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	US Cotton subsidies cost West Africa Millions by Haidir Rizvi OneWorld.net   June 26, 2007   More than 1 million children in West Africa would not go to bed hungry if Washington stopped providing subsidies to America’s cotton growers, according to a study released Thursday by an influential development organization.   Researchers affiliated with Oxfam International say their findings also show that removing subsidies for cotton growers in the United States could enable some 2 million children in West Africa to get at least a basic education.   “Previous studies my colleagues and I have done clearly show the trade distorting effects of U.S. cotton subsidies by lowering the world price of cotton,” said Daniel Sumner, the report’s lead author and director of the University of California Agricultural Issues Center.   “But these new numbers show that even a modest increase in the world price of cotton that only partly reaches the farmer could greatly improve the daily lives of some of the world’s poorest people,” he added in a statement.   According to Oxfam’s study, a typical cotton producing household in West Africa has about 10 family members, an average life expectancy of about 48 years, and an adult literacy rate of less than 25 percent.   The report’s findings suggest that cotton is often the only source of cash for peasant families who live on less than $1 a day per person. Added income from increased cotton prices could make a world of difference.   The study found that with a complete removal of U.S. cotton subsidies, the world price of cotton would increase by at least 6 to 14 percent; prices that West African farmers would receive for their cotton would increase by 5 to 12 percent, and their household income would increase by 2.3 to 5.7 percent.   This increase, according to Oxfam, would mean enough money available to cover all the health care costs of four to ten individuals for an entire year, or schooling costs for one to ten children, or a one-year supply of food for one or two children.   “This data clearly exposes the hypocrisy of our policies, giving international aid with one hand and taking with the other through unfair trade rules,” said Raymond C. Offenheiser, president of Oxfam’s United States chapter.   “With Congress looking at the Farm Bill right now, and renewed interest in the Doha round [of world trade negotiations], this study shows how reform could help millions of poor people who are ready to lift themselves out of poverty,” he added.   The World Trade Organization’s (WTO) so-called Doha round of negotiations, which began in November 2001, have yet to be concluded. Proponents of the Doha round say its agenda is to make trade rules fairer. Critics have repeatedly charged that the round would expand a system of trade rules that would hinder development in poor countries.   Developing countries say that rich countries’ policy of providing farm subsidies diminishes the value of their agricultural products in the world market, which violates the principle of fairness in trade.   Analysts say because U.S. farmers get more federal subsidies with each additional bushel they produce, they are encouraged to overproduce and dump their surplus on the international market, resulting in low prices that poor farmers in developing countries cannot meet.   Critics say this situation is not only unfair, but also illegal under WTO rules. In a case brought by Brazil, a WTO dispute panel found in 2004 that $3.2 billion in annual cotton subsidies and $1.6 billion in export credits paid by the United States in cotton and other commodities went against international trade rules.   While the United States acted to remove export subsidies as a result of the case, not much movement has taken place to reduce other trade-distorting cotton subsidies, leaving the United States vulnerable to possible retaliation by Brazil.   Oxfam warned that the United States risks damage to its image and interests if no immediate action was taken to remove the subsidies program.   “It would send a signal to our trading partners that the U.S. is not serious about a new global trade agreement,” said Offenheiser. “Reforming the Farm Bill provides us with the opportunity to help more American farmers, reduce the harm of trade distorting subsidies for poor farmers overseas, and put the U.S. in a stronger position in future international trade negotiations.”
	Companies valuing social factors better equipped to lead markets, expert tells UN by UN News   6 July 2007   Business leaders at UN summit adopt declaration on responsible practices.   Hundreds of business leaders attending a United Nations meeting in Geneva today pledged to comply with labour, human rights, environmental and anti-corruption standards in a wide-ranging declaration on making globalization more beneficial to the world’s people.   At the second UN Global Compact Leaders Summit, top executives of corporations adopted the 21-point Geneva Declaration, which spells out concrete actions for business, governments and UN Global Compact participants.   Some 4,000 organizations from 116 countries – among them trade unions, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and some 3,100 businesses – have so far subscribed to the Global Compact, pledging to observe ten universal principles related to human rights, labour rights, the environment and the struggle against corruption.   The Geneva Declaration calls for urgent action. “Poverty, income inequality, protectionism and the absence of decent work opportunities pose serious threats to world peace and markets,” it says.   “Business, as a key agent of globalization, can be an enormous force for good,” participants declared, adding that companies, by committing themselves to corporate citizenship, can create and deliver value in the widest possible terms. Globalization can thus act as an accelerator for spreading universal principles, creating a values-oriented competition for a “race to the top.”   Summing up the outcome of the meeting, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told participants that their reports showed how market leadership and sustainability leadership go hand-in-hand. “This will help us build the supportive measures needed to create more sustainable markets. And it will ultimately help improve the lives of many people around the world,” he said.   Mr. Ban called on business leaders to ensure that the Global Compact is fully carried out within their companies and through their suppliers and partners.   Civil society and labour leaders should “remain vigilant and engaged and continue to hold businesses accountable for their commitments,” said the Secretary-General. He called on governments to support the Global Compact as a unique public-private partnership initiative. And he called on the UN to integrate the Global Compact principles throughout the Organization.   “Together, through the Geneva Declaration, we have deepened our collective commitment to embedding universal values in economies and markets,” Mr. Ban said. “Let us each do our share to give practical meaning to the Declaration.”   June 2007   Companies that effectively manage environmental, social and governance factors may be better equipped to achieve and retain market leadership, the managing director of Goldman Sachs International said today at the United Nations.   Presenting his company’s first environmental, social and governance investment framework, Goldman Sachs International Managing Director Anthony Ling told a press briefing in New York that these factors had become prominent because of the “changing competitive landscape for industry”. Consumers were taking into account these factors “as never before,” the Internet had ushered in an era of unprecedented communication and more than 3,000 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) were registered with the UN. This had “increased the need for transparency” for corporations, Mr. Ling said.   A weak performance in the environmental, social, and governance area means “you are going to lose competitive advantage, and this will impact on your stock performance,” and more investors were taking into account such factors when picking up stocks.   Eco-friendly companies such as recycling and nutritional foods were doing particularly well, and the alternative energy industry had shown a five-fold growth in the last three years, which resulted in significant rises in companies’ stocks.   As part of its research framework, the Goldman Sachs team used the principles of the UN Global Compact, which engages companies worldwide to subscribe to 10 universal principles on human rights, labour rights, the environment and the fight against corruption. More than 3,100 businesses from at least 120 countries have so far subscribed to the Global Compact, making it the world’s largest voluntary corporate citizenship initiative.   Global Compact Executive Director Georg Kell said the engagement and responsibility of Compact subscribers was increasingly paying off.   The Global Compact seeks to make global markets more stable through companies adopting the 10 principles as a benchmark for action, Mr. Kell stressed. “As business goes global, the need to manage risks is increasingly understood. Our goal is to make global markets more stable and more inclusive.”   July 2007   Corporate Human Rights Program described as inadequate, by Nicole Olsen. (OneWorld)   On July 5-6 world leaders and global business chiefs attended the second UN Global Compact Summit in Geneva to assess progress on the seven-year-old voluntary initiative aimed at promoting human rights standards for corporate operations.   More than 3,000 corporations worldwide, including Anglo American, Coca-Cola, Ericsson, Fuji Xerox, and Tata Steel have joined the Global Compact since its launch in 2000 as a way to encourage businesses to adopt sustainable and socially responsible policies. Yet despite the companies" rhetoric, they have been accused by the international humanitarian group ActionAid of "trampling over the lives of thousands of poor people." The organization says the Compact is failing to prevent many human rights violations.   "The UN"s Global Compact is flawed because it"s entirely voluntary," said ActionAid"s head of trade. "What"s needed are legally binding regulations to control corporate activities with respect to human rights."   The Coca-Cola company -- which has been accused by communities in India and Mexico of draining precious water resources, as well as polluting the land and water -- delivered a keynote address at the Leaders" Summit.   This, the India Resource Center said, has "seriously undermined the credibility and effectiveness of the Global Compact" and "made a mockery of corporate social responsibility."   Another key figure at the summit and member of the UN"s Advisory Council for the Global Compact is the chairman of the mining company Anglo American, Sir Mark Moody-Stuart.   According to research carried out by ActionAid, however, Anglo American subsidiary AngloGold Ashanti is allegedly causing rivers and streams to be polluted and farmers to lose their livelihoods. The company is also accused of human rights violations against locals in its operating city of Obuasi, Ghana.   Oxfam America calls gold mining "one of the dirtiest businesses in the world," noting that the production of one gold ring generates 20 tons of mine waste. Their "No Dirty Gold" campaign is aimed at educating consumers and pressuring companies like Anglo American.   ActionAid joined the India Resource Center in urging the UN to agree on serious global human rights standards to which all companies would be held accountable. Visit the related web page
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