“Trade must be reoriented as a tool to reduce inequality, to honor the right to development, and to empower developing countries.” With these words, Erica Levenson, speaking on behalf of Regions Refocus and the Civil Society Financing for Development (FfD) mechanism, addressed Member States at the Third Preparatory Committee Session (3rd PrepCom) for the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4). FfD4, which will take place in Seville, Spain, in late June 2025, aims to reassess past commitments and advocate for reforms in global financial and trade systems to support sustainable development.
Held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York from 10 to 14 February, 2025, the 3rd PrepCom focused on discussing the Zero Draft of the Outcome Document for FfD4. Regions Refocus was very active in shaping the Trade workstream’s revisions to the Zero Draft, and used these inputs as the basis of the statement.
The statement voiced the Trade workstream’s collective demands for FfD4 and criticized the current state of trade multilateralism, arguing that it has failed to meet its purpose as a driver of global development. Persistent trade deficits in the Global South, deteriorating terms of trade for primary commodity producers, and undemocratic trade multilateralism have harmed rather than helped developing countries. Today, the shift from multilateral to bilateral agreements and governance— driven by Global North countries— is a persistent threat to equitable global trade, rather than attempts by developing countries to adopt policies that support their domestic industries.
In addition, the statement urged for greater recognition of the human consequences of trade policies, emphasizing its disproportionate impact on women, girls, and marginalized communities. Predatory or insensitive trade policies drive countries deeper into debt and push women and girls further into the margins, including by exacerbating their burdens of unpaid care work, which current trade rules fail to recognize. What is needed now is a more inclusive and democratic approach to global trade governance, democratizing the WTO while adopting an ecosystem approach to the multilateral trading system that includes the UN General Assembly, ECOSOC, and UNCTAD’s Trade and Development Board.
Finally, the statement advocated for the institutionalization of special and differential treatment for developing countries beyond the WTO and called for a multilateral agreement under the aegis of the UN. Ultimately, trade must be a means of achieving climate and gender justice, rather than reinforcing existing inequalities.
