Editing Common Agricultural Policy (section)

===Anti-development===
Many developing countries are highly dependent on agriculture. The [[FAO]] finds that agriculture provides for the livelihood of 70% of the world's poorest people. As such, the subsidies in the CAP are charged with preventing [[developing countries]] from exporting agricultural produce to the EU on a level playing field. The [[WTO]] [[Doha Development Round]], which intended to increase global development, has stalled due to the developed countries' refusal to remove agricultural subsidies.

A review of post-2013 proposal by Prof. Alan Matthews underlines the lack of ambition in tackling the issue. "This CAP reform was not intended to address the trade barriers used to keep some [[EU market]] prices higher than world market levels. The EU has reduced the effect of these barriers for a number of developing countries through extending the scope of preferential access under various [[trade agreement]]s, and a further reduction is being negotiated in the WTO Doha Round. Nonetheless, developing countries will be disappointed that the opportunity was not taken in this reform to set a final date for the ending of export subsidies. A more ambitious CAP reform, in which the targeting of direct payments was pursued more insistently and coupled payments were phased out, would also have a greater effect in removing the remaining distortions caused by the CAP to world markets."<ref name="Matthews">{{cite web |url=http://www.ictsd.org/themes/agriculture/research/post-2013-eu-common-agricultural-policy-trade-and-development-a-review |title=Post-2013 EU Common Agricultural Policy, Trade and Development. A Review of Legislative Proposals |first=Alan |last=Matthews | publisher= ICTSD |date= October 2011}}</ref> In another study, Prof. Matthews showed how linking EU farm subsidies to goals such as environmental protection could help farmers in poor countries, although much depends on the size of the payments and how they are made.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ictsd.org/i/publications/97803/ |title=How Might the EU's Common Agricultural Policy Affect Trade and Development After 2013? |first=Alan |last=Matthews |publisher= ICTSD |date= December 2010}}</ref>

At the same time, however, the EU remains the world's biggest importer of farm products from developing countries. On average, over the period 2006–2008, the EU has imported €53&nbsp;billion worth of goods. This is more than the US, Japan, Canada, Australia and New Zealand combined.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/external/dev/publi/overview/text_en.pdf |title=The EU is the world's biggest importer of farm products |publisher=European Commission |access-date=23 April 2011}}</ref> This is further encouraged by a preferential [[market access]] agreement for products from developing countries. Today, around 71% of the EU's agricultural imports originate from developing countries. The '[[Everything but Arms]]' program,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ec.europa.eu/trade/wider-agenda/development/generalised-system-of-preferences/everything-but-arms/ |title=Generalised System of Preferences: Everything But Arms |publisher=European Commission |access-date=23 April 2011}}</ref> gives the world's 49 least-developed countries duty-free and quota-free access to the EU market. Under the Economic Partnership Agreements, countries from the African, Caribbean and Pacific group enjoy full duty-free and quota free access.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ec.europa.eu/trade/wider-agenda/development/economic-partnerships/ |title=Economic Partnership Agreements between the EU and African, Caribbean and Pacific group of countries |publisher=European Commission |access-date=23 April 2011}}</ref>