Introducing reforms in global farm trade could result in an additional 142 billion US dollar annual income for developing countries and reduce poverty, the World Bank said in its latest publication.
Entitled “Responsible Growth For The New Millennium: Integrating Society, Ecology And The Economy”, the publication said it is imperative for rich countries to liberalize agricultural markets and phase out their subsidies if poor countries are to realize the gains of trade liberalization.
The economic welfare benefits of global agricultural trade reform for the developing world are estimated at 142 billion US dollar annually.
For the developing countries, the impact of agricultural trade liberalization by the industrial countries alone would be more than 50 percent of the official development assistance given to developing countries in 2001, the report said.
Kilde: www.worldbank.org
