If you’ve been following the debate about Trade Development, then you’ve probably realized that it’s very important for your economy. Properly harnessing trade can boost the development of a country while creating absolute gains for its trading partners. Indeed, prominent economists have touted trade as a development tool. However, it’s not always so clear what is considered “proper trade.”
Effective trade capacity building should be a part of all donor efforts. Trade policy reform must be grounded in a country’s national development strategy and its poverty reduction objectives. The latter, in particular, is critical to a country’s trade development efforts. Without adequate trade policy development, it’s impossible to capture the full benefits of global trade. Without adequate trade policy reform, a country’s economy will remain abysmal and will continue to rely on aid from donor countries.
To make market access more equitable, countries must develop new forms of trade-related development co-operation. In addition, transnational legal harmonization is necessary. Human rights must be protected internationally, and trade-related development should be aligned with international labor principles. Transnational reforms will also strengthen the connections between trade and development in the multilateral trading system. This means that countries must embrace the new challenges of trade development if they want to become truly integrated into the global economy.