ISSUE 4/2006

Service sector associations representing thousands of firms from 13 African countries met with South African construction, transportation and financial services firms at a "Bridges Across Borders" event in Centurion, South Africa, in November 2006.

Turning aid recipients into consumers, and enabling them to take charge of the process, will help to make aid for trade more effective.

Fundación Export.ar, the national trade promotion organization (TPO) of Argentina, will host the rescheduled 6th World Conference of Trade Promotion Organizations in Buenos Aires, Argentina on 12-13 March 2007.

ITC's online question-and-answer (QandA) service for coffee producers and exporters had answered 100 questions by July 2006, after a year in operation. It is unique in the coffee industry. Five coffee trade experts based on three continents respond to questions, with backing from 20 experts in areas such as certification, contracts, hedging, shipping and quality issues.

Country ownership, a stronger voice for business and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and stronger institutional backing are essential lessons from a valuable process to coordinate trade assistance in the world's poorest countries.

A new guide helps small service firms meet international standards in quality management, in order to boost their competitiveness.

The views of ITC clients and donors are helping the new management team to shape the ITC of tomorrow, in a changing environment for trade development.

China is expanding its cooperation with ITC and with developing countries.China's Vice Minister of Commerce, Yi Xiaozhun, met with ITC's Executive Director, Patricia Francis, in November 2006 to explore cooperation to reduce poverty in rural China and support China's growing trade and investment ties to Africa.

© International Trade Centre, International Trade Forum - Issue 4/2006 Business Guide to Trade Remedies in Canada: Anti-dumping, countervailing and safeguards legislation, practices and procedures 181 pages, revised edition . Guide focusing on the Canadian trade remedy system. Provides an overview

The media has a duty to inform the public about trade matters that affect their lives. But with limited resources and too little interaction with trade bodies, Southern journalists have a hard time.

In development circles, trade is becoming accepted as a way to address poverty. Among the broader public, however, few make the link between trade and poverty reduction. Trade is seen as an "insider" or elite topic, not a subject of dinner conversation. But this is slowly shifting. NGOs are taking the trade debate to a broader public with flair, with fair trade groups and Oxfam in the forefront. Governments are bringing the views of business and NGOs into trade talks. Negotiators are making the case to enlist business leaders to advocate for free trade. Business students have even written to the Financial Times about it.

Trade Forum online readers can use a comments feature to send reactions to specific articles, contact authors or share information on related topics or events they are organizing.We set up the comments feature as part of our commitment to make the magazine a true "forum" for exchange, using the technological possibilities of the Internet to bring new voices into the debate.

The articles below can help developing countries that are considering strategies to influence trade negotiations. They make links between trade and development outcomes, outline how policymakers, business and other civil society groups can work together and analyse key issues such as trade barriers.

Trade topics rarely make for dinner table conversation or work-break chats by the water cooler.