JP/7/BUNGA

JP/7/BUNGA

A free but fair multilateral trade for food security

Bungaran Saragih
Minister of Agriculture
Jakarta

The efforts of developing countries to propose special and
differential treatment on a limited number of strategic or
special products all the way to Cancun were driven by legitimate
concerns.

We developing countries must have sufficient flexibility in
deciding basic policies on people's livelihood, including food
security, for a multilateral trade agreement that is politically
accepted by all people.

Highly restrictive agreements would raise strong political
opposition that not only would could cause national political and
social instability, but also would accumulate negative public
sentiment against the World Trade Organization itself.

Perfect market assumptions never exist and the long-run
equilibrium keeps moving. Free trade and market mechanisms are
not sensitive enough to social justice, such as assuring the
right to food for all and poverty alleviation.

While we have plenty of food globally, there is widespread
food insecurity in some countries. Free trade is not sufficient
to assure equitable distribution, let alone economic access to
sufficient food to all people for all of the times. Food security
can only be assured through a managed market regime for which all
governments must have sufficient flexibility, particularly on the
policies of basic staples that are produced domestically.

If the right to food is a basic human right for which we all
bear some responsibility, then some strategic food staples should
be totally exempted from further tariff reductions and the
expansion of tariff rate quotas, as well as automatic access to a
special safeguard mechanism.

The above strategic basic staples are not only of the utmost
importance for national food security, but also for poverty
alleviation and overall economic development. Being historically
basic staples, they are the major crops.

If poverty alleviation is our common platform, we should also
agree to cooperate in promoting basic food staple production in
developing countries where poverty prevalence is the highest.

Most developing countries have limited capacity to provide
domestic support for their farmers due to budget constraints.
Policy flexibility on domestic support is the advantage developed
countries have. This is another reason that it is fair for
developing countries to have special and differential treatment
on market access.

We are very concerned by the inability of the WTO to reach an
agreed consensus in Cancun. We came to the meeting in Mexico with
great expectations that Cancun could pave a way for an agreed
consensus on the modalities reflecting Doha's development agenda,
which accommodated food security, poverty alleviation and rural
development.

I really appreciate the European Union's sensitivity and
willingness to cooperate in combating hunger and poverty. Our
common objective is beyond economics, it is to assure the basic
right for a healthy, decent and productive livelihood.

Regarding the policy targets, I would recommend using the
Millennium Development Goals as our common platform, which we all
have agreed to. The first of the eight goals is to eradicate
poverty and hunger. What we need now is how to get an agreement
in pursuing the goals through a comprehensive action plan.

In implementing this objective, in light of current global
trade situations and to pursue sustainable agricultural
development, Indonesia implements a policy of promotion and
protection. We should support the majority of small farmers
facing unfair trade in the international market.

The promotion of agricultural development is aimed at
increasing the capacity of domestic agriculture with subsequent
goals, higher efficiency and productivity. The efforts to promote
agricultural development is done by providing public
infrastructure, easier access to financial sources, promoting and
providing better know-how and technologies, and enhancing the
capacity of human resources.

We have seen the significant role of countries within the
European Union in promoting development and agricultural trade
with Indonesia and other developing countries.

Most developing countries have long rooted historical
relationships with some member countries of the European Union.
The European Union is one of the largest economic entities in the
world, with a large capacity to provide support in our common
efforts to assure freedom from hunger and freedom from living
destitution for all people.

Although it may not be easy, I am optimistic we shall win the
war against hunger and poverty.

The above was abridged from the writer's presentation at an
informal meeting of European Union agricultural ministers in
Taormina, southern Italy, on Sept. 22.