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Oxfam's Tim Connor leading an Oxfam action in Sydney against US subsidies and their affect on African cotton farmers. Photo: Matthew Vasilescu/OxfamAUS
Trade generates incredible wealth and links the lives of everyone on the planet. Yet millions of people in poor countries are losing out. Why? Because the rules controlling trade heavily favour rich nations that set the rules.
Something’s very wrong with world trade. Oxfam’s committed to putting it right.
Why campaign on trade?
- Rich countries spend billions of dollars each year subsidising their larger producers. Their subsidised produce is then dumped on developing countries at artificially low prices. This means poor farmers can’t compete – or make a living
- If Africa, Asia and Latin America increased their share of world exports by just one percent, they would earn enough money to lift 128 million people out of poverty
Instead of robbing half the world of a proper living, trade could help millions of poor farmers and workers in developing countries beat poverty, and change their lives for good.
But this will not happen unless countries change the way they trade. So we’re campaigning hard to make sure they do.
How we're doing it
Oxfam’s Make Trade Fair campaign presses decision-makers and governments for new trade rules – fair rules to make a real and positive difference in the fight against poverty.
Building up pressure means showing enough people care. So we have a global petition for justice in trade – Big Noise – which helps us to lobby for change (sign the Big Noise petition here).
We’re also working with other campaigning organisations to draw attention to the tremendous potential of fair trade to reduce global poverty.
Success
Make Trade Fair has generated amazing publicity, mobilising public opinion on rigged trade rules around the world.
More than 20 million people have signed the Big Noise petition so far. This support, from people like you around the world, has underpinned our lobbying of the World Trade Organization (WTO) – the body that sets trade rules.
What now
Oxfam will continue to work with the world's poorest people wherever we see unfair trade rules harming the ability of poor people to trade their way out of poverty.
There is still much to be done – and there is a new threat. While poor countries have so far managed to work together during trade talks at the WTO, their solidarity is now being undermined by increasing pressure from rich countries – the US, European Union and Australia for instance – which are trying to negotiate deals country by country or in much smaller groups. Of particular concern are the current negotiations between small island states of the South Pacific and the European Union and their forthcoming negotiations with Australia and New Zealand.
Make Trade Fair is working to ensure these new deals are fair for poor countries.