Negotiations at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) collapsed in Geneva at the end of July when Director-General, Pascal Lamy suspended all negotiations with no immediate prospect of them being resumed.
Tearfund sees the breakdown in the talks as a direct consequence of greed and selfishness of rich countries. Throughout the negotiations the EU and US in particular have aggressively demanded that developing countries open up their industrial and services markets, and have refused to make the necessary changes to stop the damage caused by their own agricultural subsidies regimes.
Developing countries, however, have maintained that they should not have to make concessions that will negatively affect their development prospects. The refusal of developed countries to take seriously the development mandate is a betrayal of millions of poor people across the world.
For Tearfund's full response click here.