A Symposium on Global Trade and Multilateral Agreements: Gender, Social and Economic Dimensions was held at the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, Suva, Fiji, 12-14 February 2003. The facilitator was Mariama Williams of the International Gender and Trade Network, who represents DAWN at major trade meetings. Other DAWN participants at the symposium included Caribbean Regional Coordinator Keturah Babb, and DAWN Pacific's Yvonne Underhill-Sem, who spoke on Data Gaps and Diverse Economies. Those from IGTN included the Africa Coordinator, Mohau Pheko, Amelia Rokotuivuna of the Pacific, and Joel Lasam from the Women and Gender Institute, Manila.
The Women's Global Network for Reproductive Rights has produced its 15th Call to Women for Action on the theme, International Trade Agreements and Women's Access to Healthcare. The text explains the rather complicated arrangements of the tgrade agreements, especially TRIPS and GATS, and how they decrease women's access to medicine and health services all over the world. Bookles are available from the network, which has a website at www.wgnrr.org and an email address, office@wgnrr.nl
The German Parliament heard Mariama Williams, representing DAWN,the International Gender and Trade Network, and the Centre of Concern, speak on international trade and its particular impact on women on 18 February 2002. She addressed the Enquete Commission of the German Parliament on Globalisation of the World Economy: Challenges and Responses, at the session on issues of Globalisation and Gender. Background notes to her statement on the impact of international trade on women and women's concerns with trade policies and practices.
| Mariama Williams of DAWN Carribean wrote a discussion paper, Imbalances, Inequities and the WTO Mantra, for the fourth World Trade Organisation Ministerial Meeting in Doha, Qatar, 9-13 November. This was the second WTO discussion paper produced by DAWN. The virst was entitled Free Trade or Fair Trade? for distribution in Seattle during the WTO Third Ministerial in December 1999.
DAWN-Caribbean was a partner with the Centre of Concern (New York) in the Women's Strategic Planning Seminar on Trade in Grenada 8-11 December. The seminar was preceded by a nine-months-long electronic seminar, with virtual seminar rooms on services, agriculture, intellectual property rights, investment and electronic commerce. |
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These activities have resulted in a Gender and Trade Network.
Updates on Trade
DAWN post-Seattle updates in the area of gender, trade and economic justice.Gigi Francisco, DAWN South East Asia Regional Coordinator gives a view of the NGO Caucus for UNCTAD X.
UNCTAD X NGO StatementIt is no wonder that many older, and younger, feminists are giving up on male-led movements and retreating to small feminist collectives and women's organisations, DAWN South East Asia Regional Coordinator, Gigi Francisco, argues in her paper on Gender Dimensions and Dynamics in International Lobbying on Trade and Development. For feminists like those in the DAWN network, engaging, challenging and transforming the perspective of progressive movements can be a very difficult tightrope act.
Economic Justice Caucus
DAWN was part of the Women's International Caucus on Economic Justice that was established in April 2000 to bring women's analyses and advocacy about global financial and trade institutions into the Beijing+5 process, and one of the main drafters of the caucus's Stony Point Declasration. The WICEJ continues to function post-Beijing+5.
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