The gender potential of special products and special safeguard mechanism

Incorporating gender considerations for the designation of special products in WTO agriculture negotiations

By: Hernandez, MP
Produced by: International Gender and Trade Network (IGTN) 2005

This paper puts forward some reflections and recommendations in regard to the current situation of women in agriculture and the need to integrate gender-sensitive trade policies in negotiating processes in order to ease negative impacts of trade liberalisation, particularly for small farmers and rural poor, women being a significant percentage within those groups.
In particular, the paper focuses on the potential of paragraphs 41 and 42 of the Annex of the July Framework on Special Products (SPs) and Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM), which give developing countries the opportunity to protect certain crops better by using appropriate tariffs.