The Hindu Business Line : African cotton growers seek ban on subsidised exports

It is in this background that one must view the latest salvo fired by African cotton growers. The argument goes something like this: if athletes who use performance enhancing drugs are banned from competition, why not the same in agriculture? It is a telling analogy and argument none perhaps thought of before.

State subsidies for agricultural production and exports are very similar to performance enhancement drugs taken by obsessed sportsmen out to win a competition at any cost.

If such sportspersons can be banned in order to create a level playing field for all, why not apply the same logic to agricultural trade and prevent producers who receive subsidies from competing?

This was a major argument put forward by African cotton growers at a conference on trade and development aspects of cotton in the Doha Round held recently in Accra Ghana as a component of the African Cotton Association meeting.

Depressed Prices

It is believed that about 25,000 cotton growers in US together receive as much as $3-4 billion a year as subsidy. The US is the world's second largest producer and topmost exporter of cotton.

On the other hand, nearly 20 million cotton growers across Africa receive little income or price support.

Depressed global cotton prices as a result of major origins like the US dumping cotton on to the world market compromises the livelihood of poor African growers by artificially reducing incomes, it is alleged.

Africans are aware that when the Doha Round was launched in 2001, cotton was not included as a separate item for discussion.

Doha Round

However, since the introduction in April 2003 of the Sectoral Initiative on Cotton by the Cotton-4 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, and Mali, cotton has achieved prominence within the Doha Round.

For Africans, the WTO is cotton and cotton is the WTO.

Cotton is viewed as a test of the legitimacy of the Doha Round as a development round, the Washington-based International Cotton Advisory Committee said.

The meeting also concluded that the Doha Round must without fail address the distortions in cotton caused by domestic support and that the sectoral initiative was within the rules of the WTO.

While recognising the need to remain competitive, African Governments would refuse to be worn down in the Doha Round, they asserted.

Indeed, for India, there are lessons to be drawn from Africa's anguished outbursts.

If the developments of last three years are any guide, in the medium term (next 5 years), India is likely to continue to be a major producer and exporter of cotton.

India's export earnings have the potential to increase if an appropriate export strategy to maximise the export prices is adopted. This will benefit growers.

At the same time, international pressure to reduce farm support to cotton should be kept up so that producer prices remain buoyant.

Countries that import highly subsidised and artificially low-priced cotton should be encouraged to impose anti-subsidy duty.

In India's own self interest, African cotton growers deserve full-throated Indian support.

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