Background
International trade could reduce poverty in developing countries. But current trade agreements threaten to actually worsen conditions for poor people.
Proposed US free trade agreements with countries in Latin America, Africa, and Asia could prove disastrous for small-scale farmers, indigenous people, and women. These agreements are typically written to benefit industrialized farms and pharmaceutical corporations, with little consideration given to developing countries. Meanwhile, many poor people in these countries depend on agriculture for their livelihoods as well as affordable medicines to treat illnesses like HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis.
In the western hemisphere, poverty is far-reaching. Of the 123 million farmers in Latin America and the Caribbean, 77 million—almost 64 percent—live in poverty. Forty-seven million of that number live in extreme poverty.
In countries such as South Africa and Thailand, more than 30 percent of the population lives on less than $2 a day. And, according to the United Nations, though Sub-Saharan Africa has just over 10 percent of the world's population, it is home to more than 60 percent of all people living with HIV—25.8 million.
We must rewrite trade and investment rules if we want to help poor people make a decent living, gain access to affordable healthcare, and enjoy basic human rights.
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US-Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement