Sign up to E-News
WTO Ministerials: Cancun 2003
5th Ministerial Meeting, Mexico, 10-14 September 2003
The 5th Ministerial Meeting in Cancun came to a dramatic end without agreement on 14 September 2003, leaving negotiations in a deadlock. On the agenda were a range of issues agreed upon at the 2001 Ministerial Meeting in Doha, including agriculture, services, e-commerce and the environment. The European Union had continued to push for an expansion of the WTO's powers to include new issues (investment, competition policy, government procurement and trade facilitation), until the eleventh hour, insisting that these issues get dealt with first before the development issues that should have been at the top of the agenda.
Protesting over Cancun. 13 September 2003. Photo by Andrea Semplici.
Despite the Ministerial Meeting's abrupt ending, the outcome is not a negative one. It was the only option for the developing countries, as no deal is better than a bad deal at this stage. Developing countries refused to be pushed into a corner and have proven they are a force to be reckoned with at the WTO negotiating table.
Basic Facts:
WDM's Diary in Cancun:
- Barry Coates diary (12/09/03)
- Clare Joy diary (12/09/03)
- Ann McKechin MP diary (08-10/09/03)
- Report by the BBC on WDM's Cancun analysis
Cancun Analysis and Releases:
EU behaving like 'Santa in reverse' at WTO
15 December 2003
Press release
EU trade ministers meeting
28 November 2003
Press release
Hewitt starts to learn the lesson of Cancun collapse
18 September 2003
Press release
TWN analysis of Cancun collapse
16 September 2003
Third World Network
EU Member states must take responsibility for collapse
14 September 2003
Trade talks reach crunch point as developing countries stand firm
14 September 2003
Developing countries signal continued strong opposition to new issues
12 September 2003
Who chose the Friends of the Chair?
11 September 2003
Cancun number-crunching undermines claims of WTO democracy
10 September 2003
Historic eve of summit move by India, Brazil, China signals new defiant mood
10 September 2003
No deal in Cancun is better than a bad deal for the world's poor
10 September 2003
Campaigners demand democracy overhaul of WTO
02 September 2003
Blair and Hewitt accused of turning trade policy into 'Corporate Circus'
22 August 2003
Press Release
African countries launch counter-attack to EU trade plans at WTO
15 August 2003
African resistance deepens over Cancun
African parliamentarians urged to take a stand on Africa's negotiating position at Cancun.
06 August 2003
MPs trash Government backing for new free trade agreements
Campaigners 'thrilled' by committee call for UK to drop support for plans to expand WTO.
14 July 2003
Press Release
WDM says 'cut the corporations out of trade negotiations'
04 July 2003
Press Release
EU trade ministers told to drop WTO expansion plans
04 July 2003
Press Release
Shoddy CAP deal increases chance of Cancun collapse
WDM comments on the deal on reform of the Common Agricultural Policy reached today by EU agriculture ministers.
26 June 2003
Press release
Print this page
