Market access (trade)

The United Nations Millennium Declaration and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) give considerable weight to promoting developing-country access to markets, especially to those of developed countries, in an open, rule-based, predictable and non-discriminatory international trading system. In addition, Goal 8 calls upon Member States to address the trade-related needs of developing countries through specific support measures. It further acknowledges the need to assist developing countries to respond more effectively to trading opportunities through domestic capacity-building in what has come to be called “Aid for Trade”. A number of steps have been taken towards implementing these targets, but there have also been a number of challenges, not least the shock to developing countries of the severity of the recent global economic and financial crisis.

Related Subject(s): Economic and Social Development