Comercio y Pobreza en Latino América (COPLA) is a 2-year project funded by the UK Department for International Development. It explores the linkages between trade, poverty and social exclusion. Although there is an active debate in the region on the relationship between trade liberalisation on poverty, little attention has been paid to the different impacts on marginalised groups, whether they be women, youth, indigenous minorities or the rural poor. COPLA’s starting point is that it is crucial to engage critically with these debates and to promote more nuanced thinking about who will and will not be the ‘winners’ and ‘losers’ of trade liberalisation. Moreover, there is also a need to promote dialogue on compensatory and complementary policies that could mitigate against the potentially negative impacts of liberalisation for marginalised social groups and help to harness new market opportunities for the poor. Given that a large number of trade agreements have now been signed, it is important to shift the terms of the debate from supporting or opposing trade reforms, to thinking about the types of policy instruments that will maximise the pro-poor potential of trade liberalisation.

This project goes beyond research. Improving understanding of the relationship between research-informed evidence, policy making processes and practice, and sharing this new knowledge is a central part of our approach. Accordingly COPLA aims to promote policy dialogue among multiple stakeholders -- national ministries (economic and social), legislators, civil society, the private sector, the media and regional and international agencies. Based on a diagnosis of the trade and trade-related policy-making environment it also seeks to strengthen the capacities of these actors to engage in evidence-informed debates.

Who is involved?
Overseas Development Institute (ODI), UK
Consorcio de Investigación Económica y Social (CIES), Peru
Centro de Implementación de Políticas Públicas para la Equidad y el Crecimiento (CIPPEC), Argentina
Grupo Nacional de Trabajo para la Participación (GNTP), Bolivia
Research and Development Institute Nitlapán of the Central American University (Nitlapán), Nicaragua
La Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales (FLACSO), Argentina

Why trade and poverty?
Latin America is a region with significant levels of persistent poverty and high inequality. Around 57 million people continue to suffer extreme poverty and some 130 million have incomes below US$2 per day.

Larger trade flows offer the opportunity to increase the rate of poverty reduction directly, through increased job opportunities and reduced cost of consumption, and indirectly, by accelerating growth. However, in Latin America, increased international trade flows, brought about by liberalisation, have yet to contribute significantly to faster growth and poverty reduction.

Experts increasingly recognise that for the poor to benefit from trade liberalisation, complementary social and economic policies linked to trade are needed to help the poor take advantage of new opportunities, and to protect and help the most vulnerable. But although there is a wealth of information on trade and poverty, it is spread around many organisations and people. COPLA aims to be a first-stop for information on the issues. Our website will provide links to other research on trade, poverty and social exclusion as well as present new country-specific evidence about, and results from, our own programme.

How well stakeholders and policymakers are able to organise themselves to engage in constructive, evidence-based dialogue on appropriate policy measures is also key. Communications and capacity building will therefore be central components of this project.

What activities will the project undertake?
COPLA will seek to support the adoption of policies that promote the reduction of poverty and inequality through trade and trade-related policies. We will combine research and communication to improve understanding of how pro-poor trade considerations can inform trade and trade-related policies, and how discussions on trade, poverty and social exclusion issues can be made more evidence based, inclusive, and constructive. Sharing experiences and lessons will be a central part of the project.

How do I find out about COPLA activities?
Visit the project website (www.COP-LA.net) for trade and poverty resources from COPLA and from other projects and organisations. Resources are free to access. Sign up as a member to receive a project e-update, contribute to discussions and be able to comment on resources.

What do we hope to achieve?
By supporting the integration of pro-poor perspectives into trade and related policies, the programme will facilitate opportunities to reduce poverty through trade, benefiting potentially the 130 million people that currently live in poverty in the region.