UNA-UK AND TRADE JUSTICE
Trade justice is an essential part of achieving the UN Millennium Development Goals. The eighth MDG calls for a global partnership for development that includes "an open, rule-based, predictable, nondiscriminatory trading and financial system" and addresses "the special needs of the Least Developed Countries (including tariff-and quota-free access for Least Developed Countries' exports)"

UNA-UK is actively involved in promoting trade justice through its support of the Trade Justice Movement and the trade justice lobby of Parliament, which took place on 2 November 2005. To read more about the results of the lobby, please click here.

UNA-UK HOSTED ARTICLES

FAIR TRADE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

What is Fair Trade?
Organisations engaged in fair trade relations operate on the basis of the following principles: fair wages, cooperative workplaces, environmental sustainability, financial and technical support, respect for cultural identity, and public accountability

Why Fair Trade?
In the prevailing global trade regime the prices for products like coffee, tea and cocoa have not risen over the last 40 years. The market price for commodities often drops below the cost of producing them. Also, producers in the South are heavily reliant on often exploitative middlemen so their products can reach international markets.

How does Fair Trade work?
Importers and distributors of fair trade products pay the producers a price that covers the cost of living and sustainable production. They also pay a premium that producers can invest back into the community or business development. Fair trade also means that importers and disrtibutors enter long term contracts with producers in order to guarantee a stable income and healthier local economies. Fair trade producers receive information on market trends and contacts throught the international marketplace, in order to by-pass middlemen.

Free trade verus Fair Trade
The fundamental basis of free trade is that all parties should be unrestricted to buy and sell commodities. Proponents of free trade argue that growth, propserity and the reduction of poverty can be achieved by opening markets and reducing subsidies. But rich countries that promote free trade often implement domestic subisides, tariffs and non-tariff barriers, which give these countries unfair advantage by articially lowering prices of domesticly produced commodities and thus undermining fair competition. Also the purported correlation between free trade and poverty reduction is contested. Thus, fair trade policies ensure a level of protection for producers so they can benefit from trade.

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