Making one of three inaugural statements for the Meeting -- the others were delivered by President Luiz Ignácio Lula da Silva of Brazil and President John Agyekum Kufuor of Ghana -- Mr. Ban said: “Remember, the forces that spread prosperity so widely in recent decades are the same forces that will carry us into the future -— trade and economic development.”

From left to right: President John Agyekum Kufuor of Ghana, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, President Luiz Ignácio Lula da Silva of Brazil during UNCTAD XII opening ceremony - Photo Credit: D. Anobil / ISD

The first job of any Government was to feed its own people, he continued, stressing the importance of resisting the impulse towards protectionism.  “International grain markets must remain open and functioning normally.  Beggar-thy-neighbour food wars cannot, in the long run, help anyone.”

He said that in order to make global trade serve development -- particularly the needs of the “bottom billion” -- equitable trade regimes must be negotiated in the Doha Round of trade talks, the wealthiest countries needed to rethink their agricultural subsidies and resource-rich countries needed assistance to gain more from the export of their raw material.