Increasing public participation in trade policy-making

Description

Increasing public participation in trade policy-making involves establishing transparent, accessible mechanisms for stakeholders—including civil society, businesses, and marginalized groups—to contribute to policy development. This strategy aims to remedy issues of limited accountability, lack of inclusivity, and public distrust by enabling informed input, open consultations, and feedback processes. The practical intent is to ensure trade policies reflect diverse interests, enhance legitimacy, and improve outcomes by integrating broader perspectives and addressing potential social and economic impacts.

Context

Public input in the formation, negotiation and implementation of trade policies is a means of fostering increased transparency in the light of country-specific conditions.

This strategy features in the framework of Agenda 21 as formulated at UNCED (Rio de Janeiro, 1992), now coordinated by the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development and implemented through national and local authorities.

Claim

In formulating an international strategy for the 1990s it would be prudent to assume that the third world will have to rely largely on its own resources to finance development. Foreign capital is likely to be meagre: domestic savings are also unlikely to be abundant. For these reasons alone it will be essential to make full use of the human resources available within the Third World itself. In the 1990s people should be placed firmly in the centre of development.