with the campaign promise of promoting economic sovereignty and protecting national interests.What is missing so far in the current international and national trade advocacies is the set of concrete demands for our vision of an alternative trade and economic policies to counter the neo-liberal pitch of economic liberalization as the only path to real development. We have to propose an alternative framework for multilateral trade rules that takes the interests of the people over and above any trade agreements.

This roundtable discussion hopes to bring together key advocates working on just and fair global agricultural trade. We would like to brainstorm on an alternative framework on trade even beyond WTO, both at national and regional levels.A research on Alternative Framework for Trade and Development is currently being undertaken by Trade Advocates Group (TAG). AsiaDHRRA and AFA, with the support of Oxfam International. One of the main objectives of this research is to come up with a set (or a series) of proposals for an alternative approach to the dominant trade and development framework (beyond WTO and ASEAN framework) at the national level and, if possible, at the regional level , focusing on agricultural/rural development. This roundtable discussion is one of the key research activities.Program Schedule:
1:00 – 1:30
Registration
1:30- 1:35
Introduction of Participants
1:35- 1:40
Welcome Remarks by Esther Penunia, Secretary General, AFA
1:40- 2:00
Presentation: Problems and impact of the existing trade particularly for rural people by Ping Peria, Commissioned Researcher
2:00- 2:30
Open Forum
2:30- 3:00
Presentation : Alternative Trade Models Across the World by Ping Peria
3:00-3:30
Open Forum
3:30- 3:45
Break
3:45- 4:15
Presentation: Proposed Framework and Approaches for Alternative Trade
4:15 – 5:10
Open Forum
5:10- 5:20
Synthesis and Way Forward by Marlene Ramirez, Secetary General, AsiaDHRRA
5:20- 5:30
Closing Remarks by Milo Tanchuling, Convenor, TAG
Esther Penunia
Moderator