Agriculture, development and public health : Africa, a priority for momagri

Although development policies are the main objective of the Doha round, it cannot be said that the problems of development are central to WTO negotiations.

On the contrary. The Americans have a stronghold position, a kind of Maginot line of masked protectionism; the Europeans, behind a fragile facade of unity, are divided by the opportunities available in a rapidly-growing world market; the Developing Countries want to preserve their competitive assets which often “smack” of social and environmental dumping, and the Less Developed Countries end up being ignored in this onslaught of ardent declarations of faith.

WOAgri has plans to meet them: Pierre Pagesse, with three other leaders of the movement will meet Yayi Boni, the new President of Benin, as well as several agricultural ministers and professional leaders from Benin and Senegal from 2nd to 6th May 2006.

And even though everyone will discuss development policies, only WOAgri is able to propose an effective model that combines “agricultural regulation” and “development aid”.

Because, beyond economic stakes, so badly assessed by the World Bank model and also by what appears today as the Carnegie model, the problems of public health are a priority. Problems that are not taken into account in WTO negotiations!

Professors Luc Montagnier and Marc Gentilini, who have recently become members of WOAgri, express their concerns, for example, about the consequences on the health of the African population of insufficient food and an imbalanced diet that lead to weakened immune systems.

We must not forget that it is impossible for any country to enjoy sustainable economic development without growth in the agricultural sector!

It is therefore urgent to take the necessary steps towards a global approach where agriculture is not an adjustment variable of technocratic negotiation, but is one of the essential factors in the decisions which must be taken in order to fight against poverty and tackle humanitarian disasters.

This journey is the outcome of several previous contacts with Africa, which have shown that WOAgri and Africa have many converging ideas: this is why WOAgri is committed to undertaking joint actions, which will be disclosed when this visit is accomplished.

Press contact: Dominique Lasserre
+33 1 43 06 42 70
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World Organization for Agriculture
5, rue Saint-Germain l'Auxerrois - 75001 Paris
www.woagri.org