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About IAPRAP
Criticism is mounting about the cost
and effectiveness of agricultural policies in
wealthy countries, and their implications for trade and international
relations. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
estimates that its members spent $US 318 billion on
agricultural support in 2002. The
negative effects on poor countries was a major issue at the
Earth Summit in Johannesburg in 2002 and the WTO Ministerial meeting in
Cancun in 2003.
A major barrier to the
reform of support policies is the belief that this would impose an unreasonable adjustment burden on
farmers and others employed in the food and agricultural sector.
We
need to determine the implications of policy reform and trade
liberalization for adjustment in the
sector, particularly given on-going negotiations on trade
liberalization in the World Trade Organization. It will be difficult to
achieve significant policy reform unless adjustment issues are addressed.
IAPRAP aims to provide
an international perspective on:
- the nature and magnitude of
the adjustments that would result from policy reform
- the ability of those involved
in food and agriculture to adapt
- the
potential contribution of existing or new programs in facilitating adjustment..
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